The Middle of May

The month so far has been a series of gentle highs and lows. Blissful mild weather and warm sunshine followed by prolonged cold snaps, during which our fortunately very sheltered position in both gardens has protected us from any damage. Thank you, people of old who cleverly planned and built the gardens. Great excitement for Barney and me to meet with Millie Richardson and Lizzie and Pete Barklem, to plan and get excited about our forthcoming collaboration at the Chelsea Flower Show, and subsequent hair-tearing when the chilly weather made everything suddenly stop growing, and it seemed as though we would have Not Enough to offer not only Millie, but also all the other excellent florists who have trusted us to be a small part of their Chelsea dreams this year. Great relief when it emerges that we have enough good things to go around.

Most of all, this month has been about huge pride in our amazing garden team, most of whom are not trained gardeners, but all of whom share a big passion for the natural world and a very strong work ethic. In the last four years we have gone from one acre to three, and somehow the garden team have got it all under control, and all richly planted with good things to come.

I think it is a sign of getting old as a gardener when your taste begins to turn to the simple, to single flowers in soft colours, to plants which are closer to the natural form. This May I have found myself very beguiled by the wildflowers which have insinuated themselves into our gardens and which I cannot bear to get out. A particularly lovely white flowered herb Robert sprawls as much as it can with its tiny limbs against a west-facing wall unchecked by us; vetch is my new favourite and is allowed to grow wherever it pleases. Fumitory has become so entrenched in various parts of the garden at Stokesay that it now rivals willowherb for being a prolific nuisance, but still I find it difficult to pull the cloudy tufts out, and instead try to coax all the florists into adding it to their orders. Why not? It is pretty, it lasts very well in water, it lends an unusual touch to displays; and if I can sell it, then I get to keep it.