Remember Jungle Jane from last year? Jane is back with us again sharing the changes in her big garden build over the last year.
In case you missed part 1 read it here.
It has been just over a year since we moved back into our house. I am sitting outside on a long summer evening contemplating the work we have done.
It is so true what people say “make sure all your jobs are finished before you move back in or they’ll never get done”. I’m still looking at the same unpainted skirting boards and doors, we will get round to it - one day.
The garden on the other hand, has seen many changes and is beginning to look less like a building site and more like a garden.
The great tree debate of 2018
You may remember from my last blog there was a huge debate over whether to keep the trees or cut them down. We came to a compromise and cut only the trees whose bottoms were dead, or branches were weak. We were able to save quite a few by doing so. We made sure only the trees that were at risk of falling or causing damage in a storm were taken down while new ones will be planted to compensate.
The diggers arrived and the trees were taken down. I have to admit I was delighted with the results. It helped us free a bit more space outside the front door.
We hadn’t really thought about what to do when the trees went and we are left with a lot of dusty muck, which our dog loved but was very messy! We decided to put down some grass seed. The weather was on our side it was quite humid and quite wet, followed by great periods of sunshine, we had a lawn in no time.
A mixture of daffodil and crocus bulbs have been planted around the base of the remaining trees and some tulip bulbs have been planted at the fence so fingers crossed these will come up for us in the springtime.
The Rockery
We planted a good few alpines in the rockery. Some lasted longer than others but they were eventually all eaten. I was reluctant to use slug pelletts but I wanted to make sure there was plenty of food left for the hedgehogs. However, if the alpines come back next year I will have to put something down to try and keep them from the slippery slugs.
One area of success we did have was at the edge of the rockery where I have planted a few small shrubs. We have a gorgeous Hebe mint chocolate, a lavender, which I love the scent of as much as to look at and a lovely blue dianthus amongst others thriving here.
Wild Flower Garden
My wildflower garden has been partly successful. So far there hasn’t been too many flowers, I had some lovely poppies early on in the season followed by some cornflowers. Whilst this area is pleasant and very calm I would hope to see a few more flowers next year. I have enjoyed watching this area grow and waiting to see the different grasses, clover and other plants emerge.
Gifted and end of season bargains!
The most successful plants I have had in the garden has been my end of season bargains that I brought at the end of last summer. My favourite was a Primrose that I set into a stone wall that early on in the year had beautiful purple flowers. It flowered again and again and the colour was striking during the dark winter months.
I also got some Geums, that were quite spectacular in the springtime. I planted some at the back of my flower garden and some in a container at the front of the house which really looked beautiful against the gable of the house.
I planted two really tiny fuchsias that were end of season bargains. I can’t find one of them, but I was really surprised this week to find a flower on the other one, even though it is still tiny.
I was also given some plants and cuttings by a friend which have done extremely well. She gave me two Crocosmia and another plant that I don’t know the name of which has spread tremendously and has many yellow flowers. I was discussing with another friend how well these plants had done and her thoughts were it was because they were given with love!
Christmas Tree
After Christmas this year I went with a tip from Paraic and put my Christmas tree outside to under plant with climbing flowers. I actually really liked the look of the tree even without anything growing through it, it is kept most of the pines and even though they have turned brown it is still a really nice feature. I reckon it will take about eight years worth of Christmas trees to cover the fence.
I planted some sweet pea and some climbing nasturtium seeds under the tree but unfortunately they didn’t come up. I added some sweet pea plants which are finally starting to grow up through the tree. Again by far the most successful plant for the tree has been the yellow flowering plant that was given with love. My sweet peas finally did come up but very late in the season, they so they got pretty battered by the wind and the rain fairly quickly, but they were lovely while they lasted.
New Steps
When I first came to view this house 17 years ago one of the first things I noticed was the lovely stone wall and steps. The house itself was built in a bit of a dip and the steps which were full of character lead up to the front part of the garden. One day during the build I arrived home to find the steps gone to make way for the septic tank. I was absolutely devastated. We have since put some of the blocks from the old cottage to use to make some new stairs. We also use some to make a little herb garden. We also built a little cold frame behind the herbs using a patio door taken from the old cottage. Hopefully we can put this to good use next year.
We have one more task left for this year which is to plant this oak tree which my dad brought over from Liverpool. They have lots of squirrels around their garden that drop acorns everywhere. Dad potted this tree that sprouted from one of the acorns and has been nursing it until it was big enough to bring over to us. I am looking forward planting this tree which will have special meaning for all the family.
So that's it! That's where we are at - not completely finished but certainly a lot closer than last year.
I intend on planting some fruit trees next, I will keep you posted later in the year!
Jane. x