Today’s photos come from Harriet Robinson. She shared her beautiful garden with us several times before. This post shows some amazing before and after shots of creating her garden.
When my son and his fiancee gave me a month’s notice that they wanted a small wedding in my western Maine garden on October 19, I got to work pulling ugly daylily leaves and hoping the asters and other fall bloomers and the peony foliage wouldn’t disappoint this year. I knew we’d be a week past peak hardwood foliage, but I hoped for the best. A little snow the day before and the freeze that killed the annuals were minor challenges. I borrowed two urns from a friend to help stage the area. I bought a couple of blueberry plants for them, the only thing the nursery had that looked like it would fit a fall wedding (evergreens are too Christmasy, as is winterberry), so that they could be planted at the couple’s home afterward. The sparse blueberry plants needed help from wild blueberry foliage and pine I cut from our field, as well as sugar maples leaves. The wedding day was clear, with gorgeous views, and the asters and peony foliage did cooperate.
Asters and armillary (they were behind the bridal couple).
The bride came down these stairs, string players were seated in the white iron chairs, and the guests stood on the cement patio. The deck above provided balcony seating for elderly grandparents.
One of the urns.
Across to Mt. Washington on the wedding day.
These water features and the sundial were behind where the guests stood.
Persicaria Darjeeling (Persicaria affinis ‘Darjeeling Red’, Zones 3–9) with snow. The bride and groom stood on the cement walk just behind and to its right.
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.
If you want to send photos in separate emails to the GPOD email box that is just fine.
Have a mobile phone? Tag your photos on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with #FineGardening!
You don’t have to be a professional garden photographer – check out our garden photography tips!
Do you receive the GPOD by email yet? Sign up here.
Comments
There's probably not much that can successfully compete with that lovely distant view and your up close garden but a happy bride and groom easily take center stage. Congrats to them and to you, Harriet, for giving them such a beautiful setting for their memorable ceremony.
ps Love the arrangement you put together for the urns....truly stunning.
Not many gardeners would be willing to take on a last minute event like that. I suspect it was a beautiful ceremony.
I have been reading GPOD for years and the posts just keep getting better and better. This garden and the information provided are so inspiring.
How wonderful that Mt. Washington cooperated to make an appearance on that special day! And what a beautiful job you did - due to your earlier planning for what makes a fall garden beautiful. I was especially taken with your water features (I also have a cast iron cauldron), and the persicaria - is it at all invasive for you?
That particular persicaria is a spreader but not invasive by any stretch. It had some winter kill last winter for the first time in years and you might notice there's a puny Love Lies Bleeding staked in the "empty" spot. The water features are galvanized tubs blackened over a fire. The waterlily one was my brother's outdoor maple syrup cauldron. The pitcher plant is a newer one that sprung a leak (they don't make them like they used to) and has a rubbery feed bowl in it to hold the water. The cactus (right in photo, in shade) are in an oval one as is a running water feature not in any of the pictures.
What a kind thing for you to do, and everything looks so beautiful, natural and soft - must have been a beautiful wedding and I hope they really appreciated it. Truly a "church" setting made by God and gardened by you!
Hi, thanks for the post. This is very interesting but if you are looking for some help to get ideas about the wedding photography charges
Hi, thanks for the post. This is very interesting but if you are looking for some help to get ideas about the wedding photography charges then you should visit our wedding services which are located in
the Kenya.
Log in or create an account to post a comment.
Sign up Log in