DALE SIEVERT
Tour Dale Sievert's Garden
The Japanese Garden
PHOTO - BOB STEFKO
A Japanese garden was Dale Sievert's initial inspiration, and the one that he's built for himself is a marvel. In the shade of a striking katsura tree and surrounding maples and lindens, Dale created a Japanese garden with classic elements, including a raked gravel garden, an azumaya (viewing house), a stream with an arched bridge, small ponds fed with bamboo waterspouts and a lower reflecting pool.
Staircase Up the Slope
PHOTO - BOB STEFKO
A gently inclined stone staircase with a rustic wooden railing climbs past terraced pocket gardens—a bog; a stumpery; and perennial beds of ferns, horsetail, and meadow rue.
Winding Paths to Follow
PHOTO - BOB STEFKO
Dale collected more than 11,000 fieldstones to line his garden paths— including thousands from his gracious neighbor’s hedgerows. Some came covered in moss, and others he covered himself, attaching moss temporarily with silicone caulk until the rooting attachments, or rhizoids, clung on their own.
The Built-In Garden Shed
PHOTO - BOB STEFKO
In the bank of a hill, Dale built a garden shed you could easily mistake for a hobbit house. He lined a cobblestone path with dozens of moss-filled bowls and concrete troughs. Up the slope, two containers perch on natural pedestals—rather than discard stumps when he takes down trees, Dale embraces them as part of the landscape.
Water Features
PHOTO - BOB STEFKO
Mosses don’t grow in standing water or soggy soil, but they do thrive in humid microclimates—whether created by the mist of a water feature like these cascading falls or just in the damp cracks between pavers. When it rains, mosses function like sponges, taking in and holding water with their specially adapted leaves that weave together into hydro-wicking colonies. In fact, Dale likes to show off a "magic trick" for visitors, spritzing dormant moss with water, and drawing cheers as it turns lush green in seconds.
PHOTO - BOB STEFKO
This small pond, fed by a bamboo spout, is in the Japanese garden. The textural, shade-loving plants here include Japanese forest grass, hostas, golden Japanese spikenard and conifers.
Moss, Moss (and Stumps) Everywhere
PHOTO - BOB STEFKO
Using found materials, Dale built two benches from large stones and wood slabs, then encouraged moss to grow on them for a fairy-tale, lost-in-time look.
PHOTO - BOB STEFKO
Here, a hanging bark planter provides an eye-level view of mosses. When visiting a moss garden or natural moss habitat, Dale advises to take it slow. “As I often watch many on the path, few hardly give mosses a glance,” he says. “If they could, the mosses would cry, their dazzling show falling on blind eyes."
PHOTO - BOB STEFKO
Dale has also succeeded in cultivating moss on boulders and concrete forms like this sphere. One of the remarkable things about Dale's garden is how it brings about a feeling of calm and stillness. One intimate space or sculpture leads to another, and you start to notice how each moss is different; some form small puffy cushions while others create velvet green carpets.
PHOTO - BOB STEFKO
Dale has even fashioned a table from a lingering, twisty tree trunk. It's the perfect surface for more small containers and pretty stones. "Many people come through my garden and see a mass of plants," he says, "but I have lots of different species of mosses.”
Moss in Miniature—and Growing Your Own
PHOTO - BOB STEFKO
A moss bowl (or tiny pot, below) is a great way to test your hand at growing moss because the scale is modest, and you can easily move the container to seek more or less light. (Here's a full how-to guide.) Start small, be patient and match the growing conditions where the moss was gathered. Most mosses prefer some shade and moist, well-draining soil. If collecting moss, for best results, gather locally and always request permission from property owners. Conservatively collect small, 4- to 6-inch patches so the original patch will regenerate easily. If possible, leave a half inch of soil under the moss for successful transplanting.
PHOTO - BOB STEFKO
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