Category: water in the garden

My Garden Journal in May

Just as I completed my journal for June I realised that I had not yet posted “My Garden Journal for May”, so here it is now for you to enjoy! The June journal report won’t be far behind!

Summer creeping in can only mean that our May garden is changing by the day. Exuberance in every border with things growing before your eyes. A month of excitement! I began my May entry in my garden journal by writing,

“May means exuberance! It is the month when our garden shows us the ability it has to surprise. It shows off its strength and its artistic talents. Growth is so rapid and colour so exciting, that we are aware of what our garden means to us and also aware of its power that Mother Nature possesses and uses with pride and to excess!”

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I then turn to looking back at my original garden journey recording the first few years that we have lived and gardened at Avocet.

“Looking back in my garden journal that recorded the early years at Avocet, I read a paragraph that shows just how similar May is now.

“The garden is bursting with life – butterflies including Holly Blues, bees and so many birds. Suddenly the garden is alive with birds giving extra colour, sound and movement. There seems to be so many finches – Goldfinches, Chaffinches and Greenfinches. Swifts, Swallows and House Martins swoop overhead especially in the evening.”

Sadly though there are far fewer Swifts, Swallows and House Martins overhead. So many have not survived their long migrations. What does the future hold for these beautiful acrobats?”

Turning over the page of my journal and we see the next two pages feature Acers and Roses.

“Acers are one of the many stars of the May garden, a month when their foliage and stems are delicate and colourful.”

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“May means Roses and by the middle of the month we have many buds and pioneer blooms. Reds and pinks dominate at the moment. Yellows and oranges are still to come.”

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I moved on to look at one of the climbers we enjoy in our garden and at the grasses that have now started to grow rapidly.

“Think of climbers early in the summer garden and Clematis is the first plant to spring to mind.”

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“Grasses are growing quickly now and the myriad shades of green move skyward in our borders.”

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Turning over again and succulents are discussed. These are a recent interest and I have only been growing them and propagating them for a few years.

Succulent plants are an interest that has grown over the last few years. Beginning with Aeoniums and Echeverias I soon branched out.”

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“Troughs of succulents grace the Rill Garden in May and on into October when the risk of frost mean that they retreat to the warmth of our greenhouse.”

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When we turn over next we see that I talk of Hostas and in particular those growing in our Bog Garden. The bog garden is so full of life at the moment with plants growing appreciably by the day.

“Hostas are one of the more subtle of our garden favourites both their foliage and later in the year their flowers. The Bog Garden next to our Wildlife Pond and snuggled up to it is a place of rapid growth in May.”

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White is not a colour I particularly appreciate in the garden and as a result I do not use it much.

“White is not my favourite colour in the garden. I particularly do not like white painted garden furniture or white painted fences, trellises or walls. We tend to paint our seats in ivory or cream which are much softer colours particularly on bright sunny days. Our fences we paint in browns and trellis work in gentle shades of green which acts as a great foil for our plants. I think this dislike of white is to do with our weather as it can work so well in other countries. Where flowers are concerned I appreciate them most in May when white can look good with the brightness of fresh foliage. Below are photos of a few particularly good white flowers, Viburnums, Cornus, white Bluebells, Iberis and Camassias. Some of these are the purest of white where others have gentle hints of colour. The Camassia has a green tint to it and the Iberis the gentlest hint of pink.”

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As we leave May behind we can look forward to the longest day, the time when day and night share equal number of hours.

Tags acers., aeomiums, bog garden, bog plants, clematis, climbers, climbing plants, Echeveria, echeverias, gardens in May, hostas, May, ornamental grasses, roses, succulents, the garden in May, white flowers, white in the harden

birds colours flowering bulbs garden photography garden ponds garden pools garden wildlife gardening gardens irises log piles natural pest control ornamental trees and shrubs Shropshire spring bulbs spring gardening village gardens water garden water in the garden wildlife

My Garden Journal in 2016 – March

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date April 25, 2016
2 Comments on My Garden Journal in 2016 – March

We were expecting March to bring some signs of spring but really our seasons remained confused and muddled. March has brought us warm sunny days, days with cold biting winds, days with heavy persistent rain and many combinations of these.

