Kathy Brown's Garden

Hot Jelly for Chilly Weather

2011-10-17T16:35:00.000-07:00

One of my favourite shopping expeditions is to visit nearby Olney Market on a Thursday early afternoon, browse the plant stall and visit one of the fruit and vegetable stalls.

My recent quest was red peppers with which to make a spicy preserve reminding me of a tasty jelly I ate thirty years ago made by friends in Hampshire. I can still remember the experience and the joy!

I also loved the very much hotter version which my son Jonathan made at home last year by raiding my chilli hanging baskets. One small part of a jar still remains so that I can try to recreate its sweet but fiery taste. His blog Around Britain with a Paunch is overflowing with exciting cookery experiences.

Over the weekend I made two versions one with red peppers and tomatoes, one with red peppers and chillies. Both were based on strained apple juice made from stewing apples. It is so rich in natural pectin that it makes the jelly easier to set. Besides we still have so many apples that it is a simple way of using them. Sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice and cider vinegar were also added.

The result is a stunning red jelly. The one with chillies certainly has an extra kick, good for those crisp autumnal days that are just around the corner and when winter really starts then every jar provides a clever form of central heating. Both are perfect to accompany game birds or simply delicious with crusty bread and cheese.

The Green Olympics

2011-10-10T02:08:00.000-07:00

I was so lucky to join a coach party of the Garden Media Guild last week who were invited to tour inside the Olmypic Park to see the new planting which has been achieved ahead of the London Olympic Games next year. The transformation is breathtaking in terms of the NEW green landscape complete with prairie meadows as well as bogland plantings all played out with the painterly touch of Sarah Price and others. On the banks in front of the Olympic Village the wafting grasses and asters seem to rise up like the buildings themselves.

My favourite building was the wonderful velodrome shown in the photo above. Although I wish the trees had not been planted to obscure the distinctively beautiful cedar wood cladding, but maybe it was just the view from where our coach was parked.

When you see how clear the new waterways are, but then see how the dredging of the River Lee still continues, then you realise just what a mammoth exercise this all is......from dirty, polluted, sludgy to glistening, sparkly and truly exciting. It is a huge achievement which will benefit thousands of city dwellers and out of town visitors (Westfields is next door) for decades to come.

New French Garden

2011-08-06T16:06:00.000-07:00

Box blight ravaged the formal lines of box which meant the old box parterres disappeared in the spring along with the hornbeam towers. Now lavender lines the path, buzzing with bees and providing a larder for my lemon and lavender drizzle cakes. Fastigiate yew have been planted to provide the accents in the distance. The roses and late flowering clematis on the arbours have done so much better and now down below the agastache perfectly blends with the lavender.

Late flowering clematis are so early this year

2011-06-07T16:17:00.000-07:00

I love this moment when the roses are in bloom with the late flowering clematis. It normally happens here at Stevington in early July but in this extraordinary year, it is happening now and what a delight to see blousy pale pink Constance Spry vying for space with rich red Clematis Madame Julia Correvon. Meanwhile exquisite Clematis Blue Angel with its crinkly edges is juxtaposed with fantastically fragrant richly coloured Rose Mme Isaac Pereire. Elsewhere mysteriously dark almost black Clematis Romantika is blooming amongst bright pink Rose Gertrude Jekyll.

Our National Garden Scheme open evening next week on Thursday June 16th from 6-9pm promises to be a spectacle of roses and clematis.

Add a glass of Pimms or wine, a host of Abba and Beatles songs sung by the Eagle Choir and the evening will be a real treat.

Rose Petal Mugs

2011-05-29T07:07:00.000-07:00

I am so pleased that my very special rose petal cake fine bone china mugs arrived yesterday, made by a Staffordshire firm with a lovely image of my signature rose petal cake on the front complete with recipe on the reverse.

My garden group visitors today were from Estonia and they were the first to drink from them, while sampling the actual rose petal cake. With roses so far advanced and in bloom I am busy making the rose petal butter ready for all my groups.

The mugs will be on sale in my shop along with my rose petal cards and Edible Flower recipe book.

Asparagus for Mother's Day

2011-04-04T11:45:00.000-07:00

We have waited for three seasons and now we have our first crop of asparagus. I am surprised how early it has grown after such a horrid winter. But a few intrepid shoots have grown in the last few days and with a quick flick of the knife we cut three spears and enjoyed one each for our mothering sunday feast! I couldnot help tasting the end of one I trimmed before steaming....it was as sweet as sweet can be. You never notice that if you buy them. Home grown is deffinitely good news as from ground to plate can be within minutes with all the sugars still captured in the succulent spears.

Spring Clean and The end of an Era

2011-04-01T17:04:00.000-07:00

All change! Our French garden which was planted 17 years ago was once a joy but box blight has ravaged the central parterres. So at dawn on Tuesday the dreaded moment arrived and out came the box; so too the hornbeam towers. Fastigiate yew will replace them without the need for trimming twice a year, while lavender will replace the central box on either side of the path. It is a warm, sheltered spot and the lavender will be good for the bees, good for my cakes and will still provide a little French influence.
Elsewhere in the garden ceanothus, buddleja globosa, cistus and solanum glasnevin have all fallen pray to the winter weather. Its a great shame because we are very fond of them all. I just can't imagine May without the glorious blue of Ceanothus so hopefully my replacements will do well.

French Interest in Stevington's Ghostly Birches

2011-03-06T15:00:00.000-08:00

I can't quite believe that our white stemmed Birches Betula untilis var. jacquemontii 'Grayswood Ghost' were purchased as sapplings about twelve years ago. At that time the ghostly hue was nowhere to be seen; only time would tell whether they would prove worthy of the position we had in mind; an avenue running from east to west leading to an ellipse. The decision to buy was taken on their reputation alone. Plus the fact that Bedford itself had many of the species growing as street trees throughout the town.

Last autumn the well known French photographer and bark specialist Cedric Pollet phoned to say he wanted to visit. He came on a glorious sunny autumn day and repeated his visit last week though truth be told the shy was heavy laden, the atmsosphere wringing with rain. Such a shame there was were no low rays of wintry sunshine to emphasise the ghostly glow. But these birches never fail to create an atmosphere of their own and sun or cloud they aare always very special. I wash them with a power hose at the end of January. The green algae goes and the bark radiates.

Thank you Cedric for your photos including the high rise views of the winter garden with its colourful cornus and weeping birches. I look forward to your return visit next year.

© Cedric Pollet; please have a look at his wonderful website: www.cedric-pollet.com

Sticks and Cones

2011-02-15T10:39:00.000-08:00

Using cut foliage and stems to insert into winter contianers is an old idea which I read about in a Victorian container gardening book. It works wonders transforming an otherwise fairly sparse planting scheme into something altogether more attractive and interesting.

Pussy willow, hazelnut with catkins, fiery cornus stems all add their own sort of magic and will last for several weeks just pushed into damp compost. You might even find they have rooted by the time you take them out!

I have lots of spare, very spare, soft green moss in the garden at the moment and have enjoyed weaving it amongst my bulbs and plants in the containers. It makes them look so snug, and the bright green colouring helps to set off the flowers so well.

Fir cones are another good addition, again adding warmth and texture.

All these plants can be bought in the garden centres right now to make instant containers; adding stems, moss and cones really sets them off. They make a little, go a long way.

Our last Winter Tuesday open day is on February 22nd, 12-4pm. Hot drinks and scrummy home made cakes are on offer. Today it was rosemary and orange drizzle, and oh there was carrot cake too.

Feast for Winter Bees

2011-02-08T16:42:00.000-08:00

February 8th has been a lovely warm day, frosty at first but then filled with sunshine; a welcome change from the endless grey days of late plus the roaring winds.

Suddenly I heard a great commotion on the verandah where baskets of hellebores and winter flowering aconites were in full bloom. I noticed not just one, but maybe 8 or 10 honey bees buzzing about from one flower to another, most indignant that I had appeared and interrupted their feast. One bee had a huge sack of pollen; it could hardly move. Weeks of starvation meant that it was determined to go home laden. Our two beehives seem to have survived the winter so far. These have been extreme times for them.

By coincidence I wrote a blog on February 5th last year after noticing the bees on hellebores and snowdrops. Maybe we should collate the information in a survey of winter honey bee sightings, as is done for garden birds!

