I find it difficult to plan ahead in the garden. I believe that my career was driven by efficient organization, but in the garden, there’s little doubt that my attention is as scattered as a child’s. Perhaps that’s what I enjoy most.

While there are sporadic visitors, the garden is mostly for me, though I must answer occasionally to Barbara. Today, I was instructed to remove a clump of Ostrich fern that has popped up to partially obstruct the path of large stones that cross over the upper pond. A thick clump of the wonderful ‘Regal Splendor’ hosta (above, I think my favorite) encroaches further from the opposite side, but my wife likes it, so there are no demands for the hosta’s removal.

And yes, I had considered plucking this fern out, probably several times in recent days as fronds splayed after rainy days. But the path is not fully obstructed, so there’s no hurry. I regularly chop out sections of the vigorous Ostrich fern that threaten smaller treasures in this part of the garden. I see it and pull it, even if I’m unable to pull the root. If I delay to grab a tool, it’s likely I’ll be delayed by a dozen distractions and never end up back to remove the fern. Better to do it halfway than not at all, I guess.

In any case, the point here is that twenty years ago, I did not anticipate the invasion of yellow flag irises (Iris pseudacorus, above), and then did nothing while the invasion began along the edges of the koi pond. I was further discouraged from wading in the shallows by Northern Water snakes that seemed to lurk behind every boulder or clump of iris. Of course, the yellow flags soon overwhelmed Japanese irises (Iris ensata, below) so that only one small clump remains.

Today, the invasive irises could be eliminated only by emptying the large pond, so I live with it and monitor to be certain none escape to the wetlands beyond the property. With damp soils in much of the lower rear garden below the koi pond, and to make up for my disappointing failure, I’ve planted Japanese, Siberian, Louisiana, and native blue flag irises (Iris versicolor) that clump nicely in the dampness. Not how I planned it, but over thirty-five years in the garden, very little has gone according to plan.