GARDEN OF THE MONTH

The garden of a member in Somerset

 

My garden is situated near the coast, on the Somerset Levels. To the south-east is the mystical Glastonbury, home of the Holy Thorn of Glastonbury, (Crataegus monogyna) ‘Biflora’. It is said to have been planted in the Abbey grounds by Joseph of Arimathea and, as its name suggests, flowers twice a year. A piece of this is sent to HM The Queen every year to adorn her table at Christmas.

To the south lies the village of Westonzoyland where the Battle of Sedgemoor took place, led by the Duke of Monmouth in an abortive attempt to seize the English throne, on July 6th 1685.

My cottage, which dates back to 1830, lies to the west of Brent Knoll village, the Knoll being known by the Romans as ‘The Mount of Frogs’, and is an outcrop of the nearby Mendip Hills.

The garden is approximately half an acre, rectangular and bordered both sides by ‘rhynes’, ancient waterways which drain the flat landscape. It is an exposed site, less than a mile from the sea, with prevailing south-westerly winds, but also with amazing open skies and fantastic sunsets, where the grasses, backlit by a setting sun, become breathtaking, especially the tall, golden, oaty heads of Stipa gigantea.

I have redesigned the garden from scratch, it was mainly an orchard when I arrived almost 9 years ago. The borders are long and deep with sweeping curves and a large central area of lawn. The plantings are a mix of trees, shrubs and herbaceous, predominantly deciduous due to the conditions of the site, which means that the garden is absorbed back into the surrounding countryside for the winter months.

The levels are renowned for the willow trees which thrive in the high water table, and several mature specimens border the garden on the bank of one of the ryhnes. Willow is commonly used in local industry for basket weaving, hurdle making and lately has become very fashionable in the creation of garden sculpture. In fact, those travelling along the M5 near Bridgwater may well have noticed the huge ‘Willow Man’, 12 metres (37 ft.) high, created for the Year of the Artist in 2000.

I am very keen on creating colour themes, but rather than isolating an area by colour, I have tried to allow one area to flow into another. The repeated use of plants such as the fastigiate Berberis varieties help to achieve this. Berberis thunbergii ‘Helmond Pillar’ is one of my favourites, a good purple form, which will blend with all colour schemes and link areas while adding height and form. Contrasting foliage shapes integrated into the schemes, such as a wide variety of ornamental grasses help to add interest and extend the season.

Of course my passion is hemerocallis, and what a palette to choose from! I have roughly 3-400 varieties incorporated into all areas of the garden, selected by colour and height, with rounded forms, spiders and unusual forms, all represented. I have a small area at the top of the garden which I call my ‘Daylily Meadow’, where I have planted en masse, almost randomly, which is a rainbow of colour in the season.

I have dedicated another area, which is circular and at a lower level than the rest of the garden, solely to daylilies but have divided it into quarters and planted with selected colours. One area is for pinks, backed by a huge phormium, Cedrus deodara, Euphorbia stygiana and other herbaceous plants. Working clockwise, the next quarter is full of lilac and purple shades from the lovely spidery Hemerocallis ‘Annabelle’s Ghost’ to the deepest purple of the fantastic flowers of ‘Georgette Belden’. Turn again and the colours change to the beautiful shades of apricot, orange and lemon, backed by more of the same in a raised bed, with a backdrop of Cotinus coggygria ‘Rubrifolius’. Again I must just mention one, an old one called ‘Judah’, one of my first acquisitions. It is an amazingly huge, glowing and gorgeous, hot orange! Thinking about it I just can’t leave out ‘Party Array’ and ‘Black Plush’! Two very different forms, one small flowered but very tall and the other a lovely spider form, but both the deepest mahogany shades, blending so well with the lemons and apricots. The final quarter is for the hot colours, reds, oranges, yellows, vivid scarlet such as ‘Firestorm’, and backed by the Daylily Meadow, which continues the riot of colour.

The garden is relatively new, and still evolving and maturing and my plans for the future, now that the main plantings are complete, will be to incorporate more bulbs to give added colour to the seasons.

I am trying hard to curb my passion for plants in general, and be sensible, but when I get together with my new friend in Worcester, also a member of the BHHS and a dreadful influence on my purchasing of new varieties, I fear my resolve will be weakened, and borders will be continually increased to accommodate the new!

Mary, a good friend who helps me on the open day, chatting with some of the visitors. The lovely little rose ‘Peter Pan’, which flowers all summer, is visible in the middle, and to the left is a container of Lavendula x christiana. The pathway leads to a small area at the side of the cottage, which is densely planted with a mixture of hemerocallis and other herbaceous plants and shrubs.

 

Another visitor on the open day wandering along the same pathway. In the centre is the lovely classic daylily ‘Green Flutter’ AM, with lime-yellow flowers and just behind is Sorbus commixta ‘Embley’, a mass of gorgeous orange berries in the autumn. The purple foliage of Acer palmatum ‘Dissectum Atropurpureum’ is just visible in the background. To the left is a large Fatsia japonica and to the left of that, the beautiful Hydrangea villosa, with very pretty lilac flowers late in the season.