Gardener's Diary - hollyhocks and spiders
Day 37 of meteorological summer
Another rainy week in the gardens. I haven’t worked as much as usual and instead have been keeping on top of my mountain of paperwork.
When I have gardened, I have really enjoyed it. After the rain fell, many of the gardens have cheered up. Roses have put out another flush of flowers, nasturtiums have picked up the pace and grown considerably, as well as clematis still holding out with stunning deep flowers. Alcea rosea (hollyhocks) tall stems can be seen, appearing joyfully in front gardens or self-seeded on street corners.
This week I plan to elaborate on one of my favourite gardens which I visit fortnightly. The couple are both horticulturalists, they live in a block of flats and a few years ago took on the empty communal garden which had been left neglected for years. It was empty apart from some leggy roses, a philadelphus and the obligatory self-seeded elder tree. The lawn was patchy, a greedy holm oak and bay tree had taken over the garden, hogging the light yet providing a habitat for local bugs and birds.
My clients began planting, hired me and now it’s a haven of interesting horticultural species. It’s tended well by them, each plant is considered and is given a warning period if it doesn’t thrive. We comment on unusual occurrences, this week the Cyclamen coum were in flower, rather than in September/October. The damp week we had recently and cooler temperatures has created a faux Autumn for the plants, it’s not surprising the flowers appeared.
I adore working in their garden - when I arrive, they greet me and we walk around the garden together. Jobs are discussed, plants are noted that need special attention and others are admired. The clients are patient with me, I’ve made a few errors but have learnt what the garden needs now.
They both teach me a lot about species and relevant fertilisers and I’m glad for this. Although I am RHS trained, there are gaps in my knowledge, especially working alone - I am forever researching but it’s nice to have some guidance.
For example, in early spring, they planted Hydrangea arborescens 'Strong Annabelle', a variety of hydrangea which won’t collapse under heavy rain fall (rain is always to be expected in England). However it stands upright, with huge plump creamy white heads and it is quite a special alternative.
They have yellow crocosmias, Crocosmia x crocosmiiflora ‘George Davison’ which is extremely striking and a welcome respite from the typical red/orange I see. They also have the most stunning Canna x generalis cannova ‘Gold Leopard’ which stopped me in my tracks and I had to lean in and stare at the magnificent detail nature provided.
During Autumn, I collect leaves and we make mulch from the plentiful supply which fall from a sycamore tree. These leaves are stored in a DIY mesh container in the corner of the garden and a tender Dicksonia antartica (tree fern) sits on top.
It is a walled garden for the most part, providing a perfect situation for the less hardy, tropical-esque plants like Tetrapanex, Musa (bananas) and canna lilies. Small hostas bask in the shade beneath these plants, a welcome addition.
In Autumn, only the banana plant is covered with a make-shift cover and this is taken off the following spring. All the others are able to survive in this protected environment.
I love to work in the garden, as it’s clear they both love the space dearly. They each know and treasure all the species which grow and there must be hundreds. During the summer months, they take out their table and chairs and are enjoying and using the space - to me, this is what gardens are all about.
Working in this garden is particularly pleasant for me, as I find I can work at a slower and meditative pace. This has been specifically requested from me, “no rushing please”. Sometimes I have been known to become caught up in tasks, scurrying around with piles of leaves or a hose pipe in hand. Yet here, I can slowly move around the garden, tying in clematis, feeding roses, deadheading and planting with extra care.
Garden spiders
Being a gardener, I have really learnt to observe. I feel as though I have discovered a new sense and have become attuned to the small changes in nature.
This developed when I was studying RHS Level 2. I would have regular ident tests on plants, having to learn the family, genera, flowering time and garden situation. I had study each plant with granular detail - registering the leaf margins, flower shape and the buds in dormancy. One day to the next, I began to really see plants and identify them quickly.
Regarding small changes, I noticed that this week hundreds of small Araneus diadematus (garden spider) appeared en mass. Every tree I went beneath, each corner, suspended between stems, hanging from trees, there they were. It’s uncommon for these all of these arachnids to be out at this time of year.
Nature is special. These spiders work in an evolutionary way, their senses lead them. Their collective confusion was astonishing yet I’m worried for nature.
Plant highlights this week
These nasturtiums grown in a window box were striking and incredibly inspiring. Nasturtiums provide edible flowers, the leaves can be eaten in salads and self-seed like crazy.
I have a soft spot in my heart for Arbutilon, their flowers are exotic and stunning, a little like crepe paper. I have a red species at the allotment which has been sulking yet slowly showing signs of life again. I’ve struggled over-wintering the plant as it didn’t like my shed and don’t imagine it will enjoy my central-heated house. Sadly, most of the local Arbutilon’s I would enjoy during my summer walks disappeared a few winters ago, so it brought me great pleasure to see this one appear.
Allotment
My partner and I turned up a few times at the allotment and worked in the rain, harvesting blackberries, kale, roses and mint.
I have a rose which I inherited with my allotment - I believe it to be Rosa ‘Autumn Damask’. It’s heavily scented, very thorny and has gorgeous double flowers. My sweet Romanian allotment neighbour tells me that his family would make rose cordials in the Summer. It inspired me so I plan to make a rose syrup and eventually infuse my kombucha with it - watch this space.
It’s been said that dopamine is released in the brain when picking fruit or vegetables, explaining the bliss I feel picking a blackberry from the cane or sipping on my home-grown mint tea. It’s also said that serotonin levels are increased having your hands in the soil - no real surprise to me as nature is very healing.
