Letters to garden makers

Dear reader, You might be suffering from garden overload  after watching the extensive coverage of the Chelsea Flower Show on the BBC. We were reminded by Monty Don that these are show gardens and therefore cannot approximate to real gardens in terms of their longevity. The plants used are straight from nurseries where they would have been cajoled into flowering or being at their peak. In my real garden - the plants have to deal with weather, pests and me the garden maker. There was a distinct trend towards naturalism this year - so that cheered me up somewhat - one thing my garden is is naturalistic - it is weedy - but intentionally so - for the insects. I put up with the so called pests because they are food for the birds. So if you want to see a garden that has been made for the insects and birds - and for humans to sit in and relax, to hide away and think - then come to the Coal Tip Cloister Garden and Rhos Y Bedw in Ystalyfera and help raise money for nursing charities.

Dear reader,  I am a fan of imperfection. Paving at the entrance to The Veddw I had the privilege of visiting The Veddw a couple of weeks ago. I love this garden created by Anne Wareham and Charles Hawes, it is unique, unlike any other garden that I have visited in the UK. The garden is full of reflection - reflection on the history of the land, reflection in the form of hedges mirroring the shape of the hills, and reflection of the sky and trees in the reflecting pool. This year there is the addition of reflecting balls on pillars in the meadow, a brave replacement for diseased trees. I think they work well and fit in with the ethos of the garden. What fascinated me is that you get to see yourself in the space. The garden works in an architectural way. The plants are integral to the architecture. There are a lot of 'invasive' plants, which to my mind unify the spaces. It is not perfect - in the sense that there are 'weeds'