The area offers a view of the garden and its layout better than any other vantage point. But it also provides views way beyond into the leafy landscape to the east. It is a lovely spot to come, sit on the rustic bench and just take in the garden with a cup of tea or glass of wine. The area is one of the few in the garden which we have left uncultivated. It is just a grassy mound with a path leading up to it.
Our hope is to introduce native wild flowers and we have been taking advice from Plantlife, a conservation charity, as to what planting will work best and what we need to do to prepare the area. That important first step is to sow Yellow-rattle (Rhinanthus minor) which is a semi parasitic plant that will weaken the grass and allow wild flowers to establish.
I have cut back the grass and sown the Yellow-rattle seed which should germinate over Winter and into Spring. But as with all projects of this kind, you need time and patience. In time we hope that this area of grass will become populated with a wide variety of beautiful wild flowers which in turn will attract many forms of insects offering them a natural habitat and haven to thrive.
But for now, all we can do is imagine.
