Mountain Ridge Top Garden - North Woods

Google Earth image of an aerial view of the property — Winter
Google Earth image of the Northern section of the property Garden age: 22 years Randy Harter CC BY 4.0

Description

Name: Mountain Ridge Top Garden North Woods

Open to the public: No

County: Buncombe

USDA Hardiness Zone: 6B (2023)

Extension Demonstration Garden? No

Approximate year the garden/landscape was established: Development began in 2003

What to look for:

The North Woods of the Mountain Ridge Top Garden is found in the mountainous region of Buncombe County NC. This 0.55 acre section has been under development since its purchase in 2003, seven years after the original 0.75 acre home site was purchased, and over four years after the home was completed in February, 1999. Much of this steeply sloped wooded section was filled with invasive plants when it was acquired, including bittersweet, multiflora rose, tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima), Chinese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica), and Chinese privet (Ligustrum sinense). All of those are pretty well under control now. Mature oaks stand along the ridge top, with other mature trees further down on the slope. After working to eliminate invasive plants, the next step in developing the landscape here was to construct four, roughly parallel, level paths across the face of the slope. These paths provided better access to the land and divided the space into five sections. The Ridge Top Path follows an old tractor trail near the crest of the ridge. Each of the other paths, Upper Middle, Lower Middle, & Lower Path, were constructed by cutting into the slope and filling below the cut to create a level path that was planted with grass. The Lower Path runs along the top of the road cut created when the community was developed in the mid 90's from the steep pasture land of a small family farmstead. A fifth, connecting path, was created at the far end of the North Woods that runs down the slope providing access to all four of the other paths. In addition, a steeper path of stepping stones was created near the driveway that goes from the South end of the Upper Middle Path down to each of the two paths below.

Landscape development here, as well as in other sections of the Mountain Ridge Top Garden, can be thought of in terms of horizontal layers. Since this section is blessed with a canopy layer of large mature oaks and hickory trees, understory trees, both native and non-native, including Japanese maples, hornbeams, redbuds, buckeyes, styrax, stewartia, parrotias, and several others, were planted throughout the various sections of the North Woods created by the path structure. A few young, future canopy trees were also planted including yellowwood, southern magnolia, sweet gum, a blue atlas cedar, blue China fir, & 'Skylands' oriental spruce. The next layer, below the understory trees, is the shrub layer. A great variety of both deciduous and evergreen shrubs have been planted throughout the North Woods, including many varieties of Chamaecyparis, boxwoods, arborvitae, azaleas & rhododendrons, hydrangeas, smokebush, hollies, sweetshrub, itea, and many more. Finally, the ground layer development was begun and is still happening. Over the years the North Woods has become more and more shady as these trees and shrubs have matured and as additional native volunteer trees, including oaks, hickories, red maples, tulip poplars, black gum, white pine, and native hollies have come into the landscape here.

Horticulture: The elevation from the ridge top to the street drops off 55 feet with an average slope of about 34%, the steepest section being the road cut just above the street where the slope is as much as 50%.

Ground covers are used to prevent erosion, especially where the ground is more steeply sloped.

The soil is loamy with good drainage, but rocks often lie below the surface, especially along the ridge top.

Most plants were installed as small, container-grown nursery stock.

The property has no irrigation system, so newly planted trees and shrubs are watered by hand.

Fortunately, deer have only been sighted on the property on a couple of occasions, but squirrels, rabbits, turkeys, and bears are not uncommon in the garden.