Quirky Quercus
My new gate was placed in situ today by our local Blacksmith Tim.
The gate, fashioned from cleft oak or quercus robur being the Latin name for the English Oak, was created by Dominic, former AA man and now a resident of Mid Devon. Secured with oak pegs and sporting the old iron hinges from the original and rotten softwood gate it is a thing of beauty.
The gate leads from the lane into the front garden and will weather to a silver grey.
The weather has remained dry for a week or so and this, my first year in my new garden is being spent yanking, digging and swearing at pernicious perennial weeds. I could do with the assistance of the 4 Horsemen to cope with bindweed, couch grass, brambles and ground elder. One weed for each of them. It is always said that one should study a new garden for the first year to see what comes up. I think I've already established that nothing much will be coming up having been choked to death by the aforementioned. Exciting times, home grown seedlings snaking through the compost and plants to be bought from local markets to provide colour, scent and nectar for butterflies, insects and bees. Lots to do, planting schemes to devise but the trees are in! apples and plum, twisted willow, spindle and 11 varied Birches and a liquidamber, oh what an unctuous honeyed name. Do I go for a series of garden rooms, an open garden with island beds or see what evolve?. The key I think is to achieve plenty of verticals and my personality tends to go for ordered chaos. I spotted a lovely arched hazel pergola in the Geffrye Museum garden in Shoreditch last week and I think my next mission will be to coppice some hazel and intertwine with golden hop, roses and honeysuckle.
