School excursion too

Two gardens in two days: what an indulgence. And Great Dixter was a real treat. We raced down there hoping the weather would be kind and the threatened rain managed to hold off all day.

Now this is a garden I have been hesitating to see. Too famous, too garish, too much of everything I suppose. But I was wrong; this is an intimate garden that had surprises almost everywhere one looked.

I still don’t cherish all the ideas that Christopher Lloyd (and now Fergus Garrett) held about colour combinations. But you have to admire the verve and sheer excitement of this garden. I did. And it was fun to be in such good company again.

But back to garden ideas. That’s what all these posts are about. Where to start? Well the ubiquitous allium patches must be seen and admired. I love the positive thicket of alliums that Dixter has; far more exuberant than the Chatto ones and certainly more than my meek offerings in the herb garden.

But if I was to be chronological, I really ought to note the lovely meadow entrance as you walk into the garden. It is striking for its sheer audacity. Not what one would expect from a great home and garden.

We didn’t pay to go and see the house interiors. No time for that when there was a garden to minutely inspect. Perhaps I will come back later in the season and have a look around. It certainly is intriguing.

But back to the planting scheme. Mad about covers it; but I did love this idea: bronze fennel, alliums and these amazing lilac tulips. Can I have a hundred please? Especially if they can endure until the middle of May. They have good healthy height too.

And the ground cover is certainly something worth emulating. Forget me nots. So simple but effective. What is their latin name? Myosotis. Will it be hardy enough for our garden? Long pause there while I look up the encyclopedia and cause a minor landslide in the library of books on my table. Yep. Hardy. Phew.

Here’s a fun shot of Andrew clashing with the colour scheme. These grasses look lush. Wonder what they are.

I took way too many photos to post them all here without causing drowsiness. But I did remember to take a close up shot of the yellow rattle in the meadow. Must see if we have any in our meadows. Anything to parasitise the grass and keep the levels down.

Another plant I am keen on is this lovely pimpinella. I bought two at the nursery after we had done out laps. It will have to be nurtured for a year or so in the shade garden until I can keep up with the mulching and the moisture.

And just in case you think I have gone utterly mauve and dull. I also bought two Circiums – rich red thistle like towering monsters to plant at the back of the artichokes in the herb garden. And to clash in a deliciously Lloyd-esque manner. You can just glimpse them in the photo with Andrew in front of the topiary hedge. They are far right and tiny and crimson next to the alliums. But so luscious.

And I can’t avoid writing about the topiary; as much as one can avoid them in the garden. I am not a fan, it feels so menacing and reminds me of being on a battlement of a castle when up close. But I admire the work.

Apparently Christopher Lloyd was a ‘fig pig’. Something of which I heartily approve. These trained ones are just divine. And gives one ideas. If my figs ever get beyond the knee height and scythed by strimmer stage I will definitely know where I found my inspiration.