Category: pathways

A Week in Cornwall – Part 5 – The Japanese Garden

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date March 30, 2019

As we left Cornwall after our week’s holiday we spent the morning at The Japanese Garden which was part way back to Devon where we were going to stay for a few days. We had visited this garden years ago but could not remember it at all, so it would all be a surprise.

A Japanese gardens has certain elements that make it a Japanese garden, a feeling of welcome, topiarised trees and shrubs, stone sculptures often in the form of lanterns, beautiful calm vistas, paths to invite calm slow wandering and moss in abundance, plus of course that essential water.

Let us begin at our Cornwall garden to see if it gave us a warm welcome, and see if there were areas that gave us the right feeling of calm and peace. Throughout this look at the Cornwall Japanese Garden you will notice how powerful the sense of light and shade can be in creating an atmospheric garden.

Peaceful areas appeared regularly at the end of winding paths or through archways.

Moss featured here as groundcover or growing on branches and tree trunks in the damp atmosphere. These patches of moss either on the ground or aerial are great for wildlife especially as they are always moist. Overall wildlife feels happy in Japanese gardens in the UK, and effecively act as predatorial pest controllers.

Training trees is an ancient Japanese art practised for centuries by Japanese gardeners following set rules using coniferous ans deciduous trees alike. It is a skill just coming into being in 21st century Britain. I love using it in the garden!

Stone sculptures were visible throughout including many forms of lantern. We use a few of these in our interpretation of a Japanese garden her at home in our Plealey patch.

Bamboo of course is another essential element of any Japanese garden, either growing in its many forms or used as a fencing or building material. It is beautiful and structural whichever way it is used.

I hope you have enjoyed this little tour of the Cornwall Japanese Garden as much as we did. There is so much Western gardeners can learn from Japanese garden design and from the skills of Japanese gardeners. They can teach us a lot about creating peace and harmony in our gardens.

Tags cloud pruning, Cornwall, creative pruning, garden sculpture, gardens of Cornwall, Japanese Garden, Japanese gardening, mosses, natural pest control, outdoor sculpture, pruing trees, topiary., tree training

garden arches garden design garden paths garden photography gardening gardens gardens open to the public pathways

Garden Entrances and Archways – No 6 in a very occasional series

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date February 24, 2019

This is the sixth post in this very occasional series concerning gardens entrances and archways. So here are photos taken over the last few months of these important design elements of gardens large and small.

Firstly here are some entrances we discovered at Batsford Arboretum in the autumn, on a dull showery day. The red bridge certainly added a burst of colour and invited visitors to cross over its boards and discover planting on the fare side. The friendly black wrought iron gateway lead visitors into an orcharda area as an alternative to following the main driveway.

The three pics below show how steps can provide entrances to invite the visitor to wander and see what is at their tops. The first photo is in our own Avocet garden while the second is at Gregynog an NGS Yellow Book garden in Powys. The third flight of steps are wooden and lead the wanderer up through dense woodland shrub and tree plantings.

Sunningdale, an NGS Shropshire garden near Wem, a market town north of Shrewsbury was a garden designed to make you explore and the several entrances and archways there excouraged the visitor to make choices and discover different parts of the town garden.

More pictures now from Gregynog, another NGS garden, this time a woodland garden with several different facets as seen in the photos below.

Down in Cornwall for a September holiday last year we found plenty of interesting entrances and archways in the varied gardens we visited. Firstly we visited Poppy’s Cottage Garden. The first picture below shows its rather odd entrance from the road.

Then we explored a strange garden to find in Cornwall, The Cornish Japanese Garden.

The gardens at The Eden Project gave plenty of varied places to enjoy.

Back closer in home here are a few photos from Hergest Croft Gardens

Here are three mystery photos for which my memory has let me down. I simply can’t remember where I took them!

The last pair of pics feature a beautiful gate at the Picton Garden near the Malverns, the garden that holds a National Collection of Asters. The gate leads you on a journey into beautiful mixed borders studded with masses of Asters. The secong pic features an archway from our very own Avocet patchwhich is designed to entice visitors to follow the central path and take the many inviting sideways paths.

Tags garden arches, garden gates, gateways, pergolas

autumn autumn colours colours garden design garden photography gardens gardens open to the public lakes landscapes light light quality ornamental trees and shrubs pathways Powis Powys shrubs Wales woodland woodlands

Gregynog Part 2 – the woodland walks

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date January 25, 2019

Here we are back at the NGS garden, Gregynog where you left us just starting out on our exploration of the park’s woodland. We wandered past the rose hedge along the gravel drive before turning off to the left along a gravel track which took us past mature trees, both conifers and deciduous, with an understorey of shrubs. Autumn colours were beginning to show in their foliage.

