Mid-Summer Joy...

...Mid-summer, and it has cooled off finally.  With temperatures in the 70's and lower humidity, Ohio has turned into the summertime I remember as a child.  This is the weather that makes me want to garden and live outdoors.
     A visit to the Norton Library showed me how well the herb garden there was doing.  Kudos to the Twinsbrook Garden Club of Norton who planted and maintains this little jewel of a garden Using a narrow plot of ground approximately 18 feet by 6 feet the garden club has packed flowering herbs
and bits of landscape features into the small space creating a miniature sanctuary for bees and butterflies.  A checkerboard pattern of stepping stones makes not only a practical way to step through the tiny garden, but also creates an interesting visual display. Twinsbrook gardeners have used their creativity in the materials they have chosen to design the garden.  By using invert tiny clay pots the plants have individual markers to identify each herb.  Visual texture and dimension has been created by using terra cotta sewer pipe to elevate some of the herbs.  Some of the more invasive herbs such as mint can be contained this way to keep the garden from being overrun by the mint. As a low maintenance kind of garden the herb garden at Norton Library is a fine example of how rewarding a tiny garden space can be.  It is well worth the journey to stop by to appreciate this delightful little garden that will surely inspire you to create your own tiny herbal sanctuary.

blossoming chive

lady's mantle

lamb's ear

purple coneflower

tansy

valerian