‘Road Kill’

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Struggles with erratic internet connection means that this post has taken some considerable time today. But let’s not go into that. Suffice it to say that I didn’t lose my cool and kept going off to do something else, sometimes involving a little garden clearance.

No way, however, can I match Aaron who today dug out and removed a mature ficus, pruned and reshaped the winter flowering cherry, cut the grass, laid some stepping stone paths, and

Aaron nailing beams to tree stumps 3

nailed beams across old tree stumps to support rambling roses. He had already built the fence behind him some time ago.

Garden view from patio along Dead End Path

Here is this morning’s view from the patio along the Dead End Path; the fresh bud low down to the left of the picture

Rose peach

is on the same bush as this rich peach one.

Garden view from frog pond

A large poppy will soon bloom behind the stone frog in this scene.

Triangular Bed

Purple campanulas in the triangular bed outside the wisteria arbour link the startling red Sweet Williams and the two clematises above.

Clematis 3

Here is one of those.

Clematis 2

Others can be found on one of the arches spanning the Brick Path,

Clematis 1

in the New Bed, and in many other locations.

Palm bed

Penstemons and foxgloves also compare hues in the Palm Bed.

Rose Gertrude Jekyll

Flamboyant Gertrude Jekyll parades in the Rose Garden,

Roses patio

and this pale pink patio rose thrives in the Kitchen Bed alongside the Brick Path.

Jackie continues to make excellent progress with planting up tubs, urns, and hanging baskets such as

Urn planted with cosmos, geraniums, petunias, and allysum

this stone urn filled with cosmos, geraniums and petunias flanked by filigreed ferns in the bed beneath;

Cosmos and calibrachoas

cosmos and calibrachoas in a terra cotta pot;

Calibrachoa and diascias in pot

calibrachoas and diascias in a hanging basket;

Petunias and geraniums

petunias and geraniums in a faux terra cotta container;

Petunias and marigolds in hat

petunias and marigolds in the leaden hat;

Diascias and petunias in iron urn

diascias and petunias in the iron urn;

Black-eyed Susan and marigolds

and marigolds and black eyed Susans perched on a Victorian chimney pot. The black eyed Susans should, in time, climb to the top of their obelisk.

Aaron's truck

Aaron’s truck contains the tools of his trade and garden refuse he takes away when he has created it. This shot was taken before he loaded up the ficus root and branches.

Aaron's 'Road Kill'

Country roads often contain road kill, or small animals and birds that have been struck by motor vehicles. Our friend is building up his own collection of little creatures.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s excellent lamb korai, peas and rice, and sag ponir. We both drank Kingfisher.

75 comments

  1. Your photos have given me a brilliant idea! I’m going to print large pictures of your lovely gardens and glue them to the front of the house where my flower beds should be blooming! So much simper than doing all the work! lol

    1. Lol- equal parts funny and sad for me. It makes me like Aaron – gotta love a sense of humor, but I have hit a couple small animals over the years and have felt terrible every time.

      1. Yes, I know what you mean. I don’t like hitting animals.

        They get their own back sometimes – a woodpigeon once flew into me while I was travelling at high speed and ripped my wing mirror off. Sadly, it didn’t survive to what it had done.

      2. As an aside – I was at the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens yesterdays and saw “Quercus” all over the place. I thought of you but still don’e know why. Looked it up – is it the name of an oak?

        1. Yes – generic (Latin). Don’t know if you follow Quercus Community, but I recommend him. I know his name, but we both prefer Quercus. Quirky, innit?

      1. Derrick, the badger DID save the day. Stuffed animals and a sense of humor – how is that not a winning combo? And with such a recommendation, I will follow Quercus. I am a fan of quirky.

  2. I like Aaron’s sense of humour and his toys may scare away real potential road kill victims …… I’m glad you mentioned the Victorian chimney pot as I was looking at the photo of your garden that hangs in my art room yesterday, featuring that very subject (or the other one, as I know you have two) and wondering what Jackie had planted in them now. I suspect ‘my’ view of your garden is very different this year.

    1. Thanks a lot, Pauline.’Your’ pot hasn’t been planted up yet. The one featured here can be seen in the Dead End Path photo. Actually, there are three. I’ll feature the other two when they are done. Aaron is a remarkable man.

  3. Especially beautiful photos this post, Derrick. I was so involved in the garden that halfway through I forgot about the unusual title & what it could possibly mean. LOL – Funny resolution to that mystery.

  4. Sorry you had computer difficulties, Derrick. Thank you for going the extra mile for us. The photos are magnificent! Are the Penstemons the flowers that look like bells? They’re beautiful!

  5. Thank you for the wonderful views of your garden and the beautiful flowers. The baskets are charming. It would be good to see those long shots from the same spot in different seasons, arranged together 🙂

  6. At the risk of sounding like our language-challenged president, let me say that your garden is AMAZING! Absolutely UNBELIEVABLE! This is how late spring looks in a well-tended English garden.

    1. If I didn’t do it periodically, he never would. As you can see, he is invaluable. Incidentally he has picked up at least one new customer from this blog.

  7. Derrick, your garden is glorious! and while all of the images are beautiful, the peach rose is just incredible.

  8. I love the badger, which looks as though it has escaped damage and is merely hitching a ride. The other poor animal, however, is doomed and unrecognizable. Your garden is beautiful.

    1. Many thanks, Uma. You are right. Aaron is a remarkable man. In fact it was his idea that his ‘road kill’ should be photographed for the blog.

  9. I simply love your garden. Kudos to Jackie and you for having taken so much trouble in making it so beautiful and for your lovely sharing of its beauty which I am sure helps so many of us out there in relishing this beauty and helping us build a greater sense of inner peace 🙂

  10. Aaron must have a great sense of humour, as well as a lot of talent!
    Thank you for sharing the glories of your garden at this time of year Derrick ?

  11. Alas, we have plenty of roadkill in Maine. On a happier note, your gardens are magnificent, and that Aaron is a gem.

  12. In my hometown there was this small Presbyterian Chapel where each Sunday we used to go for Sunday School. It had a similar look to its beautifully overgrown garden. With all its sweet smelling roses and Petunias and Marigolds. Your post makes those memories come back.

  13. The flowering hat is a favorite and the picture with the stuffed toy creatures made me laugh. Jackie sure has a fine, imaginative eye for what looks/ grows so well together! A pleasure to read and view.

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