Category: trees

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

colours countryside flowering bulbs landscapes light light quality photography trees wildlife woodland woodlands

A Week in the Lake District – Part 6 – Bluebells

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date July 2, 2015
1 Comment on A Week in the Lake District – Part 6 – Bluebells

The Bluebells in our Shropshire garden were flowering and sharing their rich scent with us early in May, so we were more than a little surprised to find them only just coming into flower when we visited the Lake District a month later. While driving the perimeter road around the lake called Thirlmere, we followed the road as it moved into woodlands of tall trees elongated as they fought to reach the light.

Beneath the canopy, the play of light and shade fascinated us as explored the woods.

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As we explored further we noticed a haze of blue appearing among the fine grasses of the woodland floor. On close inspection we realised they were Bluebells, the wildflower of spring.

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Please enjoy this final set of photographs showing the richness of light in the woods around Thirlmere, one of the many bubbling streams and some of the wild plants growing there.

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Tags bluebells, Cumbria, Lakes, light, light quality, The Lake District, The Lakes, woodland, woods

birds colours garden design garden photography garden wildlife gardening gardens open to the public ornamental trees and shrubs trees woodland

A Week in the Lake District – Part 4 – Brantwood

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date June 30, 2015
3 Comments on A Week in the Lake District – Part 4 – Brantwood

I had read a book about the making of the gardens at Brantwood in the Lake District, so when we found ourselves nearby we were determined to make time for a visit. Brantwood was the home of John Ruskin who believed in gardening with wildlife so his garden is often described as one of the closest to the ideals propounded by William Robinson.

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We visited on a hot sunny day so were pleased that we were exploring a woodland garden. As with other places we visited in the Lake District we were astonished to hear so much birdsong, missing now in much of the UK due to modern agricultural practices. Thrushes both Song and Mistle, along with their cousins the Blackbird, seemed to sing loudly from every tree. Blackcaps, Robins, Wrens and Whitethroats performed with equal gusto from the layer of shrubs and bushes.

Every surface whether ground, tree trunk, wall or rock-face seemed to be home to plants. We had to look everywhere all around us to make sure we didn’t miss a hidden gem or two.

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From the highest parts of the garden we glimpsed on occasion views of Coniston Water. It is possible to arrive at Brantwood via the lake on a steam paddle boat.

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The woodland garden felt just as Ruskin wished it to when he wrote about gardening there. He wanted to look back at where he had been gardening and see no sign that he had been there, just the hand of nature.

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As we wandered the garden paths through the valleys, alongside streams and beneath trees we kept a look out for Ruskin’s seat, set in his favourite part of the garden. It was beautifully crafted from local slate and was now weathered and covered in lichen. I think this would please Ruskin if he could see it now.

Tags Brantwood, Cumbria, garden wildlife, gardening for wildlife, natural gardening, Ruskin, Ruskin's garden, The Lake District, The Lakes, the wildlife garden, woodland, woodland garden, woodland gardening

bird watching birds countryside lakes Land Art landscapes light light quality National Trust nature reserves photography The National Trust trees wildlife woodland woodlands

Aira Force – the walk back.

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date June 19, 2015
1 Comment on Aira Force – the walk back.

After enjoying the sights and sounds of the Aira Force water falls we followed the stream as it wandered through the wooded hilltops before we started our walk back down the valley. As we had been sat resting we were mesmerised by the songs and calls of so many birds in the trees and understory. This we would soon discover was to be a feature of our week in the Lakes – the sheer number of birds astounded us! At Aira Force we could hear Nuthatches, Treecreepers, Goldcrests, Coal Tits and all the thrushes, the Song Thrush, the Mistle Thrush and the Blackbird. We heard several warblers too and recognised a few such as the Wood Warbler, Garden Wabler and the Chiffchaff as well as their larger cousins the Redstart, Whitethroat and Blackcap. It made for an entertaining time and emphasised how important these areas of countryside managed by the National Trust are as nature reserves.

We changed direction and began the gentle descent. We enjoyed different views of places we had admired on our ascent.

We took a slight detour from the main path to a damp more open area where different plants were growing and even the air itself felt damp to our skin. We were tempted to follow this detour just because of this beautifully constructed stone track. We just had to follow it! It reminded us of the work by land artist Richard Long.

