It’s the beginning of the gardening year.
Through Autumn and winter I find myself entirely focused on the spring and summer to follow. It’s always so hard to imagine and remember the extent of the transformation of a perennials garden from late winter to mid summer.
Below the photo shows winter in the old orchard. The garden has been cut back right down to its bare bones. The structure of the garden is all that is left. The shape of the lawns and the shrubs and trees framing it.
The perennials and non evergreen grasses are cut right down in July. Shrubs and evergreen grasses usually natives are left or trimmed and shaped.
By mid summer the whole area is transformed.
Even after years of seeing the massive seasonal growth of gardens using herbaceous perennials I still find myself needing the reassurance of last year’s photos to fully believe it will happen again.
Photos are a huge help. I take hundreds because I love recording that moment in time especially when nature has gifted some combination of plants or beautiful light. It’s those moments that make the work of gardening so rewarding.
Photos also reveal what hasn’t worked so well or possibly a need to refresh a planting. Winter is the time when I divide and move plants. Particularly herbaceous perennials. They are generous in their growth providing each year the possibility of more plants to increase the size of plantings or to move to new areas.
Fishermans Bay Garden has been made through the propagation and division of huge numbers of plants over many years.
