Tuesday, June 21, 2016

A year and a little bit in the garden ....

This is the day I first saw the house, covered in snow and looking like it needed a little love, but with great bones


March 2015: The beginning One of the first things i wanted was a fence.  An english mans home is his castle and all that.  We love to define our land.  This is a very dear friend helping plant the first wips of the willow fence.  Another very good friend helped me with the hole digging and cementing of the post and rail fence.  One thing about this place is that without family a phone call away you definitely need friends who want to roll up their sleeves to help.
June 2015: The first summer.  The willow forms the back drop of the hedge along with the addition of the Japanese willow (white tips) hydrangea trees (far left) and Annabelle hydrangeas 
June 2016: 1 year later.  In the Autumn I added a whole bunch of holly bushes along with beech and horn beam wips (small plants) along with the willow.  Rambling through all of this is wild rasberries and wild roses and bluberries.  I also have a clematis and wisteria.  The overall effect is a dense country hedge that reminds me of home. It becomes a haven for wildlife with the berries providing food and eventually they will nest in there once the holly fills out.  I can believe how much it has grown in a year.  The stone seat another friend helped build from stones bug out of the ground, so nice to have that memory every time a take a break there.  I have branches that vines are covering so it will become a little hidden nook in the hedge eventually.  Isn't nature amazing what she can do in a year.

End June 2016: Everything is a mass, with hydrangeas, roses, and viburnum adding the next layer.  Woven through for height are alliums, veronica and bugbane.  Then we drop down to irises, lambs ear, foxgloves, lupins, hollyhocks all classics english planting, the herbaceous border.  Least we not forget the budleia which will over take everything in high summer, a profusion of white flowers.  This is my homage to Vita Sackville-West.  Her white garden is heaven, and here is my own little slice.  Next year i will have probably dug it a foot wider, i think in the fall i will have to move things to give them more space...  





I still get shocked when I see the beginning stages, here Im rebuilding the little walls for the front garden.  This became my blue and purple garden with herbs, lavender and a little box thrown in.

Last summer I had my bear visitor, but look at the flower bed, barely there...


The first year of gardening was so rewarding, I spent a lot of time adding manure, compost and working the soil.  I cant stress enough how important this is.  If you cant be bothered to work the soil then don't buy the plant!
My small orchard in the first year.  I started creating the woven branch fence and have continued to keep adding by weaving branches into as time goes on.  Looking at this photo now it was a little sad but look at it now, what a difference a year makes.


Not so sad now.  The trees are growing in so well, I counted 8 apples the other day, with the blueberries coming on strong.  I have more rasberries along the woven fence, climbing white roses each side of the gate.  It will be a proper little orchard come next year I hope.  On the other side of the gate is a wild field that the tree farmer has across the road, with more wild roses that i am training into a little tunnel and sprinkling wild lupins, don't tell him!


The first Autumn 2015.  As the summer came to an end it was amazing to see how the landscape evlolved as it started to get its self ready for hibernation.  I still think Autumn is one of my favourtie times.  There is time to garden when its not baking hot, happily the plants are on sale and also they seem to be happier to be planted. The biggest test is ones patience as you don't see them pop to life until the spring.



My most recent project, adding a section of stone wall to hide the grill and create an outdoor kitchen area.  Then a little more fence to screen the fire pit and seating area



This bench is specifically added for mum.  The sun is pretty intense here so unlike her son she seeks out the shade...



The wild violets run rampant through the lawn.  I love them! Im not one for the pristine, weed free lawn.  The bees love this, along with the dandelions and clover flowers.  Im chemical free as much as possible and I definitely keep the lawn chemical free to help our buzzing friends.

This is one of the best developments.  My amazing neighbors who have 30 acres next too me.  There john deer is like going back to my childhood.  Who doesn't love driving a tractor, only now dad cant tell me off! 

Collection stone for the new dry stone wall

So very happy with the way this turned out.  My little field on the other side of the stream needed some boundaries, so this is the first stage.  There will be a gate that mirrors the ones I build for the drive way but for now this is a good start.



Look back to 2015, here the fence is in but thats about it. 
To the right of the kitchen door i have a little bed of herbs, chives, rosemary, mint.  So great to be able grab a bunch right by the door

The alliums in the spring.  I love how this ornate flower comes from a simple bulb.  If you do one thing this Autumn it should be to plant alliums.  I dream of a whole field of them with russian sage coming up all around them.  Clouds of purple and blue, thats my mission come the Autumn, plant 100's of alliums



More shots of the purple and blue in the front of the garden 

The newest fence areas.  I always want to create a sense of rooms, and here the fences end the drive and create an entrance to the fire pit and add privacy to the dining area.  I have since planted holly on one side and as budget permits will add to the other side.  

I could take a photo of this border forever!

My little boxwood balls..












Another thing to plan immediately is peonies.  Plant many of them as once you cut the flowers there gone.  I just added 2 more so next year i will have plenty to cut from.

My favourite flower, the foxglove.  I raised a whole bunch of seeds in the autumn and i will do the same this year.  I want them everywhere...

My plant of the season is the Japanese willow.  It grows like crazy and has filled in the hedge in an amazing way, anchoring the white with its white tips.  Its almost a foot over the fence now.  The whole garden feels secluded and contained.

I cant wait to see what it will look like in July, with the hydrangeas, and bugbane all coming to life.  Its truly a seasonal garden with something blooming all the way through! 








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