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My March report started with references to the weather as it controlled when we gardenened and days when it prevented us from getting out in the garden.

“During the first 2 days, March had delivered so many different types of weather, clear skies, sunshine, dark heavy cloud cover, rain and sleet. I wonder what else this month might have in store. This unseasonal weather delayed the arrival of our frogs until March whereas February is more usual a time. They soon added large clumps of spawn down one side of the wildlife pond.”

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To help the smaller creatures that share our garden with us and help with pest control and pollination of our fruit we had great fun creating a new habitat for them, in the form of a log pile. The log pile is aimed specifically at beetles who are great pest controllers. We particularly appreciate their love of slug eggs!

On the page opposite my frog photos I feature some of our large collection of Hellebore.

“Each year we add a few more Hellebores to our collection. This year is no exception! We are also getting a few interesting seedlings appearing, and some are worth keeping.”

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Turning the page I moved on to looking at the bird life we enjoyed in March, where I featured a gouache painting of a pair of Chaffinches and wrote about them.

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“We have been entertained by our avian friends, already showing signs of their beautiful dawn chorus. If a day dawns bright we are already hearing territorial calls of our thrushes, finches and titmice. A finch we see more of during the colder months is the Chaffinch. They move into our garden to take advantage of our three feeding stations. They have not mastered the necessary skills or dexterity required to feed from the feeders so they wait beneath them as others feed and feed on any seeds that drop to the ground.”

I then moved on to look back at previous garden journals from a decade or so ago.

“Looking back at my original Garden Journal I am surprised to read “First mowing of grass! This year our paths and lawn areas are sodden and slippery so far too dangerous to get our mower out.

I read a page alongside, “A pair of Yellowhammers fed today under the feeders catching the crumbs.” We rarely see these beautiful farmland birds any more as the effects of modern farming methods have decimated their numbers. Modern insecticides kill off some of their food and herbicides destroy the banks of wild flowers, the seed heads of which provided the Yellowhammers with sustenance through autumn and winter. There seems to be no will either from Government or the agriculture industry to firstly recognise the problem and secondly to do something about it. Sad!”

I then reported on progress we had made with our recently constructed propagation bench.

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In my January entries to my journal I wrote about making a propagating bench in the greenhouse and then in February I looked at how we had prepared the greenhouse in readiness for seed sowing. Now in March we have seedlings showing well.”

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Flowering shrubs feature over the next few pages, looking at those that flower and provide scent, starting off with the shrubs in the Ribes family.

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“The genus Ribes is a family of some 150 species of shrubs, mainly deciduous with just a few evergreens. We grow 3 species on our allotment to give us Redcurrants, Blackcurrants and Gooseberries. In the ornamental garden at home we grow 5 species and 4 of these are flowering in March, Ribes sanguineum “King Edward VII” and Ribes s. “Elkington White”.

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“The other two March flowering Ribes are very different to the Ribes sanguineums. Ribes laurifolium has thick evergreen foliage, each leaf shaped and textured just like those oa a Laurel, hence its name. The flowers at first glance appear white but close up they are pale cream with a hint of green – absolutely beautiful! Beautiful and scented! The final Ribes to flower in March is Ribes speciosum with crimson flowers. To be fair though this Ribes species shows flowers on and off all year. It is generally evergreen for us as we planted it in a sheltered spot. Its flowers are like tiny Fuschias hanging along most of its branches. The downside? Every inch of every stem is covered in thin spines, so pruning can be difficult. On our open days so many visitors ask about Ribes speciosum.”

