A Garden by Acclaimed Landscape Designer Piet Oudolf

 

The search for something beautiful to photograph invariably takes me to the Toronto Botanical Garden each fall. 

The Entry Walk Garden by renowned Dutch landscape designer Piet Oudolf is always at its best at this time of year. No matter how many times I visit, it never fails to inspire me.

In the past, I was never a fan of the contemporary landscape design that I found in large gardens and public spaces. It seemed to rely too much on elaborate hardscaping and modern art pieces for its drama. Plants always seemed relegated to a supporting role.

Part of Piet Oudolf's genius has been to shift the focus back on the plants themselves. A proponent of the naturalistic movement in landscape design, Oudolf is known for incorporating native plants and grasses into gardens reminiscent of wildflower meadows.

The Entry Walk at the Toronto Botanical Garden was Oudolf's first project in Canada.

The commission was not without its challenges. The Entry Walk is not a big space- you can walk its length in a manner of minutes.  Located opposite the main parking lot, it's not ideally situated either.

But the tall grasses and the huge stands of Joe Pye Weed Oudolf has incorporated in the Entry Walk's design have a way of enclosing the space, and despite its awkward location, you feel as though you are in a world apart when you are in the garden.

Let's take a look: 

As you will see in my pictures, a striking silhouette is key consideration in Oudolf's plant selection.

Joe Pye Weed, Eupatorium purp. maculatum: Joe Pye Weed can grow to incredible heights and has large rose flower heads in late summer/early autumn. Tough it likes moist or wet, boggy conditions, it still manages to grow well in the Entry Walk's somewhat dryer soil. Full sun or light shade. Height: 210-300 cm (82-117 inches), Spread: 90-120 cm (40-50 inches). Hardy USDA Zones: 3-9 (Note: If you have a smaller garden, you may want to consider Baby Joe Pye Weed, Eupatorium dubium 'Baby Joe'.)

A Monarch Butterfly visiting a Joe Pye Weed flower.

There are no identification tags in this part of the garden, but I feel pretty certain this is Meadow Blazing Star or Liatris ligulistylis (not to be confused with more common Liatris spicata). Monarchs really seem to adore this plant!

Liatris ligulistylis: is a perennial native to the Canadian Prairies and blooms in late summer/early fall. Full sun or light shade. Height: Liatris ligulistylis can reach 1.2 to 1.8 m (4-6 ft), Spread: 30-38 cm (12-15 inches). Average to moist soil. Hardy USDA Zones: 3-7.

Burnet, Sanguisorbia 

Perennial Fountain Grass, Pennisetum alopecuroides: has arching green foliage and soft mauve flowers that turn beige as they mature. Full sun or light shade. This is a grass that is adaptable to a range of soil types and will tolerate dry, average or moist growing conditions. Height: 90-120 cm (35-50 inches), Spread: 60-90 cm (20-35 inches). Hardy USDA Zones: 5-9

Annual Fountain Grass, Pennisetum setaceum 

Clouds of Russian Sage, Perovskia atriplicifolia and Sea Holly, Eryngium

Russian Sage, Perovskia atriplicifolia: has upright greyish foliage and violet blue flowers in late summer/early fall. Bees adore it. Russian Sage prefers full sun and heat. Average to dry conditions. Height: 90-150 cm ( 35-60 inches) Spread: 60-90 cm (20-35 inches) Hardy USDA Zones: 4-9

Japanese Anemone

Japanese Anemone and Mountain Fleeceflower, Persicaria 

Feathery grasses mix with Burnet, Sanguisorbia 

Burnet, Sanguisorbia officinallis 'Red Thunder' (Rosaceae)

Helenium

Sea Lavender or Limonium latifolia

Verbena bonariensis and Burnet, Sanguisorbia 

Verbena bonariensis: Is a drought tolerant perennial that is usually treated as an annual here in southern Ontario. It is a prolific self-seeder, and for this reason, it is often viewed a problem plant in some parts of the U.S. Butterflies and bees love it! Full sun. Height: 90-120 cm ( 36-48 inches), Spread: 38-45 cm (15-18 inches) USDA Zones 6-10

Verbena bonariensis and Mountain Fleeceflower, Persicaria 

For me the delicate clouds of texture and color in Oudolf's Entry Walk Garden speak to modern design's softer side. There is nothing clean lined or hard edged here.

Unlike a traditional approach to design, individual flowers do not compete for your attention in the gardens that Oudolf creates. Instead there is a harmonious mix of lighter notes. The overall effect feels soft, pretty and playful.

I always come away inspired to loosen my grip on convention and incorporate more of the same feeling in my own garden.

Beginning to Build my Spring Wish List

Burnet, Sanguisorbia officinallis 'Red Thunder' at the Toronto Botanical Gardens

The air was very still and shivery cold, cold, cold when I headed out to start the car this morning. The sky at dawn was the palest shade of grey kissed by pink just along the horizon. As we headed up the hill and out of our little valley, the sun sitting just above the tree line, came into view. Though it glowed with the most fiery shade of orange you can imagine, there wasn't even the slightest hint of warmth in its rays.

Is it just me or has winter seemed to stretch on forever and ever this year?

It may be March, but the almost 6' pile of snow at the end of our driveway is looking like it has no plans to disappear any time soon.

It's time for a pick-me-up!

A little retail therapy to make me feel like spring is not as far off  as the cold and snow has me thinking it is. 

Here is just sneak peak at the items on my spring wish list:

Shrubs:

Fothergilla, Gardenii from Gardenimports: Honey scented white bottle-brush flowers in spring with blue-green leaves that turn striking shades of red,yellow and orange in fall. Grows to a compact size of 5-'6' in height and spread.

I have wanted a Fothergilla shrub for years. 