The sunshine was especially welcome today as this was one of my February Open Tuesdays bringing visitors to see my winter garden. The grasses were magical with their sunny backlight,the cornus stems glistened,and the newly washed white stemmed birches positively gleamed. The aconites were in full flower and the bees obviously enjoyed them.....the snowdrops will follow in the next ten days.

Afternoon tea in January

2011-01-30T11:25:00.000-08:00

Afternoon tea can be fun when new Magi-mix is on hand to make chorizo and olive bread, topped with fennel, goats cheese and hazelnut spread. Sweet extras included giant Ginger Cake with Sparkles and tiny Hearts, orange jelly segments in orange peel cups, Violet jellies with blueberries topped with real violets...yes I was able to pick twelve....with a drizzle of cream laced with violet liqueur.

Star of the show and taste buds though was Hannah's gluten free cake laden with plums and blueberries made specially because of our friend Paula to welcome her back from a long trip to New Zealand.Have a peek at Hannah's blog and all her wonderful books. www.hannahscountrykitchen.blogspot.com

Four of us tucked into a table of treats and thoroughly enjoyed our stolen moment of teatime madness.

Honey Marmalade

2011-01-25T10:52:00.000-08:00

I was busy buying some sweet oranges in Sainsbury's, when I noticed that Seville oranges were available, so I bought a bag and thought I'd make a batch of marmalade and flavour it with our Stevington honey.

I read up my old Mrs Beeton cook book dated 1924, goodness knows how many printruns there had been since it was first published, and saw that she had four orange marmalade recipes. One of them was called Orange Marmalade made with Honey. Her recipe allowed 1lb of honey to every 1/2lb of prepared orange rinds. Then I looked up on the internet and noticed that making marmalade with all honey and no sugar made a soft finish which meant that it didnot set as well. Anyway,not having pounds of honey available, in fact just half a jar, I thought I'd compromise and make the usual mix but add the honey as an extra.

My mum used to make marmalade and I can just see us now, sitting round the large kitchen table, cutting up the rind by hand.

Well my new Magi-mix does it in seconds. It does the juicing well too. So all in all its an easy task. Result: the marmalade set well, the rind is thinly cut, the colour is glorious and the taste is fantastic. Can't wait for Saturday morning to come and try it out with warm toast and fresh brewed coffee for breakfast. Maybe I could make a marmalade honey cake for my February Open Days...Tuesday afternoons when the snowdrops and aconites are out in flower.

My favourite pots: Mirror pots

2010-12-12T17:00:00.000-08:00

One of my favourite plants this summer was a wonderful bronze grass called Pennisetum Rubrum which I fell in love with and planted in a shiny mirror pot. It looked wonderful front lit, back lit, sideways lit...anywhere where sun could shine through its foxy flowers. It isnot hardy so I am trying to over winter it in a frost free greenhouse. I hope it survives. Otherwise I shall have to start again next year. I don't know which I like most, the plant or the pot!

Winter in Narnia

2010-12-10T12:46:00.000-08:00

The hoar frost on Tuesday brought an eerie beauty to the garden. Just over the hedge by the road, the trees in the Great Ouse Valley had all been painted white. John Bunyan the preacher stood with arms outstretched beneath the icy tentacles of the beech tree, while in the Hepworth Garden all the grasses and birch trees were exquisite. It was like a magical brush had swept over the whole area.

Helping Hands at Harvest Time

2010-11-26T16:18:00.000-08:00

Apples have been made into delicious lemony apple curd. It was made by Jonathan home from Sweden see his blog www.http://aroundbritainwithapaunch.blogspot.com.
He also transformed red peppers and chilies into pepper jam; addictively jummy!

Suzie came home from London and used apples to make our Christmas mincemeat which we are looking forward to trying it out soon.

I made crab apple jelly flavoured with rosemary sprigs, and another batch with ginger, mini beetroots and hot chillis. Both preserves taste good with all sorts of foods including soft cheese and cold meats. These medlars are our first crop, really fragrant and soft and delicate. The recipe books are out!

KITCHEN CONTAINERS

2010-09-23T16:19:00.000-07:00

I have really enjoyed my kitchen containers this summer with mustard greens, watercress,corn on the cob, dwarf French beans, courgettes, herbs, tomatoes, chillies, beets, chard, spinach and last but hopefully not least several lots of celeriac.

All made possible by a lovely range of containers made by Harrod Horticultural. The Manger and the raised table bed were super to work with while the bookshelves and ladder systems offered lots of flexibilty.

Some of these veggies I grew from seed, others I purchsed as young growing plants. The watercress came from Sainsburys as growing punnets and happily moved outside for several weeks during late summer. The flowers were as tasty as the leaves!

Oh, forgot the carrots and chard. What a joy to wander outside the kitchen door and pick, and pluck and forage!

The Growing Tastes Demonstrations at RHS Hampton Court Flower Show

2010-07-01T01:00:00.001-07:00

I have lots of groups visiting the garden at the moment both from the UK and abroad including Holland, Germany and Japan. They want to enjoy the garden, of course, the roses have been spectacular, but they also like my cakes.

The idea of sitting on a lovely green lawn, in the shade of a tall walnut tree laden with pretty Rosa 'Pauls Himalayan Musk', sipping tea and devouring moist sponge cakes is hard to beat on a glorious summer day. Rose petal cakes are a speciality of the house, but now the lavender is in flower I am busy making lavender and lemon drizzle cakes as well. The flavour of lavender is subtle but scrummy especially when I add an extra lemony lavender filling in the middle. If you want to try it for yourself visit the garden on any Tuesday afternoon in July and August, tour at 2pm, tea at 3.15-3.30pm.

I am demonstrating at The Growing Tastes Demonstrations at RHS Hampton Court Flower Show at 12.30 and 2.30pm next Thursday 8th July.

Our latest addition in the garden

2010-05-16T16:14:00.000-07:00

We have great news...a new addition to the Manor House Garden with an adorable face and a very waggly tail. She loves to run around the garden, sniffing here and there, biting allium leaves that stray on to the lawn and has a fascintation for blue cornflowers which do the same.

Quite where it will all lead I have no idea but if I turf out a weed she pounces on it and gives it a good shaking. I think she will love the business of tending the garden and is deffinitely a fully appointed member of staff so when people ask how much help do we have the answer is now three. The Head gardener, ie Simon, then there's me and now there is Pandora or Panda for short!Here she is at 8 weeks old, lying in a special puppy nest which has been specially made for her by my friend Helen who has just started making them as a business. Panda certainly loves it...so cosy!

A bleeding heart

2010-05-04T16:55:00.000-07:00

Dicentra spectabilis lives up to its name; pure white, stark, beautiful, a trail of perfection. Its delicate white blooms pair beautifully with the soft subtle pink Narcissus called 'Roseworthy'. An exquisite match for all spring gardens whether in pots or borders.

A swarm of bees in April

2010-04-29T14:41:00.000-07:00

Apparently our bees are close to swarming; is that because we have had a garden full of nectar since our winter garden open day in mid February or because it has been unseasonally dry and warm, perfect I guess for gathering stores?

My brother in law near Plymouth tells the same tale about his bees.

Is it weather or availability of nectar or both? Can you to distinguish the two....except to say we do have a rich store of flowering plants from late winter through to mid autumn.

The Romance of Spring

2010-04-26T23:57:00.000-07:00

I really cherish the bulbs of late April with tulips such as dusky Negrita, perfect with pale blue pansies or the emerging foliage of purple heuchera. Add double pink 'Angelique' to the mix and you have a marriage made in heaven. Another favourite is creamy green Tulip 'Spring Green' (seen here); not easy with white, its too subtle for that, but really beautiful set amidst the soft felty foliage of foxgloves.

Then there are still lots of daffodils such as 'Pipit', 'Bell Song', and soft salmon 'Roseworthy' (seen here) giving such a glorious show, added and abetted by the lime green foliage of golden feverfew, or Bowles Golden Grass.

We have an open day this Sunday; just hope the weather is kind between now and then so that our visitors can enjoy the show.

The Great Escape

2010-04-14T02:28:00.000-07:00

I love growing bellis daisies (double) in baskets and pots at this time of year and enjoy planting the pinks, reds and whites but, most of all, the pinks. Well to my delight they have self seeded in the lawn nearby. Now my husband does not relish daisies in the lawn, single or double! So just before the lawns were cut last weekend, I picked these flowers and have been enjoying them on the kitchen table. Hope more flower before the next cut!

