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The mulched path makes you feel as if you are walking through a secret garden. "I know I can push the limits with plants in the front


yard, because it faces south, and the rocks hold the heat, but in the back yard, I have to rigidly stick to zone 3 plants," says Terri. "I did the front yard myself, then we got into this wet pattern so the back took three and a half years before we had all of the hardscaping done." Amazing- ly, Terri and Geoff, did all of the hardscaping themselves, with the exception of the retaining wall. Terri designed it and then took on the role of supervisor/go-fer while her husband brought her vision to life. With a meticulous planner like Terri every plant has been


thoroughly researched to ensure that it will thrive in her garden. "There is this one garden centre that has cards with plant images, zones and their growing habits. I've spent hours there looking through the cards deciding what to plant," she says. Don't get the idea that Terri is meticulous and not


creative; she is an artist after all. When it comes to pick- ing plants that will thrive in her yard, not to mention look amazing when planted together, Terri has it down to an artistic science. She is not frugal with her choice but ambi- tious and willing to try suitable additions to her garden family. She has a total of 42 trees on her property, mostly dwarf


The south facing front yard offers more planting choices. 8 • Spring 2015


varieties, but still a fair number for a 2,200-square-foot yard. You would never guess it though as each are living together side-by-side in harmony. Terri has discovered that native trees and drought tolerant plants do best, some too well. Last year she had to pull out two false spireas, Alberta natives that had become too invasive. "I planted for drought tolerance and with the wet cycle we've had some plants get too robust. I did a lot of pruning and cutting back last year," Terri explains.


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