Paths
There is no way to avoid paths. You have to get from here to there in your domestic landscape; the question is how pleasant can you make the journey.
Design is not my strong suit, so friends would not be surprised that it has taken me so long to realize that I have four very different pathways. The most obvious path is our Rose Walk which began over 20 years ago when we planted three old fashioned rose bushes in the lawn. Eventually, after very little planning, we saw that we had two rows of roses on either side of a wide grassy path.
The Rose Walk is a path for strolling so it is wide enough for two people. It enjoys a glorious season at the end of June and into July when these old roses with their short sweet season of bloom are in full flower. We open the garden and welcome friends, and as-yet-unmet-friends to the Annual Rose Viewing.
A few roses will bloom intermittently through the summer and the Rose Walk becomes a pleasant path to the vegetable garden and raspberry patch.
The second path is what we call The Lane. People think we have a very long driveway, but in fact the town road leads right to our door. As a practical matter the plows turn around in front of our house, reducing our shoveling chores substantially. However, the road used to continue beyond the house.
Nowadays a remnant of that road lies to the east of the house, between two old stone walls, before it passes into the woods. We mow that first quarter mile a couple of times a year to keep down the brush and thorny multiflora roses.
Once in the woods it is shady enough that the path doesn’t need mowing, but walks with the grandchildren who love to toss aside fallen branches and use the loppers on brush help keep the path clear for easy walking.
Since this is an old road, and is clear for over a mile, it makes a very companionable walk with lots to see, interesting plants, different mosses and lichens, animal spoor and the changes wrought by the seasons.
Broad paths where two or three can wander are delightful. But sometimes a narrow path can be filled with promise.
We are fortunate enough to have a fire pond on our land, and it served its purpose well in 1990 when lightning hit our old barn and set it on fire. However, we call it the Frog Pond, for obvious reasons, and it is the narrowest of paths down a hill that takes us there from the road. It is not a long path, but even so, we pass through a grove of birches, out into a sunny area, then under dense pines into dappled light before we land at the pond.
The pond is partly spring fed so the water is very cold even in the hottest summers. This is a destination for the whole family, whether we want a cooling swim, or are just interested in catching a bucketful of newts. This is a catch and release program, of course.
Our fourth path is the newest. We tease my husband that he has become so environmentally conscious that he can barely bring himself to mow the field next to our house at all. “Think of the bobolinks,” he says.
And of course, we do think of the nesting season of bobolinks and other field birds. We know we have to wait until late in the summer to mow. Still, the rough grasses and sedges make it difficult to walk in the field, especially with young children. Last summer we came up with a compromise.
Henry mowed a wide curving path to an old apple tree where our 11 year old grandson Rory made his fort, and where I was invited to sit and read, then on up the hill to another apple tree and large boulder, perfect for viewing the Heath Fair fireworks. The nesting birds are safe, but we can walk with the children through the field.
Everyone has some paths, from the driveway to the door, to the sandbox or clothesline, or paths around the house. In places a narrow path may be sufficient. Indeed there may only be room for a narrow path. However, if there are paths that will be used for strolling and admiring the garden or other views, they should be wide enough to allow two people to stroll together.
We don’t have built paths in our landscape. No elegant brick, not even concrete or gravel, but we do have destinations. We are very fortunate to have pathways that lead us through several kinds of landscapes: the cultivated Rose Walk; the Indian file path to the Frog Pond; the woodland stroll; and the trek across a rough field.
As you consider the paths that take you from place to place in your garden, think about whether the path should be narrow, or broad enough for companionship. Allow the path to meander, and provide landings, those spaces that can be provided with seating for a rest, or enough room that will indicate a welcome and a view.
The journey through the duties of the day, and through the pleasures of the garden should be as pleasant as we can make it.
March 1, 2008