Monday 29 July 2013

Stakes & hurdles

Thurs 30th May
Weather: Apparently around 14 - 15°C today, cooler in the mornings & evenings. Bitty. Drizzle & heavy rain.

I staked some Ammi majus, with canes a foot higher than the plant to anticipate their future growth. Then I tried to make an Aconitum looked untouched and staked those with some tricky manoeuvres.
Ammi majus all grown up a few weeks after staking with Papaver somniferum 'Danish Flag'. Not a poppy I necessary like on its own, but made a striking combination with the ammi.
The aconitum now (July). Two of the types we use are 'Spark's Variety' & carmichaelii 'Kelmscott' (Arendsii Group), both very blue. This one is 'Spark's Variety'.

I went round malleting in hurdles that Fergus had laid out. Sometimes putting them at an angle to make them look as 'natural' as possible - for the plants to not be too hemmed in anyway.

Hurdle made by Simon, woodworker apprentice for Dixter, he makes them for the garden and for sale at the shop/ upon request. 

Fri 31st May
Weather: Apparently going up to 18/19 even 20°C.
A view from behind the border. 

I staked Hesperis matronalis now that the weather was better and it is suitable for getting into the beds more - these have been helping to provide colour much of May. We have alot of purple ones and a few white ones, the purple as an isolated colour is not something I thought I would like, but in Hesperis enmasse it seems to shimmer and glow. I shaved two chestnut poles and hammered them into the ground as support for a clematis. We decided that it was too much, so we took one out. The borders are definitely getting harder to get into as they are so full now.


As things change quicker than I can put up my posts, many of these things have passed over already, but here are some highlights of the Barn Garden during April/ May:

This sweetly scented Viburnum carlesii was in flower in April and was planted by Christopher Lloyd when he was a child. To read his letter of this account click here.

This striking Omphalodes cappadocica 'Cherry Ingram' in the perfect shelter & shadow of the steps derived a lot of cooing from visitors as they walked by.

This was a great combination before these extra prickly dead cardoons Cynara cardunculus (dwarf Chelsea Physic Form) were cut down.

Santolina pinnata subsp. neopolitana looking good before it gets split by the wind and its own weight.

Cestrum fasciculatum next to the Ammi Majus. In front of this, unfortunately not in view in this photo was Ligusticum scoticum another white umbellifer aka Scottish Lovage.

There was also the 'giant' giant fennel - Ferula communis, who made a fine display from February and is only going over now. The tall dark red tree peonies - Paeonia delavayi, Euphorbia styrgiana that gave us a honey scent for so long. As well the quick succession of ladybird poppies - Papaver commutatum (the reddest I have seen of this cultivar) with the acid lime green of Euphorbia polychroma 'Major', and so much more.

2 comments:

  1. Beautiful update! Thanks for sharing all of your hard work at GD!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow, never seen Omphalodes cappadocica before. Striking is an understatement!

    ReplyDelete

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