Low Maintenance Landscaping
July 22, 2008 at 7:19 am (Livin' North of 60°)
We finally got a couple of nice days recently, and it’s about time. It was announced in the news that the Yukon has been the hardest hit with a bad summer in all of Canada. Really? Gee, who knew? Our warmest day was back in May, according to the report, and we’re supposedly in for a very cold winter. You’d never know that the Yukon is semi-arid with all the rain we’ve had this year; add to that the cold, frost, and yup, I agree…pretty bad summer.
For the last three years I’ve tried to do something with part of my yard, but I can’t seem to get anything to grow. Our yard is on a north-facing slope, and most of anything I want to grow is in the shade. I guess it doesn’t help that I have zero gardening experience, and the Yukon isn’t exactly the best place to learn, what with our short summers and being in a plant hardiness zone of 1 or 2. I was so shocked when a friend of ours on Gabriola Island mentioned that his basil (or was it rosemary?) in his outdoor garden comes back every year. I can only dream.
Needless to say, this year I wasn’t really in the mood for gardening. We’ve had frost in July on more than one occasion this year, so when I decided it was time to do a little something with a small part of my yard, I decided that a low-maintenance landscape was in order. It looks kind of plain for now, but it’s a start. You can’t see it in the photo, but I also planted a new tree that doesn’t mind shade (according to the lady at the nursery). It’s hidden behind the flower pot. Today, I’ll be doing the other side of the walkway.
If you’re wondering why we didn’t just didn’t put grass, the usual semi-aridness of the Yukon translates into people here using inordinate amounts of water for their lawns.
fawnahareo said,
July 22, 2008 at 9:29 am
That looks really great! Is there some kind of weed barrier under the mulch? I don’t know how much of a problem weeds might be in a little corner like that.
Michael and I think grass is one of the stupidest things you can grow here. You have to water it endlessly, fertilize it if you want it to be green, and then you have to mow it when it does well! Even in this year of endless rain, there are people who are still watering their lawns. The waste! The insanity!
We have big dreams of replacing all our front yard grass with bearberries or knik-knik someday…
Kara said,
July 22, 2008 at 10:20 am
I am so sick of the miserable weather!! I am going to start building an ark soon- I have already asked friends from Nunavut to send polar bears and caribou.
I like what you are doing with your yard! Did you do the deck yourself? We have a yard that is a horrible mess. Matt did some whipper snipping, but we need to do some serious stuff next year. I am dying to have a garden, so I am keeping my fingers crossed that we can do that next summer.
Meandering Michael said,
July 22, 2008 at 11:05 am
There are lots of attractive local plants that grow well on north-facing slopes. In the Yukon, there is usually far more growth on the north-facing slopes than on the continually dry south-facing slopes.
Good call on the grass. I hope your new tree does well!
yukonchatterbug said,
July 22, 2008 at 11:34 am
Kara: Thanks for the compliment. It really is a tiny part of the yard. No, we didn’t do the deck ourselves. There was actually a lot of rot, but last year we replaced the boards that were in the worse shape and gave it a coat of paint in the hopes of it holding up a couple more years. Everything is so expensive, you have to do a little bit at a time.
Michael: If you have any suggestions, please feel free to pass them on. We still have the whole front yard to think about for next year. Plus, I would like to add a couple more shrubs against the house. We don’t want grass, and we’re thinking of eventually moving the fence forward to give us more usable space behind it.
As for the north/south debate, my neighbour across the street whose front yard faces south, has beautiful perennial plants growing that I can’t grow on my side no matter how hard I try. Her flower garden is at least 3 weeks ahead of mine. She’s preparing her garden when I still have snow on my side. Gggrrr!!!
Fawn: Under the mulch there is landscape fabric. It lets moisture/water in but prevents weeds from growing. Have you been to Riverdale this summer? I really like how the growth is looking in the median on Lewes Blvd. Lots of rocks and plants that grow naturally in the Yukon. I just need to find stuff that grows well in the shade.
fawnahareo said,
July 22, 2008 at 2:48 pm
Poppies seem to do well pretty much everywhere, despite not being native plants.
I like them because they bloom all summer. I think lupins would do well in shade, although you’ll only get flowering for a little while, I find the greenery of them very attractive. Maybe wild roses, too? Michael thinks they’re too invasive, though. And fireweed seems to grow everywhere, too; they don’t bloom until later in summer (like now!) but they fill a lot of space, too. Junipers might work well for something shrubby…
I bet you could get lots of great advice from the local greenhouses. I hear the one in Porter Creek (that is open year-round) is really good for that kind of thing, but it might be fun to visit them all!
I go to Riverdale every day because Jade’s daycare is there. Lewes does look nice, doesn’t it? I haven’t paid much attention to what’s actually there, though!
yukonchatterbug said,
July 22, 2008 at 4:44 pm
Fawn: On my walks along the trails behind my place, I’ve been picking lupin seed pods with the intention of sowing them. I was told to put them in the fridge for a couple of weeks after the pods burst, but I’m not sure if I need to sow them in the fall or in the spring. I’ll have to look into it. Even with that, I don’t know if they’ll take, but I’m hoping. Poppies are another good option. I have some in the front garden, but they didn’t do very well this year, I think because of too much rain and very few warm days. I’ll plant some next year around the tree trunks and against the house. I did consider planting roses, either the variety on Hamilton Blvd. or the ones that grow naturally here, but again, they need lots of sun (at least that’s what I was told by the greenhouse attendant). Anyway, I’ll keep trying. I’m just happy that the yard is starting to look decent.
Meandering Michael said,
July 22, 2008 at 8:37 pm
Depending on how much shade you get (I haven’t seen your yard), bunchberries and bearberries might do well. If you have a lot of moisture, labrador tea and ostrich ferns might do well. Is there any way that you can post some pictures of your front garden patch?
The rock thing on Lewes requires regular visits with a blowtorch to keep the weeds from growing between the rocks. It sure looks good, though!
yukonchatterbug said,
July 23, 2008 at 7:40 am
Michael: I just googled those two types of berries and glad I did. Unfortunately, I’m not very knowledgeable when it comes to identifying plants (learning though), and it’s nice to know what I’m looking at during my walks with the dog. I always liked those two plants and wondered what they were called. My dream yard would look exactly like what I see along the trail with my dog (behind Arkell). The Labrador tea is nice too. I wonder how easy/hard it would be to bring them over.
It’s unfortunate that everything gets mowed down when subdivisions are built. It pains me every time I walk the dog to know that that particular area (behind Arkell) won’t be there for much longer. They will surely start clearing next spring. I wonder if the plants you mentioned are transplantable. I would normally never consider pulling anything out, but like I said, they’ll be mowed down soon. Actually, come to think of it, it’s too late in the year for transplanting anything that’s not in a pot.
yukonchatterbug said,
July 23, 2008 at 8:10 am
I’m so excited now, thanks to Michael. I think bunchberry and bearberry would make perfect ground cover. Add to that crowberry…Oh…the ideas. THANKS Michael. I’ll have to put a post together with pictures of these for readers.