Spring's Sprung at Last

2010-04-11T18:18:00.000-07:00

The week of warm sunny weather has brought great advances to the garden and to all my many pots with fritillarias and hyacinths now flowering wonderfully. Both are excellent longterm choices for containers, coming back year after year. Wild primroses and violets make an ideal combo with the snakeshead fritillarias; all native plants together making this a super idea.

We are spoilt for choice with hyacinth colours; but whether white, pink, blue or mulberry, variegated London Pride makes the perfect topping for a hyacinth hanging basket and will flower its heart out in May, and then retain a quiet dignity until its peak again the following spring.

Blooming Delicious

2010-04-01T04:23:00.000-07:00

Edible flowers? Blooming delicious!From lemon-flavoured daisies to peppery pink dianthus, edible flowers are more than just decoration.

Emine Saner guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 31 March 2010 21.00 BST Article history
Kathy Brown's early spring salad with primroses and violets.

Quite an article.....my garden here at Stevington is bursting with white, pink and blue scented violets as well as beautiful wild primroses.....all so tasty and just right for easter salads, and cakes and roulades etc!
We next open on May 2nd.....see my website for details of all openings.
www.kathybrownsgarden.homestead.com

Two great friends

2010-03-30T15:09:00.001-07:00

Have you ever coveted your neighbour's plants...well yes I have and I own up to it freely. My friend Paula had some gorgeous pink violets growing in her turf besides her drive in Milton Keynes and year after year I looked at them and wanted a root to plant in my own garden. Last autumn my wish came true and Paula gave me a generous root ball and I split it up and planted several groups. This year they have flowered wonderfully.

Another friend, Jennie, came to visit from Sydney bringing three other really good friends of hers as well. It was a sunny clear afternoon and we had an animated walk around the garden, talking publishing of one form or another, and then settled down to afternoon tea. This comprised a delicious violet liqueur Fizz, loads of smoked salmon and asparagus pinwheels, and a large slice of chocolate cake. The cake was soaked with the violet liqueur and topped with a frosting of cream cheese, icing sugar and crystalised violets; but not just any crystalised violets. These were white, purple and yes pink violets! What a treat and what a lovely way to catch up with a very dear friend.

A wholehearted thank you to Paula and Jennie.

MG Car Rally

2010-02-27T10:53:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday we enjoyed the arrival of an MG car rally from Wimpole Hall to Stevington; a 50 mile snowdrop run organised by Cambridge and District MGOC. There were 100 old and new cars, but not all were MGs!

One was a cream 1955 MGTF. One was a 1964 Austin Healey. Another was a 1942 Austin K2 RAF Ambulance complete with four made up beds.

It was a beautiful sunny day and there was lots of chatter in the car park and gardens, not to mention the tea rooms about all sorts and ages of cars.

Did I mention tea rooms! I had made double tier chocolate cakes, sumptuous ginger cakes, goey lemon and violet drizzle cakes and a few violet macaroons in case anyone couldnot eat flour. My last piece of cake disappeared about 4 o'clock. All in all a wonderful day.

Rotating Garden Summer House

2010-02-24T10:29:00.000-08:00

Chris Nicholson brought his rotating sphere over to my garden for the NGS open day as well as our recent MG Snowdrop Rally. We thought it would go rather nicely in front of the white stemmed birches. Even in winter it was a triumph, so how much better in summer? The modern use of aluminium and steel was quite at home amongst the gleaming bark of the ghostly birches, while the softly coloured pine structure looked perfect besides the burnished grasses further to the left.

What are the advantages? Well it rotates to give you the best view on a certain day or season; it can turn to avoid any wind; and it can turn you into full sun or shade depending on your whim. Best of all it takes up very little ground space.

People thought it was a sculpture at first and then realised it had a function; and what a function....to sit and muse, to have a dinner party or even to lounge in. For more information contact Chris tel. 07766 518940 E-mail: chris@stylish-gardens.com Website:www.stylish-gardens.com

Micro gardening

2010-02-16T20:37:00.000-08:00

Hannah Miles of Masterchef fame (see hannahscountrykitchen.blogspot.com) wanted to borrow our gong and in return she gave me six gorgeous fresh eggs; they are unusual because they have a blue tinge. I thought it was time to replant my batch from last year as the shells were beginning to disintegrate. Its surprising how long they had lasted.

But in the meantime Hannah's lovely hens had grown and are now producing really big eggs which is much better for my micro gardening task! It so happens that I was given a super cup cake stand for Christmas and instead of cakes it now has lots of planted eggs on it!

Houseleeks and echeverias adorn the stand; funny really because in the USA echeverias are known as the hen and chicken plant cos of all the little babies around the mother plant.

Honey Bees in Winter Sunshine

2010-02-05T09:33:00.000-08:00

Now I know this photo wasn't taken today, but the honey bees were very boistrious outside the two hives; the warm afternoon air was such a joy for them and me! They were enjoying a little visit to a group of clay pots with single snowdrops, now in flower at last and I also noticed them visiting the white hellebores in our winter walk. What a treat so see them around again.

Washing birches

2010-01-27T20:01:00.001-08:00

Sunday was wash time for the birches as well. We have over twenty white stemmed birches Betula utilis 'Grayswood Ghost' which gather green algae over the year and when we get the power hose out to clean the paviours, (prior to our winter open day, this year on Feb 14th) we also take the hose to the birches and with a powerful jet of water they come up as good as new. It takes about ten minutes a tree, and I get soaked. Its a good job I have wet gear on, but the trouble is the taller they get the higher I have to go with the spray; and you can guess its not a warm job in January!

Wash Sunday! Bird boxes

2010-01-25T02:03:00.000-08:00

Have you heard the birdsong recently? The air is warmer, the birds are singing away and we thought it was time to wash all the nesting boxes. Five out of six had been used last year so thats good news.

It will soon be Valentine's Day when its Open House for birds and all our NGS visitors! For dates and times see www.kathybrownsgarden.com

Our Winter Walk is beginning to wake up at last with snowdrops and aconites and daffodils beginning to push through the dark earth while up above the cornus stems are a gorgeous fiery orange.

Bee News

2010-01-20T12:43:00.000-08:00

Sunday was such a lovely day to garden after all the horrid winter weather we have had over the last three weeks. We were itching to get out and managed to cut down all the japanese anemones in the wisteria walk, plus the late clematis on the arches there and in general weed and tidy it all up...a full days work for the two of us.

And in the middle of it all, along came Chris Lewis with a jar of honey. He had come to inspect his two beehives which he left here in August after our swarm last May (see earlier honey bee post). The snowy weather had stopped him checking before Christmas but now he thought he would see how they were, and, give them some verroa mite treatment.

We were pleased to see that both colonies seemed alive and well and had obviously survived the cold weather. Now we have to wait til spring to see if the hives are then healthy. All very exciting; a whole new world for us to learn about.

Chinese Snow Lanterns

2010-01-10T17:10:00.000-08:00

With or without their snow hats, these Chinese lanterns bring a lovely warm glow to the garden. We could call them Chinese Snow Hats! They grow on a corner of the drive with winter jasmine behind them and the two make a great late autumn/winter combo.

My very own Igloo

2010-01-08T01:44:00.000-08:00

We had thick snow for a whole week before Christmas and with this last blanket predicted to go on well into next week I think I will call the Winter of 2009/2010 the 'Winter of the Igloo'.

This 'Solardome' is over 30 years old, we inherited it when we bought the house. With a 16ft diameter, it is brilliant for housing all my summer tender beauties including cannas, fushsias, tall aeoniums, geraniums, dasylirions etc.etc.

Mind you the heating bill is going to be large. Should I ditch the lot and go back to having only hardy plants??? It might be better for global warming.

Snow Chop, flop or Leave

2010-01-07T02:29:00.000-08:00

The previous set of photos showed a set of frosty sedums. Here are the same sedums with a covering of snow, although now they are in reverse order.

Look closely at the Hepworth garden sedums (with birch trees and grasses behind and sculpture wood) which are weak and weighed down with snow, those are the ones I chopped in May. Now if you enlarge the photo you will see some have flopped badly near the path yet others seem to be upright behind. This is because when I cut them the outer ones were bigger and the central area was smaller so I left those; so the ones I chopped have collapsed, the weaker ones I left have remained intact.

The ones that have split are old clumps which have just been left alone.

The ones with the grasses and house in the distance were planted in 2008 and are bolt upright. They could cope with the heavy snowfall.

