This garden is our Nemesis
In 1998 when we purchased the 1
acre of land, it was covered in scrub, bushes & grass native to chalkland.
Totally unprotected from the vicious west wind, We first cleared the site and
planted a wind break along the West boundary of Leylandi trees, native saplings
& Gorse seedlings.
In March 2000 the footprint for
the house was cleared of topsoil which was heaped and the construction, to our
design, of the house commenced.
February 2002 we moved into the
house, hard landscaping to the garden commenced and continued over the next 2.5
years. Rain water is harvested into a 5000 gallon tank constructed beneath one
of the flower beds. This is used to water the garden plants.
Ken and Sandra seived the heaps of
top soil and barrowed it on to terraces and raised flower beds. The stones
& flints were used as foundation for paths surfaced in Westmoreland Slate,
recycled from the roof of the self catering apartment in Walmer. The soil is
supplemented with well rotted horse manure and our own compost. Wood chippings
from a local tree surgeon serve as mulch.
6 years later the garden is a blaze of flowering plants and shrubs, gathered
from around the world. The Pergola is covered with Roses, Clematis,
Honeysuckle, Solanum, Jasmine, Grapevine, & Passionflower. It contains
several birds nests.
August 18th 2008. In July & August the garden has suffered strong westerly
winds, which has dried out & snapped off plants and generally reduced the
temperature, despite the sunshine. The Kingsdown Village
show took place yesterday and the garden produced exhibits winning 9 First
Prize Trophies, including Specimen Rose, 3 Dahlias, 9 Gooseberries, Best Use of
Greenhouse and Best Terraced Area. The Kingsdown area enjoys its own
micro-climate & we have suffered few heavy rain storms, mostly early
morning with sun for the rest of the day.
September and October have been the best months of the year for the garden. The
wind has dropped and the days have been sunny and warm, allowing the plants
some recovery time before winter sets in. The Cleomes and Daturas have flowered
magnificently and the Shoofly plants have grown to new proportions. The
Windflowers or Japanese Anemones and Phlox have kept the garden colourful. The
Dahlias and Roses have been magnificent and evn at the end of October provide
great banks of colour and all the flowers for the house.
At the far end of the Garden, underneath the windbreak hedge is the
architectural area, planted for structure and movement. There we have Banana
plants grown from seed, Bamboos, Reeds, Daturas, Cannas, Rhicinus and Echiums.
The whole garden is now very lush and jungle like.
Autumn colours are prominent in the Indian Bean Tree, Virginia Creeper,
Firethorns, Forest Pansy, Acers and Pampas Grass. Whilst Nereni provide splashes
of vivid colour in sunny spots. to be continued
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