The Complete Landscape

As a retired landscape contractor who worked in several states and 3 continents

over the past few decades I have some thoughts on how to get more out of our
landscapes. This article is primarily for those homeowners with an average to large
size house lot that either needs to be landscaped or needs landscape rehabilitation.
For most homeowners their suburban yard is a random collection of trees, shrubs
and lawn. Its a backdrop to the home that covers the bare dirt and adds some
beauty, shade and privacy screening. Its strictly ornamental and useful only to that
extent. If there is a vegetable garden, its hidden in the backyard and secondary to
the rest of the property. This article describes how the entire landscape can be a
source of food, security and other uses.
The immediate area around your house is a good place to start. Landscapers call
these areas the foundation plantings. Typically they consist of low growing
evergreens and various deciduous shrubs with gravel mulch and some kind of weed
barrier. All is reasonably maintenance free for the first few years anyway. After a
time the shrubs outgrow this confined area and get leggy and over-pruned. The
gravel mulch fills up with blown in dirt (1 per 10 years on average) and is no longer
weed free.

Time for Rehabilitation

The plants usually come out in pieces and the gravel with a lot of dirt and debris.
The gravel can be reused but its a labor intensive process involving a shovel and
slanted screens. Trying to wash the gravel with a hose does not work ever. Far
better to dump the gravel, old weed barrier and plants into a rented dumpster as
long as you dont exceed weight limits. Finding a hole somewhere and filling it is
even better.

Now for the All-Important Replacement Plants

As to exact landscape designs, thats a whole book in itself or perhaps several
books. This article is just to get you to think differently, outside the box. Rather
than trying to give a complete list of all plants for every climate from Florida to
Canada, I will instead use a few representative ideas and plants to give a general
idea of what to look for. For specifics plants best suited to your region, the internet
and a visit to a local garden center are by far your best option. A zone 4a location
like Minneapolis will have different plants and issues than Miamis 10b. Your local
nurseries and garden centers will have plants that will grow for you and advice you
can count on. Big box and chain stores with attached garden areas may not have
the experience necessary to answer the hard questions. Your particular plot of land
will also determine what works best. A sunny slope has a far different impact on a
plant than a shady flat area. Area wildlife will also dramatically impact the choices

you make. Dont plant deer food in deer country. Size, shape, color, texture and
ease of maintenance all need to be considered when selecting plants. For instance,
plant thorny bushes under windows and not near doors. Plant in clusters, multiple
single and double plantings can look amateurish as does alternating colors.
For sunny areas, roses are excellent, in all their multitude of types and cultivars.
Place them under windows. The thorns provide security for vulnerable windows and
the hips are a good source of vitamin C. I like Rugosa, but Floribunda and Hybrid
Teas are great too. Multiflora is invasive and a very nasty plant. Wild roses like the
Rugose are very hardy and require very little care except pruning and good soil and
once established they will require very little water.
Barberry (Berberis) is another good plant for security around your windows. The
berries make a decent jam and are used in some exotic cuisines.
If you have acidic soil Blueberries are nice. Great fall color too. Serviceberry and
Nannyberry are popular and Rosemary hardy to Zone 7 is just great. It is best to
have the pH of the soil checked in several places throughout your planting areas so
you can better choose the plants that will thrive in your yard.
There are many varieties and cultivars for any of these plants and you can use
different ones in the same area to great effect.
As to whats used underneath foundation plantings, I suggest an alternative to the
conventional weed barrier and decorative stone. Think wood mulch.
Modify the soil heavily with compost, manure, peat moss or worm castings or any
other good organic material. For instance, a mix of peat, cow manure and soil
mixed 1/3 each down to about a foot of depth. Its a lot of work, but worth it. Now
level that and cover with wood chips to a depth 3-4.
Why wood mulch instead of rock? As discussed previously rock becomes dirty and
begins growing weeds on the top side of the weed barrier within 3 years. How
maintenance free is rock mulch if you have to weed it? Wood chips or mulch will
slowly decay from the bottom and will generally need to be top dressed with
additional mulch every 2-3 years. Usually the addition of 1 inch of new mulch every
other year is sufficient to keep the bed looking great and prevent all but the
occasional weed. I recommend not using any weed barrier below the wood mulch so
that as the wood decomposes it will continually condition the soil beneath. This
method of mulching will maintain the planting bed soil in a near perfect state and
chemical fertilizers are unlikely to be needed. However, if you actually want to break
down the wood chip faster, then add any nitrogen product of your choice. Do not
overdo nitrogen since it can burn and easily kill most plants.
You can plant an almost endless variety of edibles that are both ornamental and a
continuing source of nutrition. Most of these will require several hours of sunshine

a day, but there are some cool season plants that work in shadier spots too. Check
any seed catalog, but radishes, spinach, lettuce, mustard, peas and cabbage are a
few. Intersperse these with annuals like pansies and most commonly available
herbs. Try alpine strawberries with seeded carrots or lettuce in-between. There are
a multitude of nut and berry shrubs available that also have an ornamental appeal.
Once things are up and growing and if you get some weeds, just sprinkle corn
gluten meal over the bed. It is the main ingredient of pre-emergence herbicide and
will prevent weed seeds from growing. As the wood chips decompose they will
replace the organics that the plants take up from the soil. Wood chips can
sometimes be sourced by the truckload from city compost sites, Arborists or Tree
Surgeons for little or no cost. Stay away from bagged Redwood bark. It never stays
in place and has a high cost.

