Introducing the House Gardens
House Patio Gardens
The Moosey house garden borders were already dug and organised when I moved to Mooseys eighteen years ago. But the planting scheme was completely functional (consisting of budget evergreen shrubs) and the soil was covered with thick bark chips laid over weed mat. No flowers! No roses! Well, I soon changed that.
Now there are continuous displays of roses in each house garden, underplanted with perennials like pansies and catmint. You'll see flaxes, some beautiful sedums and euphorbias, and some delicate flowing grasses. Relax on one of the patios and enjoy the gardens - please feel free to do a spot of gentle weeding if the mood takes you!
One of the lounges has a bay window which looks out to a dry, hot border, where silly Cerinthe insists on self-seeding. This side garden started off with a silver Astelia, a large colony of Phlomis, and some cool bluey-leaved Euphorbias, all keeping the bright pink Flower Carpet Rose company. Naturally it keeps changing...
Roses by the House
The gravel driveway separates the house borders from the gardens and lawns beyond. Jeremy, a black and white fluffy cat, is quietly composting under the newest rose plantings. Each year there are new additions - a tall, well-behaved striped grass (spring 1998), a cool sedum (autumn 1999), some species tulips and Stachys limelight (spring 1999), a subtly variegated Corokia (summer 2001)... The list goes on.
The piano lounge has a bay window where Mary Rose and perennial friends are planted. Nicotianas self-seed in between the roses, and in spring the forget-me-nots run riot. Resident bellbirds visit the nearby bronze Phormium in summer to drink the flower nectar.
The House Patio
Enjoy your visit to the house gardens. There are plenty of relaxing seats on the patios and the decking, where you'll notice many pots crammed full of seasonal delights.
Cats and dogs will certainly come to sit with you, and over winter the bird feeders will be busy with little wax-eyes and pushy starlings. And if you visit in late spring the fragrance of the climbing Compassion roses will amaze you. Please try not to notice the weeds, or the black spots on the rose leaves. And please don't eat any of the strawberries!