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“In the autumn we took cuttings of Ribes s. King Edward VII. What a surprise we had when one of them produced these pale gentle pink flowers. One more shrub of the Ribes family still has not yet flowered, Ribes odorarum.”

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My journal then tells of other unusual flowering shrubs we grow here at Avocet.

“Abnother unusual shrub we grow for March interest is a special willow. Salix gracilistyla melanostachyla has amazing flowers, red and black catkins. Early flying bees love them.”

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“Two other March flowering shrubs are grown for their large umbels of flowers but also their scent. The first, Edgeworthia chrysantha grandiflora, has unusual bright yellow flowers which add scent to the late winter and early spring garden. Their second is a Viburnum, Viburnum x burkwoodii, which does not open its flower buds until late March.”

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Turn over the page of my journal and you will be delighted by photos of Iris reticulata in all their glorious shades of blue and purple.

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“Flower of the month for March has to be Iris reticulata, of which we grow many varieties in various shades of blue and purple.”

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My final page for March takes another look at what is going on in the greenhouse as the month comes to an end.

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“In our greenhouse our sowings of seeds of vegetables, perennials and a few annuals have continued to germinate well and grow strongly. We have pricked out many tiny seedlings into cells.”

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Our next visit to my garden journal will report on what will be happening in our garden at Avocet in April, the month traditionally associated with showers.

Tags flowering bulbs, flowering shrubs, frog spawn, frogs, March, March garden, ornamental shrubs, scented shrubs, shrubs, shrubs in winter, spring bulbs, spring garden

flowering bulbs garden photography garden ponds garden pools garden wildlife gardening grasses hardy perennials light light quality ornamental grasses ornamental trees and shrubs Shropshire shrubs spring bulbs water in the garden Winter Gardening winter gardens

My Garden Journal 2016 – February

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date March 5, 2016
2 Comments on My Garden Journal 2016 – February

Back with the second post sharing my 2016 Garden Journal, we will look at what it holds for February.

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On the first page for the month I mention the changing light values that occurs during February.

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“This is the month when light values really start to improve. We also get longer days when the weather allows. This change in light coupled with slowly rising temperatures encourages birds to change their songs and calls. The Great Tit is the master of calls with its huge repertoire. Luckily they are very frequent visitors to our garden. They are great entertainers! Their song in February is a “see-sawing ditty with mechanical overtones.” (Collins Bird Guide)

I added my gouache painting of a pair of Great Tits.

On the opposite page I carried on talking about our continued development of our greenhouse.

“Having completed the construction of our new heated propagation bench last month we then sorted out our pots, trays, pans and cells ready for the new sowing and growing season. We ensured we have plenty of labels as well as sowing compost and horticultural grit. Jude finished putting up insulation bubble wrap.”

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From greenhouse gardening to pond gardening, my next page features two photos of Jude the Undergardener in her waders playing in our wildlife pond.

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“Mid to late February is the time each year when our Common Frogs come to sing, mate and then leave balls of spawn in our wildlife pond. Thus early this month Jude donned her chest waders and cleaned up the pond. She removed Duckweed, Blanket Weed and fallen leaves, then thinned out the water plants.

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We tidied up the narrow border that edges the pond, pulling a few hardy weeds and taking up seedlings of our Cornus “Midwinter Fire”. It was heartening to discover how workable our soil was, this being the result of a decade of improving it with the addition of our own garden compost and the regular mulching deeply with organic matter.”

I continued onto the next page discussing the welcome appearance of sunshine in the February.

“Sunshine is not often in evidence this February but when it does make an appearance its effects are magical. It highlights the peeling bark of our trees and directs a spotlight on blossom and glossy foliage.”

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As I turn the page I see that I have written about cold temperatures and on the opposite page and on the following double page spread I share the amazing number of plants in flower on one day in February.

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“A sudden overnight plunge in temperature can have drastic looking effects on our early flowering plants. The flowering stem of this Bergenia can be standing to attention during the day but cold at night can make it droop, with the flowers almost touching the cold soil”.

