Moving from growing zone 5 in western MA to growing zone 7 in VA allows landscape gardening experimentation and realization of decades-old dreams of warm weather gardens.
Many thanks to both readers and colleagues here at Suite101 for your patience. I have spent my time the last several weeks in mentally and physically becoming a "snow-bird" and making a five-month winter move to Virginia. The move means many more experiences to share with you, my readers.
I have always claimed that I have a zone 7 soul trapped in a weak zone 5 gardener's body. Now, I will have a chance to prove it. Earlier this week, my husband and I moved into a condominium cottage nestled in the shadow of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
We have left the cultivated landscapes of Japanese yews (Taxus cuspidata) and arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis) for those of boxwood (Buxus sempervirens) and crepe myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica). We have also traded the traditional somewhat down-to-earth landscapes of the New York – New England regions for those originating from Williamsburg and Jeffersonian-style sophistication.
Spring will be glorious because our location is roughly right where the northern and southern Blue Ridge Mountains meet. This is a location where populations of North and South Eastern North American native plants merge into one large population. Here is my opportunity to realize a decades-old dream of pursuing plants I have only seen in specialized collections or fieldguide illustrations.
The winter weather here is more moderate than that in western MA, and there is little snow and ice. This allows me much leeway to indulge my zone 7 soul. Instead of a garden almost one-acre in size, I will attempt to put together a small one suited for condominium-style living. The ground is still warm and the location deer-proof enough for me to plant and enjoy tulips. I will luxuriate in new cultivars of hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla) and Encore Azaleas®.
