Mili and Hecate

The cats are now taking advantage of the spring hiatus to get outside for some fresh air. Hecate wondering why the lawn has not been cut and Mili is just checking on the blackberries.

Cropped Yorkstone Walling

Oh yes! I really do enjoy hard landscaping. Working with stone is so tactile and the element of permanency means that a job done properly will last decades. I source all my stone whether it be walling material or rockery stone from a local quarry near Bacup. I always buy in 1 tonne loads, that way it is not an overwhelming task to sort and grade, then to carry up to the relevant part of the garden. This lot is for the small retaining walls I am building as part of the new cottage garden beds. This is what a tonne of Yorkstone looks like.

 The first job following delivery is to grade the material. The method that I find the most useful for walling is to sort into pieces of roughly the same thickness. This means the courses can be laid much more efficiently.

The garage is a handy temporary store.

The beauty of the stone is in the texture and colouring.



Cropped walling is the easiest medium to work with as it can be carefully stacked, rather like a grown up lego set to make rustic garden structures. With a little care and using techniques borrowed from dry stone walling, a bespoke stone feature is possible for anyone who is prepared to put in a little sweat and muscle. It is guaranteed to help add clarity to your garden design.

Clematis About to Flower

The clematis at the front is about to flower. It is a real jewel of the garden. It is reliable and flowers profusely. To be precise there are two plants but both are pinky purple and flower more or less simultaneously. Being a spring flower variety it is also easy to maintain, just give it a chop once the show is over. The regime for summer flowering types is of course different.

I think every garden can benefit from a clematis or two and even the novice gardener can get a lovely display, possibly hiding a drab wall or just making best use of the vertical spaces available.

The rhododendron also looks pretty at this time of year cheering up the front aspect of the house.

Damp Pennine Weather.

The wet weather of the past week has curtailed the outdoor activities somewhat. Mili and Hecate have barely ventured into the garden. However, there is no point in bemoaning the climate, simply get on with it. The splendid BBC Scotland programme "Beechgrove" is an inspiration for UK gardeners who also do not have the home counties climate to cosset their plots.

The leaden skies may not inspire but the trees are coming into leaf, there is life in the herbaceous border and the grass now needs cutting. The seasons are a magnificent framework around which the gardeners calendar must fit.

The view is looking up the garden towards the tress which frame the upper sections. The ornamental grasses are up there (not ideal being a little shaded) and the compost heaps. The shed is also my tool store and is currently awaiting the clematis to come into leaf and screen off the side.

The final phase of the bulb lasagnas now the tulips are out. I am not too sure about the colour of the tulips this year, they rather remind me of the rhubarb and custard boiled sweets!

The Floating Trellis

Over the past few weeks I have been adding the final major part of the terrace. Being south facing, this is the part of the garden designed to catch the afternoon sun but is easily accessible from the kitchen. The planting is a black and white theme more of which I will detail in a later post.

Only the finishing touches are now required. But the construction of the floating trellis is detailed below:

The trellis is the newest element of the garden. It will I hope screen the view of the next door neighbours shed. Just as importantly it will offer the framework for a white climbing rose and a white clematis. This will further add a little privacy but more importantly allow the best use of the space with some pretty verticals. These two plants are rooted in planters, a decision I took to try to guarantee decent growing medium. The soil in the nearby beds is very impoverished.

Mili and Hecate both have to be site foremen.


During construction the established plants like the black bamboo needed careful protection. Other plants in the photos are just overwintering with a bit of sunshine and the reflected warmth from the walls of the terrace.

PJ Tip: using post-crete is a simple way of putting up 6 foot posts. Simply dig a hole to a third the depth of your post (at least ideally). Then half fill with water. Place the post in position and add the post-crete mix, to a level above that of the water, while supporting the post for 5-10 minutes until the concrete sets. Really it could not be easier. Just be careful that the post stays level during the brief period the mix needs to harden off. I was able to erect all my posts single handed. It really is that easy.

With the posts in position, cross rails are attached between them. This is then the framework upon which the trellis can be hung. Being an awkward sloping area the timber had to be cut to fit the site. Finally, a cut down piece of trellis fencing panel, bought from a local supplier is then attached. However, be sure to continually check your levels. Being on a slope optical illusion is a hazard. I finished the job with two coats of black wood stain. This has the benefit of protecting the wood and tying the structure to the monochromatic theme of the terrace.

The Other areas of the Garden

I have realized that all the posts to date might give the impression that the garden is little more than a patio, pond and greenhouse/conservatory.

However, that is a long way from the truth because despite being a modest house the outdoor space is generous and has been divided into distinct areas. In fact the variety of spaces might send the garden design aficionados into somewhat of a tail spin given the current zeitgeist is for a theme which runs through the garden and ties the design together. Simple statement is not our garden. The pictures might just give you a clue. Note they were taken last year.

Above is the upper seating area and pond (designed like a well), below the front aspect of the house (an area which was been somewhat remodeled since last year), the smaller images are detail of the ornamental grass border, and the snowdrops in front of the conservatory, finally there is the heather bed and terrace.

Spring is in the Air

Even high on the English Pennines spring will eventually arrive. The signs are here. The clocks have gone forward, frog spawn is in the pond, daffodils are looking lovely, buds are appearing on the clematis and (hooray) the covers are off the garden furniture. My appetite for the garden is freshly whetted.

Sadly, outdoor time this weekend has been curtailed by the need to pot up 120 plug plants that arrived courtesy of Royal Mail from van Meuwen. They range from echinaea, coreopsis and dianthus to delphinium and digitalis. Twelve different plants and twelve of each. I have not really tried to start plants from plugs before, but I am cautiously optimistic. The biggest immediate challenge is where to put all the newly potted plants. The conservatory which doubles up as the greenhouse is now full to bursting.
The hope is that they will fill a new bed that I intend to create this year, in the style of a cottage garden. As I understand it, this will mean a variety of colourful plants and flowers intermingled with some food crops. Quite a challenge I think. To date I have been completely unsuccessful with the cultivation of foodstuffs. Apart from a few tomatoes grown indoors last year I have never been able to produce anything worth consuming. Suggestions on the easiest to grow crops, that will also look at home in the cottage garden will be welcome. The only definite to date are potatoes, as seed potatoes have already been bought and left out for chitting. Incidentally, 3 have already been put into a sack and have been growing for several weeks already, an update will follow.