At last - we have a wall again!

Last August, we had a bit of a disaster, when our lovely Victorian brick wall fell down, after having a lot of ivy taken away from it.  I posted about that here.

 After a few false starts, we had a bricklayer recommended to us and he duly came along and had a look at the site.  I was most concerned that my plants would all have to come out, as the long border had the brick wall as its back.  However, I was assured that all would be well.  The foundations were dug out one weekend, and it was very hard work.  Above is the view before the foundations were dug.

 The foundations were laid and the following weekend, work started on the wall. The little indentation in the concrete is where one of the ivy roots was.

 It was really exciting seeing the wall starting to go up again.  We had a choice of one brick as we needed something which was double faced and we found that most bricks aren't.  We were replacing like for like, or as near as we could, so that it didn't look too out of place with the rest of the garden walls.

This photo shows the concrete coping going on (it has all been finished now and looks great).  My plants are enjoying having some support again and I even have a little bit of extra planting area at the back...(but won't be planting ivy!)
The bricklayers and foundation diggers did a marvellous job and we are really pleased to have a wall back again. *edited to add... I totally forgot to say that Chris worked incredibly hard through one of the hottest weekends of the year, backfilling the foundations area on our side of the wall, clearing out bricks and rubble and filling a huge skip.  He was an absolute star and a huge well done to him.
I will post some more photos once I have decided which plants are going in!

A Dis-arrr-ster (and hoorah for scones)

We have had ivy growing on the Victorian wall which separates our garden from our neighbours' garden for many years.  The owner of the house now rents it out and although he tried to cut back some of the ivy, it really needed a serious amount of controlling.  It was a wonderful food source for insects and birds and provided handy roosting and nesting areas for the birds too, so I didn't want to lose it all, just cut it back, as it overhung our raised bed and all the plants were straining to get some light.  We also thought it needed reducing in height by at least half, so that was the plan.
With our neighbour's help, we attempted to cut some of it away from the house.  Unfortunately, quite a large amount of the ivy came away and a couple of the top stones came off the wall too.  Deciding this was not a good thing, we stopped and got a tree surgeon in to tackle the rest.  Well, the ivy has been cut back...in fact, it had to go altogether, as the wall decided it had had enough and collapsed, right the way down the garden.  The ivy trunks were huge and had pushed the wall out in a couple of places - but possibly it was also helping to hold the wall up.  Some of the wall fell into the neighbour's garden, (which has no plants in it) but unfortunately, some fell into ours, damaging various pots and plants and making a big mess.  On a positive note, no-one was injured and it could have fallen at any time.  So, quite a lot of clearing up took place, and lots of damage limitation pruning.  I had to replace a couple of pots which had been smashed. I was a bit depressed about all the damaged plants, even though Chris did a great salvage job.
We are now waiting for a wall and fencing firm to look at the remains of the wall and give us some advice about replacing it with a new wall, or fence.  As the raised bed in our garden is built against the wall, it could mean a complete re-design of the garden, which could be a great opportunity...but I would have to lose lots of plants.  We shall know more once the wall/fencing firm has visited.
I am sorry to have lost the wall as it provided a lovely backdrop for my plants and stored heat during the day, helping to keep the plants sheltered.

 In other news, we went to our local cake shop to have some cream cakes as a treat, only to find it was too late and they had none left.  Undeterred, I remembered we had some cream in the fridge, so when I got back home, I made a batch of scones.

They were delicious topped with raspberry jam and cream. Hoorah for treats which make us feel just that little bit better!

First Garden Visit 2016 part two

Having visited Brightwater Gardens, we then went on to Hackthorn Hall, part of the Hackthorn Estate.  The gardens are open three times a year and this was the first time this year, opening for the snowdrops.  When I looked back at my photos, snowdrops didn't figure very highly - I was obviously more interested in the box hedge and the blossom.

 The box hedges either side of the path leading to the church were cut into a beautiful undulating pattern.

It was a very photogenic view (except for the blue pipe across the path!)

 I did take this photo of a clump of snowdrops growing inside the hedge.

This formal garden appealed to me and I'm sure that the summer planting will soften the lines.

 Looking back towards the church.

 We wandered through the woodland and I liked the ground covering ivy, camouflaging more clumps of snowdrops.

I loved the image of the church as seen through the blossom and sunshine.  We went to the walled garden, which has several greenhouses, one containing the second oldest grape vine in the UK, after the one at Hampton Court.  We stopped off at the village hall for tea and crumpets and then made our way home, after a lovely day.

The more it snows, tiddly pom... and more treats

Well, like pretty much everyone else in the UK, we have been snowed upon!  As I write, we are anxiously awaiting the next lot, due to hit us at around 7.00 pm - that will make getting to work on a Monday morning just that little bit harder than usual! I ventured out into the garden yesterday morning, and liked seeing the little hats of snow on the ivy.

