Many of us at some point have struggled with the collector/designer in us. I balance both but it is more fun to come home with variety rather than multiples of plants. My garden is large so I need drifts and often plant in 3, 5, 7's depending on the plant. So that would make me a patch I suppose.

Happy you are happy with your style!

I would say for the most part, I'm patchwork. I usually only buy one of something, and I tend to be a plopper as well, which doesn't help the patchwork effect lol.

I am actually, for the last two years, trying to make a concerted effort to not only plan things out more, but also add more "patches", or as peren.all says, trying to plant in drifts, or at the very least have one or two common plants run through the beds to tie things together. Part of my problem is money - I have limited funds, especially the last few years, so I hate to buy two or more of ONE plant when I can get two DIFFERENT plants lol. But I'm working on it!

The one thing that veers from my patchwork is, as kato mentioned, reseeders. In particular I have a ton of reseeded columbines, and also digitalis grandiflora. I also have Queen Anne's Lace, which reseeds politely and does give some of that unifying, drift effect. But the columbines and the foxgloves have gotten out of control. Last year I finally clamped down and cut down most of them before reseeding, and now just rip them out if they're in the way, instead of working around them. It's hard, because IMO they're glorious when they're in bloom, but honestly, they are just taking over.

:)

Dee

Fabulous!

I almost always buy at least three of any perennial and if I really love it I will get five. I do tend to plant in groups or swaths as I have a bit of a larger yard and it takes a grouping to show up well from my kitchen window which is the view I use to determine my siting.

My first yard was less organized. We bought things with no spot in mind and had to rearrange all the damn time. But we learned, and in our second property did a bit better job of planning.

Now I look at a spot and buy a plant to put in it as opposed to buying a plant and wandering around looking for a spot to put it. That always results in a transplant down the road, lol.

katob, I never find the time to divide and replant. For some reason that job goes to the bottom of the pile and by the time I get to it, it's the wrong time to move something, like July. [g]

Have you done a lot of dividing? I'm especially interested in increasing the amount of bulbs I have. I have done some with the daffodils and I've just dug them up and potted them and added them that way. Do you have a certain method/timing that you recommend? When you dig up bulbs - how long do you wait to dig them up and do you find there are a lot more bulbs when you do?

Dee, I love columbine too and mine reseed like mad as well. What I have found though, is that the longer it has been since the original plants were added, the worse the reseeded plants are. They all become very blah. I am hoping to add mew stock and pull out a lot of the blahs. Your patch of columbine is so pretty1

I always buy one or two and that's it. I always want to see how a plant does in my garden before I start buying more and really I have a small property and by the time I know I like something and it will do well, it's large enough to divide it.

"...We bought things with no spot in mind and had to rearrange all the damn time...."

Yup, lol, that's me! Working on it lol.

"...I never find the time to divide and replant..."

Right?? Always something better to do!

"...For some reason that job goes to the bottom of the pile and by the time I get to it, it's the wrong time to move something, like July..."

Exactly! :)

Yes, I do LOVE the columbines in spring, even as I watch in a bit of horror as it is everywhere! I also have large swaths of (what was originally, at least) Appleblossom, a white with green tinge, which doesn't thrill me as much (see one of the swaths below - meh, right?). That is much easier to rip out lol. But the pink and purple? Ugh, after several years it still looks good, imo, and I get new shades and just hate to rip it out. I have to force myself to be ruthless. It will be easier hopefully when I have a bit more money to spend on new plants to replace it lol!

:)

Dee

In my case, I like to have a small variety of flowers and grass but a lot of them. But I understand you, really.

Many times I have a hard time resisting the urge to keep buying more and more.

Dee, adding new plants doesn't have to replace what you have, but it will bring new vigor to the seedlings that are produced. And if you enjoy them, why pull them out?

And every spring, I say, this will be the year I concentrate on dividing and replanting....I'm thinking I should stop saying that and maybe reverse psychology will work. [g]

Ha! So many tasks in a season there is no way to get to them all. I realize that I do have a few patches, though I suppose it may depend on how big is a "patch". I have a 4'x5' patch of Solomon Seal, a much larger patch of rudbeckia. I also have a large space and have been working on this for 20 + years, so anything that spreads is potentially going to get to be a patch, unless I rip it out, which many years I don't have time for. But the patches I have I didn't plan for, it's the other non-spreaders/clumpers that create the patchwork effect.

Not making any kind of value judgement here either. All gardening is good gardening. :o)

Omg I love the little frog on the rudbeckia! Adorable!

