St. Michael's Hospice Open Gardens

A great way to visit beautiful gardens not normally open to the public, partake of sumptuous cream teas or an aL fresco ploughman's lunch, make new friends and most importantly support the terrific work of the St Michael's Hospice.

I recently spent a lovely afternoon visiting the Open Gardens of Rye. The pictures above are a selection I took on the day. Lovely gardens with lots of great ideas to take home. For more information and a list of gardens and dates click on the link, Open Gardens.

Open Garden days run from May through July

Enjoy!!!

Summer Container Number Three

Foliage and Texture

This container suits a contemporary or traditional setting. The bold foliage of the Phormium 'Maori Queen' and Euchevera provide interest and texture for a low maintenance high impact display.

Hardy in mild climates this container can be brought into the greenhouse for the winter

Summer Container Number One

This container is for a shady spot

In this antique cast iron urn Ive combined variegated double pink impatiens, pilea and a hot house parlour palm to create a long lasting display of colour and texture.

If you have a greenhouse this arrangement can easily be moved inside for a winter display.

Summer Container Number Two

Roses and Lavender

A very simple container for a front doorstep.

I've used a standard tree Rose and underplanted it with Lavender for a very simple yet effective summer display.

Spring in the Garden

Sissinghurst Castle

Designed by Vita Sackville-West and her husband Harold Nicholson, Sissinghurst Castle is one of my most favourite gardens. No matter what the time of year or how extreme the weather there is always something lovely to see.

A recent visit led me to take this photo of a beautiful display of blue and white flowers with a splash of purple hellebores. Such a simple restrained use of colour and plant material created a lovely sight! Although the garden covers several acres, there is much in the design and in the use of plant material that can be applied to smaller gardens. I highly recommend a visit!

Vita wrote many books on gardening, sharing her knowledge and love of plants in a friendly, simple and sometimes very opinionated way. Below is an extract from Vita Sackville-West's Garden Book, first published by Hollen Street Press in 1968.

From the foreword by Philippa Nicholson here are some of Vita's Principles of Gardening:

• Be Ruthless. 'You must never retain for a second year what displeased you in the first, it must be eradicated,' Vita says.
  
• Never be too tidy. 'Let self-seeded plants grow where they naturally fell; let wild flowers sometimes be allowed to invade the garden; if roses stray over a path, the visitor must duck,' Vita says.
  
• Good Planning. 'There must be a plan-an architectural plan, a colour plan and a seasonal plan,' Vita says.

The garden was given to the National Trust in 1967 and has been meticulously maintained by them ever since.

Is it Spring yet?

Is it Spring yet?

Not quite but almost.

I took the opportunity to go to RHS Wisley the other day to visit their bookstore (always a favourite pastime) and walk through the gardens.

There were signs of Spring creeping into the winter landscape. Snow drops pushing there heads above the foliage. Sarcococca in full bloom, its lovely citrus scent filling the air.

Before we know it Spring will be here. So its time to make sure all those untidy perennials are cut back, winter pruning projects are finished and those other irksome tasks like tidying the shed and cleaning our tools are all completed before we head back into the garden full time.

If you haven't done so already now is a perfect time to make plans for new flower beds, vegetable gardens, landscaping and garden makeovers.

Whether you engage a garden designer like myself or you do-it-yourself, planning any garden on paper first makes good sense. It helps you make good plant choices and avoid all those impulse buys at the garden centre! You will also save time in the long run and save money.

So get cleaning and designing!

Check out my Gallery for inspiration and don't hesitate to contact me if I can be of assistance.

Coming soon to Garden Notes:

• Garden Design Booklet
• Ideas for Summer Containers
• Potting Benches
• DIY Containers