I have become more relaxed in my garden in the last few years. In the past I would constantly weed, cover the flower beds in natural mulch to help keep the weeds down, and even pick out any self sown plants or plants that have overspread their allowed space. Maybe I’ve loosened up since retiring, but I have found beauty in the unexpected, the unplanned.
My previous garden’s soil was very sandy, so the plants needed daily watering and did not always survive, even with the greatest care. But here in Maine, I have clay loam and everything just grows like crazy in it, especially since the soil retains moisture so well. In the past sandy soil, many perennials might have thrived, but usually developed slowly and kept within a small space. Here, similar plants flourish with several year’s growth in one season. Not only that, I see many plants spread easily since the soil is so fertile. Plants that I would have previously only seen in a store are thriving throughout nature - in meadows, along a roadside, even in my own garden. Plants like meadow rue (thalictrum), crane’s bill (geranium), yellow loosestrife (lysimachia), purple bell flowers (campanula), phlox, and, of course, lupine, among others.
Towards the end of my first summer in Maine, I observed an interesting natural occurrence in my garden with some common yellow daisies. A bunch of brown-eyed susans, that had been allowed to naturalize, started blooming mid summer in a back corner of the yard. Then, just as they started to die down, some black-eyed susans came up and started blooming in the same place. Then, just as those started to fade, some green-eyed susans took their place. And lastly, as those diminished, some yellow-eyed susans came up and finished off the color in the fall. I thought this beautiful continuous show was the garden’s way of giving me a flower welcome to my new property!
A volunteer plant that grows naturally in my vegetable beds, that I definitely would have removed previously, is clover. A permaculture class taught me that many plants or weeds can have benefits that most people don’t know about. For example, clover is a heavy nitrogen fixer, which means it adds nitrogen to the soil around it. So instead of adding nitrogen as an additive to feed my tomatoes, which are heavy nitrogen feeders, I just let clover grow in the garden bed next to them in a beneficial relationship. Beans are also nitrogen fixers, which makes them a good candidate for inter-planting among tomatoes and peppers.
Lastly, I’ve added some plants and flowers to my garden that I may not have grown in the past because of slight invasiveness or indifference to them, but I’ve learned that they are beneficial insect attractors. Perennials like Bee Balm, Veronica, Queen Anne’s Lace, and Yarrow. Annuals like Zinnias, Lobelia, and Allysum. Herbs and veggies like Parsley, Coriander, Spearmint, Fennel, Dill, Thyme, and Lemon Balm. I try to grow as many of these plants as possible so that the insects have a constant selection of blooms or leaves to feed from, not to mention the hummingbirds and butterflies that they also attract. Bringing in beneficial insects ultimately helps promote my vegetable garden’s production and health.
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