Category: meadows

Somerset Willows

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date August 9, 2015

I love Salix (willows) – they are one of my favourite trees almost on a par with Betulas (Birches). I always have liked them, our own native species and the garden varieties we can grow. We have several at home in our garden and use them on our allotment communal gardens where we have a Withy Bed with 17 different varieties with different coloured stems and leaves. From these we have made a Fedge, which is a living hedge and a Willow Dome and Willow Tunnel for the children.

I used to like seeing them as a child when I fished a local stream. We moved from one ancient gnarled willow to another. Many were hollow pollarded specimens completely open on one side. We explored the hollow ones as we could often get inside them and look up at the sky. They were great shelters when rain showers stopped us fishing.

When we found ourselves in Somerset we realised that we were close to the Wetland and Willows Centre, so we just had to drop by and have a wander.

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We followed a sign taking us for a tour around the productive land around the centre. We passed over a bridge with sides constructed from willow with decorative willow features within.

The path took us to an area full of willow structures mainly places for children to explore, even including a willow snail!

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As we moved on we came across a willow drying fence where the harvested willows were hung out to dry. A little further on as we made our way through a wooded area we found this willow spider in its web, a beautiful hedgehog and a buzzard flying through the branches.

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Leaving the wood we found ourselves walking through the wetlands, the drainage of which was controlled by windmills, sluices and a series of ditches. Large areas were willow plantations, the productive heart of the wetlands.

As we were reaching the end of our tour of the wetlands we discovered the drying racks where the harvested willow wands were left to dry.

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Before leaving we just had to look at the centre’s museum. We were amazed at how many things are made from willow and all the other items from the past. My first museum photo gives a taster of the delights in the museum. To find out more look through the gallery below. To enjoy my gallery just click on the first picture and use the arrows to negotiate your way through.

We enjoyed our visit to find out more about willows and came away simply amazed! We came away with this unusual willow bird table.

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Tags Somerset, wetland, wetlands, willow, willow features, willow structures, willow weaving, willows

bird watching birds garden photography garden ponds garden pools garden wildlife gardening gardens hardy perennials meadows poppies

My Garden Journal – July

I can’t believe we are in the second half of the year but as this is the post about my garden journal in July then we most certainly are!

I began my July journal entry with a reference to the weather, the obsession of the British especially gardeners. “The month of July burst in with a heatwave. Some plants objected by wilting but flower colours were enriched in the sunlight. Lilies and Clematis joined the colour pallette provided by June’s Roses and Geraniums.”

Our Oriental Lilies were the best we have ever had this July and we have been growing them for many years. We grow them in big pots so that we can simply drop them in where and when they are needed to add splashes of dramatic colour. Enjoy my little gallery of Lily photos. Just click on the first photo and then use the arrows.

I then wrote about our July pond dipping adventure, “A pond dip early in the month showed young newts still present in abundance alongside nymphs of Dragons and Damsels. This little creature (painting below) caught my eye. At just over a centimetre in length the Water Lice, or Isopoda, is the wet equivalent of the more common Wood Lice. They cannot swim but simply scramble around devouring detritus and decaying plant material. They are common prey of the larvae of Damsels and Dragons.”

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I moved on then from pondlife to birdlife and looked at two of the most beautiful birds that visit our garden. “We have been visited by two of our most colourful birds over the last few weeks, Bullfinches and Redstarts.” The Redstart made a fleeting visit on our last open day at our garden when it was full of visitors, which seemed a bit brazen for a normally shy woodland bird.

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Agapanthus featured next in my July garden journal as our collection in our Beth Chatto garden were budding up nicely promising a beautiful display before too long. We have been building up our collection of favourite Agapanthus for a few years now and it is now coming along well. “Our collection of Agapanthus in our Beth Chatto Garden is slowly getting more colourful as flower buds burst. Surely these are the slowest of buds to become flowers!”