Chop, Flop or Leave

2010-01-05T10:47:00.000-08:00

My Sedum specatible in the garden is at various ages. This is a significant factor; so is our heavy clay soil which means everything seems to grow much bigger than any dimensions ever given in an RHS book.

In its first three years here at Stevington, it grows superbly and the winter picture is magnificent whether it bears frost or snow. Year 4+ it splits or flops and looks like the waves of a sea.

Last May I decided to give the Chelsea Chop to one main bed of it, actually part of my Hepworth Garden based on her painting called Green Caves. It quickly re established itself but the flowers were not as big as before nor the stems as strong. This meant that in the December snow they couldnot cope with the weight and twisted and collapsed...quite sad. Now in January with yet more snow they will be even weaker.

Not quite sure what the answer is; maybe the Hepworth weak growth which I chopped last May, will have weakened the plant and I can just leave it alone next year. I know at Coton Manor they weaken the roots by lifting them slightly with a fork. So far I havenot tried that trick...my heavy sticky clay soil is not easy to manage like that.

Truth be told I am enjoying the new planting of 2008 best, its not yet reached that flop stage!

Perhaps we have to replant every three years.

Festive table

2010-01-04T09:36:00.000-08:00

This is a festive table decoration with a difference; the eggs are planted with house leeks and other succulents and then brought inside for the Festive Season along with Chinese lanterns and tangerines. It certainly made a colourful centrepiece for all our family breakfasts.
Happy New Year everyone!

Dreaming of a White Christmas

2009-12-20T15:11:00.000-08:00

I woke up to this scene on Friday morning. The French garden was as pretty as a picture. The winter garden looked like a scene from Scandinavia rather than Bedfordshire!

Ho,ho,ho! All that snow, meant no gardening this weekend. Instead it was a weekend when Jonathan and Sarah and Suzie came home. We went into our neighbours forest and chose our Christmas tree, then carried it home and decked it out with lights and baubels.

Happy Christmas to all who kindly follow this blog and lets hope for some happy gardening moments to share in 2010. But I may well be back before the 31st!

Boogie Woogie Jazz

2009-12-13T18:10:00.000-08:00

Its fun to see the Mondrian Garden as night falls when the LED lights begin to cast their coloured light and shadows. I call it my Boogie Woogie Dance Floor complete with Manhatten towers made of Calamagrostis 'Overdam'. I last wrote about this on November 6th 2008, just a few months after it was completed and planted; the photograph looks so different now that the grasses have matured.

The Cradle of Law in Hare Court

2009-12-11T16:24:00.000-08:00

I was invited to create a new garden design for Hare Court, next Temple Church in the Inner Temple. One could scarcely be given a more historic site!

We quickly cleared the dark ugly conifers and replaced them with pockets of yew to create simple organic domes of dark and golden green; four white stemmed trees were planted to commemorate the lives of Nicholas Hare and his three brothers, all of whom belonged to the Inn during the latter half of the sixteenth century and after whom the Courtyard was named. A new path was added in Purbeck stone to echo those laid after the Great Fire in 1666.

Then we invited Tanya Russell to design a sculpture reflecting the space and she chose the concept of cuppped hands cradling the law and she named it 'Justice'. The yews and trees are beginning to make more impact now and as they grow they will soften the courtyard and provide a soft, sinuous cushion for this powerful piece of contemporary art. What a wonderful project to be involved with!

Rosemary Flower Risotto

2009-12-03T05:12:00.000-08:00

This was a floral feast for early December! Melting risotto, beautiful soft Queen scallops, a handful of peas and a few snatches of spinach made this a memorable dish for Sunday lunch with family and friends.
BUT, here's the floral twist! Add to all that creamy softness, a scattering of aromatic (like the herb itself) pale blue blooms of rosemary and a sprinkling of tasty (like aniseed) bronze fennel flowers. Both of these are still in flower, in my edible flower border, even though winter is fast closing in. The result: a dish fit for any occasion where texture, fragrance, colour, vision and above all taste come together in a miraculous way.

Ultramarine Diamond

2009-11-21T15:46:00.000-08:00

On a recent visit to the Phillips Collection in Washington, I found myself mesmerized by this painting dated 1967. It was by Jack Youngerman. Was it the depth of colour, the vibrancy, the symmetry, the clean shape? Was it that I saw a wonderful floor to a modern pavilion, a mural, a rill, a grass parterre? Only hours before I had been researching the garden archives at Dumbarton Oaks where so many wonderful ideas were executed to the highest degree.

Checking the Stevington Bees

2009-11-21T15:43:00.000-08:00

In May 25,000 bees flew into our garden, just when we had an Open Day. It caused quite a stir! Chris Lewis, our local beekeeper came to the rescue and collected the swarm. He housed it elsewhere for a couple of months and then in August he brought it back with another hive. Now he comes at regular intervals to check them.

So our hive had 25,000 bees to begin with (obviously I took his word for it!) then apparently it grew to 50,000; now its down to 10,000. That's normal apparently, reflecting summer excess and winter poverty of food.

It so happens that I noticed lots of larger bees buzzing around the hives the other day, not going in at all. Apparently the queen chucks the males out at the onset of winter as she doesnot want them eating all the precious honey. Seems a very tough regime to me!

Chris donned his suit, took off the netting and then inspected inside the two hives. The netting apparently is to stop woody woodpecker reaching the honey; he doesnot like putting his feet on the wire so he goes away. Well, if it isn't wasps in Summer, its woodpeckers or badgers in winter; maybe even muntjac deer. The netting went back on, the bricks went on top of the netting and all was well with the hives. Its fingers crossed now that they are still healthy in March. Good job there are no brown bears around!

Stevington Floral Ice Bowls for Visit Bedford

2009-11-18T11:12:00.001-08:00

After my Visit Bedford visitors had left, I popped the ice bwols back in the freezer where they might wait for a special occasion...should it be for orange liqueur ice cream, or a chilled soup. The marigold bowl had marigolds, bayleaves, rosehips and rosemary around the sides with juniper berries and pumpkin seeds for good measure. I love it from the inside just as much as from the outside. The rose bowl had little roses, a sprig of lavender and even a few violets. Now I have been asked to do an edible flower demonstration for some American Visitors to Bedford next May from ASTA (American Society of Travel Agents). That should be easier than November, but there will be no roses!

Rose Petal Macaroons for Visit Bedford

2009-11-09T10:57:00.000-08:00

On Saturday morning we welcomed over 60 representatives of tourist groups from the West Midlands and East Anglia as part of a 'Visit Bedford' weekend. Luckily, it was a beautifully clear, sunny morning and Simon was able to take two tours of the garden, relishing the autumn colours but also bringing in many local historical aspects from Danes to John Bunyan!

My task was to perform an edible flower demonstration....quite a feat for November 7th! I had previosuly frozen some rose petal butter, and also frozen whizzed up rose petals with icing sugar. Now out of the freezer, all I needed to do was add some rose water to make the actual icing. Fortunately lots of tiny roses were still blooming on Rosa 'The Fairy' so, once the cake was assembled and iced, I was able to arrange them all around the pretty plate.

I had a little icing left over, so I put a tiny spot on some rose petal macaroons I had made with rose water, icing sugar, coconut and egg white (they are always a good standby as they are wheat free). Into each tiny spot of icing I placed a rose bud; they looked so gorgeous I could hardly believe we were in November!

I made another plate of them today so that I could take a photo and then gave them to a dear friend whose birthday it was so that she could enjoy a special birthday treat with her grandchildren Poppy and Sam. Apparently they loved them!

I also created a couple of ice bowls with roses, violets and rosemary and another with marigold flowers, bay leaves and berries. Plus some pretty violet flower ice cubes for violet fizz made with violet liqueur (such a heady perfumed drink, its unbelieveable), and tiny rose petal ice cubes to add to rose 'sparklers' made with rose liqueur and Prosecco. Then, I made a full blown Bloody Mary with rosemary ice cubes, each with a sprig of rosemary each holding an exquisite tiny pale blue flower. Needless to say my guests enjoyed tasting them all!

In the afternoon I joined the group at Elstow Abbey where they enjoyed the tales John Bunyan's younger days.

Misty morns and misty cows

2009-11-07T09:47:00.001-08:00

We have some wonderful views from the garden looking out into the wider North Bedfordshire landscape where the River Great Ouse, meanders slowly through the rich meadows, where herons swoop and cattle gaze. On a late autumn morning, powerful changes emerge, with misty shrouds and ephemeral cows. Here in the garden, even the fountains are transformed, with vapours rising as dawn breaks. Just click on the photos to enjoy the atmospheric swirls!

