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After a day at the huge RHS garden of Wisley, it felt good the following day to visit a garden in the same area that was very low key in comparison.

We made plans to meet Graham and Vicky, our brother and sister-in-law, at West Green House not far from their home in Farnham. We arrived at the same time even though we had travelled from opposite directions. Of course we began our day with a catch up, coffee and cakes in the very pleasant coffee shop.

The welcome we receive when visiting a garden for the first time is so important and a good coffee shop is just one element of this. At West Green we felt good before we took our first sips of coffee and bites if cake.

All it took was a touch of quirkiness!

West Green was a rediscovered garden being re-born, reconstructed and re-planted! So much was yet to be touched and these places gave us clues as to its original character. It was amazing how well-positioned new benches set the tone for the areas they were placed in.

Many areas had been generally cleared and as the original grew amid weeds and wildflowers there was a certain “Mrs Haversham” beauty to it.

We followed the path to the left and we all spotted patches of an unusually bright shade of blue in a border up ahead. Once close enough we realised the colour was of hyacinths. We had never seen such intensity of colour in hyacinths before, but we were so pleased to be observing them.

The blue hyacinths were alongside a small stream with banks planted with spring plants. By following the pathway beside the stream borders we arrived at some older places with more formal designs.

As the closing time for the garden approached we made our way back and passed the welcome building and off to the carpark, now almost empty.

I began my entries into my 2024 Garden Journal for the month of May by stating that, “May is the month when we see the garden embrace summer with its brighter days and warmer nights. The garden responds by giving out lots of colour and powerful growth.”

Below this statement I shared 6 photos I took to show some parts of the garden, illustrating places where growth has been powerful.

On the opposite page I looked at the power of foliage, writing that “Fresh foliage brings life to a garden and here in our Avocet Garden early summer is the time for growth. Foliage opens fresh and glossy. By planting 2 or 3 different plants together, the similarities and differences come to light!’

The group of photos below illustrate this.

Over the page I looked at dark flowered perennials, writing “Dark coloured flowers look good at the moment, when sunlight catches petals and foliage. Such plants are often referred to as ‘chocolate’ or ‘black’.”

On the page opposite I shared my sketch of a fern frond with its delicately arranged leaflets. I noted that, “I took a division of a small fern we found in my Mother-in-Law’s garden. The fern drawing shows its actual size and ‘cristata’ formations.”

The next double page spread looks at white flowers and our roof garden.

Concerning white flowers I wrote, “Until the last few years I have not enjoyed or appreciated white as a flower colour. Slowly more have been planted and I feature a few. white coloured flora below.”

Our next port of call is our roof garden and I noted that, “At the moment our roof garden on top of the woodstore is looking at its very best.”

Back down to soil level again I next looked at one of our favourite perennials and then our May garden jobs.

Concerning Geums I commented that, “The perennial plants really providing colour in our borders are our Geums, giving bright hot colours – reds, oranges and yellows “.

On the page opposite our geums we shared our gardening jobs that needed doing. I wrote that, “May is a very busy month in the garden and we have managed to get a lot done.”

The final page of entries for my May garden journal is about some of the wildlife that shares the garden with us. I noted that, “Wildlife bursts onto the scene throughout May including a few unusual creatures.”

A Broad-bodied Chaser – first for our garden!

Angle Shades Moth. Cucumber Green Spider

Yellow-tailed Moth Caterpillar Ctenophora pectinicornis – Cranefly

That is it for my May entries into my Garden Journal 2024. I will look again at the journal in June.

For a change we decided to take our walk around the garden at Oakgate Garden and Nursery before our coffee and began our walk where we usually finish, so we wandered around in the reverse direction for a change.

Thus we entered through an archway that is normally our finishing place and immediately noted this little sign jut as we passed this floriferous Clematis montana.

We found ourselves in the more formal part of the garden in front of the house.

Moving on we moved into the usual areas of mixed borders, where we noticed just how solid the batches of flowers were especially on shrubs.

Azaleas and rhododendrons were consistently solid with flowers, both deciduous and evergreen varieties.

Although these azaleas and rhododendron tend to dominate this garden in May the perennials and annuals were not hiding away – they were putting their own special show on for us.

