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 gardeb 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.
At last we are serving home grown Tomatoes for breakfast. The Onions are drying & we are overflowing with Courgettes. The Dahlias have enjoyed the unusual rainfall and cooler temperatures and are magnificent. The Tree ferns & Banana plants (1 grown from seed) are in full leaf and even the Bougainvilleas are flowering outside. The Lillies, Agapanthus & Begonias have bloomed non stop for over 2 months & made a brilliant display in the courtyard.
The constant dead heading of the Roses has given a second flowering, which should continue well into September. The Japanese Anemones, Phlox & Crinum vie with the colourful 6ft tall Cannas for your attention. The late flowering Clematis, Jasmin & Passionflower replace the now pruned Lavender to perfume the air around the Pergola.
In 2008 the Bird of Paradise flowered for the first time and the Ginger Lillies have flowerheads, another first. The Abutilons & Agnistus look better every year. The fruit of the Kangaroo Apple is showing red and the Kangaroo Paw is in flower. To be continued:- |
