Copyright© of Top Growth Garden Services - 6 February 2006
Diary Notes for November/December 2007
It makes you want to run !
15 November
We have just created a long series of steps from aged oak railway sleepers. Once we had placed about 6 of them the lads couldn’t resist running up and down, I know neither Graeme nor Mike would admit to this, but it was interesting to see.
Perhaps it is the inviting feel of the aged sleepers that generate a secure foothold, unlike the more traditional slate flags that become treacherous when wet and covered in algae. More likely it was just a couple of young landscapers who were enjoying their work.
We had the sleepers brought in from a company in Nottingham that I found on the internet. Their choice was absolutely vast and the sleepers we chose proved to be every bit as good as hoped.
However, we had to organise collection for ourselves because they didn’t have a storage depot up here in the wild north of England. Difficulty in finding a diverse range of landscaping products is a challenge worth mentioning. Many nurseries in this area tend to be small and hold limited stock. So again we revert to the internet and usually are well chuffed with the products.
15 November
We have just created a long series of steps from aged oak railway sleepers. Once we had placed about 6 of them the lads couldn’t resist running up and down, I know neither Graeme nor Mike would admit to this, but it was interesting to see.
Perhaps it is the inviting feel of the aged sleepers that generate a secure foothold, unlike the more traditional slate flags that become treacherous when wet and covered in algae. More likely it was just a couple of young landscapers who were enjoying their work.
We had the sleepers brought in from a company in Nottingham that I found on the internet. Their choice was absolutely vast and the sleepers we chose proved to be every bit as good as hoped.
However, we had to organise collection for ourselves because they didn’t have a storage depot up here in the wild north of England. Difficulty in finding a diverse range of landscaping products is a challenge worth mentioning. Many nurseries in this area tend to be small and hold limited stock. So again we revert to the internet and usually are well chuffed with the products.
Cutting these sleepers is quite arduous. Of course oak is always a tough wood to cut, even when fresh it quickly blunts the teeth. These sleepers are hard as ironwood and treated with tar to preserve them, we had to manually sharpen the chains after 4 cuts. Handsaws are out of the question.
We are building small curved retaining walls that run away from the steps to create an effect of opening out and inviting exploration. The slate is from an old garden wall that was demolished last summer so the effect is instantly pleasing and has a permanent feel, even before planting.
We are going to plant a small strip of soil between each sleeper with chamomile and thyme. The small terraces created by the retaining walls are to be filled with rockery plants and small shrubs, with the emphasis on delicacy and pastel shades.
From a tangled mess of knotweed, nettles and brambles the owners are going to have an inviting area to dine out during the summer months...it really does make you want to skip and run!
We are building small curved retaining walls that run away from the steps to create an effect of opening out and inviting exploration. The slate is from an old garden wall that was demolished last summer so the effect is instantly pleasing and has a permanent feel, even before planting.
We are going to plant a small strip of soil between each sleeper with chamomile and thyme. The small terraces created by the retaining walls are to be filled with rockery plants and small shrubs, with the emphasis on delicacy and pastel shades.
From a tangled mess of knotweed, nettles and brambles the owners are going to have an inviting area to dine out during the summer months...it really does make you want to skip and run!
Ground elder -
3 December 2007
In the Middle Ages and later, Ground elder was used for curing gout, whence comes its alternative name of ‘gout weed’ and its botanical name Aegopodium podograria (podagraria is Greek for gout).
In our experience Ground elder is a serious nuisance, once settled in a garden it gets muddled up in the roots of other plants becoming impossible to eradicate. If time allows the best way to tackle the weed in the base of plants is to dig the plant out, shake the dirt off the rootball and carefully tease away the Ground elder roots. They are usually quite obvious being pale, soft and very breakable with many nodules capable of producing further suckers. Plucking the growing tops seems to encourage the blighters even more, so that isn’t a good practice.
Chemicals can be used, however we prefer to use manual removal because the weed becomes so entangled in the base of plants that contamination and consequently damage to the desirable plant possible.
On occasion where there have been large infestations we have had some success by strimming the emerging greenery. If pursued for some time this is helpful as it prevents the weed flowering and setting seed.
This garden weed is not a native of Britain, but more a guest that has outstayed its welcome. It was introduced from the Continent, presumably by somebody who wanted to eat it; the young leaves, boiled like spinach and eaten with butter, were once considered a delicacy. The Romans may be to blame, but nobody knows for sure.
I once came across a garden with a large patch of variegated Ground elder and almost screeched in dismay. Sorry if you were the plantsman who considered this nuisance desirable, it isn’t on my list of favourites.
A plague plant if ever there was one.
On occasion where there have been large infestations we have had some success by strimming the emerging greenery. If pursued for some time this is helpful as it prevents the weed flowering and setting seed.
This garden weed is not a native of Britain, but more a guest that has outstayed its welcome. It was introduced from the Continent, presumably by somebody who wanted to eat it; the young leaves, boiled like spinach and eaten with butter, were once considered a delicacy. The Romans may be to blame, but nobody knows for sure.
I once came across a garden with a large patch of variegated Ground elder and almost screeched in dismay. Sorry if you were the plantsman who considered this nuisance desirable, it isn’t on my list of favourites.
A plague plant if ever there was one.
