Garden Journey part 2

May 1st 2015
 

I finally went plant shopping with Julia to fill out the back border where the fence is. I had read about Gertude Jekylls white garden at Sissinghurst. I had seen green and white displays at RHS Tatton park and thought Id do one here. I picked up lots of white flowering plants and Cinereria for its upright grey foliage to contrast with the white Daisys .

The corner had some White Foxgloves and a Sedum which I still hope is white flowering. The unknown shrub had grown from the soil in the front of the dilapidated wooden border.

May 5th 2015

The new additions included Strawberry plants, Petunias and Verbenas, a stone birdbath. Some of the exotic plants had been dug up and put into pots. the Yucca, and a few Canary Island Palms. It is a windy, exposed hilly garden with damp clay soil.

I also bought fiery coloured plants for the right hand border. French Marigolds, Geums, Salvias. This has been named the Fire border as opposed to the writers white border.

June 11th 2015

A few months later and the planting has filled out. The maple looks like a luscious lime green fur coat. It is massive. The crocosmia are growing on either side of the brick entrance to the garden. More plants have been added in pots and to the borders.

I went to see my Mum, Sister, and Niece. I brought back my Dads stone Buddah. One of the few things we cleared from his flat after he had died. I think it fits in perfectly in the cool white and green of the ice border.

White Cosmos flowering next to the Buddah. There is a white Rose called Snow White, White Hollyhocks Single and double, White Echinacea..It is all flowering at different times.
  That's a whistle stop tour of the garden from mud and leaves to a place I love going out into. We  also planted three raised beds of Vegetables, and a planter box full of Strawberries. So much to blog about now.

Garden Journey Part 1

December 28th 2014

  I moved to Stanley two miles from Wakefield in November. A rented end terrace house at  the bottom of the cul de sac. The garden had been recently cleared of brambles and weeds. It is over looked by large conifer trees and a weeping willow that drops leaves and branches whenever it is windy or raining (quite often in West Yorkshire). There is a shorter fence to the left, a six foot high fence at the back where they play Sunday league football. the right hand side has a white washed wall with decorative port holes.
 Plant wise there was a gnarled Japanese Maple, various exotic shrubs looking a bit shivery and ropey. there was  a patio area by the back door. and a can of paint between the brick entrance to the muddy sticky garden. This was December 28th.

January 5th 2015

 

I could not decide to start with  how long Id be staying for. I hung a few bird feeders up to try and entice the local avian population. with gardens, wild grass, playing field, and mature trees it had mixed habitat for the local birds.  I persevered as nothing came to start. I think this was in December when I had cleared a garden bins worth of tree limbs, branches and weeds.

January 8th 2015

 I was looking for recycled plastic paving stones. lots in the USA but none here despite numerous google searches. the mud was very sticky underfoot after it had rained. I finally found a company in Norfolk who made recycled pvc pathways for allotments. It came swiftly and I laid the black track down. A way to walk to the end of the garden. I used a pile of stones by the brick wall to mark out a border in the right hand side. the only plants growing were some Iris who's clumps I split up .

January 25th 2015

Work stopped for a bit when it snowed. It covered the mud and made the garden look magical. January 21st 2015.

April 21st 2015

By April the grass and weeds were growing. My green fingers were glowing by now. I spent half my time working here, and the other half in Helmsley. As the relationship flourished so did my plans for the garden. I had invested emotions into the soil and seeing what plants were there already. trying to garden on a budget and move those plants in the wrong place.

The first serious planting was two containers that had no liner or plants. I had newspaper so I lined the planters, filled them with a bounteous amount of compost from the side of the house. I used the plants I could dig up in the garden. I had not been to any garden centre.

The last picture shows the second planter filled with Ivy, Euonymus, Heuchera, and a lone Begonia from the front door two tier planter that stood over a tree stump. One surviving Begonia was transplanted into the mini garden.
 These were the first planting that I had done. The catalyst for the rest of the gardens renewal.

 

 

First Post

  After a year away this will be the first blog post on the new blog. New house, new partner, and new garden. Its rented but I got the bug to start tidying the garden , then adding small bits, until it looks lovely and is a work in progress.
  I looked up gardening quotes for the blog. This was one of my favourites;
      "Help us to be ever faithful gardeners of the spirit, who knows that without darkness nothing comes to birth, and without light nothing flowers" by May Surton.
    I will show the gardens progress from photos taken in November 2014, up to now June 2015. New blog name and new picture. I'm out of practise about the mechanics of blogger.
 I bought a new tablet PC, camera, and then work out how to download my photos from my Blackberry andcamera to get them on here.
  The blog title refers to some of my favourite things like Julie Andrews. The raindrops fell on the Roses at the West Bretton scarecrow festival. It was great to walk around the village looking at the scarecrows and the gardens they resided in.
  I even have a copper kettle by the fire.. but no kittens with whiskers..
    This blog will reflect some of my favourite things in a daily progress report or musing about nature/wildlife/gardening/anything  else that grabs me.