The Passionate Garden, Part 1: Grasses and Trees

By J. A. Young

It is often considered that the first act of love took place in a garden. Flowers and many garden variety plants suggest paradise in their beauty, fragrance and propagation. Throughout time, gardens have maintained their symbolic nature as places of magical romance - from Eden to the Hanging Gardens of Babylon to the splendor of Versailles and so forth. You too, no matter your garden’s size, can create a lush paradise suggestive of love and passion.

The following article offers a dazzling array of romantic blossoms and grasses to incorporate into your garden and what they need for best results of growth. In most cases, you will find an alternative plant for cooler climates. With a passionate garden, love is always in the air and the work you do weeding and fertilizing may come to fruition in surprising ways.

Grasses and Groundcovers

Love, and, let's face it, sex are as ancient as they are timeless. Egyptian papyrus is an ornamental grass with ancient sex appeal. This sedge grows over fifteen feet high along the banks or the Nile. This beautiful accent can work well in the background, but its foliage is lush enough to be a dramatic focal point. It prefers a continuously moist soil and full sun. It does best in an area with a lot of humidity, but it will grow in colder climates so long as it is well protected (brought indoors) for the winter.
On that same note, purple pampas grass could play the same role in your passionate garden as the Egyptian papyrus. Reaching roughly the same height, it sports loose fluffy plumes with a color that varies from pink to purple. This lush plume is quite regal and one could certainly picture it in any Eden setting. It does best in a moisture-rich loam and regular water. In colder climates, it grows more slowly and will not be nearly as tall.
Canada Wild Rye may not be the most dramatic choice for a groundcover, but there is something romantic about the way its blue-green foliage droops in the breeze under its own weight. And with this plant, one has more time for love as there is not much maintenance required. Simply give it adequate moisture during the growing season. It tolerates a wide range of soil condition. Its seeds provide much-loved feed for birds that is often a nice feature of gardens - the animal life.
A great choice for a dramatic statement is blue oat grass. This ornamental works wonderfully as a border and is a standout in rock gardens. Growing about fifteen inches both wide and tall, its pointed leaves are a metallic blue. Give it a well-drained fertile soil with full sun. This plant does well in warm climates, but it seems to require some cold in order for its flowers to bloom.
Velvet grass, also known as Yorkshire fog, is the essence of English countryside romance. Rather too delicate to signify the same sort of passion as say the orchid, but it is charming and its flowers may be even be used in dried arrangements. Its soft foliage makes it a perfect choice for a lush green groundcover though it works well in border areas also. Give it moist, well-drained soil that is fertile and exposed to sun or partial shade.

Trees

The ornamental cherry sports lovely pink double flowers from mid to late spring. Also known as the weeping cherry, it tolerates a wide range of soils so long as the drainage is good.
The Mount Etna broom tree is cluttered with masses of vanilla-scented blossoms. Light soil that drains quickly is preferable for this yellow-flowered hardy tree/shrub.
The Indian bean tree, or southern catalpa, has heart-shaped leaves that make it a perfect choice for a romantic setting. It grows best in fertile, moisture-rich soil and thrives in with hot summers.
The Young's weeping birch is a hardy tree that tolerates poor dry soils. The conspicuous foliage drops in the fall giving it that "weepy" look.

Continue to Part 2: Flowers and Flowering Plants >

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