Garden – Page 4 – derrickjknight

Settling The Gingko

Our gingko tree, left by our predecessors, has occupied a large terracotta pot which it has been gradually splitting asunder ever since we bought the house ten years ago. Having had to cut down the weeping birch tree we decided to move the gingko to a permanent home and settled on Elizabeth’s Bed at the south end of the garden.

It was Martin’s major task this morning to clear a space by

moving several plants to be transplanted elsewhere;

digging a hole into the hard clay soil;

lifting and positioning the tree;

then composting the area for the finished work.

When not photographing this graft, I carried out a dead-heading and weeding operation then

turned my camera onto other plants, all of which bear titles in the gallery.

Busy bumble bees, like this one investigating a campanula clump, kept me company.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s meaty mince cottage pie; tender cabbage, and firm Brussels sprouts.

The Light Of Day

This morning I handed in my sample for sending to the lab and enjoyed a telephone conversation with Doctor Moody-Jones who gave me an appointment for a week’s time after which the test results would be in and I would have completed the course of antibiotics.

One of the advantages of ignoring the steady drizzle and drop in temperature of an overcast day is that the diffused light is helpful for

photographing flowers, which I did this afternoon. These examples all bear titles in the gallery.

Bearing witness to Martin’s opening up of the beds is this

rhododendron which has never flowered since we came here a decade ago. Having experienced too much shade it now sees the light of day.

This evening Jackie visited Red Chilli for one of their excellent takeaway meals. The establishment was in darkness; closure notices and bailiff’s warning on the windows.

So she came home and we fed on pizzas and salad.

Hot And Sunny

Throughout the day the temperature was hot and the skies sunny.

Suddenly the pink climbing rose on the front trellis is blooming.

This morning Martin first retrained the jasmine against the new fence, whilst I dead headed and weeded,

albeit lacking the ability to kneel or the staying power he demonstrated later.

I also produced three other garden views labelled in the gallery. The Wonderful Grandparents rose in the bottom lefthand corner of the first has four clusters of healthy buds.

This evening we repeated last night’s menu and beverage.

A Growth Spurt

Today was warmer than yesterday, but largely overcast until after lunch when I wandered around the garden with my camera taking advantage of the diffused light.

Before then I made considerable further progress with “Kristin Lavransdatter”.

The very hardy Erigeron plants are popping up everywhere, as are the yellow Welsh poppies now in need of my deadheading duties.

Clusters of libertia, like these beneath the wisteria, are quite prolific.

Our bright red varieties of rhododendron thrust themselves into view whichever way we look.

Fine blue irises stand proud.

Jackie’s greenhouse cuttings are burgeoning.

Peonies are becoming massive.

Shrubs such as spirea, vibernum plicata, weigela, and the last, now identified by Martin with the aid of an App on his phone, as a deutzia, are in full bloom.

Ferns, including those acting as backdrop for the orange tip butterfly, are fully unfurled.

Bees also visited such as the vinca.

This antirrhinum sat well in front of a red maple fading from view.

The Rose Garden is beginning to prosper.

The copper beech is in good leaf after its recent trimming,

and the clematis against the fence between us and North Breeze is bursting into stellar shape.

After such a wet April the current warmth has made for a sudden growth spurt.

This evening we dined on spicy beef burgers, chunky chips, chestnut mushrooms, baked beans and onion rings, with which I drank a Reserva Privado Chilean Merlot 2022.

Posting A Pivotal Week, Part One

23rd to 30th April 2024.

After cataract eye surgery and with a lingering cold I have been able neither to photograph nor to look at a screen for this period. How we have managed a way round it will be explained in Part 2.

The pivotal day was Thursday 25th, when, as we watched Flo, Dillon, and Ellie drive off to their new home,

Arbor Venture, symbolically, began to bring down the dead Weeping Birch tree. That process, Jackie was able to photograph.

Today, I produced these two pictures.

Waiting In The Wings

On a chilly, largely overcast morning, occasionally lifted by sunlight peeking over the sometimes fluffy cotton clouds, I wandered around with my camera enjoying the general views opened up by Martin’s dedicated winter’s work.

