Form and Texture

We have been enjoying the summer weather this week. The other day while just having a light salad lunch on the patio I happened to notice a quite delightful sight. I suppose on many other occasions I have simply failed to spot the intriguing natural beauty of the reflected light playing on the pond-side foliage. The tumbling water was just catching the early afternoon sunlight to create an almost psychedelic strobe light effect on the leaves of the ferns. It is a reminder to not overlook or take for granted the little magical elemnts that are present in even the smallest of gardens.

The vegetation surrounding the lower pond has been planted for its form and texture. The fronds of the different ferns, the contrasting shapes of the creeping plants are intermingled in a naturalistic way. On the other bank the feather like astilbes and a few aquilegia all grow well in this shaded woodland like part of the garden.

 

Sissinghurst

The gardening has taken a brief sabbatical while we have been away. A mini break in Rye presented the perfect opportunity to visit Sissinghurst in the Kent Weald lands. This was our first visit and what a treat, apart from the crowds! There could hardly be a more different site and situation to our Pennine plot. Vita Sackville-West and her husband Harold Nicolson have left a marvellous garden legacy which is currently under a sensitive restoration, I think all gardeners are like magpies in that we love to collect ideas from others and being a sucker for colour schemes I was thrilled to see the work of a true master of horticulture. The formal borders are so different from our own but the variety of spaces is something that we can strive to create for ourselves.

Internet Gardening: good and bad

This past week has been a mixed bag with regards to internet orders for the garden. Your local garden centre will always be a little limited and specialized on line suppliers are such a boon. However, you cannot always guarantee the quality of the products even from reputable suppliers. These cerastium were most disappointing. The mouse-ear chick weed is destined for the terrace, providing I can bring them back to good health. Mouse-ear Chickweed [Cerastium vulgatum] is a perennial weed and is very common on lawns throughout in the UK but hopefully it will find a welcome home trailing down the Yorkstone. However, it had better behave. But as the experienced gardener will tell you, there are no such thing as weeds, only wild flowers in the wrong place.

By contrast my livestock was in rude health. How we can all do with the help of the lady bird when it comes to an eco friendly way to control the aphids. They are widely available on line. I have found http://www.greengardener.co.uk to be very reliable. It is also really good fun trying to coax the ladybirds into doing their thing! Just do not plan on getting only one at a time out of the box

Two Living Walls

The cotoneaster is now totally covered in thousands of bees, what a marvellous plant. It is hard to imagine that the bee population is in severe decline when you witness a spectacle like this, but it is no doubt true. So we must all do our best.

The other living wall is that by the patio. Now the summer is about to arrive this modest space is really enhanced by the vertical planting. In particular at this time of year"Gran's lilies" come into bloom. Planted by (you guessed it) gran over 30 years ago they always give the modest splendid albeit brief display. They cling to the upper most part of the wall and despite having only a small depth of soil they seem to thrive on this challenging spot. The yellow is a an eye catching shade and the form of the flower quite exquisite. Thanks gran for the decades of pleasure.

 

Meanwhile Mili finds a new spot to doze! This definitely does not do her street wise image any favours.