To see some of our Agapanthus up close, some still in tight buds some opening up, please enjoy the little Agapanthus gallery below. As usual click on the first picture and use the arrows to move through. Next month promises to be a month of Agapanthus flowers rather then buds. Can’t wait!

My next double page is about the weather and our min-meadows.

My journal continues, “This year the heat of the early part of July was not set to continue for us in Shropshire. Dark grey masses of clouds took over from clear blue skies.”

Mighty Mini-Meadow is the title of the next page of my journal which features photos of the little but very floriferous meadow we sowed in early May in vegetable bags. The seeds germinated so well that we have been treated to a mass of blooms reminiscent of a summer meadow from the days before intensive agriculture changed our countryside into huge barren fields of monoculture. It sits beneath my collection of antique garden tools. These native wildlflowers attract insects as if drawn in by distant memories, bees, hoverflies and butterflies.

What an honour Mother Nature bestowed on us this month! This is how the next page of my journal begins. It is all about a special time in our garden, a moment we will never forget.

“Early one morning we noticed that a Dragon Fly larva had crawled from our pond, across the decking and up the door of our summerhouse. The green colour of the door must have fooled it into thinking it was tall rushes. Once in place the back of the larva opened up and a Dragonfly very slowly emerged. At first it was wingless but as warmth increased they popped out looking as if they were made of plastic. The creature shivered itself into life and the sun helped pump life and rigidity into its wings. An hour later we watched an adult Dragonfly off.”

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I illustrated this amazing spectacle with a simple i-pad drawing and a photo of the head of the Dragonfly gripping the empty shell of its former self.

So with this amazing experience my journal closed up for July and will soon re-open for August.

Tags agapanthus, Asiatic Lilies, bullfinch, damselflies, dragonflies, garden journal, garden pond, garden pools, July, lilies, meadows, redstart, wildflower meadows

climbing plants colours flowering bulbs garden design garden photography garden pools gardens gardens open to the public lakes meadows ornamental trees and shrubs outdoor sculpture Powis Powys trees water garden water in the garden

A garden reborn – Glansevern Hall

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date July 27, 2015
1 Comment on A garden reborn – Glansevern Hall

In this post we will be looking back to a garden visit we made in mid-May when we visited a garden near Welshpool just over the border into Wales but still only a half hour drive away. The last time we had visited the gardens at Glansevern Hall was about ten years ago when the current owners had just started to rejuvenate the run down gardens.

We arrived to find everything improved so much so that some areas were hard to recognise. It is now a garden of real atmosphere, a truly romantic garden. After parking up in a car park which was a clearing among beautiful mature trees, we entered the garden through a courtyard which would have originally have been the stable block of the hall. Planting in narrow borders at the base of the wall included some interesting plants and some great ironwork.

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Once outside the courtyard several garden rooms contained exciting plant combinations and swathes of colour and texture.

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We discovered more wonderful ironwork too!

In contrast to the irregularly shaped beds we came across circular beds planted in very different styles.

A pergola covered in Laburnum with its bright yellow racemes was a real surprise to find as we began finding our way to the informal meadow areas and their collection of interesting trees and shrubs.

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This weeping specimen tree took some identifying. We had never seen one before but eventually came to the conclusion that it was a Weeping Mulberry, Morus alba pendula. A real beauty. The sculpture and the Viburnums were much easier to identify.

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The gardens close to the hall itself were much more formal and had an “arts and crafts” feel to them. The colours of the planting were most unusual in different pale shades of blue around the front and shades of yellow along the side borders.

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Moving away from the hall we walked beneath a wonderfully colourful and highly scented pergola swathed in Wisteria with its long white and blue racemes of flowers. Beneath the narrow borders were full of purple headed Alliums.

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After a quick break for coffee and cakes we traced the path around the lake which was surrounded by specimen trees many rare or unusual, some we had never seen before and a couple we had never even heard of!

We had a great day at Glansevern and came away amazed at how much work had been done developing the gardens into such a romantic place.

