Many of the plants on Poison Ivy Acres have bare feet. The gardens are new, after all, and things haven’t filled in much. The shrubs and perennials are, I think, placed so that they can grow to their natural size and shape, and this means that there is empty space around them. I’m currently shopping for “socks and shoes” plants that can fill the areas in between.
Mother Nature, after all, does not tolerate bare soil. I hear her muttering as she passes through our property. “Look at all of this empty ground…what a waste!” She is, I know, not content with mere complaints. In an effort to rectify things she’ll be dropping weed seeds as she passes through. “If the Garden Lady isn’t going to plant here, well, someone has to do it!”
What my garden needs is some community organizing. Plants grow in groups, after all, from the tiny forest floor mosses to the tall oaks above, with dozens of species in between. There will be neighborhoods of exotic plants on Poison Ivy Acres, and areas where the indigenous rule. I just need to establish more planned boroughs before Mother Nature decides that my attempts at development and zoning aren’t proceeding fast enough.
There are small Stepables - sedum and thyme - in between the paving stones, but the garden itself has lots of bare feet!
