The Berm

The southeastern most part of our back garden is and always has been a rounded berm of dirt about 3 feet high running about 35 feet from east to west, between the truck gate on the side yard and the barn.

It has always been a pain to keep weeded with little else able to grow there except the recent introduction of English Ivy from our neighbors and the half dozen cottonwoods that reached upwards from 30 feet to 100 feet into the sky.

I have explored the berm on occasion when attempting to keep the weeds down. Digging in this berm I have come across such odd objects as a child's wading pool, nails, coaxial cable, cyclone fencing and chunks of concrete. It turns out it was where those who constructed the home buried all the debris they didn't want to be bothered hauling away. Eventually I gave up trying to keep it managed and let the ivy take over. What a mistake!

The ivy finally got so out of control that it was climbing the trees and even invading the barn. It was time to do something. So I thought. Years have gone by thinking about it and nothing was ever done short of keeping the ivy from taking over the barn.

Last Spring, as I have already mentioned in a previous blog entry, we finally downed the cottonwood trees. This left a gapping hole between us and the neighbors that left us both with no privacy. We are friendly neighbors but everyone needs their privacy. So we promised we would do something soon.

So last week we hired a guy with a tractor scoop and back hoe to remove the berm, all the trash buried in it and the ivy down to their roots, down to a depth of about 4 feet. He also removed most of the cottonwood stumps. Then we had 15 yards of good sandy loam trucked in and our excavator built a brand new berm ready for landscaping.

Three groups of three arborvitae were planted along the crest of the new berm with a shrub between each group of three arborvitae. Each group of three arborvitae were planted in triangular formation on a 4 and a half foot center so the arborvitae will not grow together and there is a sense of depth to the plantings. Two butterfly bushes frame either end of the formation and we will add layered plantings along the front of the berm to finish it off as we discover plants we like.

I believe this will be a work in progress like every other part of our garden since I want to be selective about the plants I purchase. I look for unique and unusual plants as well as native plants to fill in the spaces. Time and money will eventually fill in the gaps.

On the right is a photo of The Secret Garden with the large native shrub in the background now framed by two more arborvitae. These plants act as a sort of picture frame around the gravel stage running along in front of the shrub.