30 x 30FT SMALL GARDEN IN YORKSHIRE
I live high on the Pennines of West Yorkshire and despite the blustery wind that we so often get here, my garden is jam-packed with healthy plants including trees, shrubs, climbers, perennials and annuals. In that small space is also a 9 x 7ft garden room, a shed, two patios (one at the top and one at the bottom of my sloping garden) and a small lawn dividing two deep borders. My garden is always a work in progress and I love that every year is different. Some plants die, others take their place such is the way of nature.
 |
| West Yorkshire garden |
I have six Japanese maples right now, some very young, some a few years old. In the image there is Acer palmatum 'Katsura' at the top left and Acer shirasawanum 'Jordan' (brightly yellow at this time of year) on the right. They are the only two which are planted in the ground, all the others are grown in pots. At the bottom of the image, in a pot, is Acer palmatum Sango-Kaku which I bought last autumn.
The spikey blue flowers in the left border are Veronica gentianoides, then there a ferns now awake from their winter slumber, hostas (Patriot and Reverse Patriot), and bluebells in pots at the bottom of the image. On the left is a dwarf lilac called Syringa 'Red Pixie' which is not really red at all, as you can see. I am training that, along with Katsura and Jordan, as multi-stemmed trees.
When your garden is small it is a good idea to have things heading upwards instead of spreading out and taking up border space. The shrub, bottom right, is Hydrangea paniculata 'White Lady' which is just in leaf bud at the moment and will put on a display in late summer. That too is trained as a multi-stem and, underneath it, you can see geraniums not yet in flower. Note that it is planted at the bottom of the slope where it gets plenty of water.
Below, by way of comparison, is my garden in December 2009 and the first thing I did is have a shed erected. That is where the Garden Room now stands. My garden in December 2009
