Monthly Musings from Moors Meadow

This have been an exciting and celebratory week at Moors Meadow and all due to Joshua De Lisle our extraordinary young resident Metal Crafter.

I was pleased to be shown his sketch book of designs and the gates look really stunning with great attention to even the smallest details, he is also a good artist. He has some other great designs for items from candlesticks to unique railings and the individual thought that goes into every piece of his work in relation to the surroundings it will be set in is terrific.

Around the garden we are well into the pruning and at first glance there doesn’t seem very much to do but when we do get the saw and secateurs going and looking closely at some of the trees and shrubs there is quite a lot that needs attention. Once you start the trick is knowing when to stop, when we prune a plant we like it still have a natural shape as if we haven’t touched it rather than a flat hedge or round ball. We were out somewhere this summer and saw a man with a chainsaw cutting all his shrubs into a round shape whatever they were, I didn’t like to tell him that on many he was taking off all next years flowering material, it wasn’t as if they were closely planted but were dotted about in the grass with a lot of space between.

While we were pruning we found a little nest like we have never seen before, it was on the ground and is a sort of flattened oval shape lined with dry grass while the outside is layer upon layer of dry leaves which look like they have been glued one on top of each other, we are not sure what made it.

We have an aphid problem on the big Phormium tenax so we are cutting out the affected fronds as well as tidying them by the removing the dead and tatty, it will reduce their size greatly but hopefully give them a new lease of life though it is a tough job and soon blunts the tools. We have also started a new herbaceous bed by taking the turf off, next we will give it a dig over to try to get the scutch out before laying a brick edge and planting though what with we haven’t yet decided.

We do now have help in the garden in the shape of Laura, our girl Tuesday and also Jan a trainee on a years gardening course for 2 days a week, it is not only a relief to my aching joints but also interesting to teach, as well as a botanical name memory exercise for me.

Plant of the month; Fatsia japonica - Japanese Aralia / Japanese Fatsia

There are only about 2 species of these evergreen shrubs which come from Japan, Korea and Taiwan. They are closely related to Hedera (ivy) and indeed the leaves, flowers and fruit do bear a great similarity in shape if not in size. F.japonica grows 5 - 12ft (1.5 - 3.5m) and the shiny leathery leaves many reach 12in (30cm) across or more and are born on thick erect stems. The rounded heads of creamy white flowers are followed by small black berries. They are best planted in semi-shade as they do not like the fierce summer sun (and we do get a lot of that!!), and well-drained humus rich soil. Propagate by cuttings in summer or from seed. They may become a bit leggy and do not mind being pruned. Flowering in autumn and early winter ours brightens up a shady corner of the grass garden and adds a good contrast to the grasses.

Ros. www.moorsmeadow.co.uk 01885 410318

www.joshuadelisle.com 07807 461150