Russet reds of autumn

2009-11-05T10:39:00.000-08:00

I have been to New England and back, but nowhere were the colours as good as in my own back yard! True I don't have the gorgeous reflections in broad rivers, or tranquil lakes, but here in Old England we do have a super range of foliage tints. Here at Stevington, we have heavy clay soil and so I can never enjoy the rich reds of the maples or American oaks, but gingko and metasequoia certainly come up trumps, the first with their golden lobes and the second with its ferny sprays of orange mixed with shades of pink.

Fiery Crab Apple Jelly

2009-09-11T03:40:00.000-07:00

The trees are groaning with fruit right now and we have a mission this weekend to make crab apple jelly....its delicious and such a gorgeous colour when 'John Downie' crab apples are used. I have been growing chillies in hanging baskets, right besides the kitchen door. Some of them will be added to the crab apple mixture, to provide extra fire, and give zingy tang to winter feasts.

Chelsea Chop or Flop

2009-09-10T08:00:00.001-07:00

Last May I cut back great swathes of sedum in the garden, a third off every stem. Soon all the stems were re-shooting and now they are coming into flower and the bees are loving them. I shall certainly do it next year...stop the flop, give it the chop!

Which echincea? Cone or not?

2009-09-10T07:36:00.000-07:00

We have lots of echinaceas to choose from these days and they all have merits; but if well grown 'White Swan' takes some beating. 'Fatal Attraction' is one I absolutely cherish for its wonderful dark stems and rich deep pink flowers but 'White Swan' has more prominent cones and what is more they hold their form well into the autumn and winter, unlike those of 'Fatal Attraction' which soon disintegrate. 'Green Envy' is certainly a talking point and one which seems to flower very well. As for winter cones, I can't remember!

A busman's holiday in Berlin

2009-09-04T14:36:00.000-07:00

In August Simon and I attended a gardening course in Berlin which followed the recent German love affair with herbaceous plants and grasses. But we couldnot go all that way without a visit to the fantastic Garden Park of Sanssouci built for Frederick the Great. The project began on 10 August 1744 and fulfilled his wish to create a series of vine terraces. It is an incredible feat of engineering with convex centres to maximise the sun light .

It is our great luck that the garden has recently been restored with vines growing along the top of each terrace, in low fashion, while tall vines are trained up each tier of the supporting walls,all interplanted with figs.

The Great Fountain was built in 1748 and the marble statues were added soon afterwards.

It looked incredible from the top. It looked incredible as we walked down all the steps (well over 100) and looked even more incredible from down below looking back up the hillside. I loved the curved centres of the terraces, and the curves of the sweeping steps. The yew pyramids acted as great counterpoints.

The bees have returned

2009-08-07T14:46:00.001-07:00

Three or four inches of rain fell yesterday afternoon and evening. We were expecting Chris Lewis to bring two hives of bees, but wondered whether he would prefer to leave them for another day.

But, no, at 8.30pm he arrived...in dank, dark conditions. We had placed five large slabs in readiness besides the native species hedge. Out came the hives. They were placed on bricks, then the straps taken off and the front entrance unplugged. Our Stevington swarm from the end of May had returned! They were really active, we were told. The other from Great Staughton was altogether smaller and quieter.

This afternoon I went to get a photo. Wow..the noise, the hum, the activity. I wasnot going too close! Our swarm was the one on the right.....there was masses of activity and a very loud buzz. Let's hope they want to stay!

Humpty Dumpty

2009-08-06T15:17:00.000-07:00

As if a Mondrian Wall is not enough to hide the compost bins, we now have Humpty Dumpty sitting on top...all a remarkable tribute by two x Bedford School boys; the first by our son Jonathan executed some 9 years ago; and the second by Neil Burley who rose to the challenge made only three weeks ago at Hampton Court Flower Show to produce Humpty Dumpty in time for our Mad Hatter's Tea Party. No sooner said than done! What a fantastic talent for someone who has never ever undertaken a commission before. I can't believe this will be his last!

Who stole the Tarts

2009-08-06T15:07:00.000-07:00

Our Mad Hatter's Tea Party meant that we had croquet on the lawn, although the flamingoes barely stood still, let alone the hedgehogs. Meanwhile tea trays were flying through the air. All very bizarre. We had lots of fantastic paintings around the garden and also in the Church Rooms where the feast and play took place. Star of the feast were the Jam Tarts which of course were stolen. Actually all 72 of them were very kindly and lovingly made by Hannah's Mum.

Mad Hatter's Tea Party

2009-08-06T14:44:00.001-07:00

Saturday Ist August came and went like a dream with a feast and play for 55 people! The Mad Hatter's Tea Party theme created a wonderful atmosphere with lots of our guests dressing up in hats and costumes. White roses were painted red, and adorned the two long banqueting tables with pink flamingoes, rabbits disppearing down rabbit holes, mouses in a pool of tears, gravel cup cakes, etc etc all created by the fantastic Masterchef finalist Hannah Miles, was amazing. The theme of the play was who stole the tarts. Simon was the fearsome judge,I was the Queen of Hearts, Suzie was Alice, a friend called Paula was the White Rabbit and three great players from a local amateur drama group were the MC, the Mad Hatter and the doormouse. Oone of our guests called Danny was the Knave and two small children called Belina and Theo were the guards. Hannah of course played the cook.

Peacock butterflies and honey bees in our Monet and Hokusai borders

2009-08-03T14:14:00.000-07:00

This has been a magical weekend with bees and butteflies in great numbers visiting the verbenas, buddlejas, blue geraniums and echinaceas.

These photos were taken in our Monet waterlily borders where Echinacea 'White Swan' represent the white waterlilies in Monet's painting in Tate Modern and the blue Gernaium 'Rozanne' represents the water beneath.

Elsewhere in the wild flower meadow the scabious and knapweeds are alive with insects. A fabulous show of native insects enjoying native food.

Yet to walk through the Hokusai borders is mesmerising beyond belief...it brings tears to my eyes every time; flights of Painted Ladies and cabbage whites, meadow browns and common blue just lift off into the air, soaring and fluttering above supping, tasting, feasting on the Verbena bonariensis; so fantastic...like walking through a dream. It is a butterfly wonderland. Free and fantastic.

Alvis come to Stevington

2009-07-29T16:33:00.000-07:00

A group of Alvis car fanatics came on a garden visit in mid July and we enjoyed them parked in our front drive; made in Coventry, several dated from the 1930s. According to the Alvis Club website 'They were relatively expensive when new, competing in the upper end of the market, and were not produced in large numbers, thus they are very exclusive. Performance, appearance and finish are all well above the levels found in run of the mill cars. Whilst other makes are better known and more instantly recognised, there is an air of quiet good breeding about an Alvis which expresses its owner's taste.' They certainly graced our garden that day!

Mad Hatter's Tea Party

2009-07-26T11:09:00.000-07:00

For our Mad Hatter's Tea Party next Saturday we are going to dress up and act out the trial scene about who stole the tarts with the Red King, White Rabbit etc all wearing glorious hats. Over 50 people are coming to the party and we will have the most exotic tea with Dodo egg delights, Eat Me Stuffed Mushrooms,Fish footman “Dear Little Crab” tarts,Down the Rabbit Hole Cupcakes,Pocket Watch cupcakes, Eat Me Cakes,Looking glass biscuits etc etc all made by Masterchef finalist, Hannah Miles. It promises to be an amazing adventure!

Deep Dark Clematis

2009-07-20T16:19:00.000-07:00

Two of our favourite 'late flowering' clematis are out right now...angular Romantika and rounded Miegritianka both with an array of dusky jewels. They vie with Black Prince to be the darkest of them all....but there are also a host of others, light blue, purple, cream, yellow, pink etc. to be seen on our Tuesday openings in July or on our Open Day on August 2nd.

Bee heaven

2009-07-18T17:13:00.000-07:00

Echinops sphaerocephalum Arctic Glow is really attractive to bees and on a warm day each spiky globe will probably have three or four different types supping the nectar.

We call these echinops 'golf balls' here, easy to see why with the Open Championship well under way, but the latin name translates as hedgehog and its easy to see why. They have self seeded amongst the gravel to form a great colony beneath the white stemmed birch trees and they make an impressive display.

