Newsletter 2002 - Garden
The Island Bed
The garden came through its first winter well. The most important thing was that I was no longer marooned beside the house by my very wet apology for a lawn. The paths mean that the whole garden is accessable year round. The lighting means that the garden is still alive in the dark winter evenings. The whole garden is a resounding success.
Once spring came, I could get started. The biggest problem was that the garden lacked maturity. A few large shrubs had been retained, but all the new planting was just so low. I decided to bite the bullet and do a "Groundforce". With the designer's help, Brian and I went to a nursery that specialises in mature shrubs. They are very expensive, but then you are buying years worth of maturity. Once we had bought the plants, we had to wait a month before they could be delivered as our soil was far too wet to give them a good start in life. Eventually the day arrived and my garden was delivered. There were only seven or eight of them, but the difference that they made to the garden was enormous. I spent the day (and most of the following few weeks) beaming from ear to ear, I finally had a garden.
The Long Walk
Now I had the key structural plants in place, but there was still loads of space to be filled. I had stopped myself buying plants over the last year as I knew the garden was going to be rebuilt. Now I could allow myself to buy plants again. I went mad. My mail order purchases started to arrive. They were placed in the cold frame until they were large enough to survive outdoors. Each of my favorite nurseries was visited and I bought back old friends that I had owned in the previous house. Removing the grass had meant that I had so much more room in the garden that could be filled with plants. Each weekend I went out and visited yet another nursery and bought not just one or two plants but frequently, ten or more. Then when I got home, they all had to be put into the ground. All in all, I bought and planted over 120 plants, on top of those already put in by the designer. Eventually, I reached the point where I could not face the idea of having to plant another thing. I stopped buying. I started passing garden centres without going in. I went to BBC Gardeners world and only bought three plants! The garden is by no means full, but it is full enough to feel like a garden. There is still so much space that I will have a wonderful time over the next few years visiting nurseries.
The Pond Garden
The garden has proved to be everything I had hoped for and more. Just going out into it is one of the most relaxing things to do, day or night, winter or summer. I love the sound of water and there are two water features - the raised pond with a fountain, designed by Brian, based on the shape of a chambered nautilus shell (the theme of the garden) and the stainless steel column of water beside the main path. In time, I hope that the plants will have grown sufficiently to hide both from the house so that you will have to investigate the garden to find the source of the sound. I have tried to ensure that there are hidden surprises throughout the garden. One of them is the numerous representations of nautilus shells throughout the garden - my nieces counted sixteen in different materials, sizes and degrees of obscurity. The lighting has proved to be a wonderful addition to my enjoyment of the garden. It not only makes a wonderful backdrop for a summertime evening barbeque but also means that the garden is not "lost" during the long winter evenings. It also simplifies a night time visit to the garage to collect dog food.
Photos cannot do justice to the garden. I look forward to being able to show you round the garden next time you visit us, so that you can see it for yourself.