CLIPBOARD : Heard’s Country Gardens
When Mary Lou Heard talks about her favorite flowers, she rarely mentions varieties seen in most suburban back yards. Her test garden and nursery are filled with unusual flowers you thought existed only in storybooks.
Heard is bringing back varieties that haven’t been grown for years or are so new that they aren’t available at major garden centers. It took her four years to develop a supply of fairy thimbles, a small, thimble-shaped blue flower only three inches tall.
“I think these are equally eye-catching as those,” she said, pointing to a striking border of tall, blue delphiniums. “The small and precious plants are just as fascinating as the big showy ones, if you’ve learned to look closely,” said Heard, who hopes to encourage gardeners to expand their floral palette of colors, shapes and sizes.
Depending on the season, there are bluebells of Scotland, love in a mist, monkshood, Canturbury bells, Himalayan fleece flowers, and Siberian meadowsweet. Others, like the sweet violets, sell in abundance in European flower markets, but are not commonly seen in the United States. The wild French strawberries, (fraises de bois or “fruit of the woods”) sell out as fast as Heard and her assistants, Annabelle Rice and Kim Heffner, can grow them.
Heard’s is a cottage garden, like those found in the English countryside. Since major wholesale growers don’t offer everything she likes, a large portion of her stock is grown on the premises. Heard relies on gardener friends to supply what she doesn’t have room to grow in abundance.
“That’s how country gardens got started, by neighbors sharing with each other. In the old days, there wasn’t a nursery to run down to on weekends. Neighbors handed seeds and cuttings to each other over the back fence and each plant in the garden was associated with a person, an act of kindness,” Heard said.
A white-washed wooden shed, presided over by Heard’s faithful dog, Roxie, contains a selection of herbal bath products, garden tools and seeds. There’s a cozy corner with chairs and reference books where you can read and listen to classical music. A selection of willow garden furniture, handmade by a colony of Gypsies in Tennessee, is sold here along with brass sundials, heart-shaped trellises and handmade wooden birdhouses.
Heard’s is a real find for novice gardeners seeking patient advice, since she and her staff are both knowledgeable and helpful. Advanced green thumbs will be inspired and challenged by Heard’s creative and unique line of plants and garden products.
Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday, 12 to 5 p.m.
Address: 14391 Edwards St., Westminster (entrance on Maple Avenue).
Telephone: (714) 894-2444.
Miscellaneous Information: Heard’s issues a newsletter and, by following its reminders, you’ll know what to plant and when. Heard also conducts on-site garden consultations and will create custom garden plans.