All sorts of honey and bumble bees visit them including carder bees, orange bottom, and white bottom types. We saw a hornet there earlier in the week.

Nigella papillosa African Bride

2009-07-14T16:01:00.001-07:00

Nigella papillosa African Bride comes out slightly later than the usual blue love in the mist. Self seeding every year between two white stemmed birches, it is as much an 'eye catcher' in flower, as it is when it holds its amazing seedheads aloft. A winner either way.

Wimbledon

2009-07-02T12:24:00.000-07:00

I always love Wimbledon fortnight. I used to work at the Bank of England and one of the perks was to sometimes be lucky enough to receive entry tickets to Wimbledon (preliminary matches were held on the Bank of Englnad tennis courts at Roehampton). How I revelled in the excitement of John Mc Enroe and Bjorn Borg etc etc. Well, now I have my own tennis racket planted up! Is any one else that MAD! It will be even better next year when it has filled out a bit. Roll on Murray!

Creepy Crawly Insect Cakes

2009-07-02T12:13:00.000-07:00

Imagine my delight yesterday to be given a wonderfully exciting tray of fairy cakes which Mary, the cookery teacher at Lincroft school had used as a demonstration to show the children how they could use garden insects as a decoration. Caterpillars and spiders were to look delicious! Their recent visits to my garden had made even the teachers think about garden life! More to come!

sunset

2009-07-01T18:06:00.000-07:00

After the soaring heat of the day, how refreshing it was to enjoy the soft, exquisite light on the stipa giganteas and white echinops beneath the white stemmed birch trees which lie to the fore of the wild flower meadow. Here the bales of hay were alight just like the church tower in the distance. Then as the red ball of fire dropped below the horizon, the pale blue scabious were at their most delicate.

Sharing my garden with school children

2009-06-30T13:48:00.001-07:00

Today was very unusual for me. My groups werenot a horticultural society, or flower arranging club as is so often the case. No, today my groups were Year 5 and 6 school children from nearby Lincroft School in Oakley (a middle school) which is quite simply one of the best in the county. Such enthusiasm for life, such eagerness to learn, and so creative.

The first group were here on a science outing, looking at the garden to understand how the plants reproduce. Well we normally think about insects don't we...bees and moths etc and we saw plenty of bees supping on foxgloves and honeysuckle. But as it happens, four crack willows on our western boundary are shedding their seed at the moment in clouds of cotton like balls, so that they are spread 'down wind' for 300-500 metres, may be more. Then there are animals and humans, one and the same thing maybe for whenever I pull all the foget me nots out at this time of year I always come away with seed all over my jumper. The same with goose grass seeds!

But one of the most memorable sights that day were the peony seedheads, pregnant and swelling, but still with their red styles intact. The peony concerned was Scarlet o'Hara, one of the best! My thanks to Russell Kearsley for this photograph.

The morning ended with the children drawing lots of seedheads and there were such interesting shapes...peonies (with pink styles attached as shown), honesty, alliums (with tiny white styles attached), foxgloves with long styles, aquilegias, cranesbills etc etc.

In the afternoon another class came with their dance teacher. She asked them to look at shapes in the garden, colours, movement etc and before we knew it the children had identified all sorts of fantastic ideas which were to be the core of a dance they are to perform to the rest of the school. A Boogie Woogie terrace dance floor based on Mondrians famous painting was certainly fertile ground. 'S' in the French garden, 'Z' in the sunken pit, 'V' in the walnut tree were also much discussed....I wonder how they will interpret it all.

So if you ever want to see a garden through 'new' eyes, just look at it with a child. Quite simply my garden will never be the same again. What a wonderful day!

25,000 Visitors

2009-05-30T08:47:00.001-07:00

Imagine the scene. Last Bank Holiday Monday was fine and sunny. We had lots of visitors for our late spring open day to see eight dreamy arches in the Wisteria Walk draped in laburnum, wisterias, robinias and clematis, all underplanted with glorious purple alliums. Rose petal sponge, and lavender-lemon drizzle cake teas were being served on the lawn...all was well with the world.

Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves....when 25,000 visitors flew in from the north west and made a bee line for the orchard. It was Bedlam with bees buzzing everywhere amongst the orchard trees over exactly the route that all our visitors came in by, except now some were leaving by that same route! One of them said to me, better call a beekeeper. Simon happened to be passing and I relayed the message. He rushed inside...but how do you phone a beekeeeper????

118 500 did the trick.....yes I have several in Nottinghamshire! Shall I put you through? Yes please.......several seconds later the beekeeper answered....Simon explained that we had an open day here, and there was a swarm of bees in the orchard, maybe with just a hint of panic in his voice! The person at the other end of the phone giggled and she repeated Simon's comments, and there was much guffawing in the background. She then told him that she was the landlady of the Beekeeper Inn and wasnot a beekeeper at all!!!! No doubt the customers that day are still chortling!

So that avenue closed, but thanks to Google the Bedfordshire Beekeepers site soon emerged and after several attmepts to find someone at home, Simon manged to find a real beekeeper only three miles away at Milton Ernest....and fifteen minutes later a super man called Chris Lewis came to save our day!

He made Simon dress in a beekepers outfit and soon they were cutting down branches of the cherry tree where the bees had now settled. A large box was then held underneath the swarming 25,000 bees (Chris reckoned that was the figure) and with a sharp shake of the tree the swarm fell off and the box was left on the floor whiltst the bees settled.

Apparently late that evening they were already making honey!

A moveable House for Eeyore

2009-04-27T01:03:00.001-07:00

I want to encourage children and mums and dads and grandparents, so that they can all have fun on an outing together in the garden. Simon and I are big fans of all Winnie the Pooh stories, so we thought we would make a Winnie the Pooh trail. We kept a lots of cuttings from the willows and cornus in late winter, ready to make Eeyore's new house.

Yesterday, Simon masterminded seven fence old posts to make the A frame and then I had the easy task of tacking on green and yellow stems. It doesnot look that dense a covering in the photos but then I didnot want it to be dark inside, just enough of a structure to make children want to explore.

Winnie came to see Eeyore in the evening and I think they were both very happy. They hatched a plan to invite all the 'other friends' to visit on Sunday and have a lovely picnic and games together.

English Bluebells

2009-04-25T16:29:00.000-07:00

Late evening sunlight, shafting through a blue bell wood, must be one of the loveliest sights in England. A dreamy place to be especially at the end of a busy day. But made even more so by the route to and fro. For the meadows were full of ladysmock and two pure white swans performed a special flypast for us before swooping and curling down to the river.

spring flowers for pots and baskets

2009-04-22T18:03:00.000-07:00

This is a wonderful time of year for spring colour in containers. Pots of cerise Parrot tulips, baskets of vivid blue muscari, and lots of different pots of daisies and violas are all looking wonderful in the spring sunshine. Evening light is particularly magical.

The Green Green Box of Home

2009-04-22T17:54:00.000-07:00

The box is fast putting on new growth and looks so so green. In fact,unbelievably green. At the same time the hornbeam towers and hedge are just coming into leaf. The whole effect is an explosion of green. Spring green!

box blighty

2009-04-22T17:28:00.000-07:00

Fifteen years ago we planted the box parterres in our formal garden. Over the last three years, sad signs of box blight have appeared in the upper portion and various attempts to conceal and replant have gradually failed. So last weekend we decided to remove about fifty plants and try and make good a repair at the beginning of one of the 'S' designs.

It was a huge task, but by the end of Sunday the job was complete with new membrane down, all concealed with gravel.

cottage garden shade

2009-04-15T18:29:00.000-07:00

The Easter Weekend gave us chance to renew an area in our cottage garden which had become overgrown by a rampant evergreen honeysuckle climbing up a wooden arbour and from there into a laburnum. Indeed, it threatened the laburnum itself as well as all the other plants on an arbour, and all those trying to survive beneath the laburnum. An unusual arrow leaved ivy seemed to be the main survivor as ground cover along with some sweet cicely, aconites and sweet woodruff.

We cut down all twenty five feet of the rampaging evergreen honeysuckle and took it out by its roots. Then we reduced two other honeysuckles growing on the arbour to just a metre hoping they would regrow and, in time, once more provide a fragrant entrance to the cottage garden.We also thinned part of the laburnum and removed most of the ivy. The ground below was very very dry so we added two big loads of juicy, wormy, home made compost and now its ready for planting.