PM2, I meant replacing with plants other than more columbines lol. And I do need to replace some of them. Like I said I think it's glorious in bloom, but then the rest of the season it's just a bunch of green plants with really no further - or not enough - interest. I need to replace some of the hundred of columbines with other things that will bloom and/or look good after the columbines are done.

I've never been a fan of dividing. I am thinking of getting rid of my irises for that reason. I'm of the opinion that you should be able to plant something and be done with it lol. But maybe someday (haha, the gardener's usual saying!) I'll have time to focus more on the garden!

:)

Dee

Just for the record, when I say I divide things, a lot of times it's a couple years after I first said I would and it's often not at the best time of year for the plant. I am absolutely not a 'to-do in May list' kind of gardener, it's more triage if you had to put a name to it ;)

Prairiemoon- I'm very guilty of moving and dividing whenever the mood strikes, so if you want to know if things CAN be done I can usually say, but if they Should be done is often a different question. For bulbs I've moved them at just about any time of year but bulbs that regrow the entire bulb each year like crocus, tulips, fritts, and colchicum don't appreciate moving in early spring. Others like lilies, daffs, hyacinths can move anytime, but I like to wait until the foliage dies down. Most everything can multiply real quick in a good spot, and dividing after four years sounds good but usually here it's at least twice that before I get around to it.

If you want more daffs or tulips, let me know. I'm trying to take better care of the ones I have and that means dividing... and that also means way way more than I need and i hate tossing them since they end up growing all over the compost pile then.

Dee I love the garden photos. the columbine looks awesome and I think I'd be fine with just green the rest of the year.

When things like iris or phlox get crowded I sometimes cheat and just dig 3/4 of the clump and toss it. Whatever is left always appreciates having more room, and it's easier than digging everything imo.

Katob - Just goes to show that dividing and moving plants doesn’t have to be at the ‘right time’. Perhaps, trying to get the timing perfect has resulted in moving and dividing plants a lot less often. So guess I will stop trying to get it perfect. [g]

I love hyacinths and I would like to increase those and they are just about to stop blooming. There is another reason I don’t divide them - if you wait for the foliage to die down naturally, then it is definitely hot weather by then. And you can’t find them to divide them if you lose the foliage. I’ve tried moving other bulbs by digging them up right after bloom and potting them with a root ball, like a perennial. I’m thinking I may try that with all my spring bulbs.

I’m wondering, can you lift bulbs every year or is that too soon to expect additional bulbs? Is every 2 years the right time?

Thanks for the kind offer of daffs and tulips, maybe at some point we could make a trade.

I’ve started buying the largest specimen i can find in the pot size I want and dividing it into two (or three if I’m lucky!) off the bat. Did that with Millenium Allium and got three plants for the price of one.

Also tend to buy one test plant first. After some exterior renovations created new landscaping beds, I’m learning what plants work where. If I try one and it doesn’t thrive or come back, I know to look for something else.

“buying a plant and wandering around looking for a spot to put it.” That was definitely me 😂

"I am absolutely not a 'to-do in May list' kind of gardener, it's more triage if you had to put a name to it ;)"

I have lists like that but I don't follow them.

All I ever do is walk outside and do one thing then everything else just follows- one thing leads to another, I get distracted and do whole other tasks, etc.

But I get a lot more done this way- some days I am truly remarkable, lol.

I can weed the entire hell corner and the south bed in one day- if I had that on a to-do list it would be so daunting I would run away. But if I just wander into it I always manage to get it done.

And we have a new mantra- husband started it with his workouts (he's a beast) but I've adopted it- "Don't stop when you're tired, stop when you're done!"

cearbhaill I like that mantra! Unfortunately for me, I have to get started before I can stop hahaha! My mantra lately is "Just do it", usually muttered under my breath to myself in a self-disgusted tone lol. I'll keep yours in mind for the times I do get started!

Last night I was watching a basic garden video on design. It was through some craft-learning website I just signed up for and I was browsing their categories and found gardening, and took a quick peek at the design class. I immediately thought of this thread with a laugh when the instructor said something like, "do you suffer from one-of-each-itis?" Yes. Yes I do!