Tags garden metalwork, gardens open to the public, Glansevern Hall, herbaceous borders, herbaceous plants, ornamental grasses, pergola, Powis, Powys, wisteria

climbing plants colours flowering bulbs fruit and veg garden photography gardens gardens open to the public hardy perennials irises kitchen gardens meadows National Trust ornamental trees and shrubs poppies Shropshire The National Trust trees walled gardens

Croft Castle month by month – Part 6 June

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date July 6, 2015
4 Comments on Croft Castle month by month – Part 6 June

We arrived for our June exploration of the gardens at the National Trust property, Croft Castle, with great expectations as the sun shone, the sky was blue and the temperature warm. We were not disappointed in any way! After our usual coffee and cakes we made our way to the main feature of the garden, the Walled Garden. On the way we enjoyed finding some very colourful plants with the added extra, scent.

On entering the Walled Garden the colour and scent continued. Our first glance through the doorway promised a great deal to see and smell.

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Poppies were on top form! Beautiful!

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As we ambled up the gentle slope studying the plants in the border against the wall we noticed that the vines were now in full leaf with tiny bunches of flowers forming, the promise of a healthy grape harvest to come. Irises blooming in the borders opposite bloomed with much more complex and colourful flowers.

As usual we passed through the blue gate to see what was going on in the gardeners’ working area, but not much was going on. We were pleased to see the Cobaea back in flower. It lives up to its common name, the “Cup and Saucer Plant”.

Our old favourite, the Cornus cousa was white over with flower-like bracts and beneath it Nancy, Liz and Clementine the Pekin Bantams we met earlier were enjoying their new home.

The ancient apple orchard and the mixed borders hugging the red-brick walls were full of colour, scent and texture. The walled garden had truly come to life!

More borders have come to life this month in the central area of the walled garden among and around the old gnarled fruit trees. A meadow of poppies, a rose garden and mixed borders all add to the effect.

We left the walled garden through a gateway with a shrubby area with Foxgloves enjoying its shade.

The Secret Garden was at its peak, soft colours, gentle perfumes and a multitude of greens.

Around the front of the residence at Croft Castle we looked over the wall to admire the vast area of meadowland. Deep pink Centranthus bordered the base of the walls giving a bright margin between wall and meadow.

We are half way through our year of monthly visits to the gardens of Croft Castle. Our next visit in July will hopefully be bright, warm and sunny too, giving us even more to look forward to.

Tags cornus, Croft Castle., fruit and vegetable growing, gardens open to the public, Hereford, Herefordshire, Herefordshire gardens, meadows, National Trust, The National Trust, walled garden, walled gardens

arboreta garden design garden photography garden ponds garden pools gardens gardens open to the public Italian style gardens meadows ornamental trees and shrubs shrubs trees water garden water in the garden

A Week in the Lake District – Part 7 – Holker Hall

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date July 4, 2015

I had recently read a book on the original creation and the more recent re-design of the gardens at Holker Hall so I was really looking forward to visiting it to see it for real. The book made mention of many rare and interesting trees being planted which made me extra keen to visit.

We hoped it would reach our expectations as it was the last day of our week in the Lake District. We looked forward to a gentle stroll around a peaceful, atmospheric garden. We were not disappointed in any way! Holker’s gardens were full of variety and surprises, with a careful balance of the formal and informal.

As we entered the garden we were presented with this vista, a vista full of promises to come.

Taking each pathway off from the central path we discovered beautiful examples of formality, neatly cut grass, hedges carefully clipped and seats neatly tucked into niches.

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But formality cannot work without carefully chosen and well-grown plants.

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As we moved away from the formality of the first section of the garden we found gentle meadows which presented a complete contrast.

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The meadows contained surprises, a stone circle, a maze, seats of single blocks of slate and the most beautiful sundial.

It was hot wandering out in the open space of the meadows so it felt good to wander around shaded areas and an Italianate water garden.

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One of the reasons to visit Holker Hall is the collection of rare and unusual trees. They were underplanted with meadows of grasses and wildflowers which gave the wooded area the character of a real William Robinson styled wild garden

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We were amazed by the number of interesting trees at Holker and enjoyed discovering several champion trees. There were so many special places throughout the gardens where shrubs and trees were sensitively grouped to set them off in the best light.