Various hellebores, aquilega, foxgloves, lily of the valley, geraniums and ferns will all be happy here, so I plan to split many of these plants from other areas of the garden or retrieve seedlings. Its always fun having a new area to plant up and over the next two weeks I should have filled the gaps although I might leave one or two just in case there are any special delights to buy at Malvern Show!

Mothering Sunday treat

2009-03-31T04:20:00.000-07:00

Jonathan and Sarah came home for Mothering Sunday and we invited Hannah Miles and her mum and Mike, and friends John and Jane for afternoon tea.....who ever thought that people don't eat sandwiches, scones, and cakes any more! The simnel cake was a throw back to my childhood when it was alawys a tradition at Easter or Mothering Sunday to have a fruit cake filled with layers of marzipan and then decorated with primrose and maybe violets. Well this time I soaked the fruit in tea for a few hours, then made a marzipan mixture adding violet liqueur, and hey presto it was delicious. We had great fun....a real tea time sharing treat.

Violets

2009-03-29T11:54:00.000-07:00

Violets are one of my favourite flowers at this time of year; tiny but so sweetly scented and lovely for flavouring jelly, roulades, vinegars etc. I have had great fun preserving some. It will be interesting to see whether the blue or white have the better flavour. But look at the blog below and just see the vinegar change colour after one day.

Violet vinegar

2009-03-29T11:47:00.001-07:00

Some violets are blue, others are white, steeped in a light vinegar you can enjoy the flavour right through the year. Mix with a little oil and you have a dressing fit for a banquet.

Dusky delights from a memorable garden

2009-03-18T18:00:00.000-07:00

I am in the middle of one of my favourite jobs; creating the planting plan for a client's new garden! An oval green oak arbour is to be a major features, and as it mellows with age it will turn a silvery grey.

I have a vision of claret vines scrambling up the pillars and over the top; large, dusky, dark, velvety leaves turning crimson in the autumn; and all the while, stunning with sunlight shafting through the gaps and backlighting the leaves. Peachy, apricot roses such as A Shropshire Lad might provide contrast inbetween them.

For extra special interest, the double Clematis called 'Mary Rose' Clematis viticella flora plena, will clamber up as well.........such softness, almost indescribable colouring somewhere between blue and purple. We have grown it here at Stevington for a number of years. But at Wollerton Old Hall in Shropshire www.wollertonoldhallgarden.com I saw it in early July eighteen months ago, trained over a low oak structure fence. I was mesmerised.

The silvery oak and dusky flowers was a partnership made in heaven. The garden's owner Lesley Jenkins, has a wonderful painterly eye. I hope I can capture this combination again; on the arbour. Its certainly worth a try.

Drawing emotion from Hokusai

2009-03-09T03:33:00.001-07:00

I imagine that when the Japanese artist, Hokusai carefully crafted his Great Wave off Kanagawa as a woodcut in the 1830s, little did he think that a garden designer in Western Europe would try to capture the emotion in the image. For me the cresting seedheads of the miscanthus are like the foaming waves breaking into claws and having planted very tall miscanthus on either side of a grass path, it feels like walking through a giant wave, each side tossing and turning in the breeze.

In the second woodblock shown here called Fuji Seen From the Sea, dated 1834, the tension is shown through the fine lines which create the force of the wave. I think calamagrostis and miscanthus stems echo this linear force and I love to draw the comparison between his art and our style of gardening. Yesterday's cull (see blog below) bought a joy of its own....destructive yes, but working with these beautiful stems was a pleasure in itself.

Annual Cut of Grass

2009-03-09T03:29:00.001-07:00

It was certainly breezy yesterday as we started our annual cut of our Hokusai Grasses. It was so sad to do it as the garden still looked fantastic, just as it had for the last six months since the miscanthus started to flower. But cut it we must or else it would never regenerate as we want it to.

I put on my gloves, roped the grasses, and then Simon used the hedgetrimmer to slice them off. We carried them away, and in between sleet storms we cleaned the gravel, as best we could, of all the debris.

Now we look forward to the new growth emerging over the next few weeks. By May/June the blue salvias which line the edge will be in flower, so will the calamagrostis and stipas. The various miscanthus including the two giants 'Goliath' and 'Professor Richard Hansen', as well as 'Silber Feder' and shorter 'Flamingo' will start to flower in September.

This sort of gardening is like a wonderful crescendo.....waiting expectantly for the high point; I love it at every stage but from Saturday to Sunday there was certainly a dramatic change!

Snowdrop Magnet

2009-03-01T17:57:00.000-08:00

Snowdrops appear so fragile, elegant, clean, pure and yet have braved the coldest of wintry weathers. No wonder we love them.

Ornamental grasses get the Snip

2009-03-01T17:53:00.000-08:00

Sunday's job has been to clear the large area around the Hepworth garden. We have cut several pampas, geraniums, solidago; we have pruned various buddlejas, eleagnus Quicksilver, and cornus; then we tackled the main 'Green Caves' area itself (shaped on Barbara Hepworth's geometric painting of the same name); over twenty sedums, over thirty small grasses, as well as a dozen calamagrostis of two sorts, and ten miscanthus were cut and cleared; then we raked and hoovered; it now looks so much bigger. The good news is that the wonderful Hepworth shapes sing out again, set against the backdrop of the green slate.

Slowly over the next seven months, the plants will grow and flower, masses of bees and hopefully butterflies will visit, and once again the garden will reach its full glory. We enjoyed coffee, lunch and tea on the bench! It was fantastic to feel the sun's warmth again!

Pretty lady

2009-02-28T11:10:00.001-08:00

Would you rather have this pink and white hellebore or the luscious dark one? I love the first but find mystery in the second. The double one is so pretty and perfect with snow white snowdrops and silver birch in the background; the second is deeply exciting draped against dark ophiopogon. Thats what I love about gardening...we don't have to choose; we can have both! The ophiopogon and pink cyclamen are not shown in the picture, perhaps they might be tomorrow! They are certainly there in the garden!

Time to sit and chat

2009-02-28T10:55:00.000-08:00

I am often asked do I ever sit out and enjoy the garden. Well, today we have both been working hard cutting back the ornamental grasses and pampas in the white stemmed birch avenue and beyond. But at lunch time we sat amongst the aconites beneath the lime trees and dined on delicious bread and cheese with home made chutney. Coffee was enjoyed in another spot and tea in yet another. Yes we do take pleasure in the garden, especially at 'tea breaks'. Then its time to just sit and chat, and savour all the sights around us!

The winter garden has been super this weekend...pity it was not like it on our open days...it should have been, but the insistent snowy blasts meant that flowering was delayed...all the early daffodils are out now, coinciding with aconites and snowdrops, early primroses and fragrant sarcocccoca....such a joyous collection of bright golds, creamy yellows, whites, greens etc etc. Patches of dark hellebores, cyclamen and black ophiopogon add a more dangerous, darker touch.

Positive Voids in the Garden

2009-02-24T15:55:00.000-08:00

Forms, colours, heights, densities are all part of a garden make-up but how often do we ever study the voids? I often think the spaces around a plant, or leaf or seedhead are as important as the plant material itself. The void may be black and intensify the form of the plant. Or the void may be light and allow the eye to travel beyond the plant and through towards the middle of the bed, adding depth, mystery and a sensuousness. The void may be disected by small parts which act like a veil, creating detailed patterns which allow light to penetrate. This can create restlessness, fragmentation, looking for detail, minutiae of plant material. The use of ornamental grasses and seedheads often accentuate these responses, so too bare branches and twigs and catkins. The dessicated Chinese Lanterns are a simple example. Exquisite in form, mysterious with a barely hidden secret in the centre (see photo on Feb 19th).

Oscars in the Garden

2009-02-22T14:25:00.000-08:00

Who deserves an Oscar in the garden?
Well, what could be prettier, be more productive, or be so versatile, than an apple tree? Glorious blossom in spring, fruit in autumn, pies and juice all year! Even better when there are eight of them including four different varieties. Simon has been busy pruning them for the last few weekends and has now brilliantly completed the task! Meanwhile I have been mulching the clematis, well I have made a start; twenty five down, probably another hundred to go. Thats a lot of compost!

Chinese lanterns

2009-02-19T15:20:00.000-08:00

As the winter months lengthen some amazing shapes become apparent. Chinese lanterns slowly dissolve as orange tissue melts away leaving delicate veining; in some lanterns an orange ball is revealed.

