In more ways than one, it is so much easier to be in Elizabeth Lawrence's garden than it is to be on the computer. When I'm on the computer, my ADD kicks into high gear. I head into "Wonderland" with one focus: search for sources of different new (and old) plant material to test in the garden. Before I know it, I've perused no fewer than 10 blogs, 15 nursery websites, 4 public garden databases, 6 flickr image galleries, 8 gardening forums ... and the list goes on. At the end of it all, I've spent two hours inside, feeling as if I've wasted time but all the while reminding myself this is part of researching plant material.
Don't get me wrong: I have found some GREAT plants this way. Lots of great plants, actually. And I have learned a ton of great information... about most of which I remain somewhat skeptical because it is, after all, the internet. I also gain a lot of inspiration, which is a wonderful thing that keeps me engaged on so many levels. But at the end of it, I am a bit exhausted. A bit spent. A bit in need of serenity. So I close down the computer, and head out into Elizabeth’s garden.
When I'm in the garden, time seems to stand still. Nothing else matters except that visceral connection I feel to Elizabeth and her world. I take time to really study the garden. I get down on the ground to appreciate a new perspective. I hold a bruised leaf to my nose to see if I can discern any fragrance. I weed an area—always carefully—searching for freshly uncovered bulbs emerging from dormancy. I have found SO much in this garden. Countless discoveries have come above the ground, but equally as many beneath the soil... partially rusted plant tags still boasting Elizabeth's handwritten identification, gnarled plant stakes, stone edging long covered over with layers of soil, mulch and leaf litter. Even bulbs that hadn't seen the light of day in years. There's always cool stuff to see here. And the best way to see it, if you're not sitting on my shoulder while I'm digging around in the garden, is through a camera lens.
I take a LOT of pictures. Since November 2010, I have taken 3,307 in this garden. All of those pictures do no one but myself any good if I don't share. But don't expect the garden to look the same when you come to visit. Elizabeth was fond of saying, "You have not seen my garden. You have only seen it TODAY."
So here is a month in pictures in Elizabeth Lawrence’s garden. Enjoy.
Yours in Dirt,
Andrea Sprott