“The following day when the sun has driven away any frost and added a degree or two to the temperature, the Bergenia flower slowly rises again and returns to its former pink glory.”

February flowers are celebrated over the next three pages. I hope you enjoy sharing this selection of plants that keep us cheerful and the garden colourful.

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These pictures certainly illustrate how colourful and interesting the garden can still be in the depths of winter. From flowers I moved on to foliage, as on my next double page spread I celebrate Phormiums and how important they are to the winter garden.

“Form, texture and foliage colours are so important in the garden in winter, so we are lucky to have discovered and planted Phormiums as they give us all three. They move beautifully too, swaying in the slightest breeze.”

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For some of our Phormium I took a shot of the whole plant and then one of the top surface of their leaves and finally the final surface. Their two surfaces are usually very different.

“I love plants that hide some facet of their beauty from us”.

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In the final pages of my February entries in my Garden Journal I wrote about coloured stems and look back at my first garden journal to see what I had put for my February entry. I discovered that I was writing about grass and grasses.

“It is in the dull times of February that we appreciate the brightly coloured stems of our Cornus, Salix and Acers. Once their leaves drop the colours, yellows, oranges and reds begin to intensify. I then shared a watercolour painting of a selection of these stems from our garden alongside a trio of photos.”

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“Looking back at my original Garden Journal, I notice that I had commented “14th February and the grass gets its first cut. As the North wind died out the strength of the winter sun meant a good day could be had doing general maintenance work.” This year our grassed areas are wet and slimy and definitely too slippery to get a mower on. But the grass has continued to grow slowly so it is in need of its first cut. Meanwhile our ornamental grasses continue to delight.”

So that is it for another month. Next time we make a visit to my Garden Journal we will be in March and maybe we shall be seeing signs of spring.

flowering bulbs garden design garden photography garden ponds garden pools gardening gardens gardens open to the public hardy perennials ornamental trees and shrubs RHS spring bulbs trees water garden water in the garden Winter Gardening winter gardens woodland

A Garden in Winter – RHS Rosemoor – Part 1

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date February 23, 2016

We love to break up the winter months with mid-week breaks away around the UK. In February this year we took off down to Devon for a short holiday where we planned to visit a garden which holds two National Collections, Betulas (Birches) and Alnus (Alders) and the Royal Horticultural Society’s Rosemoor Garden.

My previous couple of posts shared with you our wanderings around Stone Lane Garden and Nursery with its wonderful national collection of Betulas and Alnus. In this post we will share with you the two days we spent exploring the Royal Horticultural Society’ Rosemoor Garden.

We had visited many times before but never in winter before, so we were keen to see if the RHS’s claim that Rosemoor provides “Great days out for every season” and “Rosemoor continues to enchant visitors when the Winter and Foliage Gardens are filled with a surprisingly intoxicating combination of colour, fragrance and texture.”

After a quick coffee in the restaurant we braved the rain and began our walk around.

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We made our way towards the Winter Garden which we knew had been redeveloped since we last visited so we longed to see what it looked and felt like now.

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As expected foliage took a leading role.

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Coloured stems and bark of shrubs and trees add strong structure to a good winter garden.

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After enjoying and being highly impressed with the renovated Winter Garden, we took a gravel path which led us to the Foliage Garden. We were looking forward to seeing the role that foliage could play in the February garden. We were not to be disappointed with what we saw. Perennials and grasses played key roles with the richness of texture and the delicacy of colour. Richly coloured foliage on many shrubs joined the party.

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Wherever we went we noticed evidence of the RHS gardeners and the volunteers who worked alongside them. In the Rose Garden these roses had been pruned so precisely just like illustrations in a gardening book . The soil between them had been neatly forked over to give a very professional look to the gardeners’ work.