My Valentine Walk

2009-02-16T11:35:00.000-08:00

One of the great things about opening the garden is that there always lots of lovely surprises. Three friends who came yesterday were known to me through my garden design course in Oxford and it was super to see them again and just catch up! Meanwhile Ness, my second cousin came with large camera firmly attached and proceded to take hundreds of photos pure delight radiating from her face! She is relatively new to photography but seems to have a wonderful eye. This is one of her images showing my 'heart' trail which led round the major 'winter display' areas in the garden showing the white stemmed birches, coloured cornus, shiny willows etc etc. To see more of her photos go to Flickr link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/32387138@N06/

Valentine Baskets

2009-02-11T08:38:00.000-08:00

Its been quite a day so far. At 7.15am I was climbing up a very long and lonely icy hill, praying that no one was coming in the opposite direction; only to reach a main road and then be caught in three miles of traffic.

Off to the wholesale florist to buy Valentine items to decorate my baskets for sale on Sunday's open day only to find myself in a five mile queue on my return, and then nearing home every time I tried to head for Stevington I hit a Police Road Closed sign....four different locations to be exact. Floods or sheets of ice were the reasons. Arrived home safely at last and had the best cup of coffee ever. Broke up lots of ice on the drive, cleared some snow in the Winter Walk and then thought I'd decorate my lovely baskets.

Hope you enjoy them. Notice the primroses have all hearts too! Even my hedgehogs are joining the fun!

Horse shoes

2009-02-11T08:20:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd share two garden designs I am working on at the moment. They both have two unusual elements which have little to do with 'normal gardening'!

The first involves a wonderfully large oval arbour to be draped in claret grapes and made of green oak. The trees will be felled in a wood near Ampthill next week.

The floor of the oval arbour is to be created using reclaimed Brazilian slate; with a pattern of Brazilian slate setts running through the outer paving.

Now my client adores riding and has horses of her own, so we thought it would be fun to use the shapes of horseshoes in a special central design. Horseshoes are made up pricipally of two ovals so the patterns should work out beautifully. I have drawn up several options and we will decide on Friday. The whole project promises to be very exciting.

Giant clocks

2009-02-11T08:09:00.000-08:00

The other unusual design element involves a courtyard garden for a Care Home where new paving has been laid and raised beds have been built ready for planting next month.....to everyone's shock I have had the walls painted a Suffolk pink.....where it once was dominated by cracked concrete and dirty pebble dash, it now looks so inviting.

When the Olive tree goes in surrounded by lots of fragrant and old fashioned plants I think it will be a real haven for the elderly residents. I can't wait to see the roses and thymes and lavenders in flower, the echinaeas in bloom with lots of butterflies fluttering around, and seedheads for birds in the autumn.

There is a flying corridor across the centre of the courtyard where I would like to introduce a large awning to provide welcome shade and a friendly almost holiday feel. And right above on both sides of this flying coridor I want to fix a clock; well a giant clock to be exact. Outdoor clocks can be 90cm across which is all good news if your eyesight is fading!

It should be all done by the time the weather warms up and sitting and snoozing outside can be a way of life again.

A Posy for Valentine's Day

2009-02-10T10:03:00.000-08:00

I thought I would cheer myself up and think of fantastically fragrant flowers which can be picked and made into a posie for a friend and maybe placed in a little vase on a bedside table.

Or they could be lightly brushed with egg white and sugar and then used to make a sumptuously soft sweet roulade...rolled up with violet liqueur cream, some violet jelly maybe, and topped with lightly coated sugared violets...the real deal, no air miles, straight from the garden.

Actually I made a violet roulade ten days ago for Annie who came to visit, yes before the snow arrived. We devoured part of it and the remainder has been squirrelled away in the freezer.

Very soon, it will be time for a mass flowering of violets, blue and white...hoorah! Primroses as well; they're delicious too and gorgeous as a little bunch in a little milk jug....I can just smell them. Roll on spring!

Cruel Irony.

2009-02-07T02:24:00.000-08:00

18cm of snow fell on Monday; more on Tuesday, more on Thursday and now another 18cm on Friday. Church Road is an ice rink this morning; you have to wade through snow to get round the garden; enough is enough! I should have another winter open day tomorrow but have decided to add another Sunday next week on the 15th instead. By then we'll probably be in a heat wave!

Swan lake

2009-02-07T02:10:00.001-08:00

Our red and yellow lightcatchers are beautifully designed by Rachel and hand created by the amazingly talented Ali (see www.ark-glass.com). Three weeks ago I moved them to the winter garden where their fiery colours complement the shiny orange and red cornus stems. Imagine my delight to see this snowy transformation.

The jury with white wigs

2009-02-03T08:08:00.001-08:00

This morning the jury woke up in white wigs with sunlight just touching the tops; as the day went on the sleeping caps turned into thinking caps; what was the verdict?

MAGICAL WINTER GARDEN

2009-02-03T01:37:00.000-08:00

The garden was thick with snow as the daylight ebbed away last night; so many scenes were fantastic. Now this morning I have been outside again and about to load the photos.....the sun is just clipping the jurors snowy wigs! Mushroom soup is cooking on the AGA; hopefully a few visitors will come today to enjoy the magic of a winter garden!

Snow shoes

2009-02-02T07:03:00.001-08:00

You need your snow shoes on to look round our garden at the moment; its absolutely glorious with a blanket of the softest snow hugging every branch and every twig; the echinacea seedheads are standing like torches with brilliant white flames; the mahonia with its broad leaves are acting like plates, filled with ice cream! Not good for health and safety though; fist there is the icy track down Church Road in Srevington which doesnot get gritted; then there is our slopy drive and then there are our paths which were all duly power washed for our winter openings but they can be slippy with three inches of snow and ice! Hopefully all will be clear again soon and so we will open Feb 8th, 10th, 11th and 15th all from 12-4pm.

The Big Push

2009-01-18T10:47:00.000-08:00

The aconites are at last ready for the big push, shoulder to the soil, just beginning to emerge, as the temperature has risen and we have enjoyed two sunny days. The cold weather of December and January, so far, seems to have held everything back so this is a welcome sight. The next two weeks will see them in full array, little golden lights carpetting the cottage garden, creating a carpet of colour under the lime trees, and edging the winter walk.

We have been spending the weekend washing all the paths through the cottage garden, around the French terrace and old fish pond. Not the nicest of jobs but at least they all now look clean and smart.

Even the white stemmed birches Betula utilis var jaquemontii 'Grayswood Ghost' received their yearly power wash; they glisten even more now and look wonderful in the low light of winter with the creamy white pampass plumes right behind them.

Apple Crusher Party time

2009-01-13T09:52:00.000-08:00

An apple juicer is a great Christmas present when you are just about to have a party for our neighbours and all those who help out at our open days...we felt like Hugh FW! Some apples could still be picked, others had been stored so there we were juicing them and mixing them with Winter Pimms. The result was a heady fragrant mix just right to warm the heart before a lovely walk round the winter garden. Credit cruncher party, home brew, just a wonderful talking point. Bring on our September Garden Open Day!

Broadway taxis

2009-01-13T09:34:00.000-08:00

Broadway has come to Stevington! My son Jonathan cleverly imported these miniature taxis to drive on our Broadway Boogie Woogie terrace inspired by Mondrian's famous painting with its red, blue and yellow dots of colour which remind me of the New York grid pattern with yellow taxis buzzing around. Here at Stevington the lights of NY are reflected in the LED strips.High tech gardening!
(See Jazz Broadway Boogie Woogie on a previous post for the actual painting).

Millie has been fox hunting

2008-12-10T10:39:00.000-08:00

Would you believe it...we picked Millie up on Sunday evening...after her huge op and the vet said don't let her off the lead, don't let her run or jump up, etc etc. I thought there is no chance of her running anywhere. How wrong I was! Well, three days later and there is no holding her back. We have a new little dog. It was cold and frosty all day today so scents were good and there is a large fox which visits this garden. Actually he lives in the thicket of Christmas trees right next to our field! Well, Millie got wind of the scent, chased down through the French garden, high jumped a box hedge, went under the hornbeam hedge the other side, through the beech hedge on our boundary and took off! Hope she's none the worse for it! She came back hungry and still frisky. What joy to have her enjoying life again.

Poor Millie

2008-12-05T10:54:00.000-08:00

Our little Jack Russell is not very well..she has just had a big op! So sad.......and Co Co the cat has been lost all day with no firend to cuddle up to.