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Certain sights and smells can suddenly take us back in time to memories wethought we'd lost. Some of the most vivid can be from a childhood garden-the smell of sweet peas or the sight of wisteria thrown over an arbor, or lily-of-the-valley and an old climbing rose clutching a pipe trellis. The list goes on and on, and it's easy to add a little piece of a fond memory to your own landscape Most heirloom plants were chosen because they were both lovely and rugged. Grandma was too busy canning and cooking and washing and ironing to dally in the garden, and water might have been a commodity to scarce or difficult to transport-a waste for pampering plants! Heirloom gardening became the rage in the early 1900's and we have again returned to it today. Then, the practice of growing garden beds crammed with mixtures of perennials, annuals vines and shrubs became a sort of rebellion against the strict formality of Victorian society. And even then, people were beginning to yearn for bygone days of preindustrial life. Today these wild combinations not only take us back in time, but fit our modern schedules with their carefree growing habits. Some things to keep in mind when recreating an old-fashioned garden are the structural elements seen in old time designs. Some had a trellis, many had an arbor and all had some sort of fence or hedge to enclose the yard. A bench or glider might have been a focal point in your grandma's garden, or even an old swing. Simple branches and twigs provided inexpensive materials for bean teepees and tomato stakes, with white cotton cloth rags stripped into ties for holding veggies in place. Flowers usually fit into the vegetable garden scheme somewhere, just to keep things nice looking. Raw poles pruned from trees might even be
formed into lattice for vertical use against a wall, or used
horizontally when placed atop posts to create an openwork ceiling
for vines to grow across. The possibilities are endless. |
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The following plant lists are provided to jog your memory.
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Heirloom Vegetable Gardens
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