Category: woodland

The Dingle Garden in Welshpool – February

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date March 7, 2018
1 Comment on The Dingle Garden in Welshpool – February

Back to Welshpool to explore The Dingle Gardens for February, we expected little change since our January visit as the weather had remained very similar.

We were greeted by a stunning wooden owl sculpture! Soon we noticed there were lots of signs of new growth, buds forming on trees and shrubs and a few beginning to burst into leaf.

Rhodendrons and Azaleas have strong looking buds both leaves and flowers showing well.

Some of the many small evergreen shrubs are showing off new fresh growth with Hebes sporting new coloured foliage along with some conifers who show off new coloured needles.

We spotted one Buddleja which was holding onto seed heads from last autumn alongside fairly advanced fresh silver foliage. We wondered what would happen to this growth if a frost suddenly covered it.

A few plants had splashes of green showing where leaf buds were beginning to burst, especially Hydrangeas

We didn’t expect to come across many flowers but there were a few to delight the eye and sometimes the nose too.

The bracts and tiny flowers of Euphorbias were brightening up showing glaucous and lime green colours.

So February proved to be more interesting than we had predicted. We hope to see the first signs of spring on our next visit in March.

Tags conifers, deciduous trees, gardens of Powys, gardens of Wales, Powis, Powys, rhododendrons, shrubs in winter, The Dingle Welshpool, Welsh gardens, winter, winter garden, winter gardening

climbing plants garden photography trees woodland

Simply Beautiful – 16

The 16th post in this occasional series featuring photos of simply beautiful natural things. In this post I will share with you some photos of a plant we found at Attingham which was growing on another plant producing beautiful patterns and textures. This old ivy had been climbing up a tree for so many years that they have become inseparable.

architecture garden arches garden design garden photography gardening gardens gardens open to the public hardy perennials ornamental trees and shrubs pergolas Uncategorized woodland woodlands Yorkshire

Parcevall Hall Gardens – Wharfedale

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date January 24, 2018
2 Comments on Parcevall Hall Gardens – Wharfedale

Situated in Wharfedale one of the most beautiful places in North Yorkshire, Parcevall Hall was really difficult to access via narrow roads, hairpin bends and narrow bridges, but it somehow suited the place that we enjoyed one day in September. The gardens were beautiful and typical of those created in the arts and crafts style, the house being redesigned and much developed at that time also.

The house and gardens sit beautifully on a steep slope which certainly added interest for there was much for the garden team and designer to overcome in the making of the garden, slopes and steps abound. Some of the garden was above the hall, a Rose Garden and the area known as Silver Wood, which hid an unusual rock garden. Below the house terraces were dug into the slope and many different garden rooms created. There was strong design to appreciate and beautiful plants to admire.

We walked up from the Garden Office and Tea Rooms after crossing over a tiny clear stream and wandering up through woodland. From a clearing in the woods we enjoyed a view over the rambling rooftops of the hall and all its outbuildings.

The woodland was dotted with berried and flowering shrubs many with signs that birds and rodents had been enjoying them.

Although the plan we were following meant we expected to find the Rock Garden hidden within Silver Wood it was still a wonderful surprising sight when we first came across it. It was a rock garden of huge proportions cut out from the natural slopes and featured a tiny meandering stream falling slowly down its slope. There were some interesting plants to be found among the rocks.

Please follow the gallery below to tour the rock garden with us. Click on first photo and navigate using the arrows.

After leaving the Rock Garden and Silver Wood we wandered around the hall to find the terraced gardens below it. Each terrace had an atmosphere of its own and different plantings. The best way to show you what we found is by using another gallery to help you enjoy these terraces with us.

To finish off this journey around Parcevall Hall I want to show you this little group of bronze hares looking up at the moon. Moonstruck hares! Great little cameo!

One rogue has no interest in the moon at all and had even turned his back on it to preen himself.

Tags arts and crafts, garden terraces, hares, Parcevall Hall, woodland gardens, Yorkshire

autumn autumn colours lakes lakes and reservoirs Land Art landscapes light light quality ornamental trees and shrubs sculpture Shropshire trees woodland woodlands

Lakeside Sculpture

Shropshire’s “lake district” is situated to the south of the North Shropshire town of Ellesmere, where several meres cluster together. We have known about the sculpture trail around the largest of the meres for a time but have only recently visited and explored the trail. We took advantage of the visit of my brother Graham and his wife Vicky, who love the same sorts of days out as we do, to go to find the trail.

