Garden Profile
May June 2009
By: Gardening How-To
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| In the May/June 2009 issue, Suzanne and Max Birdsall shared the history of their exuberant cottage garden and the elegant hardscaping that ties it all together. Below, find more photos of this unique garden. |
| Click on photos to enlarge. | | Instead of putting a pond in the center of the yard, Suzanne tucked it under the dappled shade of a birch tree and surrounded it with a bank of perennials, including hostas, ostrich ferns, astilbes, variegated irises, hydrangeas, and cranesbill geraniums. Now it’s a pleasant oasis, nearly hidden until you’re right next to it. |  | | If you wander long enough on the brick path that meanders through the Birdsalls’ yard, you’ll come to this pretty scene: a classic birdbath (an anniversary gift from Max) surrounded by lavender, which is in turn encircled by tiles of salvaged marble. The birdbath is a lovely focal point for this central part of the garden, and it also illustrates the genius of garden rooms. Walk 10 feet to the right or left, and the scene changes completely. |  | | The Birdsalls’ backyard ends in this cozy seating area bordered by the garage and a garden shed. Shade is provided courtesy of a 90-year-old Concord grapevine, which leans on an arbor that the previous owner—an Italian winemaker—constructed from pipes. The Birdsalls don’t make wine, but they wisely kept the arbor, which gives color, shelter, and privacy to this corner. Their love of old things is also evident in the shutters on the garage windows (a neighbor’s castaways) and in the handsome door to the right, which Max built using part of an old iron gate he found in the alley. |  | | “We have no front yard,” says Suzanne of her house in central Saratoga Springs. “We’re right on the street, on the corner. When we first moved here, when people would stop at the stop sign I’d get up because I thought we had company.” In spite of the stream of traffic, the Birdsalls didn’t neglect the front porch. After all, it’s the entryway to their gorgeous and intimate back yard. Suzanne plants the windowboxes with bright annuals each year. Her brother Mark, a cabinetmaker, used plywood to create the striking cut-outs at the base of the porch. |  |
The mahogany gate at the entry to the Birdsalls’ garden is a guide in more ways than one. In its details it points to some of the facets that make the garden unique: Suzanne’s brother Mark used a wrought-iron coaster for the ornate centerpiece on top, which echoes the use of salvaged material throughout the garden. The curve of the top is repeated in the garden’s paths and flower beds, and it provides a measure of privacy—one of Suzanne’s main concerns as she built the garden and created its signature hidden rooms. |  |
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