Tag Archives: Ornamental Grasses

Bird Food

Rudbeckia and Grasses”
Heatherwood Winter

Birds love our winter garden. We enjoy watching them flying in and out of the meadow and into the crabapples feeding on seeds and fruit. Several of our blue spruces act as winter homes. We have noticed more birds this year than in prior years. As Heatherwood matures, we hope that the garden will become a little sanctuary for various bird species.

We leave the garden’s spent vegetation in place during the winter, not only for a food source for birds but also for its winter interest. How dull the garden would look if all the perennials were to be neatly cut back in the fall. We will save the neat look until the spring.

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In Search Of …

“Winter Grass”
Heatherwood Meadow

Recently I have let myself become a little trapped into a photographic rut. Most of my work has been focused on recording what I see. At times the result has been “pretty pictures” that have not portrayed my real feelings behind what I see. I am in a state of being in search of what it takes to create a compelling image that is unique and reflects my feelings behind it.

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A Touch of Hoar Frost

“Winter Beauty”
Heatherwood Meadow

I woke up to early morning fog covering Heatherwood. As the fog lifted, it left a little hoar frost across the garden. Out came my camera. It was time for a little winter walk in the garden. I initially was focusing on small details but was not coming up with much that I was happy with. I looked up and saw this set of golden layered grasses and the evergreen background. The grasses were tipped with a thin layer of hoar frost that provided highlights and a little winter contrast that separated the layers.

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Winter Textures

“Meadow Grasses & Perennials”
Heatherwood Meadow

The golden brown stalks of our ornamental grasses blew gently in the breeze during a recent snowfall. Their motion inhibited light powdery snow from sticking to stalk heads. In contrast the stiffer stalks of the spent rudbeckia reduce motion and allow snow to build up on the flower heads. The various textures and different shades of brown caught my eye as I walked through the meadow. There is always something to see during my strolls.

A recent heavy snowfall has matted down many of the grasses. Many of the stalks now lay on the ground.

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Winter Day 3

“Winter Grasses”
Heatherwood Meadow

Snow lightly glazes the stalks of the winter grasses adding to their winter beauty. Many gardeners like to have a neat planting area over the winter and cut down all their perennials. We prefer to let the garden get a little messy and enjoy the remnants of the perennials. The birds like it too as they feast on the spent flower seeds.

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Fourth Layer

“Lavender and Grasses”
Heatherwood Japanese Garden

We have designed the stream and waterfall section of our Heatherwood Japanese garden in five distinct layers. Starting at the bottom of the hillside looking up at the bluff above, the foreground layer transitions from a sitting area with a bed of spring Siberian iris covered with kinnikinnick. This layer flows into the pond and two waterfalls which comprises the second layer. The third layer is the wandering stream and Kotoji Japanese lantern. The fourth layer is a buffer of lavender and grasses shown in the image above. This buffer layer separates the Japanese garden from the final background layer of the sagebrush covered bluff above.

We frequently sit and relax gazing up through the pond, stream, and hillside on sunny afternoons throughout the year. It is a nice place to catch the late afternoon sun even in late fall.

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Soft

“Late Fall Softness”
Heatherwood Meadow

At this time of the year, there is a warm softness through our Heatherwood meadow. The warm colors blend together into soft yellow-brown hues. The spent flowers and grasses merge together into a homogenous mass to the eye. The autumn plumes of the ornamental grasses are soft to touch. Gentle breezes blur the grasses and flowers together on a warm sunny late fall afternoon.

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