Perennials in a Layered Garden with David L. Culp

This Week's Podcast: A Replay: A Perennial Expert — David L. Culp

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In a private garden with limited help, the idea of continuous bloom in one given area is pretty much impossible. Perennial expert David Culp has a different notion of “succession of bloom.” In his new book, The Layered Garden: Design Lessons for Year-Round Beauty from Brandywine Cottage (written with Adam Levine and with photographs by Rob Cardillo) he talks about planting bulbs, perennials and shrubs in the same area for year-round color. But his take on layering is to have various areas of the garden be special at various moments in the gardening year. And the year is an unbroken circle. There is not a beginning or an end – just something happening at every moment.

David is a well-known teacher, lecturer, garden celebrity having been published in national magazines and newspapers and on TV and an award-winning horticulturist (his garden is award-winning, as well). We talk about the different areas of his garden, for example: the vegetable garden (above, left); hillside (above, right); rose garden; and the ruin garden (left) – an old foundation with stone walls on three sides and open to the sun. All of these gardens can be seen in galleries on David’s website. The photographs seen here are by Rob Cardillo from The Layered Garden.