The spectacular fall foliage is my main motivator. For some additional pictures check out this post by blogger Sweetbay (worth a side trip if just to see the rest of this wonderful post on the NC Botanical Garden).

I need to have a plan before I make my purchase decision though. A Fothergilla can grow to 5 or 6 feet. I need to work out a place for it or hold off until I do so.

'Snow Dwarf ' Philadelphus (Mock Orange) from Gardenimports: Height and spread is 2'-3'.

A Philadelphus or Mock Orange is another shrub I have always wanted to have. You can't beat their flowers for fragrance! This is a Canadian-bred dwarf variety.

The words that caught my attention were "Canadian-bred", which hopefully signifies that this variety of Mock Orange is able to take anything a Canadian winter has to throw at it, and "dwarf" meaning I just might be able to squeeze it in...somewhere.

I first admired a pink Deutzia shrub on Tammy's blog Casa Mariposa. 

I ended up adding a white variety to my front garden two years ago and love the way it is fitting in with more established plants. My shrub is still small, but here is a more established version that I photographed at Sheridan Nursery in Oakville, ON:

Gorgeous right? 

This shrub is a neat, compact early summer bloomer. Now I want a pink one!

My local nursery has an older pink variety, but I am really tempted to try out this new Proven Winners introduction 'Yuki Cherry Blossom'.

Yuki Cherry Blossom Deutzia from Gardenimports: A spring profusion of fragrant pink flowers on a compact (1'-2'), deer-resistant shrub. Gardenimports also has a special price on a pair of white (Yuki Snowflake) and pink shrub (Yuki Cherry Blossom). 

This is a long post, but if you have more time, here are a few other temptresses: Callicarpa 'Purple Pearls' for those amazing purple berries, Proven Winners Sambucus 'Lemon Lace' for the ferny lime foliage , Cephalanthus occidentalis 'Sugar Shack' which has very cool seed heads and this dwarf pink Lilac, 'Scent & Sensibility Pink'.

Perennials:

If money and space permitted, I would have at least one of every type of perennial! Of course that's never going to happen.

This spring I will settle on rounding out what I already have. Here are a few of the candidates on my wish list:

The Blue Agastache that I have in the back garden is terrific. It hums with little honey and more rotund bumble bees.

This summer I admired the new 'Blue Boa' Agastache they were testing in the trial beds at Edwards Gardens.

Gardenimports is carrying 'Blue Boa' in their spring lineup. It you visit the website, their picture is slightly more purple than mine. I think my photo is more accurate to Blue Boa's true color.

A Gentian in flower at Edwards Garden in Toronto

In my humble opinion Gentians are under utilized in gardens. I have photographed Gentians in Marion Jarvie's garden and also at Edwards Garden last fall.

Why do I like them? 

The flowers are an amazing indigo blue and nice blue flowers are harder to find than you might like. Gentians also flower in late summer/fall when other plants are fading.

Gentian, 'True Blue' from Gardenimports:  This is one of those plants where you need to get the soil right or you will be wasting your money! Gentians like well-drained, sandy loam. They also like average moisture levels and prefer a little afternoon shade.

With this next wish list item I am channeling a little Piet Oudolf. 

Here is my inspiration from the natural garden at the Toronto Botanical Gardens:

See those white drippy things in the middle distance?  They are a white variety of  Burnet, Sanguisorba. So very delicate!

Again, here a picture showing the white variety and also the red Burnet, Sanguisorbia officinallis 

'Red Thunder' at the TBG.

Burnet, Sanguisorbia officinallis 'Red Thunder' (Rosaceae)

Are you sold? 

Looking back at my late summer pictures, I pretty much am. Here is the one small, black drawback:

Japanese Beetles adore this plant! 

You can see a couple of them hanging out on the buds in the middle foreground of this picture. 

So here are the questions I face before I decide: Do I purchase a plant that a problem pest thinks is a favourite snack? Am I really just inviting problems home with me?

Darn it! It is sooo hard to decide. They are just such a nice companion for late summer grasses. No wonder Piet Oudolf likes to use them in his natural garden designs!

Left: Burnet, Sanguisorba, Red Thunder from Gardenimports: This new introduction was selected by renowned Dutch plantsman Piet Oudolf for its impressive display. Height 90-120 cm (3'-4') with a 45 cm spread (18").

Right: Burnet, Sanguisorba, 'Alba' is even taller at 1.2-1.5m (4'-5') and 45cm (18") spread.

So far I have avoided tender bulbs and perennials that need to be lifted in the fall or grown in pots that need to be brought into a cool, dry place. 

But my resistance in slowly weakening. 

Look how great these Kniphofia, Torch Lilies or Red Hot Pokers as they are commonly called, look in Larkwhistle Garden on the Bruce Peninsula:

Larwhistle

Here is a lemony colored variety of Torch Lily in combination with another tender bulb 

'Agapanthus' in Marion Jarvie's Thornhill, ON garden: 

Marion Jarvie's Garden

Blue Agapanthus

Both Kniphofia and Agapanthus are a bit of extra work, but so potentially worth it.

Pineapple Popsicle from Gardenimports: One drawback of Kniphofia is that they traditionally don't bloom until late in the season. Here in Canada that often means that you run out of garden "season" before they ever bloom. This newer variety blooms earlier flowers.

So these are a just a few of the items I am considering purchasing this spring. I feel broke just dreaming about buying them!

Have yourself a wonderful weekend!

Disclaimer: The selection in this blog post is entirely my own doing. I have received no discounts or kickbacks from Gardenimport to do this post. I am just as poor when I finish writing as I was when I began this post....Well, perhaps I am actually poorer if I go through with even some of these purchases. Why Gardenimport? For one thing, their website has great pictures. They may be a tad expensive, but they offer a selection of items that aren't always easy to find elsewhere.