Chevarnay - lawn & hedge maintenance

After a summer in England, the owners of this Touraine garden called for a 'wash & polish up' of their garden before their next visit.

An enclosed space filled with a variety of trees & shrubs, we set to getting rid of weeds on drive & paths, pruning the hedge & cutting grass.

Azay - Lawn creation

All change, no longer a gravel garden required.

The existing plants & weeds removed from the area to create a lawn. Sand & top soil introduced then grass seed sown (in the warmest driest Spring you can imagine ;D) However can report after regular watering visits, the green stuff got growing.

Earlier coverage of this project:
http://chezaniagardens.blogspot.fr/2011/01/courtyard-garden-azay-le-rideau-new.html

le Grand-Pressigny - le cour devant une maison: re-looking et entretien

Taille rosier, ajoute des vivaces fleurie puis entretien du jardin

le Grand-Pressigny - le jardin derriere d'une maison: re-looking et entretien

Taille arbres, rosiers, entretien de pelouse, ajoute des plantes vivaces pour beaucoup des fleurs. Entretien reguliere.

Instant screen - St Nicolas de Bourgeuil

Objective: to create a seasonal screen - floral & scented to provide a place for a quiet drink & to relax in privacy in summer.

The garden is set in amidst the vines and so will allow uninterrupted views of the delightful views between late autumn and early spring.

Clematis, Honeysuckle, Sweet pea & convulvulous (morning glory) to cover the wires.

Verbena Bonariensis, Achillea ' Gold Plate' 'Cerise Queen', Hemerocalis Day Lilies, Michaelmas Daisies to provide low maintenance long flowering in hot dry summer at the base of the climbing plants.

Favier - the hour of Pivoines/Peonies :D

Plants either grown on or raised at les Limornieres - ready for their new home..

New home in need of pruning weed and soil enriching...

Previously the bed was mostly empty aside from the mature climbing plants on the south facing wall.

Now weeded, dug over and compost added we left it for a couple of weeks to allow any further seedlings to sprout. These were hoed and then planting began..

Paeonies (Lovely Louise x 6) were planted here - another 10 various colours & varieties in existing beds around the grounds.

To this bed and to the others we added - Papavers, pink and white varieties,gaura lindheimi, nepeta, sedum, iris siberica, macedonia knautia, cerinthe major, heuchera.

To ensure full floral display for a big get together in June perennial and annual plants have been added throughout the garden and we have plans to add more nearer the big day for a spectacular display.

Existing leggy perovskia plants surrounding the pool which we have pruned to ensure plentiful flowers on well shaped compact plants.

New perennial border - Mouzay

http://chezaniagardens.blogspot.com/2011/04/naturalistic-planting-hiding-fosse.html

The wooden house has a covered deck running the length of the building. We have dug a new bed to ensure the view from kitchen and from the deck (perfect early evening apero spot ;D) is one through flowers all summer long.

Plants include Echinacea purpurea, clematis (unknown blue flower alpina variety :D) hemerocalys (deep red, yellow & orange) michaelmas daisies, annual delphiniums, iris, rose, calendula and more I forget at this hour....)

More interesting photo's of the plants established and in bloom to follow when the season arrives!

Naturalistic planting - hiding fosse mound in Mouzay

Affectionately known now as the 'telly-tubby hill' this pile of soil is here to stay as it provides the filtration for the sustainable on-site waste management.

The plan is to plant it densely with perennial and annuals to provide a flower/colour filled view from the house April-October.

We cleared the weeds then shaped & levelled the land ready for Spring planting.

http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=5234239322293993771&postID=6295571385547978447

Returning in March after a mostly (relatively) mild & moist winter the grass and weeds had romped away. We cleared this green haze & got down to a timely planting into the warm soil just before a week of rain - perfect :D.

The mound is set in a woodland area of the extensive garden surrounding the recently built wooden house. Naturalist in style and surrounded by far reaching views of fields and woods a mown path surrounds the planted area, a mown grass path leading to a mown grass area on top (sun trap & perfect for a snooze or picnic :D) will help keep order during the growing season.

The maintenance will be as little or as much as the owner has time or inclination for with dead-heading helping to prolong the flowering season but a twice annual brushcutting being sufficient to ensure a repeat performance next year.

The plants are now in the ground (carex bronze, achillea 'fuerland' 'gold plate', verbena bonariensis, iris (purple and blue varieties) various michaelmas daisies, calendula)

We will visit periodically to ensure adequate water is ensuring the plants thrive in their first season and to pull the odd determined weed keen to out run the new plants.

St Senoch - replace entrance terrace with block paving

Potager - Civray

Strimmed, grass cut, beds edged, roses & raspberries pruned, weeds removed, dug over, potato bed covered, ready for owner to return to plant the seasons veg. Bon continuation :D

Les Limornieres - Winter projects

We have a list of jobs that need doing every year in Winter at les Limornieres to keep the garden resembling one rather than a jungle.

We have another list of things we dream up each year which we would like to do if time & money allows to improve the place for us & for our guests staying in the gites - more places to sit, more places to play, more shade..

And then there are those projects which somehow sneak to the top of the list because you stumble on a great find & motivation for constructing it is greater than more of the annual weeding & chopping back :-)

This week, we acquired a rusty metal tunnel frame...we saw it, we liked it, and thought we would worry about when and where it would go another day....perhaps it would even suit a clients garden..

We got it home and decided immediately it was going to live on our potager/veg garden.

So this morning found us digging a trench either side of our 'big veg beds' and adding a wooden edge, then the arch was bolted together by Alex et voila!

Whilst prior planning and design is what we are all advised to do with our gardens, it is much more fun making it up as we go along :D I think the expression is that is has 'evolved'...

The path between the two beds makes much more sense now, it will provide a much more stable growing frame for our beans and some annual flowers too and will make the path to the chicken run all the more grand too!

We acquired a pair of enthusiastic helpers this morning too..holes were dug and shrubs were planted - will help enclose the play area a bit more...keeping them in or out... :D

Rose pruning - le Grand Pressigny

Before

During

After

This garden has many different areas. This week we have been working on getting rid of all the old wood, the plant which has grown beyond its pergola, currently onto and into neighbouring building!

The job was long & fiddly as the established rose shares the pergola with equally established wisteria and honeysuckle...

It doesn't look much at the moment...but by the summer the re-growth should re-cover the pergola providing shade and the flowers should be in view without binoculars! Photo in bloom as always will follow!

We cleared the base of the climbing plants, added bulbs and shade tolerant plants to brighten up this poolside summer evening BBQ and apero spot :D