The garden
here in Caunes is a real joy. When we first saw it, apart from falling in love
with it, we were concerned that we could never take care of it.
We were
wrong. It is a garden you can leave to go wild completely, or, as we have done,
cultivate bits of it at a time….and watch as wilderness overtakes other bits.
This area of
France has fascinating plants. The Garrigue, with mountain flora and fauna,
fabulous greens and forest land comes head on with the Mediterranean, dry,
scrubby, rocky, palms, succulents and desert plants. Our garden has it all…as
well as vines, olive trees, almond trees, fig trees, more varieties of oak than
I knew existed….oh and a couple of lilac trees that miraculously survived the
cold winter of 2012 ( unlike our large palm and 2 mimosa trees….although the
mimosa has re sprouted…so all was not lost )
At the
moment, I am leaving vast swathes of the garden completely wild, as it would seem a tragedy to
cut down the amazing wild flowers that have self seeded and flourished in the
wet spring. I know that in a few weeks, most of the green will have gone, and
things will be dried out….the clearing of paths can wait until then.
So here are
a few images of the colour in the garden this spring…..when I think it is at its best. ( I haven't included any photos of the amazing trees in the garden, because I think they may feature in a blog of their own).
and there are also...roses.
Those flowers are just amazing...lovely photographs!
ReplyDeleteI agree...it would be a crime to cut down flowers in the name of tidyness.
No, I am certainly not cutting anything back yet, and even then I'm hoping that nature will dry things out so much that it just dies back and will require minimum effort on my part. J.
DeleteAbsolutely, amazingly, fantastic pics of a beautiful garden.
ReplyDeleteEven better that the garden is yours, AND that you are there to enjoy it - and to have Mark there with you. Wonderful after the past nine months... xx
WE are really enjoying being here. ....oops, that sounds like Annie's new blog title, I don't think she'll mind. J.
DeleteStunning photos, Janice - and I agree with you (and Helen) that you've made absolutely the right decision to leave the wild flowers to do their thing. So glad you're there to enjoy the iris - always such a typical French plant in my opinion - ours had been and gone before you left for Caunes. They always make me think of Angles sur l'Anglin, which Gaynor knows well.
ReplyDeleteGardens are generally considered theraputic - this lovely one I am sure is doing its very best to aid your recovery. I'm looking forward to seeing the trees too!
Axxx
I am attempting to find the names of everything in the garden.... its frustrating, because someone tells me what something is, and then I forget it. However...in general, yes, it is very therapeutic. Jx
DeleteMarvellous photographs of such beautiful flowers, Janice. No-one in their right mind would want to tidy those away. It looks as though nature is the best gardener you could have and she is doing a fantastic job. :-)
ReplyDeleteyes, this is a garden that is being left ( mostly) to its own devices. I have cleared a small patch for my vegetables...which are now just waiting for some prolonged sunshine.... I think they've had all the water they need for the whole summer. with the storm we had last night. J.
DeleteLovely flower images Janice.I can imagine how you will love to wander amongst them.X Maria
ReplyDeleteyes, it is lovely, just wandering...trying to refind the footpaths ! J.
DeleteI love your garden! When plants bloom beautifully and freely like this this last thing I would do is cut them down. I would stand happily amongst them and shout "Thank you!"
ReplyDeleteIt is the miraculous self seeding that fascinates me.... I have no idea what might pop up next ! J.
DeleteOh my, what beautiful flowers, and I can't believe they are growing 'wild' all by themselves! Absolutely gorgeous, and of course it would be crazy to cut them back. It must really feed the soul to be there amongst this beauty! xx
ReplyDeleteIt is certainly a pretty wild garden, but incredibly beautiful. Spring is also the best time to see it, as in a few weeks all will be dry and parched. J.
DeleteYour photos are amazing Janice. I love wild flowers and you're so wise not to cut them back. It's so lucky to be in the kind of climate that encourages such a variety isn't it?
ReplyDeleteThe variety is astonishing and that comes from being on the border between the two types of vegetation, garrigue and med. I love it. Jx
DeleteBeautiful photos. You obviously have a lovely garden. The vegetation has really benefited from all the rain this year (well, someone had to!) and our garden is looking the best ever. The wild flowers are particularly good and I just let them grow. The poppies, especially, are vibrant this year. Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteAs the temperature rises ( and it is doing, at last)the colours are fading from the garden. It has been a real bonus to have the colour for so long this (wet) spring. J.
DeleteLove, love your garden, looks like a Garden of Eden, so beautiful and colourful. Gorgeous flowers and I can't believe they grow wild on their own. My husband would be jealous b/c you have an Olive tree.
ReplyDeleteMust be wonderful to wander in your garden....so peaceful.
Our garden in Toronto is not too good this year as we have cold temperatures for some reason that just a few days ago we turned the heat on :-( I did manage to plant some planters and hopefully at night they won't freeze. This is highly unusual for this time of year to be chilly.
Hope all is well with you and I'm happy for you. erica XX
Thanks Erica...I do love our garden, but it does seem that temperatures and seasons have been pretty much disrupted over all the world this year. The bonus of the wet cold spring here is that the flowers have stayed around for longer than usual. Now I want warmth...for the vegetables ...and for me ! jx
DeleteWhat bliss it must be to look out onto all these beauties, Janice. I, too, would leave it wild. Once these die back, will others come, or will the area be dormant?
ReplyDeleteNow, I'm anxious to see your trees.
What a lovely place Caunes is. I can see why you love spending time here.
The more I learn about the garrigue and the mediterranean plants, the more I am fascinated. Plants that thrive on mild winters when they are able to use the winter rain as a store for survival in the hot dry summers, when they are actually dormant. Within a few weeks, most things in our garden will be dormant....so apart from the vegetables I don't need to water. Advice is to water roses about once a week just to keep them blooming a little longer...but nothing apart from that.
DeleteI am now checking out what autumn pruning will be best for the gorgeous trees, as I think they have been left to do exactly what they want for the last few years. Jx
https://www.cekaja.com/asuransi-kendaraan/
ReplyDelete