On the back of my house, looking north over the pond which is about a hundred feet in diameter, is my deck. It’s roughly ten feet by thirty feet, surrounded by a railing topped by flower boxes. Last summer, I planted a variety of annuals in the flower boxes, but the plants bloomed at different rates, and some started dying off before the summer was over. So this year I planted only one variety, red begonias.
I figured I’d plant one begonia every six inches, all around the deck and bought the requisite number of plants. But the instructions that come with the plants said they should be spaced apart ten to twelve inches. I had too many plants. As a result, I planted extra begonias in a dozen pots. I still had plenty left over. So I cultivated a plot to the side of my driveway in front of the house and planted the remainder there.
To my surprise, the end result doesn’t look crowded or congested but resplendent. Flowers everywhere. And the plants are thriving. Not a one is showing signs of failure.
For once, my miscalculation turned out to be a handsome improvement.
Tom Glenn, Writer 