It was difficult to ignore the red Japanese maple,

even when the collection of trees featured both the doomed Weeping birch tree and its foreground gingko waiting in the wings.

The second image in the first gallery features the Brick Path.

Here is another, followed by

one of the Gazebo Path, from the far end of which

can be seen this view west.

Whichever way we look we benefit from Martin’s work.

These are from the Rose Garden.

This morning Jackie shopped at Ferndene Farm Shop where she enjoyed the Gloucester Old Spot piglets at their trough.

This evening we all dined on Jackie’s spicy penne Bolognese with Parmesan cheese with which she and I drank more of the Tempranillo Rosado.

The Gingko

For the first time since I picked up a heavy cold, accompanied by a number of flying insects I took a walk round our garden with my camera.

A wasp basked on the leaf of a budding rhododendron; a bee climbed into yellow wallflowers; a fly took a rest on a golden euphorbia.

Other budding rhododendrons were closer to blooming,

which camellias have been doing for months, and still carpet paths.

A number of Japanese maples are in full leaf.

Honesty photobombs many pictures,

but cannot upstage these sunlit hydrangea leaves.

These cowslips share a bed with forget-me-nots and ajugas.

Libertia is spreading across the weeping birch bed which is due to come down on 25th, when

it will be replaced by this gingko, which filled a pot we inherited from our predecessors. It has split the pot and we have wondered what to do with it for the last ten years.

Finally I pictured this pieris, an antirrhinum and cinerarias, and some frilly tulips.

This evening I joined the others at the kitchen table for fish pie, ratatouille, carrots, cauliflower, and broccoli with which I drank Caliza Tempranillo Rosado La Mancha 2022.

Blossom From Bedroom Window

This was a cool day of intermittent bright sunshine and showers on which there must have been a rainbow somewhere.

I didn’t go out to investigate, but Jackie took all except the first of her

blossom pictures from the bedroom window, including one from the front garden featuring the tall Amanogawa cherry.

Obviously my aim at an average of 50 pages of “Kristin Lavransdatter” has gone out of the window lately, however I did manage 59 today.

This evening we all dined on another of Jackie’s wholesome cottage pie meals. My slightly larger portion was taken in the same manner as yesterday.

Not Going Out

While we still have our dying Weeping Birch and because of my cold I am not going out I photographed a few

garden views from above this morning, and dozed much of the afternoon occasionally woken by Ellie talking to me and offering me such as pictures of the moon, or the TV controls.

Dinner this evening consisted of Jackie’s wholesome cottage pie, crunchy carrots, and tender runner beans. I ate my very small portion from a tray in the sitting room because I am at a very sneezy stage.

Warm Spring Sunshine

I enjoyed a pleasant conversation with David of Mistletoe Cottage in the garden this morning where we discussed his plans for Aaron to replace our shared fence. It was good to extend our talk as we remained among our plants for a while.

Crab apple and Amanogawa cherry blossoms have survived the recent gales.

David will continue to enjoy these camellias and the Vulcan magnolia from his side of the fence.

Yellow-flowered euphorbia and more delicate comfrey are now prolific.

Ferget-me-nots and bluebells are now casting carpets and

attracting bees,

as are the lamiums.

Ferns unfold fiddles.

Honesty

also attracts flying insects such as the constantly flittering yellow brimstone butterflies.

Muscari and pieris are blooming well.

Is the autumn sculpture’s heart bleeding for the dicentra?

The orange marigolds in a hanging basket can be seen from the Gazebo Path.

Later I received a telephone call from SpaMedica contracted to NHS offering me an assessment interview for an anticipated cataract operation. This is at Poole tomorrow morning. I received a 12 page e-mail I was required to print out, complete various forms, and take with me tomorrow.

I then read more of Kristin Lavransdatter.

This appears to have been published prematurely. I have updated it and now add that this evening we will dine on second helpings of yesterday’s Chinese meal.