 The verbena bonariensis, self-seeded in a pot (so not sure whether it will be back this year), looking a bit like a candelabra.

 A close up of one of the verbena flower heads.

 Even the pots had little hats.  For some reason, this image reminded me of a Beatrix Potter illustration, but having gone through my books and a book on her art, I can't find it.  Perhaps it's one of those things that has created itself in my head.

 So, to my treat (there are more - I seem to have been rather indulgent, buying lots of treats for myself at the moment).  I can't remember where I saw the picture, but I saw a picture on a blog that I follow and was hooked.  I went via a link to a blog and from there, to an etsy shop where the most beautiful, colourful prints were for sale.  Yes, you guessed it, I treated myself to one. It is called 'Backyard with Stars' and is by Australian artist, Loretta Grayson.  It came beautifully and safely packaged, in a sturdy card envelope, then wrapped in a map, with tags, a postcard and an origami bird.  Her blog is called A Shoebox of Photographs and there are links to her shop and to a really interesting tutorial on how she creates her stunning images as well as who provides her inspiration.  So would you like to see the image?

It comes unframed, but I just love it! (it wasn't lying flat when I took the photo as the background paper I had laid it on decided to curl,very unhelpfully, so the print looks a little curled, but is flat in real life).  The stars have been hand painted in on the print, in silver and gold.  I love her use of colours and the background looks just like felt (but is, in fact, oil pastel).  The next plan is to get it framed - that will be one of my next treats!

Autumn sun

 We have been so lucky yesterday and today as we have had sunshine and the bluest of blue skies.  The combination of Helianthus Lemon Queen against the blue sky never fails to lift my spirits.  This year in particular, the Helianthus has been fantastic.

 I watched a plane leaving a vapour trail.

 Magnolia Lilifolia Susan's yellowing leaves looked beautiful against the blue.  I don't think even a Mediterranean sky could beat ours today.

 The butterflies, bees, wasps and other insects were also enjoying both the sunshine and the ivy flowers.  Ivy can be a thug and trying to keep it under control is a never-ending process, but it does have the benefit that insects love the flowers and birds love the berries.  I saw Red Admirals...

...and I was really pleased that this Comma butterfly stayed still long enough for me to take a photo.

The sky has lightened up now and clouds have interrupted the clear blue, but what a beautiful couple of mornings.

Hello to Lynne Mackay - welcome to Feltabulous.

The last hoorah of summer

 The garden is beginning its slow and elegant descent into autumn but still has a few highlights for these last days of late summer.  Above is my latest buy - a Hibiscus 'Red Heart' - which is patiently waiting for me to decide where to plant it.

 There have been a few insect visitors recently, particularly Red Admiral butterflies, though not in any great numbers.  This one is enjoying the white Aster novae-angliae (not sure which variety).

 The ivy on the wall between us and our neighbours is literally buzzing with insect activity; wasps, hoverflies, bees and butterflies. Although ivy can be a menace, it does redeem itself by providing food for so many species.

 Two beautiful yellow roses from Rose 'Molineux' (David Austin).  A lovely buttery colour and a fragrant perfume.

 A bee happily enjoying the pollen and nectar to be found in Helianthus 'Lemon Queen', a perennial sunflower.  It is a reliable, tough plant which is always cheering.

 My huge Hydrangea Avant Garde, which is stunning and which has two more flower heads developing.  It has been a very good buy, although the coming winter will no doubt prove how hardy it is.

Hardy Geranium 'Crystal Lake' with beautiful veining on the petals.  Yet another plant waiting to find a permanent home.

And finally, a burst of lilac/pink from Brachycome which has been one of the most reliable plants in my rather disastrous hanging baskets this year, and still flowering away.

My garden has been giving me a few headaches just recently as I am fighting against a rampant fungi in the soil which is sucking out all the moisture in the raised beds and gradually turning the soil to grey, ashy stuff which no moisture can get through.  Unfortunately, it seems to go around plant roots too, which kills the plants.  When I come across it, I am digging it out and replacing it with top soil and adding water retaining granules.  I am valiantly fighting to keep my plants in good health and am contemplating sinking drainage tubes into the soil to aid moisture retention.  Despite this situation, my plants are doing their best to continue flowering just a little bit longer, for which I am really grateful.

Butterfly on the ivy

Once the sun had come out this morning, following a misty autumnal start to the day, I notices lots of insects visiting the ivy flowers on the wall. I was really pleased to catch this butterfly ( I think it is a Red Admiral) enjoying the nectar and the sunshine. The sky really was this blue too.

It really was one of those moments that makes you glad to be alive!