How to Tuck Your Garden Beds into Their Slumberous State

Oct 14

Tucking Your Garden Beds into Their Slumberous State

After a robust season of tending your ornamental and edible gardens, you’d be forgiven for wanting to pull the covers over your head for a long winter’s nap. But wait, before you hit the snooze button and call it quits for the season, it’s imperative to prepare your garden “beds” for their winter somnolent state. However, if you don’t know what plants to cut back, or remove; or what to save for the pollinators -- along with the autumn’s age-old question of whether to remove the fallen leaves or not - you’re in luck.

The Atlantic Highlands Historical Society (AHHS) is offering a Free workshop, Saturday, October 19, 1:00 pm, located at 27 Prospect Circle, Atlantic Highlands, that will provide a mix of information and hands-on tips to help you:

Maintain a beautiful and ecologically based garden throughout the autumn and winter, through watering, weeding and composting - and better prepare for the spring season
Decide what to prune back or remove from ornamental trees, shrubs, perennials, and bulbs - along with edibles, and annuals
Help the pollinators during the winter season
Learn what will bloom until frost
Discover the beauty of the winter garden: exfoliating bark and architectural tree trunks, evergreens, winter blossoms
Determine where in the yard to “Leave the leaves…”

And guess who is giving the talk? Me! Leeann Lavin, principal of Duchess Designs, LLC will host the talk, provide hands-on planning, guide you through the fundamentals of the gardening process and give you the confidence to grow and maintain your gardens.

The “Tucking Your Garden Beds into Their Slumberous State” talk is a distillation of what I have learned and practiced over more than two decades of immersion in garden design and horticulture; as a graduate of The New York Botanical Garden’s Landscape Design certificate program, writer, author, lecturer, and my garden-to-tablescape designs.

“Every good garden design tells a story. Gardens are personal - whether you have a container garden, a raised bed, a terrace, a border or yard, you can tell your story with the right mix of plant combinations, a design that works with your architectural style and site conditions to create garden rooms that will bring you joy in every season for years to come and enhance your lifestyle. And all that starts with a good plan. And tender loving care.”

The “Tucking Your Garden Beds into Their Slumberous State” talk will culminate with a walk around the AHHS Strauss Museum to view the mansion’s landscape. Since the spring garden talk, patrons have provided funds to clean up the garden beds and grounds; AHHS Volunteers and Duchess Designs have donated time and green energy - to create and clean new garden rooms, weed, prune, and spread good, rich, natural mulch purchased from Rysers Landscape Supply in Little Silver.

See you at the Strauss on Saturday. I'll also be able to host a book-signing there for my soon to be released book, The Art of the Garnish !! I got my author's copies late last week! So exciting. The Garnish book is so glamorous - so gorgeous. You'll want to make every featured cocktail. Cheers!