100 |OxfordshireLimitedEdition|June 2019Itjusttakesalittleimaginationtocreateabloomingbeautifuloutdoorspace.
AnneRobertsgetssometoptipsfromtheOxfordshirecompaniesglamorisinggardensPATCH OF PARADISE
M
id-seasonisagood
timetoconsider
introducingfreshideas
intothegarden.Allnew
featuresdohowever
needtolookasnatural
aspossible–sowhatbetterbasicmaterial
thanwood.
Timbernowadaysistreatedtoincreaseits
weatherresistance,soitwillhavelongevity.
Theentrancetoagardenshouldbe
attractiveandinviting,sohowaboutan
archwayorpergolaupwhichclimbingplants
canbetrained.
AdrianWhiteBuildingSuppliesofSouth
Hinkseycansupplypergolas,archways,
arboursandtrellises.Alongsidethehardware
salesthereisalsoaGardenCentre.
Amoresimplearchwayoveraverynarrow
entrancecouldeasilybeconstructedfrom
lengthsoftimber.
Ifwalkingoverthelawnonawetdayisto
bediscouraged,asmallgateinsidethearch
isaremindertotakecare.Dependingonthe
sizeneeded,itcouldbeofthewickertypeor
evenaslargeasafarmgatestyle.
Raisedbedscanbemademoresubstantial
withwoodenframing,andcanbeusedfor
flowerplantingorforherbs.Aseparateherb
gardencouldeasilybeestablished,placednearthehouse–itisareadyresourceof
parsley,rosemaryandallmannerofmeansof
enhancingafavouritedish.
Woodenplanters,squareortrough-shaped
createindividualfeatureswhenplacedon
apatio,orevenbesideapathway.Yarnton
HomeandGardensellsagoodselection
ofthese.Anextra-longtroughoraseriesof
thesecouldformthebasisofasmallhedge
suchaslavenderortheevergreenbox.
Mid-seasonisalsoagoodtimeofyear
forreviewingboundaryfencing.Theremay
beareaswheresectionsneedreplacing,with
additionalplantsneededtokeepthegarden
secure–amustfordog-owners.
Mostgardensalreadyhaveawooden
tool-shed,andquiteoftenalsoawooden
summer-house.
Theshedcanbemadetolooklessmerely
functionalbyaddingbracketstoholdhanging-
baskets,ascanalsothesummer-house.
Manygardensliketoestablishacompost
heap.Thiscanbekeptwithinboundsby
puttingupwoodenplankingtoenablethe
composttoreachagoodheightwithoutits
contentsspillingovertheedges.
Similarlythewood-pile,lefttocreateasafe
havenfortheinsectswhofeedonthewoody
material,canbecontainedwithwooden
plankededging.Woodenslabsandbenchesmakeanice
feature,placedhereandthereinpartsofthe
gardentocatereitherforthepeoplewho
liketobaskinthesunorthosewhoprefera
shadynook.
Atabletoholdabookandonwhichto
standacupofteacanmaketheseretreats
relaxinglyinviting.TheGardenTrading
CompanyinCartertonhassuchtablesin
itsshowroom.
Inthesetimesofrotaryairers,theold
fashionedwashinglinestendtobeforgotten,
butagoodfreshblowinthewindgivesthe
washingarealfreshscent.Twowoodenpoles
suffice,withthelinestrungbetweenthem.
Now–twouprightpoles?Maybea
matchingpairoflowchunkyplantscouldadd
adecorativetouch.