The Artistic Garden Transformation

By: Matt Weinagrden, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Lakeshore News Reporter

When Linda Foy moved to LaSalle in April 2021, she knew that she wanted to get rid of the lawn out front. The grass wasn’t healthy, and she thought there were so many things that could grow there besides grass. She knew it was going to be a big project and take time and that it had to be done in stages. And so it begins, with the help of her two daughters and their spouses, the stages started to get designed in her mind, starting with the first half.

To get rid of the grass, she first tried using cardboard to smother it. However, this was taking too long for her and her plan. She was then advised to try a commercial landscaping fabric, which worked much better. So, she proceeded with that. Starting from her house and working her way down to the middle of the front yard—yes, let’s start in the middle—she used a mix of stones and mulch for ground cover to create texture and visual interest. The lawn was then divided into sections using flagstone and a new eco-friendly edging product called Stomp, made from recycled rubber. Using emerald cedars, she created a border along the property line which also included Stella D’Oro daylilies and interspersed native plants for pollinators throughout the garden.

For visual impact, a few larger focal points like decorative cranes, which received a fresh coat of spray paint, fit in nicely. Even a gifted Eastern redbud for early season interest was planted alongside a blue spruce for year-round colour. Season one concluded with some ground-cover plants to fill in open areas and Karl Forester grasses carefully spaced along the driveway.

The final phase, or what she believed was the final phase, occurred in the spring of 2022. To her prized garden, she added a showpiece. The idea struck her while visiting Gatlinburg, Tennessee, where she was inspired by a sculptural piece at their flower show. Knowing exactly what she wanted, she contacted Custom Metal Fabricating in Harrow and commissioned them to create a large-scale paint palette, with holes for potted plants to serve as the paints. It wasn’t quite finished until she added the finishing touches by turning pool noodles and brooms into oversized paint brushes. To complete the palette, why not enlist her my son-in-law to upcycle some cedar split rail fencing into an easel. He completed it, adding a shelf on which a beautiful potted fern now grows. This easel was framed using an antique window frame that was missing its glass, and the scene was complete.

The overall effect of Linda’s Garden is now a low-maintenance front yard that needs little to no watering. Since 2022, she has placed a colourful array of flower baskets in the palette every summer. During the non-growing seasons, the display changes for occasions like Easter and Christmas—you get the picture!