Acers beneath the tree canopy provided bright splashes of colour.

We soon found ourselves having to cross over the driveway to enter the woodands and almost immediately came across the lake. We began to meet several other couples and families taking advantage of the weather and the woodland trails, as well as a few more serious runners using the “Green Gym”. We took the path that took us almost all around the lake and then took a side track, grassed underfoot, into the woodland itself. We walked beneath mature wrinkled Birches which let plenty of light through to allow an understory to grow away happily.

After walking half a mile into the woodland the pathsides were a mass of tall growing golden leaved brackens. The tallest were the same height as Jude, the Undergardener.

On the wood floor beneath the trees a carpet of colourful fallen leaves gave a soft surface for us to walk on.

A final surprise were the dens built around and against the tree trunks by young visitors enjoying the special woodland atmosphere.

Leaving the woodland we could see the hall through the trees, and then we discovered the “Green Gym”, where wooden gym structures awaited the fit and healthy visitors.

So that was our day out at Gregynog, a completely new garden to us and one we would enjoy visiting again.

Tags acers., autumn, autumn colours, autumn leaves, deciduous trees, gardens of Powys, Gregynog, Powis, Powys, pruned shrubs, woodland, woodland garden, woodland walks

architecture autumn autumn colours colours garden design garden furniture garden paths garden photography garden seat garden seating gardens gardens open to the public light light quality ornamental trees and shrubs pathways Powis Powys roses shrubs trees Wales Yellow Book Gardens

Gregynog – a garden with woodland walks

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date January 23, 2019
3 Comments on Gregynog – a garden with woodland walks

Another NGS garden we visited last summer is called by the wonderful name Gregynog.

Gregynog is situated in the county of Powys and just has to be worth a visit sporting such a magical name, like something out of the Hobbit or a Hans Christian Anderson tale. Winding lanes eventually led us to a scented drive lined with roses. Here we gained the first glimpses of the half-timbered hall itself and the brick-built reception buildings. October light helped us to appreciate the garden, woodland and buildings.

The gardeners here certainly know how to prune and shape common shrubs to give them an extra edge. The first two photos are of Cotoneaster, trimmed to domes.

The garden around the front of the hall afforded us more opportunities to enjoy the gardeners’ pruning and trimming work.

The low sunlight caught this stand of asters lighting it up from a distance and as we walked closer to look we spotted this wonderful old seat, carved from a fallen tree.

We continued around the building all the time getting views of the hall above us.

We then came to a walks sign directing us to choose a walk to follow and we chose to make our way to the woodland walks and lake. We walked back alongside the hedge of scented roses at the side of the driveway, taking in their delicate colours and rich aromas.

As we reached the end of the row of roses we turned towards the woodland walk, aiming towards the lake, passing an Acer grove along the way, but this is all in part 2 of these posts about our visit to Gregynog.

Tags berried shrubs, cotoneasters, flowering shrubs, garden seating, gardens of Powys, Gregynog, Powis, Powys, shrubs and trees

garden arches garden paths pathways pergolas

Garden Entrances and Archways – Part 5 of this very occasional series

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date January 2, 2019

It has been a while since we visited this series so here is a new selection of my photographs of entrances and archways we have discovered in several gardens during our visits.

Tags archways, garden arches, garden gates, garden paths, gates, gateways, pergolas

birds countryside landscapes National Trust pathways photography The National Trust the sea the seaside the shore

A coastal walk in Cornwall

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date December 15, 2018
3 Comments on A coastal walk in Cornwall

While on a week’s break in Cornwall we decided to try a coastal walk and also decided that the day to do it would be the anniversary of my surgery to rebuild my right leg. Before my surgeon performed this complex 5 hour operation I was able to walk a few hundred yard at a struggle and in pain, so I was determined to see what I could do exactly a year on.

We had a great coffee and brownies at a beach cafe and took off. Immediately the path went steeply uphill and we could soon look back to the town we had left from, Portreath.

We had not been to Cornwall for years and quickly remembered just how beautiful the coast line is, with every step giving us breathtaking views.

We took regular breaks for drinks of water and a close look at our walk map. We stopped or slowed all the time simply to take in the beauty of the landscape we were walking through and to check up on my newly rebuilt right leg! Just after this particular stop we were entertained by a pair of Kestrels hunting as a duo team playing and following their instincts. We walked alongside them as companions for a good half mile enjoying their antics and acrobatics before they finallyy turned away.

A seriously steep sided couple of valleys were our hardest challenge of the walk. The first we had to zigzag down sometimes using steps cut into the valley side to climb the steepest sections. A fallen plank bridge, the only way to cross a deeply cut stream, meant a scramble to get across the trickling water. It was a great relief to get over and begin the ascent. The second valley side was a walk along steep stone tracks.