So much colour always brightens our days and prepared us well for coffee and lunch with gardening friends we met there.

I will finish with few wider shots of the garden to give an idea of its flow.

I began my journal entries for April with thoughts about the weather as usual, as it has dominated this year so far. I wrote, “April should be the month of showers – ‘April Showers’ – but this year we have been subjected to “April Storms”. Storm Kathleen brought heavy rain and strong winds. Nevertheless low growing plants are flowering well.”

Below these words I shared photos of a small selection of these low growing plants.

On the opposite page I looked at some of the gardening jobs we managed to get successfully done. I wrote, “Any tasks that need doing this month are delayed by regular heavy storms. On each dry day, of which there were so few, are used to catch up.”

Turn over to the next double page spread and on the left hand page I looked at flowering bulbs in flower during April. I wrote, “Our flowering bulbs have been so good this year but we they have been confused by their flowering times. At the beginning of April we had some of all sorts out at the same time, from snowdrops to tulips and bluebells.”

I then shared some photos of their flowers.

On the page opposite the bulb flower photos I featured fruit tree blossom and wrote, “Look down to appreciate the variety of bulbs, but look up and you can enjoy the beauty of fruit tree blossom. Pear, plum, apple, crab apple and quince.”

My final page in my April journal entries is all about tulips and I feature a set of photos of some we put in last autumn. I will return to my Garden Journal 2024 when I look at May.

I wrote, “Back in late August we invested in lots of tulips. In November we planted them and now we are being rewarded richly for our efforts with the best tulip show ever.”

Here we are back at Oakgate Garden and Nursery in April, where of course we started our visit in the tea shop for coffee, followed by a wander around the garden with camera in hand and lastly a look around the nursery. The nursery sells such good plants at irresistible prices. Rarely do we return home ‘plantless’!

We sat outside to enjoy our coffee even more and from there we get views into the garden. On that particular day it was the fresh foliage on the shrubs and small trees that drew our attention.

We continued to enjoy interesting foliage as we wandered along the narrow grass paths, and this included foliage of conifers, ferns and more shrubs. Fern foliage was just emerging unfurling its crosiers in such interesting and unique ways. The photo below this set shows how well the sun enhances foliage colours and textures.

Early flowering shrubs especially rhododendrons and azaleas added sparkle to every view.

It is always uplifting to see the early herbaceous perennials adding colour below trees and shrubs.

One aspect of spring gardens which gives double value for us is the flowering cherry, their flowers pink or white on the branches with the carpet of fallen petals covering the earth beneath.

As we passed under the metal archway out of the garden on our way to the nursery we were treated to views of this beautiful blue clematis.

What a cheerful April visit to Oakgate Garden and Nursery with so much to enjoy in the spring sunshine.

According to the met office we are now in spring, which they say begins on March 1st. As gardeners we know that in reality this not true.

My journal for March began with, “March is said to have one foot in winter and one in spring and this year it certainly seems to be true. The odd pleasant day is squeezed in between cold, wet ones. However, many plants are producing fresh foliage.”

I then shared nine photo of these plants with their fresh foliage.

On the opposite page I looked some of pulmonarias with their interesting and varied foliage and their flowers which often have two colours on the same flower head.

I wrote, “Pulmonaria, one of the most effective late winter perennials, are extra special because they can be appreciated both for their foliage and their flowers. The flowers can be blue, white and pink in many shades or blue and pink together.” I then added some photos of a few of our different pulmonarias.

Next it is the turn of one of the less popular wildlife features seen in our gardens, or so they are for some gardeners. Fungi however are so important to gardens and I love to find them on our patch.

Concerning fungi I noted that, “Our gardens would be pretty useless without the large range of fungi. Gardeners used to consider them a sign of a problem and even today some get kicked over and destroyed by many a gardener’s boot.

We now know just how important they are as links between plants and agents of decomposition.”

Here are photos of some we have found this month in the garden.

On the page opposite the fungi we looked at garden jobs for the month. I noted that, “Although frequent wet days kept us out of the garden, we took advantage of any pleasant spells.

Cutting down the perennials that we leave standing throughout our borders. They look good but also provide winter shelter for wildlife during unfriendly periods of winter weather. The photo on the right shows Jude with the tallest flower stalk we have ever seen in our patch.”

