Looking east, from the pond, is an area where we removed lots of big old buckthorns, some phragmites and purple loosestrife. There were already some ferns and dogwood there, so I planted more ferns, mostly ostrich fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris), as this is a very moist area. Just to the left in this shot is where the sweet woodruff has happily spread.
Sweet woodruff (Galium odoratum) and Virginia creeper vine (Parthenocissus quinquefolia), with an occasional twinleaf (Jeffersonia diphylla) grow in moist, deep shade underneath a large, old oak tree on the pond’s east side.
Planted among these existing birches, giant blue and sum-and-substance hostas have miraculously escaped the hungry and merciless whitetail deer.
Taking this shot, my back to my neighbors’ house, I can see where someone once planted two rhododendrons many moons ago. The original plant’s lanky stems reached out and over, re-rooting in the ground beyond. Then that plant’s stems reached out and re-rooted. We counted 7 generations at the very least!
We used the Kioti tractor to pull apart the dozens of subdivisions. Many were planted in the shade around the perimeter of their property. I took about a dozen or so subdivisions, for the shady areas around our pond and back acre. We also gave away dozens. Robert the Rhody had many grandchildren that grew up to be successful!