Tuesday 2nd June 2015

Is gardening essential to the sanity of a Poor Little Rich Gay? Often this hobby is recommended for mental patients, the therapy being the soothing companionship of nature. But what about when plants die, or fail to flower or grow too big? There’s much that’s unpredictable and uncontrollable. Perhaps that’s part of the therapy too – learning to live with disappointment yet struggling on. The month of May was awful. My Ammi Visnaga, grown from seed since last September especially for the garden opening, started going black at the centre, then died. Not all of them, it’s true, but the survivors aren’t going to be in flower as intended for the Opening on Sunday because of the hostile weather.

I combined lunching with Multis (big news – Matt Driver ruptured his Achilles tendon from tripping in a badger sett while playing frisbee after lunch at the Multis. He’s in plaster for nine weeks. Laura Malcolm’s thinking of having him put down.) with a nursery visit and told the nurserywoman all about my Ammi drama. She was most sympathetic and blamed the weather. She produced some corn cockles which might just be in flower in time.

After that experience of life coming from death, I went on to Dixter. Fergus was much in evidence, fuming in the porch having just dropped a pot. ‘I’ve waited three years for that to flower,’ he cursed. Later he was guiding some people round: ‘That’s an accident,’ he said quite frequently of some delightful floral combination. ‘I’m quite pleased with this bit.’ Or, ‘These plants don’t like it here. I’m going to have to find something else.’ I adore Dixter because it’s human. To Hell with those that think it’s a mess. The work and agony that goes into it  you won’t believe. For me, it never fails. This time it was lupins – bi-coloured in the most outrageous ways or a magnificent deep red. Also some small pink poppies – papaver dubium apparently. Always something new. For my own garden next year I might copy Cornflower Black Ball and an upright Larkspur from dear darling Dixter this year.

This is England’s Essence: These Daisies will Just Spring Up here. Not Designed

Red Lupins a Complete Triumph: If You Go Again in August There Will be Something Else Here Altogether

A Tree Lupin at Dixter. Not Sure of Name: Possibly Aurora Blue

Fergus is Introducing Conifers into the Borders: Controversial and Bold

Little Pink Poppies: Papaver Dubium