Over onto the next double page I wrote about wildlife visiting or living in our garden. I wrote, “Bird song fills the air, and many take a break to explore nest boxes several of which are already in use, mostly by blue tits, great tits and house sparrows.

Finches still arrive all day, every day to enjoy the feed we supply them with. No signs yet of them pairing up or nesting.

If we sit for a coffee or snack in our new area with large table and benches which we jokingly call “The Canteen”, we enjoy bird watching at the same time. From largest to smallest, we enjoy seeing and listening to kite, buzzard and raven overhead, and wren and goldcrest in the greenery around us.

Our hedgehogs are coming out of their winter hibernation and feeding on the special dried food we provide for them.

A group of siskin burst into our garden for some time on the feeders and to do so they firstly had to fight off a flock of goldfinches, a “charm” I believe, and then a a group of their tough looking cousins the greenfinches. Such lively little green finches with black caps, the siskins take on any other birds arriving to top up with the seeds we put out.

Smaller predators such as sparrow hawk and merlin meander at speed through the garden picking off the weaker members of the flocks of smaller birds.”

On the opposite page I wrote, “So much March colour in our garden comes from the blossom on fruit trees, and our several flowering trees and shrubs.” Then below I shared a set of photos as examples.

That is where my March entries into my garden journal ends so April’s entries have already started.

Over the years we have visited “The Secret Hills Discovery Centre” many times as it is just a half hour drive away, down the A49 road through our picturesque Shropshire scenery.

Our visits were interrupted by the covid lockdowns and we still haven’t got back into the swing of visiting. But in January 2024 we decided to start visiting once again. The day we chose was dark and overcast and the threat of rain followed us around. Naturally we began our visit with an excellent cup of coffee.

The building housing the Secret Hills Discovery Centre is of a unique design based on the yin and yang symbol. It was unusual when constructed as it boasted a green roof featuring a meadow. The border close to the building is a butterfly garden, with outdoor seating area for the cafe alongside.

After walking away from the centre we went through a gateway made to look like mammoth tusks. This is a reference to one of the reasons the centre came into existence in the first place. A complete mammoth skeleton was discovered in a quarry just outside Shrewsbury at Bayston Hill. Since being built the centre has housed a large mammoth display. The centre was originally owned and run by the Shropshire County Council but they bowed out as a money saving decision in reaction to Government cuts. It is now run far more efficiently by a local charity, “Grow, Cook, Learn”.

We followed the gravel footpath past the orchard and play area and into the immature woodland. On the walk we realised that several local long distance walks shared sections or crossed our routes. The skeletons of last year’s tall wild flowers were just hanging on in the grasses close to the hedge.

In complete contrast were the bright new leaves of celandine and arum close to the hedge line.

The young tree area was managed well for wildlife, with fallen branches left to rot down and create habitats where wildlife such as beetles and centipedes can thrive, and nutrients for fungi as they break down. We were also pleased to see the creation of another habitat, the dead hedge. Local or visiting youngsters use fallen boughs to create shelters and dens, an exciting and creative way to spend time.

An activity offered here is hedge layering, which eventually creates a dense hedge for wildlife providing food and shelter for birds and small mammals. Sadly nearby this sparrow terrace had been left to fall into disrepair so useless as nest sites. House Sparrows were until recently one of our commonest birds living close to people and their homes but recently their population has dropped to very poor levels almost everywhere that was once their strongholds. They need all the help they can get!

We then wandered off towards the wildlife pond with its surrounding open woodland and damp areas where fungi abound in the damp area. Several trees here were once coppiced and still show signs of this method of pruning and we even found one that had recently been coppiced.

Alongside the fungi this area was rich in lichen and mosses.

We were amazed how the buds on trees were fattening in readiness for springtime. Amazingly some buds were already beginning to sprout leaves. The new emerging leaves looked so fresh, a hopeful sign of spring.

We finished our wander around the centre by walking through a withy bed which had been recently pollarded and coppiced. There is something special about salix as they always appear fresh and lively. The first photo below shows an old pollarded willow growing alongside the River Onny.

From enjoying studying the withy bed we made our way back to the visitors’ centre to indulge in yet more coffee.

