Kim Smith and Fragrant Gardening

At the Wenham Museum with designer Kim Smith

One of the best parts of participating in a local design show is meeting other creative individuals who share the same interests. Last year at the North Shore Design Show I met Kim Smith, a super talented designer, author, illustrator and photographer who created a lovely space for Willowdale Estate (see it here) where she works her design magic from the bridal suite to the garden landscapes. While at the show, I really enjoyed talking with Kim about flowers and design (a couple of my favorite things ; ) so I asked Kim to share some of her gardening wisdom with my friends at the Village Garden Club of Lynnfield. She visited with us in September, presenting her tips on growing native plants – illustrated with many gorgeous slides – to our group of garden enthusiasts. While Kim did not participate in the Favorite Spaces design show this year (her daughter was graduating from college – congrats to you both!) she did host a slide show that highlighted the best flowers to plant when designing a fragrant garden.


Peonies I caught in bloom at a local cafe.

My favorite shrub rose smells heavenly this week.


Here are just some of Kim’s fragrant favorites
(although I think she loves most every flower!) ...

White Lilac (Syringa vulgaris ‘Krasavitsa Moskvy’)
White Wisteria (W. sinensis v. alba ‘Jako’)
Old Garden Rose (Rosa Louise Odier)
Butterfly Bush (Buddleis davidii)
Nasturium (Tropaeolum majus)
Oyama Magnolia (M. sieboldii)
Moon Flower (Ipomoea alba)
Mock Orange (Philadelphus)
Peony (Paeonia lactifolia)


Her number one tip on choosing flowers with the most fragrance is to look for a white variety as scent is in direct proportion to pigmentation. The more showy, colorful flowers may attract your eye, but the subtle shades of white, cream, pale pinks, yellows and purples will release the most scent. And while you are at it, plant those scented species closest to where you are apt to enjoy them, near a window or along a traveled path. I am going to try my hand at Moon Flower this year. I love that it opens at night, just around the time that I will be out in my garden room, enjoying a glass of something cold and refreshing!


Vintage biennial phlox from my garden ...
they smell like cinnamon!

To receive Kim’s gardening tips via email, visit her website and sign up for her eColumn which is always chock full of great photos and information. Her blog is another great resource for gardening inspiration.


Kim Smith illustration from her book,
“Oh Garden of Fresh Possibilities!”

Colorful jewels from stella & dot


And for those of you who like to wear your love of flowers, I am hosting a stella & dot party online. One of my favorite items (besides the Sophia Pearl Bib Necklace that I am wearing in the photo with Kim above) is their Sasha Flower Brooch ...



These pin-on-flowers are all the rage right now, and are the perfect accessory to a summer top, bag or belt. There are so many pretty items in the stella & dot Look Book for Spring/Summer 2010. Take a peek at the latest trends and let me know what your favorite is ...




To purchase a stella & dot item, click on this link and add my name (Yvonne Blacker : ) as the hostess.

Have fun shopping ... and gardening!

xo
yvonne

Design tip ... orchid

A deep cranberry colored shawl warms up a
bookcase in the corner of our dining room.

Now that the holidays are a distant memory, I figured it was time to freshen up my interiors with a new indoor plant. I’ve mentioned before how much I appreciate the orchid as a quick design statement. They’re simple and elegant, the perfect antidote to the decorating over-indulgences of the past few months.

Brazilian Teak

A Georgia O’Keefe-inspired close-up

My husband and I made a trip to our local home improvement store on Friday night after a nice dinner out with friends. We were in search of some pre-finished flooring options for the new bedroom. I brought home a sample of Brazilian Teak – which is not so dark that it will show every speck of dust, but still deep enough in tone to offset what will be creamy white walls. I also picked up this lovely orchid for a mere $15 (they often go for around $40). It was sold in a 4-inch clay pot which I then popped into my blue urn that most recently held a large spray of evergreens.


I had to build up the bottom of the urn with some crumpled tinfoil to set the smaller pot at the right height. Then I used moss around the base of the orchid to hide the gap between the small 4-inch pot and the larger width of the urn. I happened to have still-very-green moss that I had transplanted to pots from my backyard in mid-October to use for visual merchandising at Beth’s shop. When dried, it forms a soft and natural carpet that is easy to move.

Art by Beth Hylan

I love how moss hides the dirt that is usually exposed with indoor gardening. If you would like to achieve the same results and do not have access to live moss, most garden supply stores sell bags of spagnum moss that will easily take care of several pots. I have even used fake moss that comes in sheets at craft stores. The real deal, however, is by far my favorite. Just topping off your existing houseplants with moss (or your outdoor container gardens, if you are in a warm climate) adds designer polish in an instant.
Give it a try!


I thought this butterfly clip used to secure the
stem of the new orchid was very clever.

Endnote: Congratulations to my friend, Kim Smith, who eloquently wrote and joyfully illustrated Notes From a Gloucester Garden, which was recently listed by Carol Stocker of the Boston Globe as one of the best gardening books of 2009. You can almost see my personal copy in the first photo of today’s post (it is to the right of the blue photo album).

Now is a great time, especially for New Englander’s like myself, to start researching garden design plans for spring. Kim offers many tips on choosing plants based on scent, color, texture and even desired ambiance. Her stories about creating her garden are a pleasure to read, and the watercolor illustrations make me want to get out a paintbrush!

Gardening, whether inside or out, honors the beauty of nature and provides visual joy with little effort (how many things can you stick in the dirt and expect it to get better with time?) If you struggle with a “I-kill-anything-green” attitude, remember, you can always start with moss (no watering required!)

Tablescapes Spotlight: Kim Smith for Willowdale

Time spent in the garden is just starting to reap rewards about now. It is much easier to ignore what is going on inside my house and just plant myself out in the sun to admire the ever changing colors and fragrances of my country garden. These low-maintenance shrub roses are intoxicating, which may explain why I have been sitting much more than I have been weeding!

While I sit, however, I ponder the possibilities ...


“Oh Garden of Fresh Possibilities”
written and illustrated by Kim Smith
Available through Toadhall Bookstore Online
or through Amazon.com

To achieve the garden of your dreams take a peek at this book by the super creative author/illustrator/photographer and designer Kim Smith. Her words of wisdom and sweetly illustrated garden images will give you much to think about when planning your own outdoor spaces. And then when your garden is looking its best, a party is in order. Kim designed this birthday celebration vignette for the North Shore Design Show: Tablescapes event held at the Wenham Museum in May.

Photo courtesy of Linda Encarnacao

Inspired by the butterfly courtyard at the Willowdale Estate in Topsfield, Massachusetts, it is a visual treat that combines antique finery, whimsical touches and irresistible confections.


A packet of seeds for each guest is a creative and thoughtful touch.

These cookies tasted as good as they looked ...


And if you’d like to try your hand at creating a work of art “en plein air” like Kim, Willowdale hosts Artist Open Hours free with no registration required on the first Tuesday of each month starting in June from 9 a.m. to noon. Bring your “paints, panels and brushes” and get a first-hand look at the gardens that have inspired Kim and the many visitors to the estate.

To book a tour or plan your own event at Willowdale, call 978-887-8211


Rhododendron and Carpenter Bee by Kim Smith

To receive “inbox-inspiration” directly from Kim, sign-up for her eColumn newsletter which is chock-full of smart – and timely – gardening information and beautiful close-up photography. Or plan on meeting her in person at one of her upcoming lectures or book-signing events. She is just as nice in person as you would expect a lover of gardens to be!

Photo credit: Liv Hauck