Early Days 2 - Flowers
After digging the Stumpy Garden I initially filled it with flowering plants. First I planted lots roses and perennials near the water - there was lots of room back then (in 2004) and lots of sunshine.
Stumpy Garden Flowers - 2004
I filled the gaps with spiky plants - Iris confusa for a ground cover, and New Zealand striped Phormiums as features. And for a while everything fitted together nicely!
Stumpy Garden Flowers - 2004
Then a trailer load of bargain bin rhododendrons arrived, and I planted them all nearer the lawn, on the shadier side of the garden. In went some Oak trees, with more daffodils underneath, a yellow fruiting Crabapple, and other assorted shrubs.
Rhododendrons by the Water - 2006
The rhododendrons were (and still are) particularly beautiful. Their names were unknown, but all had fruit-salad coloured flowers. Like all the other plants, in these early days they had lots of room spread themselves out.
Planting madly!
My photographs rom these early days are amazingly colourful. So I was planting madly, not giving much thought to the growth that would happen. Silly me...
Willow Garden Perennials - 2003
Changes came slowly. First the Iris confusa patch was flattened in a winter snow storm, so I ripped most of it out. I loved the icy white flowers in spring, but wasn't sure about the way it wintered over.
Willow Garden Perennials - 2006
Then the rose Robusta wasn't quite as 'robusta' as its name suggested, and was consigned to the bonfire in another winter clean-up. I left the other roses, but they had to fight much harder for air and space with Hebes and ever-growing Phormiums.
Looking Upstream - 2006
I creating stone walls by the water, and little paths. The waterside Phormiums continued to grow - and grow - and grow. Many were hybrids of the stiff and bulky tenax species, not the best choice to share space with other ornamentals.
The start of the Gunnera...
Giant Gunnera seedlings first appeared under the Willow Tree stump in 2006. They'd arrived from a patch growing far upstream of my garden, and I kindly allowed them to stay growing by the water's edge. Oops. I wonder now if this was wise!