New Year Thoughts

Rain, snow, frost and a heavy cold have kept me out of the garden this week - which is a shame because traditionally I use this time off work to start on tidying the garden and pruning the climbers before Spring starts to take over. On the plus side, the resulting inactivity has prompted me to start this gardening blog.

Of course, winter weather can damage plants and make the garden look awful. On the plus side, the cold will kill off pests such as aphids, slugs and snails. Since I try to garden organically, this is a real bonus.

A quick tour on New Year's Eve shows what I am up against

This is the rose arch and lavender hedge which I put in 5 years ago. The rose has now covered the arch, and is in need of a good prune before it starts growing again. It has flowered very well. The lavender hedge has grown too large for the space, and I am not very good at working out when and how to prune it, so it has grown leggy. I think 5 years is a good run for a lavender hedge - I am debating whether to give it one more year, or to dig it up and replace it. Last year, the hedge in flower went right across the path, and I had to jump over it, so I think replacing it is the best option. But sentiment or laziness may mean it has one last go this year.

This border is over-stuffed with plants - in summer they crowd each other out and you can't see the fence at all. The obelisks at either end support clematis and climbing roses - Tess of the D'Urbervilles (deep red) and Gurtrude Jekyll (deep pink). There are two other smaller roses there - Jacqueline Du Pre (white) and Corvedale (deep pink) The corvedale rose has been disappointing - it did not seem to establish well and has not flowered. I will give it some TLC and one more year to prove itself. The middle obelisk supports a summer jasmine and a clematis. Underneath these are deep pink peonies, Daffodils (Tete a tete and Jetfire), sedums, hardy geraniums and Japanese anemones.

This bed is due a re-vamp. The huge grey things are Verbascum Bombyciferum. These are bienniel, and should have flowered and died last year. Because of the lack of summer sun they didn't start flowering until October - very late - and they did not flower well. The leaves were pretty, very soft and velvety, but far too big for the position. I will take these out as soon as I get the chance. The climbing rose against the fence is "Teasing Georgia". I planted it in 2001 and it has performed really well. It is usually smothered in creamy-yellow flowers and has a lovely scent.

When the skies are dark with grey clouds and the rain is coming down , there is one plant that positively glows at it's best and makes me glad that I planted it. It is a dogwood, Cornus "Midwinter Fire"

 

The picture doesn't do justice to the vibrant colour of the stems , which  mimic a bonfire - yellow at the base, turning crimson at the end. To get these stem colours each winter, I have to prune them to the ground in March, just before the leaves come. This stops it getting too large, and makes it easier to prune the yew and ivy behind it, but I always feel a little sad when I do it.

One of the challenges for this year is to reduce the impact of the new chequered wall my neighbour built at the bottom end of my garden. It's ghastly, and spoils the impact of the ferns which are actually looking quite good at the moment. This has always been an awkward corner to grow things in because of the two trees in the border, which is why the glass light-catchers are placed there.

So that is my back garden at the start of the year - always a "work in progress", always full of possibilities. I just hope I can get started soon.