p.s. I like the Black Magic sunflowers. I wonder if you considered a patch of black flowers (like goth forensic scientist Abby on NCIS who loves bouquets of all-black flowers). That would be a most unusual part of the garden!
Gardening expert Sue suggested we consider some of the new varieties of sunflower. After we saw Black Magic in a catalog, nothing else would suffice.
V is into goth succulents and grasses at the moment (and we both adore Abby). In Part 2 of this year's spring garden update next week, look closely in the stumpery and you will see a couple of small, new clumps of what looks like black grass. She has some black succulents that can grow taller and bigger, too, but they are still small and new. The dogs already knocked one off, so she keeps moving their container to try to protect them. I have a feeling more black plants will arrive as we find more at garden centers.
I'd love to see your goth collection when it's established! I see ads all the time for black irises or other types of flowers. A black succulent? I must find one! I love succulents.
V's black succulents are just a few inches tall. We saw the same variety in the formal gardens at Powys Castle last weekend, about a meter tall. It must take years to get that big. We have that to look forward to.
As usual, I do enjoy your garden's transformation. I just started writing in my blog again after three years of laying fallow, because I wanted to share my gardening journey. There's just something about our gardens that reflect our souls, I think. Gardening is hard, sweaty work. I, too, have a "never again" project (not killing spawn-of-Satan Bermuda grass before tilling it in to plant native buffalo grass.) I admire formal gardens, but since most of mine is grown from seed (which was part of a planned layout) that got tossed by wind and gullywashers, it is more like a wild prairie jungle. My son said it sounds like a British cottage garden. I think even cottage gardens are more well-planned. Next year I'll get the courage to pull desirable plants growing in the wrong places. I'll send you the link to my blog via email. Our gardens couldn't be more different, but it's fun reading about the journey. Yours is beautiful and looks very peaceful. Congratulations to you ahd Vicky!
Formal gardens are beautiful. We visit some, especially in the warm season, and admire them. But those are far beyond what either of us feels capable of doing. That's what people like our neighbor Sue can do.
Ours isn't a classic English garden. It isn't quite a cottage garden either, particularly the blueberry bed where I have mixed everything together instead of having tidy sections. What we have suits us and that will have to do.
If your unintentionally wild prairie is thriving and feels right to you on the whole, then it suits you and it will have to do. I'm glad you are taking up your blog again. It will probably be full of your excellent photography alongside the words. Looking forward to it.
It's usually a mix that includes some type of ryegrass for color & wear, and some type of fescue for deeper roots to get through weather extremes. Lawns are sometimes seeded here rather than having sod laid.
My wife V bought special sod to redo our back lawn when we reached that point. I'm not sure what's in it, but it is normally used for playing fields that have to tolerate heavy wear and tear. Our dogs still rip chunks out of it when they play, but it is surviving where standard grass would give up. Lawn grass here is thin-bladed, not at all resembling the wide-bladed St. Augustine I grew up with on the Gulf Coast.
p.s. I like the Black Magic sunflowers. I wonder if you considered a patch of black flowers (like goth forensic scientist Abby on NCIS who loves bouquets of all-black flowers). That would be a most unusual part of the garden!
Gardening expert Sue suggested we consider some of the new varieties of sunflower. After we saw Black Magic in a catalog, nothing else would suffice.
V is into goth succulents and grasses at the moment (and we both adore Abby). In Part 2 of this year's spring garden update next week, look closely in the stumpery and you will see a couple of small, new clumps of what looks like black grass. She has some black succulents that can grow taller and bigger, too, but they are still small and new. The dogs already knocked one off, so she keeps moving their container to try to protect them. I have a feeling more black plants will arrive as we find more at garden centers.
I'd love to see your goth collection when it's established! I see ads all the time for black irises or other types of flowers. A black succulent? I must find one! I love succulents.
V's black succulents are just a few inches tall. We saw the same variety in the formal gardens at Powys Castle last weekend, about a meter tall. It must take years to get that big. We have that to look forward to.
I used to have a dark colored version of this: Black Rose Tree Aeonium arboreum in California, but it wasn't technically black. Those are cool!
I looked at images of that online. I think that's what she bought as small succulents. But as I said, we saw one last weekend that is huge now.
Mine was really big! They don’t sell them here
V is trying to root the one that got knocked off by the dogs. I'll try to remember to let you know whether that works.
As usual, I do enjoy your garden's transformation. I just started writing in my blog again after three years of laying fallow, because I wanted to share my gardening journey. There's just something about our gardens that reflect our souls, I think. Gardening is hard, sweaty work. I, too, have a "never again" project (not killing spawn-of-Satan Bermuda grass before tilling it in to plant native buffalo grass.) I admire formal gardens, but since most of mine is grown from seed (which was part of a planned layout) that got tossed by wind and gullywashers, it is more like a wild prairie jungle. My son said it sounds like a British cottage garden. I think even cottage gardens are more well-planned. Next year I'll get the courage to pull desirable plants growing in the wrong places. I'll send you the link to my blog via email. Our gardens couldn't be more different, but it's fun reading about the journey. Yours is beautiful and looks very peaceful. Congratulations to you ahd Vicky!
Formal gardens are beautiful. We visit some, especially in the warm season, and admire them. But those are far beyond what either of us feels capable of doing. That's what people like our neighbor Sue can do.
Ours isn't a classic English garden. It isn't quite a cottage garden either, particularly the blueberry bed where I have mixed everything together instead of having tidy sections. What we have suits us and that will have to do.
If your unintentionally wild prairie is thriving and feels right to you on the whole, then it suits you and it will have to do. I'm glad you are taking up your blog again. It will probably be full of your excellent photography alongside the words. Looking forward to it.
Curious to know, what kind of grass is preferred for British lawns?
It's usually a mix that includes some type of ryegrass for color & wear, and some type of fescue for deeper roots to get through weather extremes. Lawns are sometimes seeded here rather than having sod laid.
My wife V bought special sod to redo our back lawn when we reached that point. I'm not sure what's in it, but it is normally used for playing fields that have to tolerate heavy wear and tear. Our dogs still rip chunks out of it when they play, but it is surviving where standard grass would give up. Lawn grass here is thin-bladed, not at all resembling the wide-bladed St. Augustine I grew up with on the Gulf Coast.
It's delightful! Thanks so much for the tour, Bonnie.
You're welcome. It had empty vibes when we moved in. Now it feels, looks and sounds full of life.
Thank you. The garden used to not be a very nice or interesting place. Now it is, and we're glad.