We met a couple of brothers sharing a walk who stopped to talk and were fascinated to meet us with me tackling this long difficult walk with a walking stick. They asked if we would like our photo taken, a suggestion we accepted readily. They were great to talk to and gave us chance to catch our breath too.

The half way point was at Derrick Cove, our signal to start the return leg of our walk, but not until a twenty minute rest and plenty of water. We had walked three and a half miles and knew we had the same to do to get back.

We decided to walk a slightly different way to avoid the steepest valley climb, but this meant walking along a road for a while. It meant also dropping down into Portreath from a different direction so we enjoyed different views of the town for the last few minutes of our walk.

So back at the car we felt elated but ached severely. We had such mixed emotions, but overall a sense of huge achievement was the strongest emotion of all.

Tags cliffs, coast, coastal path, Cornwall, National Trust, The National Trust, walking

garden design garden paths garden photography gardening gardens gardens open to the public hardy perennials light light quality nurseries ornamental trees and shrubs pathways shrubs Wales walled gardens woodland woodlands

Crug Farm – a planthunter’s woodland garden

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date August 27, 2018
3 Comments on Crug Farm – a planthunter’s woodland garden

We had not visited Crug Farm garden and nursery for several years, so taking advantage of our return journey from Anglesey we took a short detour to explore this woodland garden in Snowdonia. Driving into the little car park the yellow and orange poppies, Meconopsis cambrica, gave us a warm welcome.

I will now simply invite you to walk with us along the paths at Crug Farm sharing the atmosphere and the beautifully designed planting schemes, by following my gallery. Just click on the right arrow and navigate through using the arrows.

We left the woodland garden through a gateway that lead to the nursery set within a small walled garden. We enjoyed a walk around studying a large range of plants collected by owners the Bleddyn-Jones’. Of course we bought several to add to our shade borders.

Tags Crug Farm, Crug Farm Nursery, Crug Farm Woodland Garden, gardens of Wales, shade gardening, shade plants, woodland, woodland garden, woodland gardening

colours garden design garden paths garden photography garden ponds garden pools gardening gardens gardens open to the public lakes ornamental trees and shrubs pathways shrubs trees Wales woodland Yellow Book Gardens

The Dingle Garden in May

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date May 30, 2018

We planned our fifth visit to the Dingle Gardens near Welshpool for the 23rd May and intended to go whatever the weather. Our April visit was on a day more typical of November than April so the photos I took were rather unusual for a garden in spring.

However for our May visit the sun shone, the sky was clear blue and the warmth allowed us to have a very leisurely stroll around the garden. We had so far this year seen little change from month to month as spring was on hold but this May visit was a strong contrast. We found the garden rich in flowering shrubs and strong fresh growth everywhere.

My first set of pics show paths we followed and the views from them.

A real surprise was the explosion of colour provided by the Rhododendrons whose buds we have featured over the first few months of the year. The brightest of reds, oranges, pinks plus cerise hues and shades of white sat together sometimes in harmony but often clashing!

Contrasting and strong coloured foliage provides as much interest as flowers at this time of year as all deciduous foliage is fresh and lively.

Ferns are an exciting element in the woodland or shade garden in May as fresh fronds unfurl and open to reveal strongly textured and patterned foliage.

I shall finish this visit report for our May wanderings around the Dingle Garden with a few general shots taken near the lake at the bottom of the sloping garden, showing the variation in foliage apparent in the trees and shrubs. We can now look forward to what June at the Dingle will have to offer.

Tags ferns, foliage, foliage colour, foliage plants, garden paths, gardens of Powys, Powis, Powys, rhododendron, rhododendrons, The Dingle Welshpool, trees and shrubs, woodland garden, woodland gardening

flowering bulbs garden arches garden design garden paths garden photography gardening gardens gardens open to the public grasses hardy perennials National Trust ornamental grasses ornamental trees and shrubs pathways pergolas spring bulbs The National Trust trees Wales Winter Gardening winter gardens

The Winter Garden at Bodnant Hall

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date April 23, 2018

We left home for a journey up towards Chester and then West along the North Wales coast after listening to the local weather forecast for our destination. It predicted a heavy snow storm passing through early morning and warnings were announced for closed roads and dangerous conditions. The weather was set to travel eastward and weaken, so we hoped we would meet it as it had weakened and arrive at our destination as it cleared.

We got it spot on as a couple of hours later we arrived at the northern tip of Snowdownia, at Bodnant Hall where we wanted the see the Winter Garden. We had explored it before in the summer and it looked good then. We vowed to return in its prime season to see if it lived up to its summer promises.

