On the site of a former auto repair shop in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood, where junk cars compacted the ground for years and the soil contained bushels of buried debris, Cyndi and Michael Reed created a garden where dwarf bleeding heart, Japanese maple, hydrangea, astilbe, coral bells, meadow rue, hostas and other shade-tolerant perennials thrive.
The pie-shaped property is 90 feet long, 50 feet wide in the front and 25 feet wide at the back. Bordered by a century-old coach house, a brick wall and a chain-link fence, the back yard receives only dappled shade because it backs up to the Brown Line elevated train tracks, courtesy of the Chicago Transit Authority. “We call it our urban pergola,” Cyndi says.
An oval bed of violets surrounds one of the track’s massive pillars. Trains don’t seem to bother birds that dip in the birdbath or the squirrels that raid the feeder. Their four cats wear bells to warn visiting critters. And an occasional butterfly checks out the flowers in this unlikely garden setting.
Their efforts to transform the uninviting spot into a delightful destination garnered an award for best urban shade garden in the Chicago Tribune’s Glorious Gardens Contest 2003.
“They took what would otherwise be a sorry sight — the tracks — but they didn’t make it go away. They used it to their advantage,” said contest judge Doris Taylor, horticulturist at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle. Bill Aldrich, publisher of Chicagoland Gardening magazine and another contest judge, agreed. “We gave them high marks for creativity,” Aldrich says.
Although she grew up on a farm in Saginaw, Mich., Cyndi Reed says, “We always had a vegetable garden and my dad had a small rose garden, but not too many flowers.” Her gardening experience began when she moved to the two-flat in 1991 and began helping with a neighbor’s yard. “I wanted to make my place a bit prettier too. When I moved here it had become a giant litter bin.”
She began with a 6-by-12-foot garden in the front yard, which only receives a few hours of direct sunlight. Dappled sunlight later in the day is enough to produce flowers on her spring bulbs, peonies, iris, poppies, monarda, coneflower, butterfly bush, lilies, anemone and sedum. “There are always several things blooming in this border,” she says.
The back yard was another matter. “It was the typical space under the “L” tracks — open and desolate,” Cyndi says. The landlord had a lease from the city to use the space below the tracks, which turned out to be a bonus for her.
After her marriage to Michael Reed in 1993, the couple began removing debris and amending the soil. Unearthed bricks were used to edge the beds. And when a dozen or so 18-inch-long bolts landed nearby during track maintenance, the Reeds used them as hose guards to protect plants from damage.
Cyndi’s first perennials, ordered from catalogs, were planted in separate beds around the perimeter of the yard. “It almost looked ridiculous. There were a few plants and a lot of dirt, so I started connecting the beds all the way around the garden.” As the perennials grew, she divided and replanted them.
In the woodland garden out back, where the borders are 3 to 8 feet deep, star magnolia, ferns and astilbe surround a bench. Although a train often roars overhead, Mike says they are used to the ruckus. “The setting overcomes the noise,” he says. Another bench is surrounded by English ivy, goat’s beard and iris. Perennial geraniums, periwinkle, columbine, evening primrose and toad lilies thrive under catalpa trees and maples.
One problem caused by the shade was a poor piece of lawn. “We tried to grow grass back there for years but couldn’t, so we took it all out,” Mike says. Fringed bleeding heart (Dicentra eximia) now multiplies where the grass once struggled. Antique iron chairs and plenty of planters make the patio an inviting conversation area. An arch covered with ivy and pink-flowered clematis creates a transition from one garden room to the next. Pots of arborvitae add a formal touch to this otherwise informal design.
In 2000, Cyndi completed the University of Illinois Extension Master Gardener program. Of her decadelong gardening experience, she admits, “I had no idea what I was doing with perennials even though I grew up on the farm. I just figured it out as I went along. I didn’t have much money, and it took a long time to fill in all the empty space,” Cyndi says. Since 1999, the city has bestowed the Reeds’ garden with two second-place awards and one first-place in the natural landscape category.
When they are not working long hours at their debt-counseling business, the couple enjoys summer evenings relaxing or reading outdoors. Now that the garden is mature, there is little work to do other than mulching.
But in the ever-changing landscape of the city, the garden’s days are numbered.
“Mike and I really want to make a difference, to make a contribution. I wanted to leave something better behind, but that’s not to be,” Cyndi says. In the next year or so, the CTA will expand its tracks and the garden will be demolished. Although it’s somewhat bittersweet, Mike says, “We’ve done all we could do with the site.” With the help of friends, they plan on moving their perennials to a new location that could use their thoughtful touch.
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Garden as a destination
Master Gardener Cyndi Reed offers these tips for creating a knock-out garden from a nowhere setting.
– Work with what you’ve got. Instead of trying to hide the tracks, Cyndi and Michael Reed incorporated them into their design as part of the backdrop.
– Train ’em. They planted silver lace vine (Polygonum aubertii) to soften the 50-foot-long chain-link fence.
– Use a schedule. The couple picked one big project each summer and spent their time working on it. “We extended the garden or created or enlarged a bed,” Cyndi says.
– Link up. After creating stand-alone beds, Cyndi enlarged them so they flow into each other.
– Reclaim. If you’re faced with old bricks, stones or concrete blocks on your property, consider using them to edge beds or create paths.
– Ask and you may receive. If your yard abuts desolate city-owned property, such as the Reeds’, inquire about leasing it as a garden space.
— Nina Koziol
