Home of Toni Armstrong & Richard Spener
Wednesday, August 12th at 6:30 pm
Saturday,August 15th at 9:30 am
Photos and highlights by Donna Short
In spite of the threatening weather, we gathered Wednesday evening. Marsha Gebhardt, Wild Ones St. Louis President, made a few announcements and Carmen Freeman spoke about the Seed Pods, encouraging anyone interested in joining a Seed Pod or starting one to contact her. Find out more about Seed Pods here. Several interested neighbors stopped by to find out more about Toni’s garden!
When Toni and Richard built their home in 1994, they faced the question of what to do with their backyard since the house sits on a steep slope. They were concerned with the potential for erosion and a potentially difficult mowing job. This dilemma led them to native plants and the idea of converting their yard to a prairie – which they planted. But it wasn’t that simple. To handle increasing amounts of rainfall, they subsequently put in a channel drain at the top of the hill, added several French drains, 2 bioswales and upgraded to 8-inch gutters.
They removed Japanese honeysuckle immediately. Japanese stilt-grass is a major invasive problem on their property which blows in or is brought by deer from Creve Coeur Park. They experience deer pressure with deer wandering over from Creve Coeur Park. As a result, Toni has fenced in areas so she would be able to plant a wider variety of species. She has a mix of sun and shade plants with over 100 species.
The front yard includes native and non-native plants. Shown here are Orange Coneflowers (Rudbeckia fulgida) and Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca).
Another front yard area includes Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca), Aromatic Aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium), Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) and Purple Coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea).
Since Toni retired, she has been devoting resources to this side yard area. She added fencing to protect this area from deer and she can look out her kitchen window and see her garden which is densely planted and has a natural wild feel.
Cinnamon Fern (Osmunda cinnamomea) in the side yard.
Richard is a birder and appreciates the Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis)– show on the left of the photo- which is a great bird attraction. Many American Goldfinches harvest the seeds from the native plants in their yard.
On the steep path to the rear of the house, you see the elevated rear deck with a tree-house feel.
Cup Plant (Silphium perfoliatum) in the rear of the yard with Willow-leaved Sunflower (Heliopsis salicifolius) blooming in the foreground. There is a dense planting of River Oats –to the left of the rear of the house.
Along the driveway: Camphorweed (Heterotheca villosa) and Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca)
Street-side, Toni planted Buffalo Grass (Buchloe dactyloides) which she mows!
Toni regularly sees wildlife such as the five stripe skink, snakes, foxes, tortoises and of course, deer. One of the things she loves about her native garden is how the colors change from April through November.
An abundance of plants for sharing!
Thank you, Toni and Richard, for sharing your garden!
