What you see is what you get

The vast majority of plants I have planted here at Ordnance House were small, only 1L and 2L pots.

We needed so many plants to create the garden it was sensible, on cost grounds, to buy small.  But I also believe that small plants establish much better and that has certainly been the case.  These small plants that came in such small pots are now big enough to fill 3L and 5L pots. 

However, it is still instantly rewarding to be able to extravagantly buy the odd plant or two as eye-catchers or fillers in the borders.  The advantages are instant effect and gratification along with the knowledge that what you buy is precisely what you get.  In a year's time the plant will be bigger but it will look pretty much the same but on a larger scale. This luxury was not available to me when I planted lots of small plants in Winter and Spring when all that I could see was a whispy green shoot or brown clump.

This weekend I have been buying plants for Autumn colour.  These included Anemones and Crocosmia among others and all fit the very specific colour palette I am working to for this time of year.  This ranges from deep blue, purple and vibrant pink through to yellow and orange.  We have no red in the garden to speak of as I have edged the palette toward purple which I think is richer and more refined.

I purchased two Hibiscus syriacus 'Lavender Chiffon' for the much extended original border which butts up against the Orchard.  I love the volupuousness of the flowers and rich subtle colour of Hibiscus and these two plants, both in full flower, will work well in this part of the garden.  They will also get quite large 1.8m high and just as wide.  But they will provide a natural screen to divide one area from another.

But the effect created in planting these and the other plants that have gone in the ground this weekend is instantaneous and rewarding. 

Wise investments

The garden is full of colour.  The Monarda 'Gardenview Scarlet' looks lovely with deep, dark red pom-poms next to the orange Crocosmia 'Emily McKenzie'.  I love the pale yellow Achillea 'Mondpagode' set off against another Achillea, 'millefolium Lilac Beauty'.  Next year there should also be more of Helenium Moerheim Beauty as we have planted a number in the last few weeks and these will bulk out next year.  But most of all I love the purple haze created by the many Verbena Bonariensis and the way it floats like a cloud over the borders.

Meanwhile, in the Orchard, we have apples.  Big fat apples on the trees, cordons and step-overs.  Our very first crop and lovely they look too.

In the vegetable garden, we have been harvesting the produce, clearing out the peas and first early potatoes and sowing seed for Autumn crops.

All very exciting but it is however, time to look ahead and make some wise investments in collecting seeds and taking cuttings.  Today was an opportunity to take cuttings of box to increase our stock.  I cut the top of the box hedging around the vegetable garden and at the same time collected some good, healthy cuttings which I immediately placed into pots of gritty compost that I had prepared.  Over the past few weeks we have been taking cuttings from Lavender, Erysimum 'Bowles Mauve' and Sambucus 'Black Lace' and seeds have been collected from the many Foxgloves that graced the garden in early Summer.  These have been grown on in seed trays and I have just potted these on.

I find it immensely rewarding that we are investing in the garden's future.  I even find the swollen compost bins reassuring as the goodness from these will go straight back into the garden and benefit it as well.  I call that a sustainable outcome!