Where to use Perennials in the Perennial border
By V. Ries
The term perennial border has become a by-word wherever gardening is done. Perennial borders around the edges of the home plot or old-style back yard have done much to get people away from the old type of gardening that consisted of a lawn cluttered up with small flower beds. It is generally realized that today the better effect is obtained by giving the flowers the necessary setting by placing them in a border around the edges of the yard or garden. The lawn then serves as a foreground for the picture. It may have a background hedge or a planting of shrubs; or, if space is lacking, a vine-covered fence may serve and at the same time give the ever essential privacy and seclusion that good taste desires in the modern garden.
The perennial border may be fitted to any property, however small, however large. It may be only a foot wide and a few feet long, or ten feet or more wide and several hundred feet long. It may represent the initial expenditure of twenty-five cents for seed or hundreds of dollars for plants.
Each garden must have a considerable amount of open lawn space, a certain framing of trees, and background shrubs. All of these must be considered and planAed for before the actual flower garden itself is planted. Quite naturally, it is rather difficult for the beginner in gardening to realize the importance and the necessity of good landscape design. Color is so apt to appeal strongly that flowers are used for that alone, with a calm disregard of landscape design. All flowers, whether they be in a small group of one or two varieties, consisting of a few plants each, or a large border, or even an entire flower garden, must have an adequate setting of trees and shrubs. These woody plants serve not only as a necessary background but also as a screen for any undesirable views. In some instances, where space is at a premium, this background may be furnished by various structures, such as a brick or stone wall, fences, or trellises.
Where expense is not an item, a stone or brick wall may be used as a background for the perennial border. The height of this will depend upon the width of the border, the size of the yard, as well as the condition of the next yard. Such a wall should.be at least three feet in height, and at the most, six feet. It may be softened by the use of clinging vines. If an evergreen effect is desired, the various forms of winter creeper (Euonymus radicans, Euonymus radicans vegetus, Euonymus radicans colorata, or Euonymus radicans acuta) are all satisfactory. The last two are more rapid growing than the first two. The vegetus variety, if used in-groups of two or more, will usually produce a profusion of bittersweet-like berries. Where the climate permits, the English ivy will be equally desirable. A deciduous vine easy to use is the common Boston ivy (Ampelopsis veitchi). For a more restrained effect, its variety lowi, with smaller more fern-like leaves, is effective, though a rather slower and weaker grower.
Vines which climb by tendrils, or by twining, such as the Japanese clematis, wisteria, and bittersweet, may be used, but unless closely watched they will soon use the taller perennials for climbing posts.
Wooden fences of chestnut saplings or cedar posts may be purchased ready for installation. These are not only decorative but also practical. Solid board fences, stained or painted, may be used under less formal conditions. These may be softened by the use of vines.
The lattice fence, which is so commonly seen along property lines, if subdued by the use of a dull stain, such as brown or green, and well covered by vines, may serve very satisfactorily. Where painted white and left uncovered, it is likely to detract from the border.
Where a greater amount of space is available an informal 'shrub planting may be used back of the border. Where a hedge will require, allowing space for shearing, about three feet of width, the informal shrub planting will require from five to ten feet of width. Even for this apparently. great width, use only those shrubs that are more or less upright in their habit of growth. Otherwise they will soon hang over the flower border.
If a mixture of shrubs is used, select them to harmonize in foliage and habit of growth so that the background does not have a spotted effect. An occasional accent for the sake of interest will be worked into the planting, using one of the smaller trees, such as the golden rain, the flowering crab, mountain ash, Russian olive or magnolia.
One problem, which always arises in connection with a shrub background, is the competition of the shrub roots with the flowers. Cutting the shrub roots with a sharp spade once or twice during the season usually controls this. The roots are cut even with the ends of the branches.
The height of the background will be determined again by the width of the border and the height of the perennials grown in it. Ordinarily four to six feet is ample, except for very wide borders.
The width of the perennial border will be determined ordinarily by the amount of space available and by the distance from which it is to be viewed. The greater the amount of space available the greater distance from which it is to be viewed, the wider it should be; by ten, or even twelve, feet. This will be only in a rather large yard. For the average home plot with a fifty to one hundred foot front, there should be ample space for a border five to six feet in width. Such a border may be viewed from a distance of from fifty to a hundred feet. At this distance the effect, provided the flowers have been used in adequate masses, will be satisfactory. At a greater distance, it would hardly have sufficient mass to attract the attention.
The length of the border will be determined by the size of the property and by the general plan of its landscape development. Possibly we should add here that it would also depend upon the interest of the owner in having flowers and in his ability to take proper care of the plantings. Do not attempt more than can be properly cared for throughout the season. A perennial border five or six feet wide around the entire back yard runs into a lot of area. On a seventy-five-foot front lot this would give about one hundred and fifty running feet of border; a tremendous amount to care for, and really requiring the services of a gardener one or two whole days a week.
For the average small property a border from twenty to thirty feet long and five or six feet wide will be ample. This total may be made up of two or more small borders.
Much has been said of the desirability of curved rather than straight lines for the border's edge, with the result too often of a series of meaningless contortions for the front edge. Whether to use a straight line for the front edge, or a gentle, sweeping curve, will depend entirely on the basic landscape design of the property. If you have a sheared hedge as background and the property is narrow, a straight edge will be in keeping. If, on the other hand, you have an informal shrub background and space is not at a premium, your front edge may be in curves. In general, the front of the border should nearly parallel the front edge of the background planting.
The edging planting. Some designers feel that the front edge of the perennial border should be a continuous planting of one kind of plant; others that it may be made up of different types of low-growing plants. Still others prefer to bring some of the slightly taller plants to the foreground. Which one of these you should follow in your own garden will be largely a matter of choice to be determined by conditions. A straight edging of just one variety, especially if the plantings border both sides of a walk, will tend to increase the apparent length. On the other hand, if taller plants toward the front break up the border, it will tend to shorten the length.
For this front edging some of the evergreens may be used. It is suitable only toward the Southern portion of t4e country. One of the most satisfactory plants is Teucrium chamaedrys, which may be kept sheared to six or eight inches. Some of the forms of winter creeper (Euonymus radicans) may fit but would have to be sheared severely.
Many gardeners use the annual sweet alyssum for edging. Other suitable plants are:
Alyssum saxatile
Aster Mauve Cushion
Bellis perennis
Campanula carpatica
Dianthus caesius
Festuca glauca
Helianthemum
Heuchera sanguinea
Iberis sempervirens
Lavendula
Nepeta mussini
Pachysandra
Phlox subulata
Pulmonaria saccharata
Pulmonaria angustifolia
Santolina
Sedum kamtschaticum
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Goldentuft
Michaelmas daisy
English daisy
Carpathian bellflower
Hardy pinks
Blue fescue
Sunrose
Coralbell
Candytuf t
Lavender
Caucasian catnip
Japanese spurge
Moss phlox
Lungwort
Lungwort
Lavender-cotton
Orange stonecrop
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Depending on the width of the border, these edging plants, if not planted in one long straight line of one variety, are planted in masses of about a foot wide and two or three feet long.
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