Lawns
A properly maintained lawn is beautiful and is important to our economy by
supporting mower companies, fertilizer dealers and water utilities. It also acts as an
industrial sized air conditioner and oxygen generator. Although some of these
things are important, the lawn does take up a lot of our time that could be better
spent doing other things. The lawn is also a horticultural desert and once you take
away the fertilizer, nothing but weeds will grow there. Dont believe me, strip off
some grass and plant some vegetables; I guarantee you they will all die without lots
of fertilizer. If they do manage to survive you will have an infestation of insects and
are unlikely to harvest anything. Take that same piece of ground and till in 8 inches
of wood chips and one year later that ground will grow just about anything. If you
want the option to grow food anytime then you must keep your beds prepared. I
suggest you keep your lawn to a minimum by installing fertile garden beds. Raised
beds can be made from timbers or brick or bermed soil. They should be long and
low and have gently curving simple shapes and filled with highly amended soil - not
just excess construction dirt. Make your beds no wider than 6 feet so you can prune
and harvest from both sides.
All manner of dwarf fruit and nut trees, citrus, Pomegranates or Persimmons,
almonds and figs can be planted into these prepared beds. Perhaps ornamentals like
Redbud and Hawthorn both edible. Here is also where larger shrubs like Hazelnut,
Banana and Cranberry can grow. Again, the list is endless and dependent on
selecting the proper exposure and location. Brambles like Blackberry, Raspberry,
Gooseberry and Currents can safely be grown here as they are away from traffic
areas and are contained in the bed.
Some fruit trees like apple and plum need a partner to produce. Some trees
produce better with another kind of tree nearby. My cherry trees ripen the same
time as does a nearby Black Mulberry. The birds and raccoons go after the
mulberries in the top of the tree and leave the cherries alone.

Some trees dont like any competition. Black Walnuts are one of those although I
havent seen a problem in mine not allowing other plants to grow near them. In low
humidity areas, plant larger small leafed trees like non grafted Honey locust
(Gledistsia) to provide filtered sunlight to these beds. The pods are edible, unlike
the similar Back Locust (Robinia) tree. Olive trees are another.
The understory plantings can be similar to the foundation plantings, but you can
also experiment with whatever takes your interest. You can layer your planting both
vertical and horizontally. Planting tall trees above and shorter edibles below is a
great option. You can also layer your planting so that shorter edibles are in the front
and taller ones are in the back. If things dont work out grab your shovel and move
things around. Toss in a cluster of potatoes somewhere sunny with extra good soil.
They actually look pretty good planted that way and give an amazing amount of
nutritious food with almost no effort. Dont forget Nasturtiums and a cluster of
small sunflowers near the bird feeder.
Large boulders can be incorporated into these berms. Place them in odd numbered
clusters and make sure they look half buried and random. Amongst these you can
plant herbs and spices that would not be suitable in more open areas or need a
more suitable pH. Granite rocks will help soils that need to be more acidic and
limestone rocks will help soils that need to be more alkaline. Soil pH does matter to
plants. Most sick plants get a dose of fertilizer and water, but really have had either
too much water or the wrong soil pH. Most people assume that because a plant is
drooping it needs water. If you apply water and it recovers then you were right, if
not then look elsewhere.
While properly planted berms and raised beds will provide some privacy, nothing
beats a good hedge either as a partition or a fence. One of the best security
hedge plants in a sunny location is Rose. Theyll grow to 7 or if climbers are used
on a support, even higher. Bougainvillea is another. Try trees too. Pomegranates
and citrus can easily be trimmed. In northern climes, Hawthorns with an understory
of Barberry is suitable. If you want summer shade and winter sun then go
deciduous. Evergreens are great for year round privacy. Keep in mind that Yews and
Arborvitae make great deer food.
Siberian Pea shrub has a multitude of uses and improves the soil by fixing nitrogen
and produces a seed that is edible. Elderberry and Hazelnut and Banana can be
trimmed up into a hedge. Grape vines grow naturally on a fence with support wires.
Edible trees that can be trimmed into a hedge are Beech and Birch, Choke cherry
(fruit only), Aspen, Arborvitae, Blue spruce, and most other fruit trees. Ive seen
Espaliered Apple trees 10 wide and 10 thick. Planting shrubs underneath to the
sunny side will give more privacy. Find your climate zone, go online and make a list.
Take it to your local nurseries and walk around asking questions.

This type of landscape will generate garden waste, dont throw it away; compost it.
No landscape can continue to prosper without a continuous replacement of the
organic materials that the plants use as they grow. When you eat a cherry you are
removing nutrients from your yard. You can help this replacement process along by
composting the waste material and top dressing the planting beds with the
compost. Find an unused corner of your property. Build a raised planter out of
whatever materials suit you and start filling it up with layers of whatever organic
materials you have. Start with big stuff on the bottom like cut up tree limbs, then
branches, leaves, plant stems, grass clippings, and finally kitchen and pet waste.
Repeat until you run out of stuff. If you dont have enough stuff, then add in some
manure from your farmer friend leaves from the neighbors. There are a hundred
ways of doing a compost pile and most everybody will share their preferred way of
doing it with you, but jumping in and getting one started is easier than most people
will lead you to believe. When you dig something up or harvest some plants,
replace what you took with compost. Its great stuff.
Now you have the beginnings of a naturally sustainable yard that is beautiful and
produces much of your family produce. You might even decide to plant vining crops
in the fertile wood mulched beds and let pumpkin, squash, sweet potato, zucchini
and watermelon vine out into the grassy area of your yard. Only the roots of a
vining plant need to be in fertile soil. The vines just need a place to collect the suns
rays and what better place than your lawn area. At some point food may be more
important to your family than grass.
This type of landscape is always a work in progress. If you dont like something,
change it, experiment and have fun in the sun.