A Visit To Scotland: Learning About Gardening From The Scots!
By Katherine Placzek
Recently, I was able to go to Scotland for vacation. While I was there, I was blown away by the plant life, of course, but I also learned so many new ways to garden! In this blog, I want to share my main takeaways with you!
- Plant Small
I was able to briefly chat with someone who worked at McLaren’s Nurseries in Lugton, Scotland. This man told me that most of their plants are grown in smaller sizes because Scotland’s conditions are very harsh. They deal with a lot of wind, adverse weather, and salt from the ocean. With these conditions in mind, they think younger and smaller plants have a better chance of successfully transplanting and thriving. Many plants have severe transplant shock if they are larger. This made me think of what I have discovered on my own. Starting plants by seed or in smaller sizes in our harsh region has proven incredibly prosperous for me. I believe the premise is the same here in Colorado!
- Plant Wildflowers In Your Yard & Even In The City Roundabouts
The Scots are pollinator warriors! They interseed their lawns and roundabouts with wildflower seeds. They will mow a neat border, following the perimeter of the curb or the boundaries of their yard. BUT they leave the interior tall with poppies, scabiosa, daisies, other small wildflowers, and grass seed heads. It feels like a bit of the countryside has been transported into the heart of the city! I was happy to see bees and butterflies, as well as birds, enjoying the small habitat. What a beautiful way to encourage a little bit of wilderness into your yard, while keeping it tidy.
- Honor The Weeds
Scotland’s national flower is the thistle. The thistle. You read that right. We Americans have a vendetta against weeds- I just sold some Thistledown (a broadleaf chemical control for Thistle and its cousins) this morning. We do not see how beneficial weeds can be. The Scots have a different approach. Thistle is everywhere! In yards. By the sea. In the pasture. In the Highlands. Growing in a crack by a restaurant. It is honored in all forms of artwork in Scotland. It is found on postcards, in small artist studios as their main muse, below the statue of William Wallace in Sterling, and even on the handle of the sword of state held in Edinburgh Castle (gorgeous- btw). And it is not just thistle. They allow and sometimes even encourage the brambles- the wild blackberries. Brambles are by a stone wall overlooking the ocean. They skirt the perimeter of a park. They creep along the edges of a city forest. They climb over a rock wall where a couple of tourists are eating lunch. The brambles are even sometimes featured in local alcohol with the phrase, “sun-kissed bramble fruit.” All of these little corners where weeds are allowed to thrive remind us that we are part of nature, despite how much we try to separate ourselves. Pollinators and other wildlife benefit from these little habitats, also!
- Garden Even If The Plant Will Not Stay Perfect
I was able to visit many seaside towns in Scotland. While some shops and gardeners had given up on planting in the sea-sprayed side of town, many had not. They still planted window boxes or patio pots with begonias, impatiens, salvia, petunias, and the like. Many of these plants are not resistant to the salt in the seaside wind or spray from the ocean. There were pots that were protected from this, and they looked great, but others got the full brunt of the sea and looked very ragged or brown. It reminded me of Colorado. While we could throw up our hands and say that we live in the land of hail, deer, squirrels, and grasshoppers, and that “this is no place to be a gardner” we do not. We replant our tomatoes after hail. We install semi-permanent cages around tender trees and shrubs from the nibbling deer. Gardeners will garden, no matter the conditions. We believe in plants and we believe in beauty. We plant even if we know that the planter full of beautiful flowers will not stay perfect forever.
- Plant A Hedge
Hedges were the first fences. They border the road and soften sound pollution in Scotland. Hedges also create boundaries along property lines and offer privacy. I think that more hedges should be planted here in Colorado. While hedges sometimes are monocultures of one plant or shrub, they can also be very diverse. I saw Scottish hedges with cotoneasters, privets, various plants from the prunus family, shrub roses, beeches, etc. While many of these hedges were manicured, they had incredible diversity. Again, a variety of pollinators and other wildlife could find food and shelter in these hedges. If you are not into the “traditional hedge” that is trimmed into straight lines, feel free to check out Floret’s hedgerow guide. I think it is an excellent “new world” take on an “old world” idea. You can find that guide here: Click me!
Although building out a hedgerow can be expensive, if you go back to the first point (#1- Plant small), you might have a much better success rate and a less expensive ticket at the end of your hedgerow project. Some nurseries will even ship small seedlings if you want to start very small.
While Octorado Native Plants Nursery is only Wholesale, more nurseries are heading this way! Read more here!
- Plant In A Pot
Many people live in cities in Scotland, and you would expect those who live in small apartments or places without a yard to forgo gardening altogether. Not at all in Scotland! Window boxes and patio pots adorned nearly every block. Some may have been neglected or battered due to sea salt, but plant life was abundant and encouraged even in apartment living. Gardening really is for everyone!
- Develop Around What Already Exists
While Europe is known for its broad-scale deforestation in its historical past, we did see several old trees or portions of forests left intact. We saw an ancient yew tree that was the size of a building! This was in the middle of the city, Stirling. It was sitting close to a parking lot and was in the middle of the hubbub. This made me realize that city developers had left the tree. They purposely designed the parking lot around the tree. When development occurs in the States, oftentimes, we scrape the entire lot and then re-landscape with smaller trees and shrubs, denuding the lot of any remnants of what was there originally. I personally think this is sad. Think of the stories that you are removing from the land to put in a new shopping mall or a suburb. That yew tree had to be at least a century old. What a life to preserve and honor! I am glad someone decided to leave the yew tree.
- Make Plants Part Of Your Weekly Ritual
We were able to visit the city of Glasgow’s Botanical Gardens on a Sunday. While I know botanical gardens are not typically free in the States, these botanical gardens were free! It was packed. Small and large clusters of people walked the paths, exploring the grounds or the glass greenhouses, and lounged in the open spaces. Many of these people were locals, and this is how they had chosen to spend their leisure time. We also saw Scots recreating in the rural spaces-hiking, playing by the beach, running into the ocean, and taking picnics. It seemed that Sundays, especially when other things might be closed, were a time to reconnect with nature and enjoy the simpler things in life with loved ones. I think implementing a ritual or a regular habit of connecting with plants or nature is something Coloradoans could get behind!
- Water Is A Resource-Protect It
Several times we saw advertisements on bus stops or buses that had the message: “Water is always worth saving. Help protect your precious resource.” Scots are very proud of their water, and even brag about how it tastes. It really does taste very clean and refreshing! Scots receive their drinking water from rainfall. There are towns that are experiencing a lack of water due to recent dry spells, and have had to have water trucked in. This sentiment of protecting water can be applied to Colorado. Coloradoans receive much of our drinking water from snowmelt. We are also dependent on precipitation for our water needs. In dry years, watering restrictions are put in place. While this year was relatively wet, there have been decades of dry years along the Front Range in our recent past. I think we all should be mindful and proud of our water, like the Scots! One way to protect our water is to be aware of how we impact our watershed- and those downstream of us. Here is a throwback blog on how to protect our watershed while gardening, click the link here.
Travel is part of a gardener’s education. But you do not have to go abroad to learn about how other gardeners approach plants or garden resources. The public library has a wealth of information on various gardening techniques that are from other cultures or other regions. I also think it is valid to check out other gardens in Colorado. Paonia and Berthoud both have independently claimed the title of “Garden Spot of Colorado.” Visit a high altitude garden in Aspen- Betty Ford Alpine Gardens. Or see a world-renowned crevice garden in Arvada -APEX Crevice Garden. When you travel, ask gardeners what they do in their garden. What works for them might be your new way of gardening too!
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