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Tags Cumbria, garden trees, Holker Hall, Italian garden style, meadows, shrubs, The Lake District, The Lakes, trees and shrubs, water in the garden, wildflower meadows

fruit and veg garden design garden photography garden ponds garden pools gardens gardens open to the public irises kitchen gardens lakes meadows National Trust ornamental trees and shrubs outdoor sculpture sculpture The National Trust water in the garden

A Week in the Lake District – Part One – Sizergh

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date June 10, 2015
1 Comment on A Week in the Lake District – Part One – Sizergh

We decided that it was about time we re-visited one of our favourite family holiday destinations from when our children were youngsters, the Lake District. So a week in early June saw us journeying northwards to re-find some old haunts.

The first place we visited was the National Trust property, Sizergh Castle, right at the southern end of the lakes, in an area described as the “gateway to the Lakes”. The National Trust is very much in evidence in this area owning many properties as well as lakes, hillsides, fells and farms. The Lake district was central to the Trust’s early development.

Sizergh Castle is a Medieval house with gardens, orchards, limestone pasture and semi-natural woodland. The garden features fern collections, a kitchen garden, a pond, lake and its main feature a massive rock garden.

We soon realised that this was going to be a place full of interesting plants which also looked after its wildlife.

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The little wooden sign clearly showed us the way!

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We followed the little wooden sign on a stone wall directing us to the garden and made our way towards the kitchen garden. On the way we stumbled across the “stumpery” where the garden’s fern collections are being re-homed. The variety of ferns was vast and we spotted many we had never seen before.

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The walls in the fernery and walled garden were home to so many different tiny plants as well as just ferns. We were soon to discover that this was a feature of the walls throughout the gardens.

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The kitchen garden was on a gentle slope and based on a strange shape somewhat like a long bent rectangle! The old wooden cold frames were still fully in use. We were fascinated by the raised hot beds where plants grew in soil covering heaped manure. This gave heat and later as it broke down fertility and structure to the soil.

Within the kitchen garden we found a small patch of multi-coloured Forget-me-Nots. We found lots more throughout the gardens.

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From the kitchen garden we wandered into the orchard with its bee hives, buzzing with activity. Beyond the orchard we came across a small lake. In the borders on the lake side were beautifully sculptural pollarded willows. They looked like a group of people meeting up for a chat.

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Wide open expanses of lawn opened up in front of us as we walked away from the lake. These afforded us views of the castle buildings themselves.

Where there was a change of level the grass banks were sown as narrow wild flower meadows. They were full of life.

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Behind the main buildings we found the “Great Barn”, an agricultural building of a type we had never seen before. The barn was raised up on a bank to create two levels. In the lower level the animals were housed while carts loaded with cereals drove up the grass covered gradients to the upper level.

One of the most famous sections of the gardens was the vast rock garden. Acers gave this area colour and texture and provided great views back to the castle itself. Tiny streams wound their way through the rocky outcrops ans areas of planting.

We found these appealing little carvings while we wandered around. The first was a yard high snail carved in wood while the second was a sculpture created by Mother Nature and again we thought it resembled a snail. The final piece was a wise old owl carved from wood.

Our first day in the Lake District was most enjoyable and we hoped our other days would be equally as inspiring.

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Tags acers., Cumbria, ferns, garden sculpture, kitchen gardens, meadows, NT, orchards, outdoor sculpture, rock gardens, rockeries, sculpture, Sizergh Castle, The Lake District, The Lakes, The National Trust, water gardens, water in the garden, wildflower meadows

colours garden buildings garden photography gardening gardens gardens open to the public hardy perennials light light quality meadows National Trust ornamental trees and shrubs roses Shropshire South Shropshire The National Trust trees walled gardens

Croft Castle month by month – Part 5 May

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date June 6, 2015
1 Comment on Croft Castle month by month – Part 5 May

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We are almost half way through the year now so we were expecting to see some big changes at Croft on our May visit.

