"I started by putting in a line of
trees," said Dix who likes physical labor and, over the years,
spent many an hour digging and planting.
Existing trees formed the outer edge
of the main garden where Dix planted his earliest perennials.
Fifteen years later, the young trees were forming a canopy of
shade and Dix moved the garden sunward, creating the present configuration
of two distinct "rooms" that reflect the strong architectural
lines of his home. Each rectangular garden forms around an invisible
axis extending from the home’s interior and can be viewed from
either the living room or dining room. Grassy open spaces are
surrounded by planting beds and connected at a narrow path where
visitors can rest on lattice-backed benches shaded by a stand
of cedars.
"When you are in the house, you are
looking through the middle of it," Dix said. "That is so much
nicer than looking at a flat facade."
A seasoned traveler, Dix’s design
was also influenced by old gardens he saw in England.
"The content is very English-looking,"
Dix said. "It’s floppy, which I like."
Long a favorite spot for garden club
visits, plantings have changed considerably over the years.
Blooming begins in March with early
spring bulbs followed by a sea of yellow daffodils. In the garden’s
early years, Dix planted bunches of tulips which, like some of
his other favorite annuals and perennials, were often consumed
by deer.
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Charles Dix
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"It was like putting out a sign saying
the salad bar is open!" Dix exclaimed.
Instead of fighting the wildlife,
he adapted his garden plan, eliminating those plants he knew wouldn’t
survive visits from deer, woodchucks and other critters.
"I like seeing the wildlife in the
garden," he said. "Sometimes they linger; sometimes they just
pass through. Sometimes the deer come right up to the pond and
drink. And birds love my property."
By June, the garden is at its peak.
Magnificent tree peonies, some with blooms nine inches across,
are followed by regular peonies. Siberian iris punctuates the
landscape with its vivid purple blue blossoms and interesting
foliage that stays green all summer. Dix has also included a wide
variety of hybridized German iris. Over time, Dix has purchased
a variety of colors from a local couple, planting them each July.
Judas trees, crabapples, lilacs, allium and different types of
daisies keep the color intensifying through mid-summer. Hollyhocks,
Japanese anemone and dramatic purple lupine and Oriental poppies
add touches of elegance throughout. Each year, Dix
introduces more lilies to the site.
"One of the best things about gardens
is the anticipation, especially if you keep changing it." he said.
"But often I purposely lose track of what I put where. It’s always
a surprise to me to see where things come up."
By early autumn the most spectacular
flowering has passed, but Dix has incorporated lots of shrubs
and evergreens into the beds.
"In fall, I start cutting back," he
said. "It becomes a winter garden and it’s very beautiful in winter.
Shouldn’t a garden hold up structurally on its own?"
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The garden peaks with color in June.
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Today, due to a disability, Dix has
had to curtail the most physical tasks of maintaining his garden.
Knowing he has less flexibility, Dix planted some "very invasive
ground covers" to replace the colorful annuals he used to replenish
yearly.
"If I was going to have weeds," Dix said, "they may as well be weeds that bloom."
Now he spends time thinning aggressive
growers like goldenrod, buttercups and Queen Anne’s lace.
"It’s intriguing to see what comes up on a daily basis," he said. "But you have to work at it all the time."
Though Dix is an artist, he doesn’t see the garden as an extension of his work.
"It’s a good complement because I am working with color," he said, "and it does fulfill me. I love being outside and I need a space where I can contemplate what I’m painting while I plant and weed. But a garden is a garden."
Yet Dix remains ever-aware of the interplay of light and shadow on his natural canvas and is still planting trees as his garden moves slowly toward the age when it can consider itself "established." He recently added several pyramid-shaped evergreens in the center of one of his garden "rooms."
"They line up almost like a game of chess," Dix said. "The pyramidal shadows are very intriguing."
On the advice of a wise friend, Dix plans to continue planting trees.
"You don’t stop," Dix said. "You do it for posterity. All the work I’ve done in the past is paying off. It’s just marvelous watching everything happen in this garden. It’s been a big project, but lots of fun."
