The gift of time

The seasonal present I treasure the most at Christmas is a luxury one. It comes with no wrapping paper, no bows or gift tags and costs nothing.  But it lasts from Christmas to New Year and each day it is as fresh and new as the day before. It is the gift of time.

As I work full time, time itself is a limited commodity. But the seasonal break provides me with far more time to spend in the garden working on small and large projects uninterrupted over a number of days. It offers me time to plan and assess the future of beds and borders. It gives me time to while away on nothing in particular.

This particularly enjoyable present has been put to good use this year as I have been able to work, over a number of days, planning and creating a new floor for the oak framed gazebo built in the far corner of our small orchard which we rather grandly call 'The Orchard Room.' It was constructed in the Summer of 2012 using seasoned local New Forest oak for the main frame with chestnut batons and cedar shingles for the roof, topped off with an onion shaped oak finial. It is entirely open on all sides and so sits perfectly with its rustic surroundings amongst the fruit trees and long grass.

For some time now The Orchard Room has been the subject of some debate. What do we do with the grass floor which has become dried and and worn away.  Do we pave it? Too heavy handed. Do we simply lay gravel? Not particularly creative. Do we lay cobbles or granite sets? Too formal. In the end we elected to use up an odd selection of left over sandstone slabs and granite sets, that we had laying around, in a random sort of pattern. Using up this stock of unused materials made the whole project inexpensive other than the purchase of the mortar, some small bags of Cotswold chippings plus my own time and efforts levelling and laying the materials. But the effect is pleasing and in keeping with the nature of the structure under which it now sits. We are happy with the results and the aesthetic.

At least it kept me active and away from the sofa and TV controls which at this time of year is all too easy to retreat to. Much more fun to enjoy my present and that most precious of gifts....time!

The Great British Garden Revival

The second series of 'The Great British Garden Revival' begins on BBC Two - Tuesday, 6th January, 2015.  We hope to see the garden in Episode 5 (scheduled for Monday, 12th January) which specifically features Lavender and is presented by Diarmuid Gavin.  It will take me away from these dark and gloomy Winter days to another much sunnier, warmer and pleasant place!

See Episode 5 (Lavender and Knot Gardens):  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-2z42Krp0k

In quiet repose

There is a quiet solemnity about the garden at this time of year which I like greatly.  None of the frenetic rush and bustle of late Spring and Summer.  The garden is in quiet repose.  Mornings often see mist hang in the air drifting up to our hedge line from across the fields that surround us.  We are like a ship on a ghostly white sea.

Apart from the lengthening hours of darkness, the hours that are spent in the garden are even more treasured.  Now that all the hundreds of bulbs have been planted, the borders cut back, shrubs and bushes shaped and made tidy, there is a restful almost monastic peace about the place.  This serenity is far removed from the growing mayhem that is the build up to Christmas and the neon lights of the towns and cities.  But I like the garden all the more for being a refuge away from the crowds of shoppers.  The greatest gift for me at Christmas is one of time and a luxury present it is too when the majority of my time each week is at work.

I am particularly looking forward to the time I will have this Christmas to begin work on creating a floor for the Orchard Room.  I will replace the grass, much dried out and worn, with a more solid base which will look so much better.  The hard labour will do me no harm while keeping me active and away from the sofa and television for a while which seems to be the habitat of most at this time of year.  I just hope that the weather will be kind.

But that is for a month or so away.  In between times I can now just potter around the garden attending to the odd task or chore and letting myself drift along just like the garden seems to be doing.  Quietly, peacefully, serenely.

The check list

It may feel like the end of the gardening year but in so many respects it is the beginning of the next one.  This is a time of year for a check list and we have been slowing working our way through ours each weekend.

Hedges all around the garden trimmed - check.  Shrubs including all roses cut and shaped - check.  Garden furniture cleaned and stored - check.  Cuttings taken (the Penstemons are doing great) - check.  Central round bed cut back and many more Alliums added to enhance the display - check.  Tender plants in pots placed undercover - check.  Last month all box balls and lavender trimmed and shaped - check.  Compost bins turned and processed compost laid - check.  All lawns edged - check.

The main herbaceous bed is next on the check list for many plants need cutting back and dividing.  Plants will be moved or potted on to sell at garden openings next year.  Then comes the planting of hundreds of bulbs which sit awaiting planting at present in their netted sacks.

The clocks go backwards next weekend making our time in the garden all too short now each weekend.  Less time means fewer items can be ticked on the check list.  But at least the hard work done now will mean that we will reap the rewards next Spring and that in itself will get me through Winter.

