Garden Design

Today we’re visiting with Carol Verhake.

Here in Berwyn, Pennsylvania (Zone 6b/7a), I continue to expand my 21-year-old garden. I have replaced the lawn with planting beds in many areas and changed the design in some spots to include new plants and to reorganize existing ones.

My favorite new space is in the front of my home above a stone wall. I’ve really enjoyed having neighbors comment on how much they enjoy the flower display as they walk or drive by. Established beds like the sunny border and the woodland continue to mature and bring me joy. New additions like Stokesia ‘Peachies’ Pick’ (Zones 5–9), Scutelaria incana (Zones 5–8), and Daphne ‘Carol’s Limelight’ (Zones 4–8) provide wonderful pops of color and texture.

shrub with chartreuse foliage glowing in a dark garden bedAralia cordata ‘Sun King’ (Zones 4–8) has glowing yellow-green foliage that looks stunning here.

white hydrangea blossom in ornamental grassSmooth hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens, Zones 3–9) with switchgrass (Panicum virgatum, Zones 5–9)

sunny garden bed full of flowers above stone wallThe new front border above the stone wall looks so good! No wonder the neighbors are commenting on it so much.

yellow flowers around a sundialRudbeckia (Rudbeckia fulgida, Zones 4–9) blooms around a sundial.

blue flowers next to a plant with variegated foliageBlue flowers of Scutelaria incana with the bright variegated leaves of Daphne ‘Carol’s Limelight’

garden shed surrounded by trees and shade gardensA garden shed sits amid the lush foliage of the shade garden.

small purple flowers bloomingStokesia ‘Peachie’s Pick’ (Zones 5–9)

sunny garden border with pink plantsThe sunny flower border, with garden phlox (Phlox paniculata, Zones 4–8)

Have a garden you’d like to share?

Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit!

To submit, send 5-10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden.

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