It was worth the wait. We wandered slowly around the lakeside finding a wide variety of sculptural pieces. Once we had parked the car and had our usual coffee and cakes, we found a few pieces in a sloping field opposite. As we entered the park alongside the lake we were treated to views of the church through the trees.

The theme of the sculpture collection was the history and life of the market town of Ellesmere. The first large piece, large enough to explore inside in fact, was based on the barges that would have plied their trade on the nearby canal. The sculpture was created from steel with cut out features in places which gave light a chance to penetrate and play with shadows.

The lakeside parkland held collections of mature trees which cast long shadows across any open patches of grass. We periodically enjoyed glances of the wide expanses of the mere. As we followed the gravel pathway further around the lake we discovered varied sculptural pieces.

We failed to fully work out the meaning and context of the first piece we discovered on the lakeside, which resembled a relief decorated shield wrapped around a pole. We studied it for a while and discussed several possible ideas but eventually walked off still baffled!

This huge metal bee towered over us and beneath him was a stack of logs acting as its plinth. Each piece of wood was drilled with holes making each one a home for solitary bees.

Large morrainic boulders were positioned close to the lakeside and on closer inspection we discovered they were homes to a small groups of bronze pieces, mostly connected to the nunnery close to the mere and other town features.

Moving further into natural woodland and away from the parkland, we discovered a tree-house carved from a dead tree trunk and a beautiful tall, graceful shiny metal piece. pierced with a wide hole giving views over the sparkling water.

Our favourite piece of all was the furthest along the walk but well worth the wait. It was called SShhh and was simply this word carved out of a single piece of wood which stood a good 6 ft tall. It was beautifully positioned in a clearing where the ground was covered in fallen autumn leaves. It looked most impressive sat beneath tall Beech trees and their long sharp shadows! It was beautiful to touch and the light fell on its cracked surfaces creating sharp shadow-lines and increased the intensity of its textures. Enjoy following the photo sequence below taken as we walked closer and closer to SShhh.

Alongside SShhh we found long trunks of old fallen trees to sit and rest upon. A seat had been carved out of one leaving a perfect resting place. We enjoyed studying the fallen leaves, with varied colours and textures. After a short rest we made our way back to the town where further pieces of sculpture awaited discovery. Unfortunately when we got back the light was going so we decided to continue our exploration of the sculpture trail at a later date.

Tags Ellesmere, Lakes, meres, outdoor art, outdoor sculpture, sculpture, Shropshire Meres

Christmas Christmas traditions fruit and veg garden arches garden design garden photography gardening gardens gardens open to the public grow your own kitchen gardens National Trust Shrewsbury Shropshire The National Trust walled gardens walled kitchen gardens winter gardens woodland

A Walk in the Park – Attingham Park December

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date December 29, 2017
1 Comment on A Walk in the Park – Attingham Park December

We made our monthly visit to Attingham Park, our last one for 2017, just as Christmas was making itself known at this National Trust property. Before we even reached the coffee shop for our usual warm drink to get us fueled up for our walk, we had been met by a snowman, a Christmas tree and we were entertained to some 1940’s music and dancing. The hall was decorated in a 1940’s style so the dancing set the scene.

The trees were decorated with wartime decorations, based on the idea of “make and make do”, as were the decorations in the coffee shop, where paper chains were made from newspaper. The trees were themed with one based on children’s games from the 1940’s and another was book based.

We came across a few other Snowmen, as we followed the one-mile trail, to amuse us on this chilly day. I managed to get around this month without my wheelchair as my recovery from leg surgery is coming along nicely. I walked the mile using a crutch which was very pleasing and rewarding!

Wandering through the woodland areas beneath tall mature trees, we noticed that a few browned leaves were managing to hang on to the branches but the majority were bare skeletons. These frameworks of trunks, branches and twigs were magnificent with no green leaves to hide their structure.

New buds were already waiting patiently on some branches anticipating spring far off on the horizon, while on other neighbouring trees a few dried leaves hung on. One patch of trees still showed some green in its canopy. A few old seed pods hung on having defied the storms, rains and gales of autumn, seed heads of trees, shrubs and perennial plants.

We wandered around the walled garden now virtually clear of crops, leaving hazel pole structures bare of the bean plants that once adorned them. The volunteer staff here are adept at creating beautiful and original plant structures.

A green flowered cauliflower had recently been attacked by frost, so had browned a little. Celeriac though recently cropped awaited storage.

