We move into the second half of the year with this visit to my 2019 garden journal, where we shall see what the garden has to offer and take a look at some of our gardening tasks for the month.
The first double page spread featured borders in our front garden, beginning with a follow up look at the New Garden, where I wrote, “July began hot and humid so during the first week gardening wasn’t easy. Every job was tiring, but there is lots to look at. Let us visit “The New Garden” to see how it has developed over the last 4 weeks or so.”
“Three different Agastache, including A. ‘Kudos Yellow’ and A. ‘Kudos Gold’ and an unknown blue flowered cultivar.”
“Step across the grass from “The New Border” and we come to one of our two “Doughnuts”. This one comes in two halves, an airy meadow of Dianthus and Briza backs onto our sun-loving ferns and euphorbias.”
“Dianthus carthusianorum” “Briza and Dianthus”
“Festuca glauca flower buds.”
“Dianthus cruentus” “Rosa Prince’s Trust and R. Enchantress”
Foxgloves feature on the next page and opposite we look at the “Layby Border”.
“This year is definitely the year of the foxglove, and throughout June and into the middle of July Digitalis rule the border roosts.”
“Digitalis fontanesii” “Digitalis grandiflora”
“Digitalis lutea”
“Across the drive we can have a look at how the “Layby Garden” is coming on.”
The next double page spread deals with some of our Achilleas, of which we grow many as we love them as much as the wildlife does, especially bees, butterflies and hoverflies.
I wrote, “Last year we decided to develop a section of our Beth Chatto Border, which is our gravel garden planted with grasses and herbaceous perennials which never need watering. We added a river of Achilleas.”
On the next page I concentrate on pink and white flowered Achilleas where I wrote, Variations on a theme, “Pink to White”, caused by so many self-seeded natural crosses made by bees and their colleagues. Thank you bees!”
Turning over to the next double page spread, We look at the perennials in the Shrub Border and then some of our jobs for July.
“Staying in the front garden it is noticeable how the perennials towards the front of the Shrub Border are giving extra colour.”
“July is a busy month, but this year it is extra busy as winds and frequent heavy showers mean lots of tying up.”
“Ready to topiarise the box clouds”
“Low level and high level pruning.”
“Deadheading climbing and rambling roses.”
Eryngiums or sea hollies feature next.
I wrote, “Mid-summer is when our Sea Hollies, Eryngiums, are at their best, their blue and silver stems, bracts and flowers take on their metallic tints.”
The first set of photos are of E.bourgattii ‘Picos Blue’
The next four photos are of E. Jade Frost.
The four photos below are of E. ‘Neptune’s Gold’ with its bright green foliage and metallic blue flower heads.
“Eryngiums add so much to the garden in virtually every month. Amazingly textured, coloured and sometimes variegated foliage plus metallic flowers and bracts.”
These are exciting plants to finish off my entries into my Garden Journal 2019 for the month of July.
Bachie Uchaf surprised us with its unusual quarry bottom setting but also by the imaginative planting and use of space availability by the gardeners/owners. One final area that impressed us in particular was a steep rock face planted with succulents mostly sedums. Very unusual and cheerful.