Our detour finally took us back to our original pathway and we enjoyed the sounds of the tumbling stream once more.

So we found ourselves back at our starting point having enjoyed a stimulating, beautiful wander up and down this wooded valley. The waterfall, Aira Force, was the icing on the cake! A great day out!

Tags Cumbria, Lakes, mountain streams, National Trust, streams, The Lake District, The Lakes, The National Trust, waterfalls, woodland

climbing plants colours garden design garden photography gardening gardens hardy perennials irises light National Garden Scheme ornamental trees and shrubs Shropshire trees Yellow Book Gardens

My Garden Journal – May

May has now finished so it is time to present my entries for that month in my Garden Journal. Gardening was totally at the behest of the weather, which was to say disappointing.

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As usual my first page for the month of May included my chosen quotation from Jenny Joseph’s little book “Led by the Nose – A Garden of Smells”. Concerning May she wrote, “I breathe in the warm pleasant air and think “Ah, heavenly summer” and the next day I have retreated to my living-room, lit my boiler again, shut the windows and returned to winter. May can indeed be a complicating month.”

I wrote, “Indeed here in Plealey, May has been a complicated month. The weather forecasters have been wrong every day. When they predict a cool 14 C we get a lovely warm 19 C. However for our May garden open day they predicted rain and we got it! But a few hardy souls turned up!

Many visitors to our garden are amazed by our Judas Tree, Cercis siliquastrum. Early in the month its buds are beautiful in colour and shape.”

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I moved on to write “May is the month that our Irises come out to play, to show off their colourful, wonderfully shaped flowers and glow whenever the sun makes an appearance. The palest colours always come first.

Turn over the page and we find my first watercolour painting and the return to the Judas Tree.

My painting is of one of our favourite grass-like plants, a rush called Luzula nivea. A real challenge to express its subtlety in paints. I wrote “In amongst the bright colours of May little subtle plants can amaze us.”

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Concerning the Judas Tree, Cercis siliquastrum, I wrote “By the middle of the month, our Judas Tree is in full bloom.” A selection of photos followed.

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Over the page I wrote “May has been a cold, wet month so most disappointing for us gardeners and lovers of wildlife. Birds, Hoverflies and Butterflies have hardly put in an appearance. One patch of surprise colour came as one of the many May showers came to an end. A multi-coloured arch in the sky.”

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Alongside the page about the rainbow was a second page about our Irises, where I wrote “By the end of the month our more extravagently coloured Bearded Irises are giving vibrant explosions of colour in the Beth Chatto border.” Below these words was my second painting for May depicting one of our more brightly coloured Irises.

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My final entry for my Garden Journal in May was a little gallery of photos.

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To see larger images click the first thumbnail photo and use the arrows to negotiate through the gallery. Enjoy!

Tags bearded iris, garden photography, gardening, gardens in May, iris, irises, May, NGS, ornamental trees, Shropshire, Yellow Book, Yellow Book Gardens

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

colours fruit and veg garden ponds garden pools garden seating gardens gardens open to the public grow your own kitchen gardens National Garden Scheme ornamental trees and shrubs outdoor sculpture poppies recycling sculpture shrubs trees walled gardens water garden water in the garden Yellow Book Gardens

Yellow Book Gardens – 4 – Upper Shelderton Hall

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date May 28, 2015
2 Comments on Yellow Book Gardens – 4 – Upper Shelderton Hall

We set out to visit our fourth Yellow Book garden on a cloudy day that promised showers and with a chill in the air. However as we drove down through the Shropshire countryside the skies cleared and the temperature rose. We left the main road and traveled down lanes that got more narrow as we got closer to our destination, the village of Shelderton.

The garden at Upper Shelderton Hall spread to over 6 acres and was mostly a wooded garden with areas of Rhodendrons and borders of herbaceous plantings. As usual we began with tea and cake which we enjoyed sat in the strangest walled garden we had ever experienced. The walls were a truly original creation. Each section was a sculpture in its own right made from a conglomeration of found or collected bricks and stones and ephemera.

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From our seat where we enjoyed our refreshment we could enjoy these amazing walls and also take in glimpses of the kitchen garden nearby. An old water trolley now unused sat alongside.

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After a wander around the fruit and veg beds we made our way towards a border that glowed with bright yellows, oranges and reds. We discovered that the bright blooms were those of a collection of deciduous Rhodendrons. Our noses were also delighted by these shrubs as the yellow ones had the richest sweetest of fragrances.

