October 2025
Hello Gardening Friends,
One of the questions that has been asked is about our nursery plants which are for sale. We have a small range of plants propagated from plants that grow here. If visitors want to come and look at the plant sales table only, there is no admission fee charged. Otherwise, the normal admission fee of $15.00 plus any plants that you may buy. As with garden visits, the nursery is open by appointment only.
It's the usual busy time of the year with plants growing ever so quickly, rabbits munching happily, and visitors coming. I do enjoy this time of the year and for us, the weather has generally been very pleasant.
We've managed to get nearly all our hedge trimming done before the hot temperatures set in, and most of the domes and other shapes are clipped. These are done by hand.
This is an exciting time for me as we have a new shade house in which seeds can be grown and cuttings propagated. We’ve already planted out many of the plants where the seed was sown in autumn, and some of the spring sown plants are thriving too. I decided to grow a lot of annuals this year; something I’ve rarely done. They are being used to fill gaps in the general gardens and in our potager.
This year we have had time to lift and divide many bearded irises that were quite congested, and it has been fun placing them where their various colours look great amongst surrounding things flowering at the same time.
Tomorrow afternoon is the first of my Design Study afternoons. I am a bit nervous but looking forward to sharing my ideas with the folk attending.
Photo 1: The potager before the storm of plants that will flower or the vegetables that will grow. This shows the framework with a bed of New Zealand garlic to the right. We have started clearing and lifting the under canopy of the macrocarpa shelter belt along the entire length of the side garden near the base of the hill in the background and it shows in this photo how much light is now let in.
Photo 2: The scrumptious clematis ‘Belle of Woking’.
Photo 3: The rose ‘Frensham’ starts flowering in October and is a repeat flowerer. It has no perfume but is an excellent picker. The garden was named after this rose as it was my father’s favourite rose.
Photo 4: For many years this aquilegia, or Granny’s bonnet, is the most admired of all the aquilegias in our garden.
Photo 5: The new propagating house, which I call the maternity ward, to differentiate it from the other shade house where we keep plants which aren’t at the propagating stage.
Best wishes to you all,
Margaret