The gardeners’ bothy was simply decorated but full of atmosphere, added to by the gardeners and volunteers enjoying their break so the aroma of freshly brewed coffee mingled with the smell of wood smoke.

Whatever time of year you explore the countryside, parkland or even more so a garden, there are always surprises awaiting. An out of season flower, a bud bursting at an inappropriate time or sadly at times the sudden death of a favourite plant. Two surprises were awaiting us at Attingham this December. First were lemon yellow catkins hanging fresh and healthily from hazel shrubs. These are usually key features of the month of February. In December they provided a beautiful diversion for me and my camera lens!

The second surprise was a Rhododendron shrub in flower!

Now that we have explored the parkland at Attingham Park every month during 2017, we need to decide where our monthly visit will be next year. We need somewhere open all year and of interest every month too. We shall let you know in the new year! I hope you have enjoyed visiting Attingham with us each month during 2017.

Tags Attingham Park, bothy, Christmas, Christmas traditions, Christmas Trees, gardens of Shropshire, gardens of the National Trust, National Trust, Shrewsbury, Shropshire gardens, snowmen, The National Trust, walled garden, walled gardens, woodland, woodland gardening

autumn autumn colours colours flowering bulbs garden design gardening gardens gardens open to the public half-hardy perennials hardy perennials kitchen gardens light light quality National Trust pathways photography Shrewsbury Shropshire The National Trust woodland woodlands

A Walk in the Park – Attingham Park November

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date December 9, 2017

Number eleven in my series of posts where I report on our monthly visits for a wander around Attingham Park, our local National Trust property. Just as in October I was in a wheelchair pushed around the paths by Jude, the Undergardener so some of the photos will look taken from a low angle. Please enjoy sharing our visit with us!

We decided to follow the One-Mile Walk and as usual made our way firstly towards the Walled Garden. Autumn had settled in although some varieties of tree still held onto a full complement of foliage, awaiting another few days of frosts to join into the feeling/essence of the season. The colourful mixed herbaceous and annual flower borders which have been welcoming us into the walled garden have almost lost their colour with just a few yellow-flowered Rudbeckias extending the show.

The borders around the central circular dipping well still showed colour from healthy-looking specimens of Penstemen “Garnet” and a few white flowers as companions.

The vintage hose-reel held modern plastic hose in a bright yellow rolled up to form tight patterns.

The wooden doorway from the main section of the walled garden which leads visitors into the glasshouse section opened wide to reveal a wheelbarrow full of Dahlias prunings. A gardener knelt nearby preparing the plants for their winter storage. She had lifted the plants, cut their top growth off with her Felco secateurs, thrown these prunings into her barrow and busily cleared soil from around the tubers. These she would take off into one of the cool brick stores to overwinter. Some of the hardier varieties were in flower closer to the gardeners’ bothy.

All of the glasshouses were closed up against the changing weather, but through their windows we spied pumpkins and chilies drying. Nerines added pink cheer to the outsides.

The autumn light shone through the trees at a low angle lighting up the colours of the changing foliage giving the effects of stained glass windows.

Next month’s visit will be the final one of our 12 monthly visits to Attingham Park to study the seasonal changes. We look forward to seeing how the move into the next season, winter, will show itself.

Tags Attingham Park, autumn, autumn colours, garden in autumn, gardens of Shropshire, glasshouses, old glasshouses, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, walled garden, walled gardens

autumn autumn colours colours garden design garden paths garden photography gardening gardens gardens open to the public National Trust ornamental trees and shrubs Powis Powys The National Trust trees Wales woodland

A Visit to the Wonderful Gardens of Powys Castle – Part3

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date October 27, 2017
2 Comments on A Visit to the Wonderful Gardens of Powys Castle – Part3

Back over the border just half an hour away in Wales we return for part 3 of our visit to the gardens of Powys Castle. We have looked at its upper terraces and the beautiful late summer, early autumn flowering plants, so now we will wander down to the lower garden and have a look at its famous ancient yew hedges as we descend and finally we will wander along the lower terrace and search for autumn colours in the trees and shrubs there.

The ancient yew hedge is cloud pruned and runs either side of the path down to the lower garden. It towers above us and makes us feel so small. At times we have to go through it in cutaway arches.

Once in the lower garden, paths move off in different directions and the yew hedge is much more formally presented and at times much smaller.

Archways and windows are cut through the hedge to give views of other parts of the garden or to provide ways into other areas.

The lower gardens are flat and consist of formal lawns and borders and orchards.

