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Our yard is a tapestry of contrasts. Soft
grass and hard stone, crowded plantings and open
spaces, manicured and wild . We raised our
family in this yard, so there had to be room for play
and picnics. We have an above ground pool and
behind it, is a large round redwood picnic table and
gas grill. The view from under the Snowball Tree
is across a large grass play area, suitable for badminton,
or volleyball or a game of catch. There is also a
galvanized frame swing set back there that has served
our children well and shows few signs of wear and
tear. If we ever have grandchildren, they will
probably play on it also. There is a flagstone
walk from the back porch to the back of the
yard. It is made from a gray shale with mica
sparkles. Some of the stones have disintegrated,
a few of them are crumbling now, and the rest are
intact. I have suggested taking it out from time
to time, but it is part of the history of the
place. Cindy's dad built it, when he was a boy, to
pave the path from the house to the outhouse. He
laid it straight as an arrow from the back porch to
the back of the yard, and then at an angle to the
privy. He was pleased with his work, but Grandma
didn't like it because it went under the Snowball Tree
and she didn't want to be bumping her head in the
branches, so she made him tear up the walk under the
tree and re-lay it with a noticeable dogleg around the
perimeter of the tree's crown. It looks as if
some invisible force pushed the walk away from the
tree, spoiling its perfect alignment. Sort of
like an earthquake fault across a highway.
Standing back in the grassy area, looking toward the
house, you can see the Snowball Tree and to its right,
in front of our neighbors house, our Snowball Bush and
Mock Orange Bush. The white spoked railing and
green roof, visible between the tree and the bushes,. is
the outside entrance to our basement and to a storage
area under the back porch. The bird-bath used to
be in the middle of a formal planting in the same
location, but we changed that this summer. The
area now is surrounded with grass. There is a
birdfeeder on a pole that is hidden from view when
there are leaves on the bushes. We only feed the
birds when there is snow on the ground. At other
times, there is plenty of food to be found around the
yard, so we expect them to do their jobs and find
it. Placing the feeder in the Snowball Bush has
the added advantage of protecting it from cats.
It is not easy for them to climb through the bushes
mass of stems, capped with sharp winter buds.
The area between the houses is sheltered from severe weather
and provides a combination of deep shade and bright
sun, depending on the time of day. This is the
location of my wildflower garden. It is sort of
a hardwood forest habitat with the shade being
provided by the house, rather than trees. This area is
"Hands Off!" to everyone but me, as it is
where I generally plant my often "weed-like"
plant specimens. The scent of ferns hangs in the
air as you walk along the narrow concrete walk from
the back of the house to the front. The photo
shows the area from the front. The left side,
(against the neighbor's fence) has Blood Root, Jewel
Weed, Goldenrod, Thistles, Viola canadensis, Viola
fimbriatula, Viola adunca, Viola
blanda, Viola incognita, Bee Balm, False Solomon's Seal, True
Solomon's Seal, White Clintonia, Christmas Ferns,
NewYork Ferns, Lance Leaf Coreopsis, White Trillium,
Wild Ginger and a few others that I have
forgotten. It also has a few Ostrich Ferns, that
I have been moving from the area due to their
invasiveness. The right side, (Against our
house's foundation) has various species of evergreen
ferns that have been growing in the same location for
almost 20 years. This year, I also planted a few
unknown violet specimens in this area. We'll see
how they do and hopefully identify them next
spring. There is an open gate, just inside the
shadowed area. Behind the gate, the wildflower
garden gradually transitions to lilies and
chrysanthemums with interspersed violet
specimens. This plot ends under the Mock Orange
bush, where there is a planting of variously colored
Viola tricolor.
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Under The Snowball
Tree
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