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Landscaping Plans

Bob talks with horticulturist Ruth Foster about landscaping for the barn. Ruth explains a few techniques used to assist in drainage and weed control. She outlines the plants she has selected that will thrive in the Cape Cod climate, including a few wild flowers already existing on site.
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Landscaping Plans

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" Now this side of the building and the big challenges that we have this metal roof. And we have this deep pit China and we have no gutters to catch that rain and that snow's going to be coming down -- let's talk about your solution here."

" Well we've put down a weed fabric to keep the -- from coming up and then we're gonna cover it with crushed stone. Because then when the water drips there won't be any -- splashing around and so that the stone itself is if I want to salvage peace stone yeah it's just he stone it could be any kind of stone. And blonde not white marble which gets dirty all the time right just phone and so this in combination with a wooden walkway. Provide floor you know access around the building all seasons but here you've created kind of courtyard -- well I thought it would be fun to have a place to sit and again we put the weed fabric underneath so it doesn't have to be. Weeded all the time and we put a wonderful -- cycle. Over here which will grow and if you notice it's quite -- so the trellis is behind the drip line. And it's going to grow Allenby and lovely huge thing that hopefully has some fragrance -- nice -- you're talking about creating a triangular kind of trellis here against the building and as this grows bigger will put on a larger trellis. And tie it up and it'll be wonderful in green."

" And the triangle is the theme that you've picked out. To use in various spots because -- gable and windows that we have at both ends of the bar now over here. At this. Eastern end of the barn there sure is a lot of the bark chip now."

" Do we need this well you're gonna have the water coming down here in if you didn't you have their splashing all over your lovely new barn so this halt. And I like the big chips better campaign lasts longer two or three years as opposed to bent and bark mulch. Which only last season. This is a Japanese black pine because these well in this sterile acid sandy soil which you had -- this is Mary and I. Down great -- all right. And so I put in these Japanese pines and dale grow and it's sort of irregular shape and what we're going to do eventually. Is put a light here. And we'll have the light. On the ground and it will shine up through them near -- shadow play on bill why you are going to take advantage of this big push yet blank while we're gonna put two of them."

" I see you've got a stake in the relative poke -- at what's what's happening here."

" This is the laureate look at that color the beautiful scarlet -- that grows here. And you can't omitted fault we are in the fall so I put stake in and we had three and spring. They're going to dig it and they're gonna put it -- here -- are now in the fall actually have to -- referring to get a little -- adults don't like being -- Particularly from the -- anything that wild is not easy to move now here's your triangle again what's happening here's this nice triangle and we put down some tulip bulbs. And we've put them. You point you plant them with the point up."

" Yeah whatever you want to put the -- autograph no back -- it's very important piece and trimming out this bed."

" Will be done six inches deep and we're gonna put -- minute we're gonna help the mice don't need it which is why they're so close together because. You know the little Meissner field -- love to go after them rock."

" And then in the back of the of the of the triangle what are these little well."

" Plant you've got here we were very fortunate now as we were taking things apart we found. These little wild flowers. That would growling so we put them in half clean their relative of the band line there hot we'd have had little yellow flowering Leo fires and they of course come back every year every here. I collected scene for you Bob when you barn wildflower seeds you see you bring a lot of money but you don't know what you get. So we picked native stuff that we know will grow he garden and mrs. -- rot and all will do list sort of sprinkle it around."

" So you can do it in the autumn you can go to the different that weeds or is you know wild flowers to -- and -- now the key thing and doing authorities about it."

" This direct amends the seed -- actually -- and a half that we have to kind of get the seat often we get it all off will -- it. And the other thing that I want to do is to hand. Fees and annual play only seeds. Because these are what they put it wildflower mixes they put in lots of annuals and that's why it always looks great for two years wonderful will get to that a little bit later let me ask you about that the crime that I see over here on the on owner of the building could that looks like it's a different species and that's a very special time. This kind is a pitch pine. And we'd done this from the wild actually. And these are -- variety of trees pines that are growing in the woods the Japanese -- looked like them. But this very special. And the pitch pine is the one that gave the resins that they bound the boats with the colonial times right so we've done this from the field and it will be very irregular in the air like anything of this nature you can you can try to transplant them. But not if they're much bigger than all -- now and you have to be sure."

" And it's not aid threatened species or anything and we get them on the other side which also are mature that that are the same species but I want to talk about the blueberries."

" And so Bob we've chosen blueberries for this exposure it's a lovely sunny exposure with -- acid soil so they're going to love it. And you see we've had to put -- hall trench -- because they've got to have good soil these things are kind of pot bound well I know. And so we're just going to cut the roots likeness. -- terrified the thing."

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