Creative Gardens: Local Photographer Shares her Mountain Oasis

With an eye for detail, has built a garden oasis on her property on South Mountain, which serves as an outdoor studio for her photography.

Using native stones culled from the wooded areas surrounding her lot, Ullman defined areas in which to plant, as well as establishing different levels on which to garden. With the help of a landscape architect, plants have been added through the years. Weeding and watering is a must for any garden, and Ullman also makes sure her plants are supported by stakes as they grow tall. On this large property, Ullman is careful to plant only as much as she can reasonably care for, and prefers perennials for their “easy maintenance and rotating beauty as the seasons progress.”

Ullman loves her hosta garden, with its many varieties of hosta, all of which were planted by Ullman, who loves the Big Daddy hosta, and loves to watch “rain drops catch in the leaves and form a puddle as the leaves hold the moisture.” She always enjoys lily of the valley, for the fragrance that it emits each year.

After 19 years on the mountain, Ullman says “I often sit back and enjoy how beautiful it is here on South Mountain, two minutes from downtown, an oasis!”

Editor's Note: Creative Gardens will be an ongoing focus of the Emmaus Patch this summer, as we explore, through photography, both the private and public gardening activities that make Emmaus such a lovely place to spend the summer months.