Virtual Tour: A Collector’s Garden

Yesterday was the first of December, and I spent the morning visiting the garden of Marsha Yeager in Marietta, Georgia. Even this late in the year it was beautiful!  The garden not only has good “bones,” but Marsha has planned well for four-season interest. She’s lived here since 1982, and the garden evolved over the years as lawn gradually gave way to planted areas and the planted areas then spread to the edges of the property. Marsha is a true collector, with a passion not only for collecting plants, but all sorts of garden accessories, statuary, and planting containers as well.

Let’s begin the tour – and remember, all these photos were snapped between November 29 and December 1 of this year!

I love the deep plum color of Marsha’s front door! The evergreens in the formal urns have been under-planted with purple pansies to create a color echo, and even this late in the year a tall salvia contributes another splash of violet in the front perennial garden. The flagstone steps are appealingly lined with dish gardens full of succulents.

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Tucked in between the double garage doors, a planter overflows with ivy and a white flowering variety of Camellia sasanqua. Along the other side of the driveway runs a relatively new bed that offers up a study in contrasts – the loose, pom-pom shaped ribbons of variegated Carex against the solid structure of clipped boxwood. The bed visually separates the yard from the neighboring property.  (Photos: Marsha Yeager)

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Where the driveway ends, the back garden begins. An inviting arbor frames the entryway, dripping with evergreen Carolina jessamine vines (Gelsemium sempervirens). White flowered camellias are cleverly espaliered inside the arbor. (Photo: M. Yeager)

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Just inside the garden, a flagstone terrace sports a stylized version of Adirondack chairs with a weathered cream-colored finish. The large, potted tree fern overhanging the chairs (left side of photo) is not hardy here in zone 7, and Marsha has no place to overwinter it, so she is growing it as an annual!

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The backyard is a woodland garden that Marsha has created under and around the existing trees – a mix of hardwoods and pines. Since there is no lawn here, wide walkways of  cypress chips provide the element of negative space necessary to balance out heavily planted areas. (Photo: M. Yeager)

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The shady space is heavily planted with azaleas, hydrangeas, camellias, Japanese maples, ferns, evergreen groundcovers like hellebores, and evergreen shrubs like nandina and mahonia. Seasonal color also comes from spring wildflowers, and from annuals like impatiens and pansies.
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At this time of year, Japanese maples are an important source of color, holding their leaves after many of the larger trees have gone bare. The finely dissected, crimson foliage of this specimen has an effect much like flowers.

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A dry stream bed “runs” through a planted area, creating a sense of water even though there is none. An arched footbridge spans the streambed, furthering the illusion.

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Marsha’s thoughtful design ensures no path leads to a dead end. Where this walkway approaches the property line, visitors are rewarded with a place to linger. The path is lined with evergreen hellebores, which flower in January and February.

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A second story deck is made cozy and private through large container plantings that act as “walls” and include a crimson Japanese maple and a pink flowered camellia. A pergola overhead (not seen in this photo) furthers the sense of enclosure and provides enough structure to hang a wrought iron chandelier.

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Among her gardening friends, Marsha is known for innovative container plantings that last through the winter. A dark leaved euphorbia and a chartreuse sedum complement these perfectly color-coordinated snapdragons and pansies. ♣

Related posts:

1. Inspiration from a Summer Garden Tour: Part One
2. Garden Bloggers Bloom Day: January
3. Ghost Plant is a Solid Presence in Fall Containers
4. Garden Bloggers Bloom Day
5. Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day: April