The secrets of seaside gardening

A panel of experts discussed “Seaside Gardening” last Tuesday at the Southampton Inn and Conference Center for the “2010 Fall Gardening Symposium,” co-sponsored by the Cornell University Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County and Peconic Land Trust. An audience of about 50 gardeners gathered to learn from a panel of experts about this year’s topic, especially as it related to gardening sustainably—choosing plants suited to tough coastal growing conditions and using fewer inputs of water, fertilizers and pesticides in creating and maintaining landscapes.

First to speak was Michael Veraka, chair of the Department of Ornamental Horticulture at Farmingdale State College. He focused on overall design considerations for seashore properties.

According to Mr. Veraka, when creating a garden near the sea, whether at the beach or a few miles away, choose a design that is sustainable and that relies on plants carefully chosen to suit the coastal environment. The seashore is tough on plants—the wind is almost constant, and it carries salt and sand with it. There are salty fogs, and sandy soil that cannot hold water or nutrients for plants.

Water is a big issue at the shore, and all gardeners need to use less of it. Collect and conserve water, Mr. Veraka advised. Use natives and other adaptable plants as the backbone of the garden so you won’t have to water a lot. Have a smaller lawn. When planning the landscape, “spend time observing what grows naturally on your property, and use nature as an example,” he urged.

The next speaker, Jim Grimes of Fort Pond Native Plants in Montauk and a widely respected expert on native plants for eastern Long Island, offered insights on great plants to grow on the East End gleaned from his 30 years of experience in the field. He began with an illuminating survey of the surprising diversity of soil types in this area and the importance of understanding the character of the soil on one’s property.

For example, a soil may consist of three inches of pure sand atop several inches of dense clay. To find plants that will grow in such conditions, he explained, they need to be shallow-rooted and able to grow in the sand layer (which drains instantly and provides few nutrients) or they must be able to send roots deep into the clay.

Mr. Grimes recommended many good plants for East End gardens. Among his favorites is bearberry, which makes a good ground cover in well-drained sandy soil. For a wet, soggy spot, he suggested American cranberry and highbush blueberry. An all-around favorite is bayberry—though it’s not highly ornamental, it adapts to a range of conditions, even the tough beachfront. Other good plants, among many he mentioned, include Virginia creeper, native blazing star (

liatris scariosa

), black huckleberry, blue-eyed grass (

sisyrinchium

) and sumacs, which offer brilliant autumn color.

An inside look at organic gardening practices was presented by the third speaker, Peter Garnham, manager of the East End Community Organic (EECO) farm in East Hampton. The EECO farm, created on 40 acres of land owned by East Hampton Town, contains 120 20-by-20-foot community garden plots and small farms, ranging from a half acre to 18 acres, worked by small growers who produce organic crops for local stores and chefs.

The farm also runs a 5-acre composting operation.

“Composting is something of a specialty of mine,” said Mr. Garnham.

The EECO compost is made from leaves collected by the town, grass clippings dropped off by local landscapers, stable waste from local horse farms and vegetable waste from the farm stand. On a side note, the leaves and grass clippings at EECO have been tested for chemical residues before being approved for use.

The farm aims to demonstrate to the community that it is possible to have a perfectly

fine garden without chemical fertilizers and pesticides, on a personal or a commercial scale. The EECO operations offer proof that organic methods are accessible and desirable.

The final speaker, Heather Stevenson from Beds and Borders in Laurel on the North Fork, demonstrated how to create a colorful mixed container planting for fall color. Her lively design combined an ornamental red fountain grass with a variety of annuals (in addition to the standard mums) that look great in fall, including a pink African daisy (

Arctotis

), a blush pink verbena variety called “Apple Blossom,” weeping lavender lantana and a trailing foliage plant (

Helichrysum petiolare

) with chartreuse leaves.

Ms. Stevenson also recommended using perennials, such as a small black-eyed Susan variety called “Sonora,” in pots. Heucheras, foliage plants with lobed, scalloped leaves in a host of colors and variegation patterns, also work especially well in combination with flowering annuals and taller grasses, she said.

“Perennials are really cool for texture,” she said, “and I think they’re not used often enough” in pots.

The symposium closed with tours of two of the East End’s finest public gardens—Robert Dash’s Madoo Conservancy in Sagaponack and Peconic Land Trust’s Bridge Gardens Trust in Bridgehampton, where participants strolled between the raindrops to be inspired by masterful plantings of late-season color.