Meet Daisy Wright from Dirleton – HES
June 22nd 2018Spring into action at Dirleton gardens
It’s all go here at the moment as Mark and I juggle the long list of jobs to do around the gardens. Spring is fantastic with new growth, budding flowers bursting to life and fragrant smells filling the air.
Out with the old and in with the new
Seeing the sunshine yellow of the daffodils, and the colourful tulips in our gardens warms our heart and brings a smile to our faces, as we get closer to summer. We’ve finally shruged off the winter blues (hopefully) and are welcoming the colours and scents of spring with arms wide open. The gardens at Dirleton are especially captivating in spring with our beautiful herbaceous border bursting to life.
Poppies adding vibrant colour to our border.
Sweet peas are made of this, who am I to disagree?
Every year we grow sweet peas from seed and plant them out in early spring. These climbers are perfect for gripping onto our specially made (and slightly ungainly) wire structure, but don’t fret! Once these little beauties take a hold, they will envelope the structure and gift us with delicate colours and lovely floral scents. As they grow, we take the buds and flowers off so that the energy can solely be concentrated on new growth continuing their climb towards the skies. Not only will this result in lovely tall sweet peas, but it also provides us with lovely sweet smelling flowers for our homes and work place.
Sweet peas beginning their climb.
Our Dahlia tubers have also been planted out after being stored away in a cool, dark place over winter. We are happy to report that so far, they are doing well! They may not look like much in the beginning but their longevity of flowers will gift us almost until the first frosts.
Dahlia tubers.
We also begin the very slow and very big job of replacing the box hedge (Buxus sempervirens) around the herbaceous border. Unfortunately it’s been hit with a fungal disease and has been dying off in places. Japanese holly (Ilex crenata) has been chosen for its replacement, as it is disease resistant and has been used by our colleagues up north. A small test pilot has been planted outside the shop, so we wait to see how well it does.
Welcome to your new home Ilex crenata.
Getting in shape with Mr Rotovator
Luckily for everyone this does not involve donning our colourful Lycra and using tins of beans for weights….phew! After years of digging the formal gardens by hand, this year we were supplied with a rotovator to dig over and prepare the 17 flower beds for our bedding plants to be planted out at the beginning of June. The 3000+ plug plants have been growing and establishing in the greenhouse and both Mark and I look forward to re-homing them soon. We can’t wait to get them out and watch them fill the beds with colour. We are always rewarded with audible gasps as people walk around the corner to witness this part of the gardens in its full glory.
Formal gardens ready for their upcoming spectacle!
Coos are safe with these stakes!
The herbaceous border has quite frankly gone berserk this month. After noticing a few buds here and there, growth now seems to be in full swing with plants growing bigger by the day. As ever we continue the fight with weeds and now we stake some of the larger and top heavy plants to give them structure and stop them smothering their neighbours. It’s a very time consuming job but well worth the effort in the long run.
Catmint, poppies and peony roses are a few of the plants that all need a helping hand during the growing season. The peony roses are absolutely spectacular this time of year, the colour that they bring to the gardens is mesmerising. If only they knew the compliments that were awarded them, they would blush the colour that they are. We support them with bamboo canes or stakes for the larger types, it can be a little unsightly at first but they soon sort themselves out to carry on gifting us with large plumes of brilliant colour.
Peony roses at their best.
Roll up, roll up. Get your plants here!
Yes, we did it. We finally have plants for sale. Take a piece of Dirleton home with you and enjoy some of the wonders that we are blessed with in your own home. Sales are going extremely well so far .
Swanky new plant stand.
Knapweed (Centuarea montana) has been a massive hit so far with its beautiful shade of blue and purple adorning our border. Marsh orchid (Dactylorihiza majalis) is hot on its tail and with many more coming into flower it won’t be long until our new plant stand is empty.
Knapweed Marsh Orchid
Say hello and wave goodbye
As we gradually climb the somewhat slow hill toward summer we thank spring for its soft pastel colours and delicate scents that subtly hang in the air. As the daffodils fade away and the blossom trees fill the air with confetti we welcome the vibrant colours, smells and sounds that come with the approach of summer.
Our beautiful cherry blossom trees adoring the paths with its confetti.
Tiger lilies remind us that not everything that looks so beautiful has a smell to match. Quite frankly it’s one of the most revolting smells that will linger around your nostrils. Stay around it for long enough and you will even start to taste it! Looking fabulous and standing alone in the border they tease you to get close and marvel in their unusual appeal. Do you dare to take a sniff?
Tiger lilies looking so innocent!
It may not always be sunshine and budding flowers but we accept the rewards nonetheless. Our magnolias lose their beautiful candle like petals and green growth replaces the soft pink hues shortly lived. Summer plants rush to overtake their spring counterparts so as to not be left out of the awe that is part of the gardens and butterflies flutter and lounge around the border, making us stop and wonder at their fragile beauty.
A female orange tipped butterfly.