We were not to be disappointed in the slightest as it surpassed all expectations. It was simply breathtaking. Come with us as we explore along its winding paths.

We entered the garden by following a path cut into the hillside and then down a ramp where we discovered a raised wall with the sort of planting we expected to see in the Winter Garden itself. We also passed two plants with not so friendly foliage, a Colletia paradoxa and a Yucca, both well endowed with points and sharp edges.

The world-famous laburnum arch looked so different at this time of year, exposing its strong structure and the shapes of each trained Laburnum tree.

As we began to follow the meandering paths which implored us to explore every part of the garden, we spotted some beautifully shaped trees and shrubs pruned to expose their lower trunks and branches, sharing their special shapes with us. Conifers sometimes create amazing shapes without the need for the gardeners’ secateurs and loppers.

The paths at Bodnant have been designed and set out to let the visitor appreciate every bit of planting from close up and from a distance to get a variety of views to appreciate. They are beautifully positioned.

Snow isolates flowers in such a strange way. It means we see them without foliage just their colours emerging from whiteness. We are so used to viewing flowers against a predominantly green background.

The beauty of the Winter Garden at Bodnant that is unique where such gardens are concerned is the way it is designed to have overall strength as a whole design but each pairing of plants and each grouping is applicable to most home gardens. Around each corner the visitor can discover an idea easily transferable to their own patch. The design is best described as accessible. Pathways ensure visitors see as much as possible and each feature planting from at least two different viewpoints. Here is a selection of pics showing these paths.

Next time we visit Bodnant Gardens will probably be in the spring when it looks very different again.

Tags Bodnant, Bodnant Garden, coloured bark, coloured stems, cornus, Garden of Wales, North Wales, ornamental grasses, ornamental shrubs, ornamental trees, shrubs in winter, winter garden, winter gardening

flowering bulbs garden paths garden photography gardening gardens gardens open to the public National Garden Scheme nurseries ornamental trees and shrubs pathways Powis Powys trees Wales Winter Gardening winter gardens woodland woodlands Yellow Book Gardens

The Dingle Garden in Welshpool – March

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date April 5, 2018
1 Comment on The Dingle Garden in Welshpool – March

We returned to the Dingle Garden and Nurseries for the third time this year, hoping for signs of spring but having experienced such bad weather recently we were expecting few changes at all. We always enjoy a wander around the nursery anyway so that would make up for any disappointments. In particular we enjoy their collections of trees and shrubs.

We soon spotted shrubs we had looked at in detail on our last visit when buds were fattening but not displaying signs of opening. On this our March visit things had not developed at all. However some shrubs further down the slope towards the lake where there was more shelter were in fact in the first stages of bursting into leaf.

The light on this visit allowed the colour and texture of the bark on trees show up far better than in February.

Deciduous Euonymus such as our native Euonymus europaeus, display their heavily textured bark when they are bare of foliage, and Euonymus alatus is a particular star with its winged stems.

A few shrubs had open flowers and looked very special, like gems, among so much deep green of the many evergreens growing on the slopes. Hellebores and flowering bulbs added splashes of colour amongst the undergrowth. The tiny insignificant flowers of Euphorbias sat snuggled into the bright green bracts.

The common native Hazel, Corylus avellena, is far from ordinary. It is an exceptional plant as it gives so much to our gardens. If you plant a contorted variety then you get the strangest of winter skeletons, but with others you get sturdy upright growth and this growth provides us with our bean poles for the allotment. In the first months of each year they delight us with their catkins which look like little lime-green lambs’ tales. These are the male flowers producing mists of pollen on breezy warm days but if you look very closely you may be lucky enough to find a female flower which is a minute deep red flower like a miniature sea anemone.

Buds were just beginning to show the early signs of fattening up when we made our visit in February so we were so pleased to find some fresh brightly coloured leaves beginning to burst forth from them this month.

Fresh growth had appeared from clumps of perennials, with Hemerocallis way ahead of others with the brightest and most advanced growth of all.

Evergreen shrubs have produced new foliage which looks so young with glossy surfaces and extra bright colours.

As we wandered the pathways enjoying the freshness of new growth and bursting buds, we were distracted by surprises and unexpected features, such as this old tumbled-down summer house and a deep fissure in the path where rushing floodwater had flowed beneath the path removing materials.

The stream which we enjoyed watching last month tumbling beneath the wooden footbridge had turned into an angry torrent of water, so noisy that we could hear it from far off. Wherever we were inside the woodland garden we could hear running water rushing down slopes, along tiny streams and over pathways.

Let us hope that by the time of our next visit the garden will be much dryer and the water passing down the site will be back within its banks.