March – making a new garden

You may remember last summer we were excited to announce the purchase of a neighbouring strip of land along the north-western edge of the garden. In the months since then it has well and truly been given the 'Gasper Cottage treatment', with a steady stream of skilled landscapers, builders, rainwater harvesting specialists, and, of course, Head Gardener Jack working to transform the unremarkable expanse of grass, scrub, and nettles into a seamless extension of the existing garden. We've seen things really start to take shape in the last few weeks, and so it seems an opportune moment to share progress so far and the vision going forward.

A rough outline of the existing garden in yellow, and the newly acquired land in red

A 'before' shot, taken last autumn from roughly the middle of the new strip looking up towards the lane.

And from the same spot looking in the opposite direction.

The sloping strip has two sections of the existing garden (Studio and Railway) on one side, and a neighbouring horse paddock and tennis court on the other. Whereas before there had been a somewhat abrupt end to the garden here (a high brick wall and a weed-choked stock fence), it is now, like much else of the garden, wide open. Merging with the view beyond is a key characteristic of Gasper Cottage, though not indiscriminately so – a few well-placed trees have already gone in for privacy and screening (bye bye neighbour's stables!).

"It's amazing how removing the brick wall has opened the garden and studio to the afternoon and evening light", observes Bella.

The acquisition also gave Bella that most exciting of gardening opportunities – a completely blank canvas. With not only planting design but the lie of the terrain in question, she and husband Johnnie spent many hours using string, poles, ladders, and even a 3D cardboard model to help them visualise layout and level changes. They finally arrived at the decision to extend the existing Studio Garden, using a retaining wall to build the ground up to the same level.

New retaining wall, already home to a flowering quince (Chaenomeles).

Priorities. Great care was taken when positioning the bench to catch the best view.

By closely matching the materials and sinuous curving shape of the path, the join between old and new should be indistinguishable by the end of the first growing season.

From here, the new area drops away to a more informal, undulating landscape, into which Johnnie was granted permission to extend his model railway track. "Of course it's dotty" Bella remarks, "but it will do a good job of making the new area feel like it was always connected, whereas leaving it where it was would have done the opposite".

Looking down from the extended Studio Garden, essential line improvements well underway.

For the lower part they decided on a bog garden, which will allow a whole new palette of plants to be grown. Cultivating damp-loving plants in a garden with predominantly sandy, free-draining soil may seem somewhat ambitious, though it was precisely this that attracted Bella to the idea. "The main pond has very dry edges once you get outside the liner", she explains, "so creating a bog habitat elsewhere in the garden has been a long standing aim". It won out over the other option of a dry garden (à la Beth Chatto), as the partial belt of trees along one side meant the area would not be sufficiently sun baked for drought-loving plants to thrive.

To achieve the necessary dampness a sunken liner was laid, along with a perforated overflow pipe from a newly installed rainwater harvesting tank. Sited further up the slope underground, the 5000 litre tank catches rainwater from the roof of Bella's studio and feeds an outdoor tap to be used for garden irrigation. "The tank is a long term investment in sustainability, with which we're preparing for future hosepipe bans", Bella explains.

Once lined, the bog garden was filled; first with gravel, then soil.

While ruling out some options, the belt of trees down at this end created other opportunities by way of the shelter it provides from cold north easterly winds. Its protection has made it possible to plant trees which may have struggled elsewhere in the garden, such as rhododendrons.

The trees and shrubs were first to go in. Their circular metal edging is vital for retaining mulch and moisture on the uneven site.

Next was a selection of seed mixes – the most cost and labour effective way of getting a lot of plants into the ground in one go, and the right naturalistic aesthetic for merging the Railway Garden into the pasture beyond. Jack sowed the seeds earlier this month, having first prepared the soil with a rotavator before raking it over to a fine tilth.

A patchwork of seed types. The perennial meadow mix is to blend the area surrounding the new section of railway with the existing 'prairie style' Railway Garden. The woodland mix should thrive in the shady area beneath the trees, and the damp mix is perfect for the bog garden.

The seeds were mixed with sand then broadcast by hand. Jack waited until rain was forecast the following day to save having to water them in artificially.

Further up the slope, the band of nettles and brambles were strimmed off and the remaining stumps covered with mulch and black plastic for a minimum of twelve months. Even the most pernicious weeds struggle to survive a year without light, and during that time the mulch will break down to create a rich, crumbly soil perfect for planting.

The plastic was reused from the Forest Garden, where the ground was successfully prepared using the same method.

The rest of this upper section was then sown with a meandering grass path through an annual meadow mix. This will provide ground cover and interest while the black plastic works its magic, whilst also buying Bella another year to develop plans for the area.

"It will be interesting to compare the hit parade of annual flowers with the development of the perennial mixes in the lower areas", says Bella.

Once sown, the seeds were compressed into the soil using a roller.

At the top of the strip is a rectangular paddock which is likely to become the new 'back of house' area. "Jack and I have started the conversation on what 'perfect' looks like in terms of growing environments, stock beds, greenhouses vs polytunnels vs cold frames, shaded staging, composting, waste management etc. This area is an infrastructure project to come!", says Bella.

For now, the ground churned up during the landscaping and building work (for which this was the main access point) has been resown with grass, with a beech hedge planted to screen it from the lane.

"There's something special about planting a hedge and all those new trees" says Jack, "you can't help but think of the decades and possibly even centuries they're likely to remain growing there".

Of course, it's also full steam ahead in the rest of the garden, where there is still plenty more cutting back and mulching to be done, as well as the planting out of a variety of new (hardy) additions. Seed sowing in the greenhouse is underway, and many of the autumn-sown perennials in the polytunnel have been demanding to be potted on. The grass waits for no man and has already had its first cut of the year, and the moles continue their unprecedented attack on the Orchard Meadow. Known by Jack as 'mad March', it's certainly one of the busiest months in the garden, though the arrival of spring with its joy-inducing sights, smells, and sounds has been enough to power us through.

Until next month!

Monster mole. Dwarfing its neighbours, this is possibly the largest molehill we've ever encountered. Fortunately, the moles' onslaught has coincided with new beds to fill and level in the Studio Garden, giving us somewhere useful to dispose of the spoil.