My Garden Maze in Late Summer
My three year old garden maze is filling in so wonderfully.
The three-acre pasture just outside my Winter House is the setting for my maze. Since work began I've planted a variety of different hedges, espaliers, trees, and shrubs - hundreds of specimens that I selected to add texture and interest, and all according to a detailed map I created specifically for the space. Each row branches off with various pathway options and dead ends, but with only one correct route to the center. Guests who wander through are stumped at almost every turn.
Here are some of the latest photos, enjoy.
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- British horticulturist Gertrude Jekyll once said, “A garden is a grand teacher. It teaches patience and careful watchfulness; it teaches industry and thrift; above all it teaches entire trust.” I’ve had to be very patient and careful in planting my living maze, but it’s growing beautifully. This is a selection of Platanus acerifolia ‘Bloodgood’ trees, also known as London planes.
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- I planted these trees in early November 2022. They are planted in a rectangle with two long rows and two short rows and an open space in the center. These trees are large shade trees with broad open crowns. Looking closely, one can already see some of the fallen leaves – the seasons are beginning to change.
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- These trees are sought after for the three-lobed, toothed, dark green leaves that turn yellow, orange, and red with the fall season.
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- Its bark makes it even more interesting because it sheds in a patchwork pattern with growth and age.
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- This is one of several Liquidambar styraciflua ‘Slender Silhouette’ trees, American sweetgums. As these trees mature, they will maintain their erect, columnar form, growing up to 50 feet tall and only about four-feet wide.
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- The deciduous dark green leaves are a beautiful star-shape.
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- And while they are green now, in autumn the leaves show a kaleidoscope of colors, including vibrant yellow, orange, red, and purple.
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- I have three of them here that are towering over the other plantings. The ‘Slender Silhouette’ sweetgum is highly adaptable, drought-resistant, and easy-to-grow, but it does best in well-drained soil where it can get full sun.
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- Red Beauty holly has bright red berries combined with glossy, dark green foliage. Many varieties of holly, Ilex, have compact habits and glistening leaves that’s excellent for hedges, borders, and yes, mazes.
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- The long, upright-growing branches of Hick’s yew have dense, glossy, green foliage that naturally forms a narrow habit. And right now, they are showing off berries, or red drupes, which usually come out in late summer and persist through fall.
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- An espalier refers to an ancient technique, resulting in trees that grow flat, either against a wall, or along a wire-strung framework. Many kinds of trees respond beautifully to the espalier treatment, but fruit trees, like apple and pear, were some of the earliest examples. Espaliered trees can grow between four and eight feet apart – enough to allow them room as they grow, but still be close enough for a proper espalier. Among the apples in my maze are Liberty apples, Gala apples, Braeburn apples, and Yellow Delicious apples.
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- Paul’s Gold threadleaf false cypress, Chamaecyparis pisifera, has year-round golden green foliage. The soft sprays of Paul’s Gold threadleaf false cypress emerges yellow in the spring and retains its gold color throughout the winter.
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- Parrotia persica is in the family Hamamelidaceae, closely related to the witch-hazel genus Hamamelis. It is native to northern Iran and southern Azerbaijan and it is endemic in the Alborz mountains. It grows best in USDA zones 5 to 8.
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- Some of these leaves are also changing colors. Parrotias have a long-lasting, elaborate autumn color display of ever-changing leaves that show off yellow, orange, burgundy and red hues.
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- This is a hedge of European hornbeams. Botanically known as Carpinus betulus, the hornbeam is a fast-growing deciduous tree. In fact, it can grow about four to five feet per year. It is native to Western Asia and central, eastern and southern Europe, including southern England.
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- Hornbeams are often confused with the common beech because of their similar leaves; however, the hornbeam leaves are actually smaller and more deeply furrowed than beech leaves. The leaves are deciduous and alternate, with serrated margins.
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- The ninebark is a deciduous spring-flowering shrub often planted en masse.
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- In autumn, the leaves develop a tinge of bronze. Ninebark can grow 12 to 18 inches per year, but it can also tolerate hard pruning when needed.
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- My overall plan is to plant as many interesting trees, hedges, espaliers, and shrubs as possible in this space and to create a fun and challenging living maze. The plants are spaced closely, so they become closed hedges in time.
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- And close to the bottom north end is my giant eagle – looking out toward the landscape beyond. I’m looking forward to completing this project and watching all these plants mature and also confuse those who stroll through… after all, it is a maze.
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