20 years of Dry Gardening at Northview

I have always loved to experiment with my garden designs, techniques, and planting choices. My Dry Garden here at Northview in south east Pennsylvania was one such project. It had its beginning in my need to grow lavender.

I Love Lavender – The Origins of My Dry Garden

I love lavender and have always wanted lots of it growing in my garden. It can be a challenge to grow lavender in the cold winters and hot humid summers here in Pennsylvania. In the summer of 2003 we planned a family vacation to the south of France where I knew that I would visit the lavender fields. I wanted to see how lavender was grown there and bring those lessons home to Northview.

Lavender Lessons Learned

The main lesson that I learned from screeching to a stop at many lavender fields was that was that I was planting my lavenders in a soil that was too rich and full of organic matter. I realized that I should be placing them in full sun, and providing them with a lean, stony soil that was slightly alkaline.

Deliberate Dry Gardening

That trip gave me answers for growing lavender but also spurred me on to find other plants that would grow in my garden with no extra watering. My Dry Garden grew out of those musings in the winter of 2003-2004. In the spring we started to install the new garden and then with plenty of irony it rained and rained on my dry garden. My neighbor was sure that I was putting in a swimming pool.

The Influence of Beth Chatto’s Dry Garden in Colchester, Essex

It is hard to remember looking back two decades how much I was influenced at the beginning of this experiment by the writings of the late English gardener and garden writer, Beth Chatto. I went to visit her garden a few years after I had designed and installed my garden and Beth is now one of my gardening heroines. Her garden in the dry eastern part of England has been a source of inspiration for many gardeners. She famously made her Dry Garden on an old compacted car park. The internet was in its infancy so it was hard to find out much information about other gardens unless you went to see them or looked in books.

Plant Research to Find Plants for the Nascent Dry Garden

I did extensive research in the library on which plants I thought would do well in the raised gravel-topped berms that I was creating. I knew that plants with small, silver, or wax-covered leaves would be drought-tolerant. I also knew from my biology background that I wanted plants with extensive root systems especially tap roots.

A Growing and Evolving Dry Garden

The plants that I chose mostly grew and thrived despite having no additional watering by me. I found that plants were even more successful when they seeded themselves into the garden. Over the years the plants have appeared and reappeared in different places in the garden. Some of the originals are still there and others have disappeared.

Top Dry Garden Plants in Northview Garden

Here are some of the top plants that I would suggest if you are looking for plants for your dry garden apart from lavender that has already been mentioned. All photos were taken in my Dry Garden.

Baptisia – Baptisia

California poppy – Eschscholzia californica

Milkweed – Asclepias tuberosa

Sea Holly – Eryngium

Stoke’s Aster – Stokesia

Surprise Lily – Lycoris

Try Your Own Dry Garden

In these times of erratic rainfall and worry about having enough drinking water it might be a good idea to start your own dry garden. You can start small and work out what does well in your climate with little or no additional watering. It will save on your water bills and may help save the planet – one garden at a time.

Next month I will be talking about my rain garden areas here at Northview

Bye for now Gardening Friends, Jenny Rose Carey