Old Normal, New Normal, the Mitcheldean Garden 2022
The Middle Garden

This page is part of a series of garden blogs from 2022. Click here for the index.

At the time of writing in June 2022, I have just reversed my earlier decision not to run a blog this year owing to likely lack of time and, dare I say it, a risk that it might simply be a rechurned version of previous years. Unfortunately, after a 100% record over the last 4 years our little BB disgraced itself in East Anglia at the start of the Jubilee weekend. So we are stranded temporarily in our friends' house waiting for repairs to be effected. It could have been a lot worse, it wasn't mortally wounded and we got safely back to base from where it was collected later by the RAC. I couldn't think of a better place to be in the UK in the circumstances except in Mitcheldean itself. Garfield won't think anything of it, but I guess that the two cats here are happy to have us around to feed them 'on demand' as opposed to the normal twice a day. 

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This page covers the middle garden up till the end of May 2022. 

The final area with hyacinths was the strip next to the vegetable patch. As before I put the smallest ones in the vegetable patch so they could bulk up for future years. As always when the time came to eject them, I was desperate for empty space to let them wind down before going into storage. I never try to grade them at this stage, only when the leaves have died back will they be sorted by size.

In early April the predominantly red tulips in the main bed were getting themselves ready. Historically they have become mixed with yellow ones but this year I have tried to separate them, the yellow ones tend to come later and so I will put them next to the wall so they hide the fading red ones.

The bed under the silver birch is home to some small azaleas, also daffodils and grape hyacinths. The forsythia by the kitchen put on its usual spectacular display. It has to be pruned afterwards a job which isn't getting any easier!

This is an early spring view up from behind the kitchen. The primroses are prominent but, by the time the azaleas in the rockery flower, then the roses and fuchsias in the foreground hide them. I can see that the grape hyacinths are going to be a problem in years to come. 

Finally the red tulips opened, Garfield was far too well fed to be interested in the mice which nibble them.

 The Pieris was a good colour match and the tulips looked fabulous in the morning sun. As always, the bare horseshoe behind will be filled with established gladioli.  

These tulips in the vegetable patch had been been in tubs last year, they look good but not as good as before.

We have baby rhododendrons in the bank and every year they grow a little and their display improves, Our #2 magnolia Susan is next to the forsythia, it is gradually learning to cope with what seems to be a dry spot and gave us a nice set of blooms over an extended period. 

However, the real revelation this year has been the rockery where azaleas seem to thrive. Some like the large pink one were present when we arrived. The perennial daisy has full recovered from two winters ago when it was choked with moss.

You can spot some of the azaleas from the lawn as it climbs up. There are a dozen in all including two yellow ones which are too small to flower yet.  

We have four deciduous orange coloured azaleas. The healthiest one by far is here, one in front of the house declined to flower this year but it has a new set of leave now as usual. The bottom part of the official azalea bed on the other side of the garden has proved to be perfect for annual sweet Williams which grew from last year's seed. The pinks and carnations have been swamped.

With the tulips ejected, this will be my #1 dahlia bed as usual. I think I know what each one is and I just hope that for once it turns out that there aren't any which are either too big or too small, but it never seems to work out that way. Across the way, the dark dahlias are in their usual spot with no less than nine assorted red ones in the lower square area.

There are now more dahlias in the vegetable patch replacing the tulips shown above. Next to the hedge are resting hyacinths which have since been replaced by some large orange dahlias. The least said about my attempt to germinate my runner bean seeds the better, I think I should have stored them in the greenhouse instead of my man cave. Fortunately, one of the butchers in Cinderford was selling trays of about 25 plants for £4.50 and two of them did the job with enough left over for an extra row higher up. 

Yuehong has finally admitted defeat in her attempt to grow roses in a sloping garden and those that are left will be left to their fate. The problem seems to be excessive drainage plus a soil which ants find irresistible. A few are thriving, but most produce one good bloom at best.