John’s Maryland Garden

My name is John Rohde. My garden is located 15 miles north of Baltimore in Towson, Maryland, in Zone 7b. This is the second full year for this pandemic garden. I enjoy mixing annuals and perennials with trees and tropicals in containers. There is a water feature, tubs of lotus, a patio, and a vegetable garden at the rear of my house.

This is the approach to the rear garden. The small tree on the right is a shadblow serviceberry (Amelanchier canadensis, Zones 4–8).

The plant in the container is a Cotinus coggygria ‘Royal Purple’ (Zones 5–8) that survives the winter in this location. The tree on the right is a black gum (Nyssa sylvatica ‘Wild Fire’, Zones 3–9) that shades the deck.

These are the steps that lead down to the lower garden. The iris-like plant is a Belamacanda chinensis ‘Freckle Face’ (Zones 5–10) with assorted hostas on the right.

This picture of the steps was taken from the bottom looking up. This is a wonderful location to show off small hostas, ground covers, perennials, and bulbs. The area has good light and is well drained. The Japanese lantern in the distance is lighted. ‘Phenomenal’ lavender (Lavandula‘Phenomenal’, Zones 5–9) is planted in a dish planter on a pillar above the pond.

The pond is constructed with a liner, lights, and a fountain.

This is a view of the patio from the deck above. The small tree to the right is a seedling Japanese maple with many perennials and tropicals in containers. The container tree is a Carolina silverbell (Halesia caroliniana, Zones 4–8). There is a curved retaining wall to the right with ‘Tardiva’ hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata ‘Tardiva’, Zones 3–8) on the low side. One of the nine lotus in containers is visible on this patio.

This is a view of the fenced