All Gardens Have Teachable Moments | Letter from the Editor

Garden shows are crowd together . That ’s what I remember most about the first clock time I metSusan Calhoun . It was nearly 18 years ago at the Northwest Flower and Garden Festival in Seattle , and as an shower , she had build an amazing show garden . After cheat my way between dozens of citizenry to flip through her portfolio , I was convinced that one of her projects would be perfect forFine Gardening . The following spring I found myself acquire onto a plane , into a rental car , and board a ferry to see Susan and to snap one of her gorgeous designs for our publication .

It was spunk - wracking .

I was an assistant editor in chief , brand - raw to the job and convinced that I would embarrasses myself by mispronounce a botanic name or slumber through my 4 a.m. alarm clock and mess up the entire photoshoot . But none of those affair happened . ( Well , I in all likelihood botched a plant name , but Susan was too gracious to luff it out . )

In the nigh two decades since , FGhas worked with Susan on legion feature article articles . What truly vex me is the variety of space she creates — from a hillside tropical hobo camp to a wooded native plant oasis ; from large , multi - acre projects to lilliputian seaboard courtyards . But regardless of the sizing , scale , or budget , they ’re all approachable . Even 20 - something me felt at ease in that first impressive garden because there were bit throughout when I honestly think , “ Well , I could do that in my yard . ” And therein lies the most crucial dogma of good garden design : It call for to have universal takeaways .

We occasionally get letters from folks lamenting over a sure garden we have boast . “ calculate incredible — now all I need is a million buck and 15 Akka , ” someone will write . Let me assure you : I have neither a million - dollar horticulture budget nor a elephantine part of property . But there is seldom a undivided quad we publish that does n’t incorporate something interesting for me to copy in my own low beds .

In this issue , you ’ll get to see a part ofSusan Calhoun ’s personal gardenfor the first time inFine Gardening . It is a modest - sized boundary line with ornamental grasses as its core , which Susan create to give her privacy and class - round interest without have to imbed a wall of noticeable ( and costly ) evergreens . And aside from being gorgeous , the space is just so darn relatable . I can picture a similar design both at my house and at the estate of the realm of a tech entrepreneur .

Every garden has lessons to share , whether it ’s built on a convention - centre floor or along a pristine coastline . We just need to be open - minded enough to realize what they are .

– Danielle Sherry , executive editor in chief

See all right Gardening yield # 219 here

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