Published: April 11, 2008 09:23 am            

The Bookworm Sez: ‘Garden in Winter’ plants creative seed for winter beauty

Originally published in the April 4, 2008, print edition.

The writer’s strike this winter didn’t bother you much.

Cold and snow? No big deal.

Gas prices? Staying home was just fine. It gave you a chance to dream about what was beneath that white stuff outside your door.

For months, you’ve been planning, imagining what your garden would look like in full bloom and all during harvest. But what will it look like next winter when the snow comes back? Before you put those seed catalogs down, check out “The Garden in Winter” by Suzy Bales. A few new ideas might sprout first.

When most people think “garden,” what comes to mind are green plants, sunshiny days, bright flowers and fresh vegetables. In other words, spring and summer.

Now imagine waking up next February to pink or yellow flowers covered with a drizzle of snow. Bales says that can happen, if you plan now and get those plants in the ground before fall frost.

First, make a drawing of your garden and assess what you want. Would a hedge define a favorite bench over there? Is there room for a few fruit trees, or would conifers add color where there is none? Visualize your garden in the growing season and plan for what it will look like when leaves fall and snow etches the outlines of your plants like a pen-and-ink drawing.

Bales says to take into consideration the kind of house you live in and the size of your garden. Climbing roses are perfect for Victorian houses or cottages. More modern homes look dazzling with copper or fencing. If there’s no real space for a complete garden, a variety of interesting, huge containers work fine.

If you have more winter than you have growing season, take a page from a fire-and-ice “gardener” in Alaska, and use what you have at hand.

So what if you don’t have a green thumb? Bales says you should pass the blame on the weather, the economy, the soil, whatever. Then, dig up what didn’t work and move it around. Gardening is supposed to be fun and even professional gardeners rarely “get it right.” Get your hands dirty and enjoy your new hobby.

Bales has got to be the Martha Stewart of the gardening world. Her style is off-handed, breezy (discussing berried pyracantha, she says, “I know some gardeners feel the color is rather garish, but I say go for it.”), funny and sage.

Bales has a growing list of credentials and many gardeners know her name, but this picture-filled book is enjoyable for an old hand and perfect for a neophyte homeowner or apartment-dweller to learn from. Reading it gives one a sense that gardening is like playing, and for gardeners at all stages of experience, that’s just the ticket when spring can’t come fast enough.

When the seed catalogs are tattered and you think you’ve decided on what’s going in your garden this year, pick up this book and think again.

“The Garden in Winter” will plant a few new ideas in your head.

Look for the reviewed book at a bookstore or a library near you. You may also find the book at online book retailers.

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The Bookworm is Terri Schlichenmeyer. Terri has been reading since she was 3 years old and never goes anywhere without a book. She lives in Wisconsin with three dogs and 10,000 books.

        

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