On a chilly overcast day in mid-March we decided to use the morning to wander around the garden at Oakgate taking photographs and identifying changes from the previous month.

Low growing herbaceous plants were giving such cheerful bright colours, especially those related to our native Primrose. There was such a variety of colours and several different forms of this family of plants.

Other low growers added interest beneath the many shrubs and trees. several flowering bulbs grew alongside pulmonarias and hellebores.

Of course these low-growers only look good when situated below interesting shrubs and trees, and Oakgate has a healthy supply of those.

Spiraea are such versatile little shrubs and being deciduous means that fresh growth appearing about now is so colourful. Hence we grow several different spiraea at home for just this reason and here at Oakgate they do the same.

I must admit that neither I nor Jude the Undergardener are fans of cammelias, their flowering period being so short and often shortened even more by a frost which turns them brown and forces them to drop. Once they have flowered the green glossy foliage is totally static and uninteresting. However I think we are in the minority so I shall feature some of those flowering at the moment at Oakgate.

In the hedge along the outside of the garden different cultivars of flowering quince, Chaenomeles superba were flowering along side a solitary winter flowering honeysuckle.

March has proved to be a colourful month for the gardens at Oakgate Garden Centre and Gardens, which bodes well for the spring and summer.

We always enjoy walking by the sea and wandering along promenades and piers. The North Wales coast gives plenty of opportunities to do this. In the middle of February we drove north and then west for a couple of hours to the seaside town of Llandudno, a place we visit often.

We began our day at the seaside by wandering along the promenade assisted by a strong wind making our way to the pier. The two photos below illustrate just how dark a day it was.

Typical of seaside towns created in Edwardian times, Llandudno has a front created out of huge hotels built in response to the surge in interest in seaside holidays made possible by the improved transport systems. These hotels are all impressive at the front to impress but behind this frontage they are really badly built.

The promenade was across the road from the hotels so we just saw the tidy neat fronts. The wooden sculpture piece of the White Rabbit has been there for as long as we can remember. He looks quite a character!

Towards the end of the prom as we reached the entrance of the pier we found these giant red poppies left in that position after Remembrance Day.

We then entered the pier and were greeted by the usual sweet sickly aromas of doughnuts being cooked and candy floss being spun. Sales booths and entertainments sit along both sides of the pier at this end. Everything for sale here is bright and mostly plastic. Music played from most booths so we had to listen to different songs all around us.

The huge building alongside the beginning is the Grand Hotel, still being used despite looking in need of some tlc in places. Iron beams decorated with fussy patterns form the structures from the original pier entrance.

Once beyond the bright noisy sales booths and the children’s rides the pier became quieter with wooden benches lined up along each side, many dedicated to people who loved the pier. The cast iron “fences” along the sides were painted in white and a rich blue, discoloured in places by rust.

The annual upkeep of the pier must cost a fortune with the constant repainting of the woodwork and metalwork and sometimes having to repair the wooden boards of walkways as well as the main iron framework.

I shall now finish off with a gallery of my photos.

We always enjoy our days at the seaside and this was no exception!

As I began my journal entries for March Jude, my Undergardener, wondered if I had posted the February journal. I hadn’t – so here goes!

This is the second report on our monthly visits to the garden at Oakgate Nursery. We wondered how much had changed between our January visit and this our February wanderings.

As usual, our first port of call was the excellent cafe for a latte for me and a cappuccino for Jude, my Under Gardener. From there we took the path over the bridge that took us over the pond where we enjoyed a few moments fish watching. We also took a close look at the wisteria now that it has had a recent prune.

As we entered the garden from the outdoor cafe seating area this Acer, presumably Acer p. ‘Sango Kaku’, immediately caught our eyes. Nearby an Hydrangea was at its last winter stages with its bone white remnants of its seed head.

Several trees and shrubs were showing signs of their buds fattening up.

While these buds were preparing to spring into life several shrubs were already in flower.

The most obvious perennials of all at this time of year here at Oakgate are hellebores but now there were a few more joining them.

Hydrangeas were admired when in flower last year now share with us their more subtle biscuit coloured dried flower heads.

So that is my report on our February visit to Oakgate Nursery and Garden, showing how the garden is getting itself ready for exciting fresh growth and flowerings.

See you soon to share our March visit to Oakgate.