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When we returned to the restaurant for a warming coffee we noticed in the terrace outside a little wooden framed alpine greenhouse. Here we found an impressive array of flowering bulbs.

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Leaving the alpine house we took meandering paths through the gardens where we noticed many early blooms that added cheer to a day of dull damp weather.

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These paths took us down a gentle slope towards the lake and along the way we passed through open grassed areas where Daffodils and Narcissi had been naturalised. In neighbouring borders swathes of Snowdrops looked like frozen rivers running through shrubs and trees.

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We reached the lake which looked very cold and uninviting but on its banks Cornus and Salix varieties known for their coloured stems added ribbons of very welcome brightness.

A stream fed the lake and we left the lakeside by following a path rising gently through the stream’s valley.

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This valley with its clear stream ran rapidly through areas of planting. We followed the stream along a gravel path which took us to an underpass through which we wandered to find the original garden at Rosemoor, Lady Anne’s Garden. The little valley dropped down towards the underpass and we saw King Cups flowering profusely providing splashes of golden yellow and clumps of Arum italicum marmoratum gave us splashes of silver in their variegated foliage.

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Seed heads and fruit from the autumn were still very much in evidence extending the season of interest.

As the valley sides rose higher the atmosphere became damper and we felt the temperature drop slightly as we got closer to the underpass. Lichen grew on trees and on fences. The white bark of Birches and the snow white blooms of Snowdrops shone through in the duller light.

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We were drawn to a Betula with unusually coloured bark and were very pleased to find that it was called Betula albosinsensis “K Ashburner”, named after the owner of Stone Lane Gardens and Nursery.

Scent was held in the valley so we were constantly experiencing the rich aromas of Lonicera, Sarcoccoca and Ribes. Sweetness in the air!

We entered the underpass which would take us under the road we drove along hours before and gained access to the original garden here at Rosemoor, Lady Anne’s Garden. We will be in that part of the garden in Part 2.

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A Devon Garden with Betulas – Part 2

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date February 17, 2016
2 Comments on A Devon Garden with Betulas – Part 2

Back at Stone Lane we continued wandering along the grass paths which were so soft underfoot. We enjoyed discovering more and more Birches with beautifully coloured and textured bark and fine winter silhouettes plus the odd Alder and pieces of sculpture.

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Alnus barbata diplayed bark as rough and fissured as the skin on the legs of an old elephant.

At the furthest end of the woodland garden we found wildlife ponds and two interesting shelters. On the far bank of one of these ponds we spotted two geese and it was only as we approached closely did we realise they were in fact sculptures. Their wings were decorated with simple line drawings of flowers.

The second shelter proved to be a total mystery. We couldn’t work out what it had been used for in the past or in present times. It looked as if it had wheels at one time. We thought it may have been a poultry house but today it seemed to be a bird hide.

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It sat beneath a stand of Alnus glutinosa, which were already showing young catkins bursting from buds.

Alnus hirsuta was showing new fresh foliage rather than catkins.

Back to a Betula – Betula maximowicziana, a real tongue twister of a name, had striated bark in delicate shades of pink and ginger. Fine strips of its bark peeled back in almost vertical lines.

We found a beautiful place for a rest and coffee break, a wooden rustic shelter surrounded by Birches. A stone and mosaic birdbath stood close by and a pink flowered Azalea provided restful colour. Looking straight ahead from where we sipped our coffee we enjoyed a view of more Betulas, of which we cannot get too many.

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Now just enjoy coming with us as we wander along grass tracks and gravel pathways discovering the huge varieties of Birches in Ken Ashburner’s amazing collection.

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Naturally there were many other plants of interest as well as the Birches and Alders we came to see.

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We were delighted to find a stand of Betula utilis ssp. jacquemontii “Snowqueen”, as we have a beautiful trio of these pure silvery-white barked trees. They have an ethereal quality about them. We open our blinds each morning and our silver trio delight us every day whatever the weather and whatever the light is shining on them.