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We made our May visit to Croft Castle on a warm sunny day so everything in the garden looked colourful and full of cheer. The leaves were fully out on all the trees and herbaceous plants were beginning to flower.

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The long border we always pass as we make our way towards the walled garden is now lush with every shade of green with occasional splashes of flower colour. Our view from the long border towards the church and castle is framed beautifully by trees in full leaf. The Horse Chestnuts were in full blossom. They are beautiful flowers when looked at close up.

On the walls of the buildings close to the walled garden roses were in full bloom.

As we passed through the gateway into the waled garden we were amazed by how much the first view had changed. It simply looked so green and lush.

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For the first time this year the vineyard at Croft was showing signs of growth with shining bronze-green leaves bursting from every bud.

We expected to see major changes as we walked through the blue gates to look at the greenhouse and the surrounding garden. Bright reds of poppies hit us first but close by these cute bantams were definitely new. We certainly found plenty of colour in the greenhouse as plants under cover were flowering way ahead of their normal time.

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Leaving the greenhouse area back through the blue gates we could see that the productive gardens had made a lot of progress since our visit in April. Gooseberries were fruiting and rows of vegetable plants were now established. The sunshine brought out the colours in the borders along the walls.

We just had to stop to admire these beautifully pollarded willows, now regrowing strongly. The Cirsium rivulare was in full bloom and looked good against the old garden buildings.

Along the fourth side of the walled garden the light was so bright that colours seemed extra vibrant and exciting.

For the first time this year there was interest in the Rose Garden with groundcover beneath the roses in flower and indeed the first roses were open and giving the gift of their scent to anyone passing by.

After leaving the walled garden we wandered around castle itself where we enjoyed tempting views over the meadows to the lake and countryside beyond.

The open gate into the meadows was just too tempting for us. We followed a mown path through the wildflowers.

Croft is well-known for its ancient Sweet Chestnut trees. We were fascinated by the texture of the bark on this group.

Our next visit in June will be the half way mark through our year of visiting Croft Castle gardens.

Tags ancient trees, Croft Castle., fruit and veg, greenhouses, meadows, rose garden, Shropshire, South Shropshire, Sweet Chestnuts, trees

allotments community gardening meadows Shrewsbury Shropshire

Celebrating Spring at our allotments

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date May 24, 2015
1 Comment on Celebrating Spring at our allotments

At our allotments, Bowbrook Allotment Community, we celebrate each season of the year. We celebrated Spring in late April, with activities and games for the children followed by a BBQ sat around our new fire pits.

One of our members, Sherlie had planned craft activities for the children including painting faces on pebbles complete with moving eyes and decorating plant pots.

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Our social celebration days provide the chance to catch up for a chat and to get to know each other better. It lets new members meet their fellow gardeners too. The fire pits draw people in like magnets.

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Out tea committee, the Tea Bags, were on hand to keep us all plied with tea and coffee and cake of course!

Michael, our machinery expert always finds time to look after our machines and teach others as well as looking after his own plot. He showed us how to use our new strimmer and demonstrated different cultivators and tillers. This gave members the chance to try machinery out with Michael on hand to help out and advise. Everyone feels so much more confident after advice from Michael.

We always try to involve children in some gardening activities too giving adults and children a chance to discover skills together. At our Spring Celebration we sowed wildflower meadows in pots. Everyone joined in from the youngest upwards. The youngest gardener is Edward who loves his gardening already especially watering. He has a wonderful sense of humour so he really enjoyed showering me with a hose!

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The children are now looking after their mini-meadows and we have made them responsible for watering and checking on them regularly. It is good to see how keen the youngsters are to sow seeds and tend them afterwards. These meadows will form a part of our display at this year’s Shrewsbury Flower Show – in fact we hope they will be the centre piece.