:)

Dee

Some great comments. As I was thinking abut my first post and the progression of building this garden I realize that I've changed my approach more than I realized. It's a 5 acre piece of land and we garden on 2 acres or so. Not all two acres, but enough that there is lots of space to fill. There was no garden at all to speak of and we started clearing areas, putting in some hardscape, built a pond and an 8 ft deer fence and after a couple of years we had huge open areas of dirt that needed filling. Go to the nursery, buy one or two of this and that and with little other thought than sun or shade, plopped them into the ground. As the years go by there has been a lot, I say a lot of editing, dividing, plant killing and many plants that surprise, look awesome and make it look like we knew what we were doing, but really it was all the plants doing.

I would say yes you can divide any time if year. If it's hot out you'll need to water more ( I know this isn't news to any of you) and it may take a bit longer for it to settle in. Even when you move it at the best of times, it sets the plant back a year or so. But it must be done! Doesn't it? ;o)

@cearbhaill (zone 6b Eastern Kentucky) "Don't stop when you're tired, stop when you're done!" This reminds me of the "Stop eating when you're full". Which I also have issues with. :o)

Anna, I’d forgotten that idea about buying a larger container and dividing it from the start. Excellent idea!

CBHaill - I am a list person, but I find following the list in sequence and by design, restraining and makes gardening more of a chore. I have to write down ideas of jobs that need doing when I think of them so I won’t forget it, so I have a master list, but I choose one or two priorities for the day and once you get out there you see 3 things on the way to doing it that you want to do next and it’s much more enjoyable that way.

The only problem though, is then I can easily avoid doing the job I’m not looking forward to doing. So I do check my list frequently to keep my self honest.

I love that saying - ‘Don’t stop when you’re tired, stop when you’re done.’ Tell your husband - we are also adopting it! Lol

I have a new mantra lately too. Instead of saying do your best, I’ve been saying ‘Do Better’. [g] Meaning, 'Are you really doing your best, can you do better?'

We must have been posting at the same time and I'm just seeing your post @prairiemoon2 z6b MA You guys are hardcore. :o) My mantra when weeding is, "Can't get them all, just keep going". I do try to get anything that is about to go to seed, but I often fall back on "that's good enough for now".

Yes, we were posting at the same time. Junior - you have a much larger garden than I do. I have a measly 1/4 acre, not 2 acres of garden to look after. So just trying to grow a 2 acre garden sounds pretty hardcore to me. lol

I try not to allow ONE maple seedling to remain in place, because the next thing I know I'd be trying to extract a sapling from the middle of one of my shrubs. Some weeds respond to picking by coming back stronger, so I sometimes resort to special treatment in some areas, by covering it over with layers of cardboard and/or plastic to try to starve the weedy area of light and moisture. I have one area that I need to do that to now. Otherwise, we use a lot of mulch.

Bugaboo weeds in our garden are shotweed, buttercup and yes maples. We have many big leaf maples and several Japanese maples and they are all surprisingly fertile. I am forever pulling seedlings.

2 acres is a lot to take care of. I really don't have time for a day job, but one does what one must.

juniorballoon your garden looks lovely! That is a lot of land to maintain and manage. I grew up in a rowhouse in a city, and my front yard was about 20x10 feet, with a sidewalk splitting the middle to the door. My mom gardened and her little garden always looked so full.

When I moved to my current house I became the owner of almost an acre of land. I thought I owned the world lol. But when I went and bought, like my mother before me, half a dozen irises, one or two daylilies, a quart of this or that perennial, and planted a dozen daffodils, they all just looked pathetic! It took me some time to learn to build beds, concentrate on certain areas, and not try to plant the whole thing at once! But I think that's why I'm a one-of-each gardener - when you have a tiny garden, one of each is not only all that's necessary, but you often have to sacrifice one to have another one. It's what you learn and are used to and it took me awhile to adapt to the larger yard!

I think my mantra today is stop procrastinating on the computer and get your butt outside!

:)

Dee

Just wanted to add a quick post - guess what I did yesterday? I moved and divided stuff lol!

I wasn't planning on it, but I finally got out to clean up and mulch some beds, and one big bed I was all set to mulch and realized I have some phlox that always gets overtaken by a big hydrangea. I thought to myself, might as well dig up and move the phlox now before you mulch and everything gets bigger and harder to get at. So I did. And then I decided to divide it. I thought of you guys on this thread the whole time I was doing it haha!

:)

Dee

I am someone who buys a single plant to test how it does in my garden. Like others, for some plants that selfseed or spread vegetatively, there may develop swaths, but I am as likely to do repeats of larger plants, either perennials or shrubs, down a bed for the structure I want. I also do some beds with a color theme such as a bed with red and pink foliage and flowers which helps decrease thhe look of one of this and one of that.