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inwrwrritr 24 markham economist sunsuntribune total home saturday a 162005 ome unique garden possibilities at pine ridge garden gallery the recent trend in local housing developments has been to slightly decrease the lot size and increase the size of the house on this smaller property with taller houses closer together many homeowners are faced with smaller lawns and gardens and the increased need for privacy one of the major concerns for many of our customers has been the need to block or screen some of their neighbors second floor windows to get some degree of pri vacy in the backyard evergreens are usu ally the most sought after because of their year round screening narrow evergreens such as emerald cedars and upright junipers along with cedar hedging will provide the needed screening in a few years taller more instant summer privacy can occur by planting taller columnar trees such as the columnar maple 1 used by landscapers smaller oval shaped trees such as the flowering ornamental pears or ivory silk lilac trees which grow 2025 feet high are widely used in small er back yard if you have 68 feet of space in a corner the serbian spruce smaller version of the norway spruce is a narrow upright spruce the columnar white pine is another fine example of a screen for tight spots requiring only 45 feet of space emerald cedars require only about 3 feet with smaller lots and consequently smaller lawns many homeowners who had larger lots previously forget to calcu late the actual square feet of lawn they do have and realize that they need less lawn fertilizer than before the theory of more is better does not apply to lawn fertilizer many of the bag sizes have been reduced because of the growing trend of smaller lots with decks and hot tubs and patios not to mention pools many homes have very little room left for a lawn or even gar den space when garden space is at a premium many homeowners will be quite a bit choosier in the plants they actually settle on purchasing many of these gardens are now up close and personal to the enter taining and relaxing areas of the backyard quality focal plants such as japanese maples spiral evergreens tricolour beech corkscrew hazels are highly sought after due to their unique interest and smaller size many dwarf plants such as dwarf hinoki cypress dwarf korean lilac magic carpet spirea midnight wine wegeila royal burgundy barberry blue star juniper globe boxwoods make excel lent companion plants to 23 focal type plants and 23 screening specimens by adding screens such as trellis free standing with vines closer to the patio rather than on the fence youll be able to obtain more privacy instantly unique and movable focal elements such as a clema tis vine or mandervilla vine planted in a pot with a trellis or obelisk can create a unique look to your backyard patio or front step landings that hard to grow area under a tree in the corner garden where youve tried every type of plant imaginable but still have had little success can be converted to a bright and colourful focal area with a collage of 37 pots planted with annual flowers or a combi nation of annuals perennials and even tropical type plants at pine ridge gar den gallery we specialize in piants at great prices and have the knowledgeable staff to assist you everyday this season well be carrying over 125 varieties of hardy garden roses which ill elaborate on in a future article perennial plants that return each year have seen many new varieties each season and we have the selection of ferns ornamental grasses groundcovers hostas daylilies peonies youll ever need or have room for in your gardens with the price of gas continuing to rise many more local residents will be spend ing more of their time actually enjoying their 1 investment their home making your backyard a special retreat is not very difficult adding a unique arbor or soothing water fountain can create an inviting and relaxing backyard atmos phere a unique reading bench tucked away under a tree with a hummingbird feeder nearby will give you inspiration to use your gardens more for relaxing than as a simple chore your principal residence is the best financial investment at the pres ent time with no capital gains tax charged when you actually do sell your home with up and down mutual funds and very little interest accumulated in gics your wisest investment is in your home where you can actually enjoy the fruits of your labor make time to stop in and say hello were excited to help you make your gar dens unique and personalized gardening with gusto by rick pecman general manager pine ridge garden gallery 10mss a place in markham for people ages 16 and up to meet friends use a computer see movies learn to cook receive supportive counselling find out about local services a safe open and fun environment the living room is a program of the canadian mental health association york region call 9052010432 lasootflomcmmoomc a member agency of united way of york region this message brought to you as a community service of economist suntribune