Unexpected Fall Gardening Advice From The New York Times

A new and interesting way to think about your gardening practice!

The New York Times had a great article by Margaret Roach featuring Rebecca McMackin, the director of horticulture at the 85-acre Brooklyn Bridge Park.

"Gardening is not so much about following rules, says McMackin, as it is about following rules of observation. For Ms. McMackin... that means keeping in mind goals that will support wildlife in the garden, and the greater ecology.

Rather than following the common practice of planting and transplanting in spring, for instance, she suggests shifting virtually all of that activity to autumn — and not cutting back most perennials as the season winds down.

Before you act, she said, you should question why a task is necessary, and if you really need to do it at all.

“Why do we do fall cutbacks?” she asked herself, considering the park’s 16 acres of beds, and realized she had no satisfactory answer. “Why do we plant so much in spring? And why do we hear so much about ample spacing and airflow around plants when, if you look at a meadow, that’s not what you see the plants doing?”

The article goes on to say most of our gardening traditions come from European topiary gardening, where humans were forcing their will over the environment to follow straight lines and shrubs in shapes of animals.

Thinking of gardening as more of a cooperation with environment--being a steward and a facilitator--is certainly less work, but the results need not be any less visually or spatially pleasing.

"The practice she adheres to is called ecological horticulture. It’s the polar opposite of the purely ornamental version, which is driven by asserting control of plants in the name of aesthetics.

“Ecological horticulture is animal-centric,” she said. “We encourage the dynamic between plants, wildlife and soil, and strive to figure out how to get those plants to thrive independently of our care. We cultivate gardens with high levels of biodiversity and ecological functionality that can help repair the damage done to this land.”

Fall Planting is easier on the gardener.

"Fall planting gives plants time to establish themselves, and some are fully settled by the following summer, so watering isn’t needed then. Peak planting time at the park is from late September through early October or so, with grasses going in earlier in September, for extra rooting time.

“If you time it right,” Ms. McMackin said, “sometimes you only have to do a month of watering, and then walk away from the plant.”

Fall Planting makes time for spring weeding!

"And there’s a bonus: With the staff no longer on hose duty all spring and summer, they have more time for that all-important task that must not be postponed: weeding.

“In May and June, instead of planting, we can get weeds while they’re still small,” Ms. McMackin said. “You can hoe rather than having to hand-pull — getting rid of things that can cause massive problems later, if you don’t.”

"Spring planting “gets in the way of our work, instead of complementing it,” Ms. McMackin said. And in the past four years, her crew has gradually phased it out. Next year, there will be no spring planting at Brooklyn Bridge Park, except for some tree species that resent fall root disturbance."

This is a great time of year to rethink your gardening practices.

• What truly needs to be done and why?

• How can your gardening practices reflect stewardship and cooperation instead of a power struggle with your environment?

• What can you plant and transplant now in preparation for spring?

Read the rest of the Times article here.

You can also visit the park and see the planting for yourself: https://www.brooklynbridgepark.org/plan-your-visit/plants-and-wildlife/

Victoria Gardens landscaping division also offers fall planting, clean-ups, garden maintenance, mulching, garden design consultations and full garden installations. For more information visit us on the web at www.victoriagardens.biz or call (845) 658-9007.