Garden help
Services can do the planting for you
Life
is about change as we age. For some, this may mean downsizing into a smaller home and for others it may mean changes in lifestyle. If gardening has always been a joy in your life, there are ways to continue exercising your green thumb even if you have less space or energy. Here are gardening options to consider as spring approaches.
Go organic
For some gardeners, the process of setting up a garden bed can be overwhelming, so they turn to professionals like Verdant and Jeanne Nolan who own and operate the The Organic Gardener, Ltd, a Northbrook based company.
“We design and install organic, productive and beautiful vegetable gardens,” sums up Verdant Nolan.
The couple are environmentalists who started setting up gardens 16 years ago. One of the common motivating factors for starting a vegetable garden is a quest for a fresh picked tomato, notes Verdant, but he says gardens can deliver much more. The process begins with a meeting between the gardener-to-be and The Organic Gardener staff.
“We plan the vegetable garden and make a drawing,” says Verdant. The plan includes all of the elements needed. For some gardens open to Peter Rabbit and other vegetable lovers, a fence might be needed. Other options might include raised beds or garden paths.
“Our goal is to set up a successful vegetable garden,” says Verdant. The location of the garden, the quality and depth of the soil used, pest deterrents and irrigation options can all be part of the plan.
All installations are organic. “Everything we use is derived from the earth in its natural state and minimally processed. No chemicals or pesticides are used. All of our plants and soils are certified organic,” says Verdant.
The Nolans take pride in creating an attractive garden. “We incorporate flowers that are edible or beneficial to the vegetables by attracting the right kinds of pollinators while adding beauty.
In addition, we use symmetry to balance the garden along with soil health practices to have the vegetables looking their best.”
The Organic Gardener offers weekly or bi-weekly maintenance plans by request. “We can handle the weeding and even do the harvesting. Before COVID, we harvested, washed produce and put it in the refrigerator for some of our older clients,” says Verdant.
Many clients choose to have a spring and a summer planting in their gardens. “We can do as little or as much as the client wants,” he notes.
Verdant is passionate about his work. “Working with plants and the earth gives us a purpose we can feel good about every moment. When gardening, we slow down more and pollute less.”
For more information, visit theorganicgardener.net.
Beauty and the blooms
Although Alyce Lysek was unable to visit in person with her family during this past year, she was able to enjoy beautiful plantings from her daughter and sonin-law, Linda and Dennis Fulton. When Lysek moved into Smith Crossing, the Orland Park senior living community 15 years ago, the Fultons installed and filled planters around the perimeter of her patio. Every Mother’s Day, they fill the planters with flowers and plants.
“I enjoy seeing all of the flowers,” says Lysek. “I have eight planters and it takes me a half a dozen trips from the kitchen to the patio to water them. They are just so pretty,” she says.
You don’t need to have thoughtful children to have beautifully planted containers thanks to Katherine Ritter, owner of Down To Earth Designs. Since 2002, Ritter has been helping her North Shore clients beautify outdoor spaces with elegantly planted containers.
In addition to planting containers, Ritter often offers suggestions about improving the space around the container. “I try to set up outdoor rooms and often help rearrange furniture so that the space is magical.”
Ritter points out simple changes that could improve outdoor spaces like replacing a worn door mat. “When you look at stuff all of the time, you don’t actually see it. You can walk by the garden hose piled by the front door and not really see it.”
Ritter gathers client information before doing a design. “I ask people how they are going to use the space. Is it for drinking morning coffee? Is it for drinking wine in the evening? And I look at the designs and texture of the house.”
When the garden space is going to be used primarily at dusk or night, Ritter puts in some white flowers or plants with white variegated leaves because white will show up better in dim light. “If you put a red piece of paper and a white piece of paper on the lawn, they both will be seen in the daytime but the white is far more visible at night. White starts to glow at night,” she explains.
Ritter strives to please her clients. “I ask if there is a color or flower they don’t like. There are many people who don’t like geraniums.”
Since she considers so many factors for each design, “I never do the same container design twice.” Even if she has planted the container in the past, each year she comes up with a new look. “I am always looking for new things,” she says.
No container is too big or too small for Ritter to plant. “Sometimes people have containers and sometimes I bring them in. I have planted bathtubs and I planted a vintage toilet and a pair of old boots. I can plant in anything. The containers should make you smile.”
Ritter will revisit containers up to four times a year with seasonal plantings at the client’s request.
“A lot of my clients are past the age of 50 and just want to have someone come and plant their containers so it is done and ready for them to enjoy,” says Ritter.
For information, contact katherineritter@gmail.com.