treuse sweet potato vine overflow the pots, competing with the flowers in their bright hues. She loves the large State Fair zinnias that bloom so heartily all summer long. Pic- otee petunias peek from under tropical foli- age. Giant elephant ears and angel’s trum- pet, yellow and black rudbeckia, shiny leafed, multi-coloured croton and purple cleome all lend themselves to the palette. Dozens of hydrangeas of different colours
and varieties overflow the raised beds. Lilies perfume the air, while a mountain ash, laden with orange fruit, presides over it all, creat- ing just enough shade to support some hosta and a big-leafed ligularia. Plant exotica is everywhere. Pink oleander
and fruit-laden citrus trees edge the pool. A fig has given Irene several delicious ripe fruits this summer. Large works of art are here and there: a
classical water fountain against one wall; a gi- ant bronze horse in the corner on the other side of the pool; a green patina-ed dragon rising under the mountain ash, all from her former home down South. There are more in the garage, but no room in the garden. This winter some of the more exotic and expensive plants will come inside to join the dozens of house plants that already have resi- dence in the sunny room next to the garden. Irene has chosen six, but saying goodbye to the others will be very hard. Meanwhile, the path to the front yard is
Giant pots filled with canna and banana and lots of colour everywhere fills Irene’s heart with joy.
lined with exuberant Joe Pye weed and more hydrangea. The front, more formal than the
Beloved hydrangea, zinnias and heliotrope.
back, is still an extravaganza of plants, both growing in ground and in containers. Irene was trained as an interior designer.
Her love and appreciation for the plants goes deeper with her than for many people. She notices the iridescence on a canna petal, is mesmerized by the light as it shines through a banana leaf. She is enraptured by the sound of the bees and the flight of the butterflies from bloom to bloom. “They are my children,” she says.
10 • Beautiful Gardens 2012
www.localgardener.net
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