On Sunday May 22nd, the Club was very kindly extended an invitation to visit the garden of Janet and Chris Pearman, in Peter Avenue. Janet and Chris are newer members of the Club, and this was therefore a garden that most of the membership were unlikely to have visited before. We were also offered tea and cakes in the garden (
as well as -hic- wine - Ed). The Committee would like to extend
their thanks to Janet and Chris for this opportunity, which was much
appreciated by all who attended, and to them and to their grandson who provided wonderful guided tours!
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The top section of the garden under which lies many loads
of soil and builder's hardcore to level out the original drop. |
The weather on the afternoon of the visit was fine and reasonably sunny, which was a relief given all the rain that we had been having through the weeks before, and made for a relaxing typically British afternoon, without even a neighbourly bonfire or mower to see, smell or hear! Thanks also go to everyone who provided cakes for the visit.
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The Dell - the lower section of the garden
ilustrating how much the level was originally raised. |
Janet and Chris' garden is definitely a site of two halves. Originally on a steep slope, when they moved in Janet and Chris imported many lorry loads of hardcore and soil in order to create a flat top section of the garden, now laid mainly to lawn and formal borders, and housing a new greenhouse for Janet's tomatoes (with a bed of elephant garlic outside, which was a new idea for many of the visitors more
familiar with the smaller cousin).
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Candelabra Primulas happy in their habitat -
the original plant is on the left. |
The design of the garden that had members talking most, however, is the way that the garden then drops into an unusual "dell" area, planted as a woodland and with a natural stream, and which is populated by a stunning display of shuttlecock ferns. At the time of our visit, the area was also filled with a fine exhibition of candelabra primulas (
which we hope to see displayed at the next Spring show -
Ed), and which all originate from a single plant bought a number of years ago; the small stream that runs through the area increases significantly in flow through the winter, and has naturally distributed the seeds from the original plant over the Dell The great part of this process is that the resulting "planting" looks entirely natural, as that is what it essentially is. This area is also
extremely popular with the Janet and Chris' grandchildren who use it for building camps and generally getting away from the adults.
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More of the Primulas downstream, showing how a happy
plant will thrive given the right conditions, |
The lower Dell area is also home to a vegetable patch, which needs to be fenced in. When asked why, Chris pointed out that this is to mitigate the effects of a regular invasion by local deer, which was something of a surprise to the author, given that Peter Avenue is on the "town" side of the A22 - I was not aware until this visit that there were any deer in this vicinity, and that they were normally restricted to the Chart.
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Shuttlecock Ferns are a striking feature of the area,
standing up to four feet high |
As well as reiterating our thanks to Janet and Chris for a lovely afternoon, the Committee would also like to hear from any other members with gardens that they would be prepared to open for Club members in the future. We would like to make a Garden Party an annual event for the Club, and it would be great to have other members be as generous as The Pearmans and to allow us to see their patches - in whatever state they happen to be, as we don't expect show gardens...
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| The vegetable area needs to have deer protection. |
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| Woodland camps - a plus for younger members of the family! |
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And finally ... what Sunday afternoon garden visit
would be complete without cakes? |
