Old Normal, New Normal, the Mitcheldean Garden 2022
The Upper 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 upper garden up till the end of May 2022.

When we arrived in 2012, the garden above the patio had a pleasant but part empty rockery, a small vegetable patch, the odd shrub and small tree and a bed at the top which had essentially been abandoned. On the other hand, it had a summer house, a small 'plastic' greenhouse and a shed. These days it is less empty and there are rather more beds... I can't remember but I guess these snowdrops were inherited. Towards the end of March we had a couple of warm days which saw us on the bench by the summer house for early afternoon refreshment before the sun vanished behind the hill around 15.00. As is his custom, Garfield graced us with his presence. From experience, he is probably due for one of his regular disappearances but for the time being he is very much in love with our garden.

The area around and above the summer house comes to life in the spring when the camellias burst into flower, despite their apparent size they were introduced by us and now need annual 'reduction'. I didn't prune the Amelanchier / 'Juneberry' this time around but it was less spectacular than in 2021. 

This year the wood anemones flourished and the bluebells did their stuff as usual. People on the web warn of their uncontrollable spreading and individuals and small groups are now to be found in all corners of the garden. They don't seem to like #31's garden at all and it will be interesting to see if the '147 clearance' of #35's upper garden has any effect on them. In any case, my offer of seeds when they eventually regrass it has been accepted, in practice it will only speed up the inevitable.

The spring suited our #1 Magnolia Susan very well. It started early and just kept on going, the flowers looking very different in the morning and afternoon light, this despite the shading from our twin honeysuckle arch feature.

The top bed inevitably still gets overgrown each year despite my attempts to colonise it with peonies. While the bluebells are indulging themselves, the grass and forget-me-knots flourish and the weaker peonies can't reach a critical height before they are swamped. Now that June is here, I shall again attempt a rescue but in the meantime it's an adventure playground for Garfield, I suspect there are several families of mice in residence.

The first picture is taken from in front of the purple rhododendron, that's our surviving shed on the right under an enveloping honeysuckle. The second is taken from the Camellia area and shows our 'royal purple' area with the middle garden beyond.

Above the bench is 'controlled chaos', there's a bed where lupins and sweet rocket fight it out each year. The rhododendron at the top lords over things and the peonies in the foreground at least are going well.

I am about to check out the 40 or so peonies at the top but this red one gives some cause for optimism. I conclude with a section on our 'purple heaven' starting with a view from above. 

Such is the growth that it is now almost impossible to get a clear view of the summer house. We put the peonies in not so long ago and indeed some have been transferred out to the front of the bungalow to re-establish a view out from the bench.

This year's stars are undoubtedly this pair in front of the summer house. That's a 'Rhapsody-in-Blue' rose and entwined with it is a large clematis which has also flowered profusely. The secret of success, as around the bungalow, is regular generous watering, neither has had the benefit of pruning for a while.