STRUCTURE

 

I begin, in my traditional fashion, with a comment on the weather.  These clouds are amazing - no?  It was 3 o'clock on Friday afternoon as I ventured forth into the wind and cold to take photos for this Six on Saturday.  The sky was looking very dramatic, and although I managed to prune my four roses for the day (as per target set last week) I soon retreated inside.

Searching for floral treasure I could see that the Winter Aconites were pushing up through the leaves and mud and there were two (count them!) snowdrops in bud.  It wasn't enough to make a Six.  What was I to do?  In the depths of Winter what is there of interest in the garden?  Then I remembered that all good garden design books tell us that a decent garden will look good in the Winter because it has good structure.  So I went in search of structure (and may even have found some).

Outside the greenhouse, surrounding the obelisks, are little hedges of thyme, which still look reasonable in the Winter.  Why thyme? I hear you ask (perhaps).  Well, because the box I'd originally planted here got moved to the rose garden when I expanded the borders there, and I replaced it with whatever was to hand, which happened to be thyme which had self seeded in the gravel.

Opposite the greenhouse in the 'Potager' is more accidental structure.  The box cones are here because I had surplus box plants when I first started the garden so popped them in here.  More, unintentional, structure comes from the bean poles on the left which obviously should have been dismantled months ago.

For number three I've chosen the Knot Garden, which is all about structure really.  Standard Photinia are in beds edged in yew, because this part of the garden was being laid out just as box blight was starting to make the news.

The Long Border has that Piet Oudolf structure of herbaceous plants left to stand for their skeletal forms.  Frankly, I think it was time it was all cut down and put through the shredder, and if we get a good dry week, it will be.

Then at number five, my first born and my favourite, the Rose Garden.  Arches ✔   Statuary ✔    Topiary ✔ Hedges ✔.  All present and correct.

For number Six we return to the house, as it's getting cold and it's time to go in.  It looks pretty in Summer with the pots filled with pelargoniums and clematis, but there is Winter structure too from the pots and the lavender and more thyme planted in the gravel.

So sorry/not sorry that there are no flowers this week.  I was happy to focus on the structural stuff this time.  I've been waiting patiently for years for it to grow (except for the ones in the photo above which have been really fast) and it was time for it to take centre stage.  That's it until next week.  Happy Gardening.

All the Six on Saturday posts can be found on Garden Ruminations our new home from home thanks to Jim who is caretaking while the Propagator takes a break.