Paddy's Garden, a quick walk around

[Paddy Tobin]

Cohan,

Grass or lawn? It's all in the mind, I suppose. Those areas of grass which are central to an area of garden, i.e. that the grass is a main feature of that area, are called lawns while grassy areas which simply serve as the routes around beds and borders, I simply refer to as "grass". Lawns are also better treated, fertililser and weedkiller are applied regularly; they are scarified twice a year, aerated in autumn and cut with a cylinder mower which gives a closer and better cut. On the other hand, the grass has fertiliser perhaps only once of twice a year, weedkiller perhaps once a year and is cut with a ride-on or push rotary mower - less attention. It's all in the mind of the gardener!

Robin,

How could one be without 'Annebelle' despite its blousy and floppy habit it still makes a great display in the garden. Hyd. quercifolia is in a hidden corner, somewhat stuck in under a magnolia but it nonetheless gives a good display. It is one I must propagate and plant elsewhere in the garden as it has better foliage than many other hydrangeas.

Some of the earlier planted trees are making a reasonable size but we will have to wait another few years to see the later ones take shape. Some of the earliest planted trees are up to 15 metres and have a great presence in the garden. Mary is always wary of my tree-planting activities as she fears I will close in the garden too much. She prefers light and openess while I like enclosure. We try to balance our plantings - this means that I do what she says!

Glad you enjoyed the garden walk. Paddy

[Luc Gilgemyn]

I was late discovering this thread....  ...
Now that I've seen it I'm flabbergasted ! 
Paddy, this is one wonderful garden !!
I think I could spend hours looking around enjoying this work of art.
It's clear to me, only a true plantsman (and -woman !!! ) can achieve such a marvelous result !
Thanks for the walk !! 

[cohan]

Cohan,

Grass or lawn? It's all in the mind, I suppose. Those areas of grass which are central to an area of garden, i.e. that the grass is a main feature of that area, are called lawns while grassy areas which simply serve as the routes around beds and borders, I simply refer to as "grass". Lawns are also better treated, fertililser and weedkiller are applied regularly; they are scarified twice a year, aerated in autumn and cut with a cylinder mower which gives a closer and better cut. On the other hand, the grass has fertiliser perhaps only once of twice a year, weedkiller perhaps once a year and is cut with a ride-on or push rotary mower - less attention. It's all in the mind of the gardener!

Glad you enjoyed the garden walk. Paddy

ah, ok, i get it, just a shift in emphasis by those definitions, we dont have any lawn here at all, and barely have grass
how long have you lived on this property/been working on this garden?

i certainly wouldnt want to be without trees, and like that we are surrounded with varying forest on all sides, which reduces wind a lot; however, i really dont like the shade that goes with them--and hope to lower the line along the south side, over time..has to be done carefully as if you remove too many, you will lose many others from wind, and not where you choose! also like to keep the view of the neighbours blocked(only on that one side, prob something like 100m away)..would love to replace that line of spruce and poplar with shorter trees so the sun can reach the house in winter..
i'd also feel much more comfortable with big trees and all spruce farther away from the houses--risk of falling and fire, respectively...

[Paddy Tobin]

Luc,

You flatter wonderfully! You see I look at the wonderful plants so many people on the forum grow and know I would not manage to grow them myself. I have come to an age when I know what I can do and choose my plants accordingly - good tough things that will do well in my conditions and I leave those very demanding alpines and pot-grown bulbs to the dedicated enthusiasts. Of course, I love and adore them and really enjoy seeing all the photographs of them here but realise I will not grow them here. So, we all do what we can do best and make the most of that and enjoy it as best we can. It's good fun doing the garden and we enjoy it very much.

Cohan, you have it now. Mary added her definition of lawn and grass - a lawn is grass close to the house and kept to a good standard. Grass grows away from the house. The front garden is twenty two years old while the back garden, vegetable patch, lane etc is 7 - 8 years old. We bought the house and moved here twenty two years ago and bought the back garden etc over seven years ago to extend the garden, give us a bit more room etc.

Paddy

[TC]

Beautiful garden Paddy but I would be inclined to call it a park!!!!

