Polk County Master Gardeners
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The Path of Least Resistance
One of the hardest lessons to learn has been that I do not have an
unlimited amount of time, energy, or money. As I only learn by doing things
wrong first, I am sorry to report that I have a long history of dried up
azaleas, wilted roses, and weedy gardens. The project always starts out with a
vision of banks of color, green lawns, and gourmet feasts from my very own
garden. Six months later, reality sets in.
But I have finally realized that I can concentrate on those plants that are
more tolerant of my efforts - which run to lots of work today and nothing else for
the next couple of months - and even seem to thrive on a certain amount of benign
neglect. This fall when I returned from a three months trip to New England, I
found that the coreopsis I had planted in the spring not only had survived, but
looked downright lush.
The marigolds in the cut flower garden had taken over with mounds of yellow,
gold, and orange, and the scarlet climber on the fence was climbing on
everything in sight, including the marigolds. These did have a bit of help from
a drip irrigation system that we put in last spring.
Francis Smith, one of the Master Gardeners, tells me that she looks for
flowers that are surviving around abandoned houses. “If they can live with no
care at all for years, they’ll probably flourish in my garden.” Some of the
plants that she recommends are day lilies, iris, japonica (flowering quince),
and crepe myrtle.
So if your gardening time comes in bursts followed by times when you don’t
have an opportunity even to look at the yard, maybe you can win the battle by
choosing the troops more carefully. Your local nursery can warn you that the
rose you long for is going to need lots of TLC to say nothing of frequent
spraying. They can also suggest something else that will survive the hit-or-miss
gardener. And there’s always the florist if you absolutely must have that hybrid
rose.
By Barbara M. Tobias
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