Charcoal was still with us then - Summer of 2007
Crikey, those were the innocent days!Why did I say those were the innocent days? Looking back at the photos of our garden back in 2007 made me realize how much things have changed, both in the garden and our way of thinking. I remember how innocent and extra exciting it felt on those early days when we were still discovering new plants and trying to figure how best to develop our garden.
The patio near our house pre decking and conservatory!
All three Cycas revoluta are still with us but the pots have surprisingly disintegrated (who says metal pots lasts forever?)
Phormiums, I've almost forgotten how beautiful they can be
Pleioblastus auricomus
We both know a lot more now, knowledge and wisdom acquired through years of interacting with other gardeners, reading, travels, and experience cultivating our own plot. The sense and level of excitement may have changed since then but it is still there, albeit on a different plane now.
How many of these succulents are still with me now? Hmmmm....
That arbour, before it became bright red
Once upon a time we had an Anigozanthos flavidus
Looking back at the old photos certainly brings back a sense of nostalgia, seeing all the plants that have done so well since then, and seeing those that are not with us any more.
Butia capitata - how I miss thee. A gift for my 30th Birthday....
All that remains of it now is a stump, a result of winter 2010-11
Phormiums stood out in my head, how many phormiums did we have back then? Now we don't have a single one left, perhaps we ought to introduce them again this year. How many potted plants did we have back then? Perhaps even more so than we have now. And look at all those bamboos! That was a period when my fascination for them was still peaking and at the summit of my bamboo collecting years have managed to amass more than a hundred types of them. My love affair with bamboos have since waned and I have drastically reduced my collection to what is now a more manageable amount (nowhere near a hundred now I can assure you).
This area then, before it became a fernery
Once upon a time, the pathway of the jungle was grass and not gravel. This side anyway
This side however has been gravelled early on
Speaking of plants that are no longer with us now, some were let go as our fascination with them dwindled and were rehomed in other gardens. Some died as they went through the trilogy of bad winters we've had in the past, the queen of which was winter 2010-11. Whilst some have died from one other reason or another. All part of the process and journey that is gardening.
The grassy pathway was a remnant of what used to be a lawn that was here when we bought the house
On a positive note, those that are still with us are something to celebrate and be very happy about. What a bunch of stalwarts! They have done well since and continue to do and are a source of plant pleasure year in and year out.
Including that Gunnera tinctoria that I was supposed to write about. Oh well, more on that later on, for now join me as I relish in nostalgia.
Mark :-)