Time flies

This garden is young.  It has matured suprisingly quickly and it does look much older than it is.  I know that this rate of growth has also suprised many people who have visited the garden during both last year and this. We are just 3 years in and are where we were in our old garden at Linden Barn after 5 or 6. This accelerated evolution has meant that the garden became photogenic much sooner too. We have already had some professional garden
photographers visit and take some beautiful pictures which have appeared in the gardening press both in the UK and abroad.

But I confess that once a series of pictures are taken it is all too easy to lose track. In most cases we know roughly when and where a series of pictures might appear and it is always a joy to see them on the printed page. But sometimes an article appears which we knew nothing about and that is the case with the German title 'Garden Style' this Summer. We had no idea that we had been featured in the magazine let alone on the cover and this came as a suprise, be it a nice one of course.

Looking back through the pages of a magazine at your own garden on sun filled days of stunning colour and contrast is surreal. For one thing I find it hard to rationalise that the garden laid out on the pages is our own. Such is the skills of garden photographers for they capture a vista and view that seems strangely unfamilier.

At this time of year, with the ballance of day and night time hours juddering on a pivot, these snapshots of a sunnier time have a particular allure. I suspect that as this pivot tilts now toward the dark of Winter I may find myself delving into gardening magazines even more than usual. I expect that I shall paw through the pages of many beautiful gardens, taking thoughts and ideas which I can use and incorporate within our own space. That is the beauty of a magazine.

Short back and sides

It's time to give the Lavender a short back and sides!  We grow both angustifolia and x intermedia varieties here in the garden at Ordnance House and I have been gradually cutting back the angustifolias these past couple of weeks.  Mid August is when I start this process and then, around this time, I move on to the x intermedias.  I cut back hard and effectively treat the plants as topiary creating small globes that dot themselves all around the beds and borders.

This dramatically changes the dynamic of the garden especially in the main Lavender bed close to the house.  For months, the Lavender has created drifts of differing colours and hues.  Once cut back the garden shifts to a more architectural feel and the underlying structure and framework of the planting is laid bare.  I quite like this change but then again I do fall on the side of order and symmetry.

But I confess that the one question I am asked more than any other about the Lavender we grow is how to prune it. There appears to be a real fear associated with pruning Lavender but once understood, it is a simple process.  Like most plants, Lavender responds well to hard pruning.  Cut them now and they have time to put on new growth (around 3cm or so) which will quickly appear and help them through the coming Winter.  I cut right back the new growth but not into the old wood.  I try to create a ball or globe shape and it has to be said that some Lavender forms this shape quite naturally especially the x intermedia varieties.  Others seem to want to grow quite leggy but the same pruning principle applies.  Get a globe shape in your mind's eye and prune back to it keeping some new growth from which the plant will regenerate.

I suspect that there are two fundamental reasons why people struggle to grow Lavender.  The first is that they do not keep on top of the pruning and the plant gets woody. It is essential that you keep on top of this pruning regime each and every year.  The second reason is slightly more fundamental and that is the soil type and conditions of your garden.  Lavender loves really sharp draining, poor soil conditions with full sun and an open aspect.  They hate being shaded out and do not do well in a conventional herbaceous border.

At Ordnance House we are on a hill with a poor chalky soil and are entirely open to the sun all day. Lavender just loves it here. It you have a north facing site on clay and have a soggy soil that gets cold in Winter, do not plant out Lavender. That is not to say you cannot have Lavender for if you have an area which does get some sun, then why not try planting up some pots. I have planted many pots with all sorts of Lavender, some quite rare which I treat as specimens. Call it a collection if you will. But Lavender does well in pots. It does need watering so do not think you can just plant it in a pot and leave it, it will need a water around once a week but will do well and thrive in the sharp draining conditions. Just make sure you use lots of grit.

So there is always a place for a Lavender plant in every garden. Enjoy the colour, enjoy the scent and enjoy the bees and butterflies that are attracted to it.

An apple a day

The apple trees in the orchard are groaning under the weight of their fruits.  I have never known such a good crop in the time we have been here.  The branches bow under the weight of apples on the trees and the double-U cordons which divide the garden from the orchard.  The orchard is now established and thriving.  The bountiful crop may be due to this being such a hot Summer. 


Certainly the herbaceous planting seems to have gone to seed much earlier this year.  With the nights beginning to draw in and cooling temperatures, it does feel more like a typical September here. But I have my Lavender to extend my Summer and I have begun pruning back into neat, round balls my angustifolia varieties.  These are now faded, their flowers a pale grey reflection of the intense blues of high season.


But now is also a time to plan for next year.  We will be busy moving and dividing plants this Autumn and Winter.  Changing areas, fine tuning others.  But for now we still have time to enjoy the fading joys of what has been a long, hot Summer.