On the flip side of too much rain, the experts warned gardeners that we need to start planning now for less water available to us in the future. Panel host Edwina von Gal shared her worries about the rate at which we are using up our groundwater. David Godshall of Terremoto presented a reimagined garden for an iconic midcentury home by A. Quincy Jones that eschewed the water-hungry Japanese garden full of azaleas for a new understory of drought-tolerant plants that are 60-percent California natives. Isabella Tree, whose latest addition to her estate is a xeric garden with more than 900 types of plants from around the globe, was more blunt. “We’ve got to stop watering our gardens,” Tree said. “It is an indulgence we can no longer afford.”
7. The conversation around native plants will be more nuanced.
While enthusiasm for native plants abounded, the experts suggest gardeners (and the media) need to move away from a dogmatic doctrine of only native plants–both to eliminate the shaming of gardeners who might still want to grow dahlias and roses, but also because in a rapidly changing climate, we may need to be more open-minded about what plants are suitable for our regions. Abra Lee, the director of horticulture at Oakland Cemetery, also spoke to the danger of demeaning plants, citing the example of English ivy, an aggressive spreader and also the symbol of the Black sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha. Lee leaves the ivy growing on the grave of the sorority’s founder Marie Antoinette Woolfolk, because of its symbolic significance to the Black community.
At the same time, gardeners will likely become more discerning about the sources of our native plants. McMackin wondered aloud about the long-term sustainability of cultivars of echinacea, grown in the midwest and shipped to New York City. McMackin also acknowledged that may be the best option available: For her own recent project it was impossible to find straight species native plants, so she used more readily available cultivars.
8. Historic gardens will not be preserved in amber.
Godshall described Terremoto’s work to revive the landscape around the communal buildings at Sea Ranch, a private community on the National Register of Historic Places, as utilizing both “reverence and recklessness.” Another speaker from the Culture panel, Brent Leggs, who is the executive for the National Trust’s African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund, explained the Trust’s approach to preserving the home of John and Alice Coltrane, where there is little evidence of the original landscape: The Trust contracted Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects to develop a landscape plan that is “a reflection of the Coltranes’ contributions to music and culture.” While at other properties, the Trust is striving to preserve the vernacular landscape, which Leggs says we must value equally with high-design landscapes.
9. The way we talk about gardens will change.
All the experts agree that native plants are vitally important to our future gardens, but McMackin also spoke about the need to shift the way we speak about native plants and invasives, pointing to the cautionary tale of Europe where these ideals have been used to promote nationalism and xenophobia. Instead of emphasizing “native” plants, McMackin says she likes to talk about “local” plants and “ecological function,” which encourages gardeners to think about plants more deeply.
10. Gardeners will examine the industry more deeply.
Terremoto’s Godshall included images not only of his firm’s landscapes, but also of the workers installing them, saying, “Landscape labor is rendered invisible in our current media, and that needs to change.” Von Gal pointed to homeowners waking up to the true cost of the stereotypical lawn, which while relatively affordable to install is one of the most expensive to maintain over time. McMackin urged gardeners to get to know their growers and ask themselves how they are growing their plants (Do they grow locally? Do they use neonics?) and how they treat their workers. She also longs to see more gardeners collecting seeds and growing their own plants.
In short, these experts see our relationships with our gardens becoming richer, deeper, and more filled with meaning. It’s a vision of the future any gardener is sure to embrace.
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