Introducing the Stumpy Garden
Stumpy Cat
The Stumpy Garden is over the water race, and follows the water from the driveway car bridge down to The Plank, a narrow but sturdy water crossing.
Its name celebrates Stumpy, one of the original Moosey cats, as well as the large gum tree stumps around which the garden was dug and developed. Some are still rotting away quietly, surrounded by shrubs and ground-covering Iris confusa.
Just weeks ago the biggest, an 'heirloom' willow tree stump, was finally chain-sawed down. It lasted over twenty years!
The ups and downs of trees...
In 2013 part of the Stumpy Garden was completely trashed by next-door's fallen trees in a severe windstorm. Fastigiate Oaks I'd planted early on didn't live up to my expectations (they were badly shaped), and were felled in 2021.
So the Stumpy Garden has experienced trees coming and going, where plants are damaged, and shady areas suddenly become sunny.
The Stumpy Garden is Weeded
Some parts of the garden are filled with beautifully large rhododendrons and Phormiums. Bulky ornamental Miscanthus grasses give beautiful winter colour. Over the years the area waterside has become dominated more and more by Gunnera and coarse leafed Carex grasses. Ferns also try their best to colonise the water race banks.
Fresh Spring Gunnera Leaves
Willow Bridge allows access from the back house lawns, and marks the end of the largest Gunnera patch. Downstream of the bridge I tolerated a huge tangle of Iris confusa chengdu for many years - but I finally cleaned it all out in the autumn of 2026. Perhaps this small piece of garden is waiting for some roses?
There are bright blue seats on which to sit and enjoy the burbling sounds of the running water. One short path runs from Willow Bridge towards the very back lawn. Earlier paths through the garden near the water became overgrown with shrub growth and had to be decommissioned.
What the Stumpy Garden needs...
The more I write about the Stumpy Garden the more I realise what it needs. The soil needs nourishing, the rhododendrons need organic matter, the weeds need weeding, smaller shrubs like Choisyas need nurturing. OK. I can do all this!