Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Brenda Addington
Today’s photos are from Brenda Addington’s Zone 7B garden in Suwanee, Georgia. She says, “I have been gardening for over 25 years, and have been influenced by my mother’s garden (she’s German) and all the European gardens I have witnessed during my travels to Europe growing up. I started this garden 6 years ago, and this is my third garden and is definitely one of my most challenging to create.
Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Brenda Addington
I spent the first few years digging up the beds in my backyard and filling them with nutrient-rich compost and addressing the many drainage issues. I decided to make my garden more of a “woodland/cottage” style garden to fit with our surroundings since I live in a Natural Reserve Community along the Chattahoochee River. My garden consists of over 100 roses, 50+ peonies. thousands of bulbs, hydrangeas, irises, 25 Japanese maples, and over 100 conifers. I discovered an interest in conifers after I realized many of my prized flowering plants suffered from the appetite of the deer; plus conifers add color and texture to my garden all year round.
Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Brenda Addington
Over the years, I have added a lot of stonework to the garden such as a stacked stone pillar arch, a fountain, stacked stone edging and stairs, a dry creek bed, and, my favorite, a stone bridge over the dry creek bed. My garden is constantly evolving as I explore new ideas and plants, color schemes, and ways of outsmarting the deer by venturing into vertical gardening with arbors, pergolas, trellises and even growing clematis up pine trees! I love color in the garden!
Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Brenda Addington
Container gardening is also a passion. I love finding unique containers and filling them up with colorful plant material all year round.I recently created a blog to publish more information about my garden and to connect with other gardeners at www.thegracefulgardener.com. Connecting with other gardeners makes me think “outside the box” by experimenting with new plant material and creative ideas!”
Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Brenda Addington
Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Brenda Addington
Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Brenda Addington
Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Brenda Addington
Photo/Illustration: Courtesy of Brenda Addington
Gorgeous, Brenda! We’ll see a few more photos from Brenda’s garden tomorrow. Stay tuned!
And keep sending in your photos, folks. I can’t keep showing you private gardens without your help. In the meantime, very soon I’ll be sharing a series of photos from the gardens on the national mall in Washington, D.C. I visited there a couple of weeks ago on my way south for vacation, and I found some great stuff! If you missed the discussion of public gardens in the comments of yesterday’s post, take a look. It’s an interesting read!
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Comments
That stacked stone bridge would be a favorite of mine also. Your garden is lovely!
The stone work is amazing, but I really love your eye for putting together plants, pots and everything reflected in your photos.
Your comment on conifers puzzles me. I have a lot of deer, and over the winter they demolish most evergreen plant material except boxwood and spruce.
Sometimes I worry about the investment I have put into my garden in the past 3 years but 100 roses, I love it! These photos let me know it will all be worth it. Beautiful!
Big WOW over Brenda's pics. Can't wait to see the next round of photos. Her garden aesthetic is a feast for the eyes. Love the stone work and, well, everything. I am going out today to buy some smallish pumpkins to tuck into container compositions...an adorable idea...thanks, Brenda!
Your use of hardscape material compliments the beautiful color combination of planting material. I would love to see more container ideas on a seasonal basis. Looking for Fall ideas for my front door and around a sitting area.
Brenda,
Beautiful... all of it! Your containers are so wonderful for the fall season. Looking forward to reading more about it!
Julie Witmer
http://wifemothergardener.blogspot.com/
Magnificent stonework, and so precise! And trees are my passion, especially conifers, I'd love to see more detailed pictures of those trees. Living in that freeze-free zone have you thought of incorporating a water feature with that river rock stream bed... would be a perfect location for a koi pool at the bottom. Thank you for the lovely photos.
Unbelievable! I'm not worthy!
Brenda,all of your hard work has truly paid off.I would love to have your talents for gardening.Absolutely gorgeous!!!!!
I don't know whether to feel inspired or discouraged. Brenda, what beautiful results you have achieved. Love to know how you keep the deer away from your roses and what conifers you find most deer resistant.
PS I love the way you mix the pink and oranges in lantanas and echinaceas.
A woodland wonderland! The stonework is beautifully done and fits so well with the setting. LOVE the seasonal touches to the artistic container plantings. Brenda, you have created a magical place!
Super garden! Make sure you check out Brenda's blog for more photos of the garden and names of conifers and other plants. There are also lots more splendid "staged vignettes". Nice job.
Wow! Thanks everyone! I am genuinely overwhelmed and humbled by all the wonderful comments regarding my garden & containers.
It's nice to be complimented on something I truly love to do....gardening!
When I started this garden I was faced with many challenges:
major drainage issues, poor clay-packed soil and hungry deer just to name a few, and in retrospect, those challenges are what evolved my garden into what it is today.
Of course, being a southern gardener I must have my roses. They do require a little more work, but I have made my selections wisely and try to plant more disease resistant varieties. I have been bit by the "conifer bug" since I can't seem to get enough of them. The deer haven't found mine appetizing...can't say that about my hostas though.
Thanks again for all the lovely comments.
I plan on writing more about my conifers, roses, containers, color combo's, and deer repellant techniques in my upcoming blog posts in the future.
~Brenda
Oh, Brenda! I'm speechless! This is truly a dream garden. I wish I could afford to hire you, fly you to the West Coast to advise me on my garden. I think of myself as a very good gardener, but my efforts pale in comparison. I would love to have a book showcasing your work...or Michelle, how about a feature in Fine Gardening?
I am in awe of your garden. Are you ever on a garden tour? Would like to come see your garden, Live in Nashville.
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