End of Month Review November 2017

It has turned cold, suddenly, definitely, deliberately, the temperatures have dropped towards zero.
The vegetable borders, which have been sort of cleared for the winter, are looking frosty on the day I took these photographs.  The weather had had the audacity to have an unexpected little overnight snow.  Clearly not enough for snowshoes, but it was the first snow of the season.
Whilst shivering slightly, the Knot Garden, if you ignore the weeds, is looking good.  It is very much on my mind at the moment as I know I want to revamp it somehow, but I still am not sure how.  I shall bore you with my ponderings for months most likely, but as usual until I decide what it is I want to do, I shall leave it be.
Around to the back garden and the Long Shoot has been cleared of windfall apples (piled up for the birds and foxes to eat).
The view up through the gap in the pleached hornbeans is pleasing in the golden weak sun of the day.  Bruce the cat sits and shines in the sunniest spot.
Few things are as enjoyable as a cold sunny day this time of year.  This is the view from the Wild Garden up to the top of the garden.
and then across the Dancing Lawn, a side view that has the Prairie Borders just visible to the left and the Exotic Border to the right.
The Exotic Border is feeling cold, but still has green from the euphorbia and from the echiums that probably I should fleece up soon.
The Prairie Borders look good this time of year.  They 'die well', something I had never thought of particularly until a garden designer friend said it to me once when we were out plant admiring.  It is now a concept I often keep in mind.
The light divides the garden this time of year.  It was around 10am when I was out taking these photographs and the sun takes its time to reach the Formal Lawn.  This also means that the closer to the house it is the colder it is.  As I have lived with this garden I have learned it's climates which then shape my gardening decisions.
The Courtyard is very shady, but as is demonstrated this does not prevent moss forming.  I have some moss removal to do.
The small orange flowered edgeworthia that lives in a pot seems happy and has put on good growth this year.  It has quite a few buds forming.
Back to the Four Sisters and the larger yellow flowered edgeworthia is settling in the for the winter.
It is covered in buds this year, I am anxiously watching it as ever and excitedly waiting for it to flower.
The teasel patch has been good this year, the birds and insects love it.
The pond has that black thick look to it, it looks like you could walk on it.  I look into its depths and imagine frogs and larvae waiting for spring, waiting for warmth to return.

Thanks as ever to Steve for hosting this meme.

Comments

  1. The Prairie borders do look good. I struggle with Stipa tenuissima, it must be our cold and very wet winters it doesn't like. Doesn't stop me from trying though. I do love the effect it creates.

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    1. It is a great grass, I have heavy clay but it seems generally happy

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  2. Replies
    1. Thanks- the teasel patch is very special as it reminds me of my grandma, she always had a teasel part how in her garden.

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  3. Hi Alison, have you ever got echiums through to flowering? I once tried and failed. On the other hand our Euphorbia ‘Mellifera’ survies without any special treatment.

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    1. Hi Steve I’ve never got one to flower yet, usually a winter outside kills them. I’ve kept a couple in pots this year to overwinter in the greenhouse to see if this does the trick. I’m also going to fleece up the outside ones when it gets really sub zero but it’s the wet they really hate.

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  4. I think it was Piet Oudolf who coined the saying that he liked his plants to ‘Die gracefully ‘.Your prairie border looks very graceful in the sunshine.

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    1. Thanks:) It wasn’t him I was talking to :) it’s a good thing to keep in mind.

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