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We wandered on through the shade of wooded areas with the sound of a stream wandering through it and the scent of Bluebells following our every step.

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Leaving the shade of the tall trees we stumbled across a beautifully planted pond with crystal clear water. On one bank we discovered a lovely little stone carving, the first of several interesting pieces of sculpture we were to find in the gardens.

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On the edge of the main garden was an area of more mature woodland of mixed deciduous and coniferous specimen trees. Beneath them larger evergreen Rhodendrons provided splashes of colour.

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This comfortable set of table and chairs was simply too enticing for us. We just had to have more teas and cakes in order to try them out!

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As we enjoyed our refreshment we also enjoyed the colourful planting around us.

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We also looked up to spy this imposing cockerel windvane. Once we had enjoyed our refreshment we left the gardens of Upper Shelderton Hall having enjoyed yet another brilliant Yellow Book garden. We can’t wait for the next!

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Tags fruit and vegetable growing, garden photography, gardening, National Garden Scheme, NGS, ornamental trees, outdoor sculpture, shrubs, trees, Yellow Book, Yellow Book Gardens

colours ornamental trees and shrubs spring gardening trees

Cercis – the best tree for the May garden?

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date May 26, 2015

We have a Cercis canadensis in our garden and every year we look forward to its flowering period. The flowers are like small pea flowers and are the deepest brightest pink possible. In some years the flowers come before the leaves make their appearance and in others the leaves and flowers are out together. This May the flowers are at their best just as the leaves are appearing so we can appreciate the pink flowers against the new bronze foliage. Strangely the flowers form straight on the bark of the trunks and branches of this Cercis which attracts attention from our garden visitors.

The common name for this tree is the Judas Tree.

Simply enjoy my photos of this wonderful tree.

We have a close relative in the front garden called Cercis canadensis “Forest Pansy” which is grown for its deep purple foliage and its black branches in winter. Where we live in the UK midlands this tree doesn’t normally flower but this year following a wet winter and warm dry early spring ours is trying hard to bloom. The buds have been half-open for over a month now and seem to be struggling to open. Perhaps a warm and sunny period of weather will spur it on. Fingers crossed!

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Tags blossom, cercis, Cercis canadensis, Forest Pansy, garden trees, judas tree, ornamental trees, spring blossom, trees

buildings Church architecture countryside hedgerows landscapes memorials outdoor sculpture remembrance sculpture Shrewsbury Shropshire trees

Walking the Shrewsbury Battlefield – Part 2

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date May 15, 2015

Back at the site of the Battle of Shrewsbury we return to look more closely at the church and the sculptural tree. First though it might be a good idea to say a little about the battle itself. The Battle of Shrewsbury took place in 1403 just north of the town. Here two armies met in what was to be a ferocious and bloody battle. The rebel army of Sir Henry Percy, locally known as Harry Hotspur, met the Royal army of Henry IV on the land of the medieval Manor of Albright Hussey. There is now no sign of the village but there is a building known as the Albright Hussey which was built over a century after the battle in 1524. So many lives were lost during the battle that a memorial chapel was built in 1406 in their memory.

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This church is now known as St Mary Magdalene’s Church. Below is my photographic record of our visit to the church. We loved the detailing around the door knocker with its design based on a crown, and all the different gargoyles around the top of the building from which would originally have spouted rainwater.

Inside the church we soon found its famous stained glass windows, but we were also drawn to the reed lamp holders and the oak carved figures on the ends of the pews.

The ancient lych gate is looking worse for wear but its intricate carved detailing is still here to be enjoyed and appreciated, but I wonder for how much longer.

Over 5000 men died in this battle and their remains lie in an unmarked mass grave below the churchyard. Some of the headstones found in the churchyard here are very simple and others show very stylised carving.

When we finished looking around the church and its surroundings we made our way back along the footpaths around the site of the Battle Field. Half way back we spotted a pool in the middle of a field which still showed signs of medieval ridge and furrow farming patterns. Close to the hedge we saw a wonderfully sculptural old tree. The tree must have fallen years ago and has now lost its bark so was smooth in texture. This is Mother Nature at her most creative. Please enjoy looking at my photos of this natural piece of sculpture.