Fortunately, the solution to my “empty container problem” was minutes away at Ward’s Nursery.
Editor’s note: With this article, we launch PERSONAL SHOPPER, a new feature for our BUSINESS MONDAY! line-up. Once a month, author and shopper extraordinaire Harriet Ziefert will share an up-close and personal exploration of items of particular interest that are available in local retail outlets.
“Because we can’t escape our ancient hunger to live close to nature, we encircle the house with lawns and gardens, install picture windows, adopt pets and Boston ferns, and scent everything that touches our lives.” Diane Ackerman, American poet and naturalist
I moved to the Berkshires 18 months ago and did all of the above…except for the pet! I improved the foundation planting. I cleared brush and planted perennial ferns under the pines. I bought several large Boston ferns and hung them from the front porch rafters. I cleared brush from the old farmer’s wall so that I would have no distractions when I look at the mountains from my picture windows (already installed). I bought a honeysuckle plant to provide fragrance at the front entrance.
I also found an antique carpenter’s bench (at Moderne in Hudson) and added it to the front porch so that I could put specimen plants on the work surface. Right now, I’m looking at an assortment of unusual begonias, which I’m about to bring inside for the winter months.
When I finished unpacking my belongings, I was faced with a depressing sight: dozens of interesting containers…all of them empty! There were boxes, baskets, bowls, vases, and pails, made from wood, cork, clay, metal, glass, and porcelain and acquired over a lifetime. What to do?
Clearly, I needed to find plants to fill the containers. Not only would the containers look complete, but so would my newly acquired house.
I already said I’m opposed to pets. But plants are excellent company.
I have never been constrained by the notion that house plants belong in traditional clay pots…in fact, for me the reverse is true.
Any vessel can hold a plant, large or small. Bowls of all shapes and sizes, cookware, even cups are good for gardening. Pieces of pipe, volcanic rocks, driftwood—I use all as planters.
In a recent children’s book of mine, Is Your Head a Box for Your Brain?, I write:
A half-empty box says: Put more in! A full box says: You need another bin!
Fortunately, the solution to my “empty container problem” was minutes away at Ward’s Nursery. I since learned that Don Ward started Ward’s Nursery and Garden Center with his business partner and friend, Matt Tomich, in 1957. He turned it over to his sons in the late ’90s and, now in its 64th year, a third generation is at the helm.
On my first trip there, I met Eva Ward, Don’s granddaughter. She manages the indoor greenhouse and is my go-to person for house plants.
I started in the fern corner, which is large, and was drawn immediately to newly arrived maidenhair ferns. I chose one and gave myself a challenge: Can I keep this fern alive for longer than my last one…more than one month?
When I asked Eva about her experience with maidenhair ferns, she acknowledged that they were difficult, but of course, worth the effort. She approved of misting the fern with distilled water regularly. Or sometimes a quick shower. The problem: Sometimes I forget and the fern expresses its displeasure by shriveling up at the tips of the fronds.
Ferns are unique plants. They grow from spores, not seeds. They have fronds, not leaves. Their love of moist air makes them perfect for bathrooms or kitchens. And they have wonderful names: staghorn, lemon button, kangaroo paw, crocodile, rabbit’s foot, bird’s nest, Sprenger asparagus, Japanese painted, velociraptor ribbon, Jurassic stegosaurus holly. If anyone knows why the plethora of animal references in the naming of ferns, please let us know.
Currently, on the greenhouse tables at Ward’s are the following varieties: maidenhair, buckhorn, blue star, Boston fern, mother fern, Kimberly fern, staghorn, bird’s nest, rabbit’s foot and silver brake.
Eva reports the following about Ward’s staff favorites:
For those looking for a challenge, these ferns are happy to be mounted onto an interesting piece of wood, or planted up in a wire basket lined with sphagnum moss. And even if you are not looking for a challenge, choosing to pot your fern in a nontraditional way comes with a learning curve that immediately pays off visually!
My recent children’s book ends with the question: If a birdhouse is a box for birds, is your brain a box for words?
And now I ask you: If an ant farm is a box for ants, is a greenhouse a box for plants?
The 3,000-square-foot greenhouse at Ward’s is a fascinating place, with a wide variety of houseplants—from succulents and air plants to orchids and begonias. For the most part, plants are sourced from local growers in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York.
While I was reviewing a draft of this article, a useful message arrived in my inbox from Ward’s: Potential frost in our area.
I am reminded by Eva to bring any houseplants on to a covered porch or into a garage. I move all my plants as instructed, then decide to bring them inside and rearrange my house to accommodate them. I look forward to taking care of them all winter long…something to keep me busy when the weather is inclement.
The bigger the box the more it holds.
Empty boxes hold as much as empty heads.
The bigger the house the more it holds and enough plants in a house make it full…full of life for winter.
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