CityView Magazine

1 2 3 4 5 6 of the yard is its own "room". She has created formal and cottage, vegetable, experimental, water and even a secret garden. In every space she has consid- ered function and view — both from the outside and from within her home. Where once the tending was born out of physical necessity, now gardening feeds and nurtures her soul. Faith becomes its most real. Sweet fellowship happens in her garden. Though it may seem she's alone, she isn't. "Some days, life just gets heavy," conceded Motsie, who acts as both spouse and full-time caregiver now that John is completely wheelchair bound and fighting cancer. "To me, gar- dening is the best therapy." Motsie's most visible and newest gar- 7 8 9 den is her front English. According to John, it is the result of his frustration over a continually clogged weed-eater. He decided the solution was to cre- ate a weed-eater free yard. So, with his eye for symmetry and Motsie's artistic green thumb, they sectioned the yard into planting spaces, along and within a perimeter fence: "curvilinear" in de- sign (having curved lines), functional to work in and — best of all — weed-eater maintenance free. It was a solution that took a mere eight years to complete. Historically, cottage gardens were 10 A few of Motsie's favorites: Bushes: glossy abelia (6), spiraea japonica (11), hollies, mahonia (9), Knock Out roses (1) Perennials: daylilies (3), hollyhocks (8), foxglove (5), helleborus (7) (popular varieties: Christmas rose and Lenten rose), phlox (10), lamb's ear (2), peony Vines: star jasmine (12), clematis (4), varieties of roses (look for Knock Out varieties which trail) Books: North Carolina Gardeners' Guide by Toby Bost; Landscape Plants of the Southeast by Gordon Halfacre & Anne Shawcroft 22 | March/April • 2012 11 12 born of necessity. A woman planted what she needed daily, herbs, vegetables and flowers for cutting, nearest to the house. Then, as a way to add interest, she would embellish with whatever hard materials were within her means. Mot- sie creates cottage elements to her gar- den by planting what she calls a "hodge- podge" of plants — varieties of height, color, texture, function and bloom time. She solidified the English theme by add- ing a medley of hardscapes: stone walk- ways, wrought iron, trellises, statues and nature attracters. Funny gnomes, half-buried pots, garden signs, bird- houses, birdbaths and colorful balls all live happily among the ever-changing, ever-blooming landscape. "Really, once we created the lines and framed the spaces," said John, "the gar- den designed itself." Shrugging, he add- ed, "And it all started because the weed eater was junk." CV

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