We also provided the children with games to play which involved them in exploring the site and its wildlife areas. We challenged them to fit as many tiny objects as possible into a matchbox, and challenged them to take their parents and/or grandparents off on a scavenger hunt. We love to see different generations getting involved in our activities. It is so heartening to see how involved children can be learning about and enjoying being close to nature and gardening.

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We finished off with a BBQ as has become a tradition here at our allotments. Our new table and benches proved a real hit. What a great day we had!

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Tags allotments, Bowbrook Allotment Community, children and gardening, communal gardens, community gardening, community spirit, spring

countryside landscapes meadows the sea the seaside the shore Wales

Oh we do like to be beside the seaside – Part Two – The Great Orme

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date April 15, 2015
2 Comments on Oh we do like to be beside the seaside – Part Two – The Great Orme

For our second reminder of autumn we return for our next bout of sea air. This time we made our way over more Welsh hills, moors and mountains to the northern stretch of coast. We stopped off in Llandudno for a wander along the pier before taking the driving tour of the Great Orme.

The sky was blue and the sea matched it. The pier seemed all blue too and on this bright day it looked so cheerful. The odd splash of yellow and red added even more drama.

In the next shot you can spot the Great Orme looming in the background, with its strata lines of limestone clearly visible in the bright light. Isn’t it inviting when you spot it there?

Jude enjoyed the sight and sound of the sea as we reach the end of the pier.

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Having enjoyed our walk out into the sea along the old blue and white pier we went on to start the second part of our day out, a drive around the Great Orme following the toll road.

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The single track road winds in and out of the inlets and headlands closely following the line of the coast. The track is enclosed within limestone walls, laid as dry-stone walling.

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One feature of the Orme is a unique herd of wild white goats. We have driven up to the summit of the Orme and around the edge plenty of times in the past but rarely even caught a glimpse of these strange creatures. This day was our lucky day! Their white coats glowed against the deep blue sky.

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We took a diversion to the summit when we were almost all the way around the perimeter road. Our eyes were immediately drawn to this bronze statue of a wild white goat.

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As well as its white goats the Great Orme is known for its ancient mines and its Victorian tram line. While wandering the summit we discovered near the old mine that visitors had used fallen limestone blocks to write their names on the close cropped grass.

We just had to have a go!

We enjoyed a wander around the summit, discovering a little wildlife garden and wild meadows surrounding the quarry and the tram terminal.

We enjoyed wide views across open pastureland on our drive back down into Llandudno. What a great day out at the seaside!

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Tags Great Orme, Llandudno, North Wales, trams, Wales, wild goats

colours conservation countryside landscapes meadows nature reserves the seaside the shore Wales

A coastal meadow – Anglesey

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date March 12, 2015
5 Comments on A coastal meadow – Anglesey

On a wet, cold March day it seems a good idea to look back and enjoy some blue sky.

When we spend a few days on Anglesey, an island just off the north coast of Wales we always take a short walk through this colourful acidic meadow. Often it is a good place to see unusual birds such as Chats and Pipits, but on our latest wander along its narrow gravel track it was very quiet. There were no calls from birds, no buzzing from bees and no clicking of grasshoppers or crickets. But the flowers were performing their usual colourful display. As we began our walk we watched a single Chough flying along the horizon in its typically undulating flight. This is a strange bird, jet black like most of the corvids but with bright red legs and a slender curved black bill.

Come for a wander with us and the camera, enjoy the blue sky the sweet scent of gorse flowers and the gently undulating landscape.

We reached the look out tower where we stopped to look out over the sea which was coloured in constantly changing tones and blends of deep greens and blues with silver sparkles where the sun hit each breaking wave. As we turned to retrace our footsteps we heard the first sounds of Chats and scanning the top branches of the heather or rock outcrops we spotted several Stonechat perched bolt upright constantly calling to each other. Gulls wheeled over our heads as they made for their cliff face ledges.

This cliff top walk never fails to impress with its richly coloured meadows and views out over the Irish Sea. We have wandered this track so many times over the years and will keep returning to enjoy it over and over again.