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To finish part two of our posts about Stone Lane please enjoy another set of pics to illustrate the vast variations in our favourite trees, the Betulas.

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Tags alders, Alnus, betula, betulas, birch, birches, garden sculpture, outdoor sculpture, sculpture, woodland, woodland garden, woodland gardening

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A new garden for monthly visits – The Dorothy Clive Garden

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date January 5, 2016
2 Comments on A new garden for monthly visits – The Dorothy Clive Garden

After visiting Trentham Gardens monthly throughout 2014 followed by Croft Castle Gardens in 2015 we searched for another local garden which changes with the seasons and has interest every month of the year.

We have chosen The Dorothy Clive Garden, a forty minute drive from home and a real favourite of ours for years. It is one of the gardens we share with family and friends who come to stay. The garden has a postal address which places it in Shropshire but the garden’s guide book says it is situated in neighbouring Staffordshire. Perhaps on one of our visits we may discover its real location.

The garden guide describes it as “An informal hillside garden.” On its website is an invitation to “Explore this charming English country garden. Enjoy great plants throughout the seasons, delightful views and tasty homemade food.” This sounds just up our street – great plants and tasty food!

The website continues describing the Dorothy Clive Garden as “A place to relax and unwind in an intimate, informal and inspiring setting. Experience a really welcoming and friendly environment.”

So it sounds as if we have chosen our feature garden for 2016 rather wisely.

For now here is a gallery of pics from a previous visit just as a taster.

Later this month we will make our first visit to the Dorothy Clive Garden and then create the first monthly post.

Tags azaleas, dingle, Dorothy Clive Garden, gardens open to the public, insect hotels, National Garden Scheme, NGS, NGS gardens, ornamental shrubs, ornamental trees, rhododendrons, Staffordshire

birds climbing plants flowering bulbs garden photography garden ponds garden pools garden wildlife gardening hardy perennials ornamental trees and shrubs trees water in the garden wildlife

My Garden Journal – August

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date September 8, 2015
3 Comments on My Garden Journal – August

Here we are with part 8 of my monthly series looking at what I have put into my garden journal. August has been a disappointing month weatherwise, with winds, rain and dull skies, and the plants have responded with short flowering periods and even our roses have failed to repeat flower.

I began my August entries, “The month of school holidays when families make their way to the seaside, is not a holiday in the garden. We have to keep dead-heading and tidying to make sure it looks its best.” and continued with my monthly quote from Jenny Joseph, “August is a time of vegetables and smells of leaves and roots as we clear: dusty, musty smell of old growth. What flowers we have in August depends on how diligent you’ve been at dead-heading earlier.”

I continued, “We dead-head our Roses most days in an attempt to keep them in bloom, and cut back dying perennials to encourage both fresh blooms and fresh growth from below.”

I next referred to our fun activity which takes us back to our childhoods, pond dipping, “An early dip in the pond with our net revealed that young Newts are still very much in evidence. We discovered the shell of a Dragonfly larva and a strangely bodied surface dwelling insect, its shape like an elongated diamond.” I wonder what a pond dipping session will reveal in September as autumn will then be creeping in.

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Our Cercis siliquastrum tree featured again as we turn the page of my journal just as it has done in my May entries.

“Discovering new points of interest in the garden is always refreshing. We have always loved our Cercis siliquastrum for its mass of pink flowers in May, but this year we have rows of seed pods hanging from branches like celebratory bunting or prayer flags from Tibet.”

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I attempted to paint a watercolour of a selection of pods and this proved to be a real challenge with the subtle variations of green and pink from pod to pod.

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Further notes about the wildlife in our August garden followed on at the turn of the next page, where I noted, “Gardening in August is done with the sounds of Swallows and House Martins wheeling over our heads. Two very contrasting wildlife sounds add to the soundtrack, the deepest croaking grunt of our Toads and the highest pitched song of all our garden birds, the diminutive Goldcrest.” In my painting I tried to capture the character of the Goldcrest, cheerful, jittery and sparkling with life.