From the lower garden we found a woodland edge path to follow to make our way back to the lower terrace. The view back to the castle and terraces was a beautiful sight.

Alongside the path we were treated to a few woodland specialities as we made our way below the castle itself and soon met up with the lower terrace as the path did a sharp turn. Autumn leaf colours gave the impression of an impressionist painting in yellows, oranges and reds. The gardeners had pruned the trees and shrubs to expose the beauty of the trunks, their shapes, colours and textures.

Perhaps next time we visit these great gardens we will do so in the spring when the daffodil meadow is in full flow.

Tags autumn, autumn colours, autumn gardens, garden in autumn, gardens of Powys, hedges, hedging, Powis, Powys, Powys Castle

autumn autumn colours colours garden photography gardening gardens gardens open to the public light light quality National Trust ornamental trees and shrubs Shrewsbury Shropshire The National Trust woodland woodlands

A Walk in the Park 2 – fall foliage and fungi

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date October 15, 2017

In this, my second part of the report of our September visit to Attingham Park we headed for the Woodland Walk to seek out signs of the fall, foliage and fungi.

I thought I would present our discoveries to you simply as a gallery of the images I took. As usual click on the first pic and use the arrows to navigate the tour.

Tags autumn, autumn colours, autumn gardens, autumn leaves, autumn plants, fungi, garden in autumn

colours flowering bulbs garden design garden photography garden ponds garden pools garden wildlife gardening hardy perennials log piles logs National Garden Scheme natural pest control NGS ornamental trees and shrubs outdoor sculpture sculpture spring bulbs spring gardening village gardens water garden water in the garden wildlife woodland Yellow Book Gardens

Celebrating the Glory of Spring – the garden at a cottage called Cartref

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date September 5, 2017
1 Comment on Celebrating the Glory of Spring – the garden at a cottage called Cartref

I thought I would look back at a visit we made with friends, Pete and Sherlie in the spring to a garden called Cartref. It was a “pop up” NGS garden which is a garden that opens unplanned but that looks good so the owner wants to share it with other NGS, National Garden Scheme, visitors. It is a way of seeing gardens at their best. It is a new idea so we look forward to seeing if it continues to happen. We certainly hope so as we visited two this spring and loved them both.

We decided to celebrate the glory of spring by visiting this NGS garden, a one acre modern cottage garden with borders, woodland and ponds. The main features of the garden were the lovely colourful collection of tulips which were at their best when we visited.

Throughout the rest of the garden we found relaxed styles of gardening and in places emphasis on enhancing habitats for wildlife and attracting wildlife into the garden. The wildlife pond had an island reached by a narrow wooden bridge.

After this visit to the cottage garden at Cartref we decided that “pop up” open gardens were definitely a good idea because we felt we had seen Cartref at its best.

Tags April, April garden, NGS, NGS gardens, spring, spring blossom, spring bulbs, spring flowers, spring garden, the garden in April, tulips, Yellow Book, Yellow Book Gardens

fruit and veg garden buildings garden photography gardening gardens gardens open to the public grow your own hardy perennials kitchen gardens National Trust ornamental trees and shrubs Shrewsbury Shropshire shrubs The National Trust walled gardens walled kitchen gardens woodland woodlands

A Walk in the Park – Attingham Park July

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date August 28, 2017
2 Comments on A Walk in the Park – Attingham Park July

Here we are back at Attingham Park for another wander, this time to see what is going on in the walled garden and woodland pleasure gardens in July.

We arrived in the rain and carried on regardless. Foliage was glossy with moisture because of the steady drizzle, and large puddles had formed on the path.

The gardener’s cottage garden gave a little colourful cheer to the day, and water droplets hung on flowers and berries. The heritage rare breed cattle in the field at the start of the track ignored the drizzle and continued tearing at the grass heads down.

The walled garden gave protection and the day began to feel a little warmer as the rain stopped.

The beautiful, recently restored, vintage glasshouses are now becoming productive with melons, grapes, tomatoes, chillies and cucumbers.

We particularly liked the amazing textures of this melon and its subtle mix of greens.

As we entered the gardeners’ bothy we could instantly enjoy the fresh uplifting aroma of bunches of freshly picked lavender, and the sight of simple flower arrangements and freshly harvested lettuces.

After taking in the sights, scents and sounds offered by the walled garden we continued on our wanders, following the One Mile Walk trail.

Come with us as we take you along this track in a gallery of photos. As usual click on the first and navigate with the arrows. We will return for another wander in August.