Wednesday, January 18, 2006

First Snow of 2006

When I went to bed last night, 2 inches of snow covered the ground and it accumulated to 4 inches this morning. Because of the rain, then the snow and then the freezing weather, roads are slippery and school is delayed for two hours. I'm letting the boys sleep in for one hour and then they can use the other "extra" hour to study for their final exams today. But right now the house is quiet.

I'm meeting the other gardener at the Gene Stratton-Porter (she hyphenated her name on her marriage certificate about 100 years ago) historic site to decide what plants and seeds we order for the garden this year. There are only a few things I'd rather do on a snowy day (that don't involve my husband.) I did a master plan and am overwhelmed by the amount of work needed. I'm definitely creating a volunteer program. We need some specialized expertise in the garden -- for the roses, the water feature, the wisteria, and even design. I'm still struggling with how to balance the formal layout of the garden with the numerous beds. How should I plant it so that the overall design is discernible, but let each bed stand by itself? How should I plant it to draw visitors into the garden (they tend to stay in the arbor) with a sense of mystery and discovery? How do I keep it historically accurate, but still use today's improved cultivars?

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