[cohan]

Cohan, you have it now. Mary added her definition of lawn and grass - a lawn is grass close to the house and kept to a good standard. Grass grows away from the house. The front garden is twenty two years old while the back garden, vegetable patch, lane etc is 7 - 8 years old. We bought the house and moved here twenty two years ago and bought the back garden etc over seven years ago to extend the garden, give us a bit more room etc.
Paddy

that's really great that you were able to expand your space!
i agree with growing what works well for you--and that includes not only your environment, but how much time you have to fuss! i have lots of exotic tender stuff in the house, but its easy there! outside i'm willing to put lots of time into building beds and sowing seeds, and have little choice about weeding! but apart from that, i expect established plants to mainly look after themselves

[Paul T]

Oh Paddy.  How gorgeous your garden is!!!!!    And all that space!!  I think most of my garden would fit into that area of square lawn you showed us in the back yard (with your delightful variegated wedding cake dogwood next to the fence).  Oh what I could do with all that space.  There wouldn't be any lawn (we aren't allowed to water lawns here any more due to water restrictions) and I'd have winding paths etc thoughout.  BUT, if I had that sort of space, in your climate, I'd have the lawn too.  It sets gardens off so beautifully.  One thing I really miss here is the opportunity to mass plant things for a big display..... if I wanted to do that I'd have to get rid of 90% of the things I grow to make space for them. 

Thanks so much for the tour.  Just beautiful!

[Paddy Tobin]

Robin suggested I put up this aerial view of the garden so that people could position the views and get a better idea of the layout of the garden.

There is a line of large trees running up almost through the centre of the photographs - this is one boundary of the garden. There are cherries, pines, ash, horse chestnut, hornbeam, hawthorn, blackthorn and damson along with others which I have added over the years as underplanting. There is a border of 3 - 4 metres wide running along inside this line of trees with magnolias, azaleas and a selection of shrubs. The "lane" runs alongside this border.

If you can spot the small hut - a children's treehouse, a house on stilts, to the front near side of the house - the entrance is just beside this but obscured by trees.

The diagonal line of trees running across the lower part of the photograph mark the ditches on either side of the road which comes to a dead end about 100 metres past the house.

You can see some grass in front of the house, this is the square lawn. The round lawn is beside this but obscured from view here.

At the back of the house, the veg patch is easy to pick out with its regular raised beds and gravel pathways. The garden shed for lawnmowers and tools is above this and the compost bins are in the far top corner beside it.

The back lawn runs between the two yew hedges, struggling to get established in our wet ground.

The near side of the photograph is still quite open - plenty of grass. At the top right is the "top border" and the new bed is in this corner also where Mary's new garden is being developed.

The side border is obviously on the side - the right hand side of the photograph, a mixture of trees, shrubs and underplanting of herbaceous material.


You might be able to pick out the three hornbeams - recently had their lower branches lifted to open up the bed a little - these are at the top of the "hornbeam bed".

The "evodia bed" is more clear to see and the yellow planting is Rudbeckia fulgida 'Goldstrum'

It is hard to see the bottom border as the trees on the roadside obscure it but the hydrangea bed is clearly seen here leading back up to the glasshouses.

The pond is directly above the house - you might pick out a variegated pittosporum beside the small glasshouse, this is at one side of the planting at the back of the house.

Now, there you are. That might help you get some idea of the general layout.

Paddy

[ranunculus]

I can't quite make out the 'National Park' signs at the entrance, Paddy ... they should be there!   

[Luc Gilgemyn]

     Would that make Paddy the Park ranger Cliff ?? 

[Paddy Tobin]

This entire thread has been reviewed by the Head Gardener/Chief Park Ranger and I have been criticised for some of the photographs chosen - not showing that area at its best etc.

Now you all know why the garden is as it is - there is a very good boss who keeps me at it, tells me what to do, plans what is going to happen etc etc.

Well, I suppose there has to be someone in charge! I'm just the dogsbody who does the donkey work - but I do enjoy it.

Paddy

[Arykana]

Paddy, your garden is simple perfect, I can see several fairy dance in it

[olegKon]

Simply fascinating, Paddy!

[Maggi Young]

A super walk around the garden Paddy... and one that you might care to elaborate on next year at different seasons, perhaps?

The aerial shot is extra special because it helps us to get a good idea of where everything is and is most helpful, I think, to allow anyone looking for inspiration for their own garden to get a literal overview to assist them in their planning by showing how the different areas flow and connect.

Many thanks for this thread!  

[Luc Gilgemyn]

A super walk around the garden Paddy... and one that you might care to elaborate on next year at diiferent seasons, perhaps?

Now there's a great idea !