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More sounds featured on the facing page, “Gentle, almost inaudible sounds emit from every border, the sounds of Hoverflies. Gentle humming from above flowers, rapid beats make wings almost invisible, the Hoverfly moves in sudden sharp changes of direction. They can be wasp-like, bee-like or fly-like, masters of mimicry and disguise”. I love taking photos of the wildlife that shares our garden and insects and have hundreds in my Photoshop storage space. I have found a few featuring a few of the many different species of Hoverfly to share with you.

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It is one of my favourite families of plants that I featured on the next double page spread, the Crocosmias. “Hot colours throughout our garden are provided by many different Crocosmias. Yellows, Oranges and Reds.” I enjoyed the challenge of creating watercolour paintings of three of our cultivars.

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From one bulbous rooted plant to another, from Crocosmias to Agapanthus. “Remember those Aganpanthus buds of July? Well, just look at them now!”

I hope you enjoy this little gallery of photos of our Agapanthus. Just click on the first photo and use the arrows to move on through.

My final page for August featured another garden favourite, this time a climber, the Honeysuckle. I wrote “Scent is an important player in our garden and one scented plant that waits until the evening to share its sweet aromas is the Honeysuckle or Lonicera. We have used a particularly beautifully coloured one to climb up the trellis that hides our composters. And our moths love it!” I turned once again to my beautiful wooden box of watercolour paints to create a little series of pictures of the buds, blooms and berries of the Honeysuckle.

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The next look at my garden journal will be in September when we may be seeing the early signs of Autumn.

Tags amaryllis, August, cercis, crocosmias, garden journal, garden pond, garden wildlife, gardening, honeysuckle, pool wildlife, Shropshire

architecture colours garden buildings garden design garden photography garden pools gardens gardens open to the public hardy perennials National Garden Scheme NGS ornamental trees and shrubs outdoor sculpture roses shrubs trees water in the garden Yellow Book Gardens

Miserden Park, a Gloucestershire Garden

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date August 23, 2015
2 Comments on Miserden Park, a Gloucestershire Garden

We were journeying south towards Hampshire and searched for a place to break our journey. We were pleased to discover Miserden Park was close to the road we travelled. We expected it to be easy to find as we knew which village it was on the outskirts of but poor signage directing us firstly to the village and then to the garden itself made it difficult.

When we saw the house at Miserden we were impressed with the way the gardens around it helped it sit so comfortably in the landscape. The pale blue planting looked so good with the pale limestone of the building.

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We soon realised that this was one of those gardens which impressed with the tiny details of individual plants and colour combinations but also with the bigger pictures it presented.

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Metalwork impressed us from the imposing gates to the intimate seats.

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We loved the contrast between the formal gardens and the wilder “Robinsonian” areas. Paths mown through the long grass in these wilder areas led us to surprise plants to appreciate such as this Aesculus.

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On the paved area which surrounded the house containers planted up with gently coloured plants enhanced the colour of the stonework.

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An unusual rill garden had been created to celebrate the Millenium and a nearby conveniently positioned summer house gives visitors a good chance to rest awhile and admire it.

A shrub border full of deep purple leaves provided a rest for the eyes after studying brighter coloured plantings.

The grey stone walls of local limestone were a perfect foil for gentle coloured roses.

One area had been developed much more recently and afforded impressive contrasts of style.

We couldn’t really work out what this strange stonework integrated into the base of an ancient tree was all about.

We finished our tour of the gardens at Miserden with a long slow walk along the double herbaceous borders.

It is always a bonus to visit a good garden when taking a break in a journey further afield. Miserden was well worth stopping to explore.

Tags foliage, foliage plants, garden photography, gardening, Gloucestershire, Miserden Park, NGS, ornamental trees, rill, roses, shrubs, trees

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

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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