Into March at Norton Conyers - 2019

This month began without ceremony. A colourless sky enveloped the cool atmosphere on the morning of the 4th of March. But walking around the gardens, further glimmers of colour were beginning to emerge. The peach trees - with their soft pink and vibrant magenta blossom - were a particular highlight, offering a stark and uplifting contrast to their dull, monotone background.

Peach blossom

But the first task of the month involved no gardening at all for me. The dull skies mirrored the lustreless scrap metal that lay in a heap in the old piggery. Giles and I were to load it into the van to be taken to the scrapyard. Although there was nothing of value amongst the scrap, each piece had a story - a purpose and place on this estate. I considered this as I loaded the van, imagining how each piece would once have been used.

Giles' van was loaded, and it was time for tea. As the van's tyres flattened slightly under the weight of this redundant rust, we all 'guessed the weight' of the metal. Giles promised a 'mystery prize' for the winner - remarking that the last 'mystery prize' he promised remains a mystery to this day...

Guesses ranged from 350 - 600kg. But after Giles and I returned from the scrapyard, it was Sharron who claimed the prize (chocolate buttons) with her on-the-nose estimate of 560kg! 

Plum and Shandy enjoying the ride to the scrapyard

Back to the garden in the afternoon. The 'bigger picture' of our work is always considered by Giles; every minute at work is carefully considered, and there is always great purpose and planning in all that we do. With this in mind, last summer's drought meant that watering of the garden was a daily necessity. The garden well was quickly depleted, and this presented a problem, because many of the garden taps take water directly from the well, rather than the mains supply. 

I helped Giles to connect the mains supply up with the well, ensuring the easy flow of water around the garden all the year round. On my first day working in the gardens in February 2018, a new tap was introduced into the vegetable garden; this year's work builds on this further as a crucial time-saver over the busy summer months, whilst also ensuring the whole garden is able to thrive all the year round.

Connecting the mains supply with the garden well

One of the many highlights of working at Norton Conyers last year was pollarding the White Willow (Saxis alba). Once again, we went about cutting back the fading golden russet branches. It was incredible to consider the sheer extent of the growth of the trees in that time - long, thick and healthy branches had developed since the last annual pruning.

White Willow (Saxis alba) before pollarding

Pollarding willow is a painstaking, yet therapeutic process, requiring much attention to detail and careful consideration; it is important to leave a few branches of medium thickness to 'weave' back along - training the trees into a striking linear shape.

 

After pollarding

In the afternoon - resourceful as ever - Giles tasked Sharron and myself to repair supports in the main border using some of the willow branches.

Giles often says, 'Rome wasn't built in a day!'. There are so many plans for the future development of the garden. But, as with life, priorities change, and plans evolve. I suppose that's the very essence and nature of gardening and land management - there is never really an 'end goal', because there is never a finishing point; instead the gardener builds on last years' successes; learns from the failures and strives for continuous improvements.

With that in mind, the mammoth task of gravelling the garden paths began this month. And a new wheelbarrow was brought in to help! In some areas, a layer of the existing surface was removed and relocated to 'build up' some of the path surfaces.

The tonnes of gravel arrived, and the paths were gradually transformed - backbreaking work; the gravel has added further brightness and refinement to the garden, whilst providing improved conditions underfoot!

With paths nearing completion and the view across the willow border unimpeded once again, the entire garden had a makeover in this month. To top it off? The first grass cut of the year.

With the previous lawnmower showing some wear and tear, Giles brought in a new machine. As I pushed the mower around the walled gardens, I could almost taste the summer in the air - having completed this task on a weekly basis during the height of last year's season. 

And with the autumn and winter grass growth now cut, the garden once again felt refreshed and primed - ready for the beauty and transformation within the year ahead.

A Year at Norton Conyers - February 2019

And so, this month marked a year working at Norton Conyers for me. I feel very privileged to have the chance to work in this glorious, historic estate - helping to build on the work of previous generations.

Having started this blog on my first day working in the gardens on 19th February 2018,  now is a good opportunity to look back and reflect at how the gardens have evolved in that time, and also how differently the garden grows from year to year.

There was little sense of Spring in the air on my first day last year - in fact, it rained for the entire day! And towards the end of February 2018, the infamous 'Beast from the East' hit, bringing much of the country to a standstill.

This year, it seems we had the worst of the winter cold at the end of January. And with temperatures reaching 18C in parts of the country during February, the weather continues to keep all of us on our toes.

And with warmer temperatures bringing trees into bud, and signs of life beginning to emerge from their winter dormancy, there was certainly the sense that 'Spring sprung' in February this year.

*

Medlar (Mespilus germanica) in bud

The dumper truck was in full use for the duration of this month. It is a well-used asset to the estate and owes nothing after nearly 60 years of service! I used it to transport tonnes of freshly-cut logs from the woods to be seasoned. It also had the purpose of collecting waste metal from around the estate to be recycled.

Whereas usually habitat piles would be built with waste garden material, the volume produced through cutting back shrubs, ivy and brambles meant some of it would have to be burned. We rarely burn material at Norton Conyers, but sometimes it is a necessity. As plant material was cut back between the boundary of the woodland and the car park, and along the south wall of the gardens, I loaded the dumper truck and transported the material to the old tennis courts, where a bonfire was started.

*

Whereas the Snowdrops (Galanthus) had only recently emerged this time last year, their prime had already been enjoyed by the beginning of February 2019. Throughout the month, they would become tired and tinged with brown. But as Snowdrops herald the beginning of Spring, so this meant the gardens would quickly begin to transform with fresh life.

Rhubarb (Rheum) was relocated (and some removed) in bud on 26th February last year; a year to the day, and - in a show of the early onset of Spring - some had already sprouted. 

Rhubarb (Rheum)

*

The mist was thick on the morning of the 25th February; after a glorious few weeks of weather, it was a reminder that we were still in February, and winter weather would still make an appearance.

On this morning, I was set the task of digging out the Chrystanthemums within the willow-bordered garden. All withered and in a monotone dull brown, they offered a stark contrast to the varied pastel shades that were enjoyed over the summer. Again - a reminder of the passing of the seasons, and the stark contrasts in colour, texture and light offered in the gardens throughout the year.

Chrysanthemums, Feb 2019

Chrysanthemums, July 2018

Next, it was to the vegetable garden. Bex had strimmed the Manure Grass which had been sown towards the end of 2018. Alan, Bex, Margaret and I turned over the Manure Grass with spades. It is sown as a fast-growing grass, which, when turned back into the earth, breaks down to enrich the earth - it is a natural fertiliser, which also discourages the growth of weeds.

After our morning break, the sun suddenly began to break through the clouds and mist, and the temperature soon began to rise; jackets and jumpers were promptly removed.

And as some of the remaining vegetables were removed from the patch in the afternoon, these milestones in the seasons remind us to look forward to the new growth which will appear over the coming weeks and months.

February ended in glorious sunshine, and as winter dissolves, the cycle of life begins again.