a giant leap for Carlylekind....

Huge cheering erupted today when the landscaping at the front of our home took a huge step forward: 'one giant leap for Carlylekind'.

These past months and years we've been slogging away through clay and rocks; transplanting hundreds of our own-grown small plants, planting hundreds of spring bulbs and shovelling tonnes of bark mulch.

And today we planted the eleven Himalayan birch 'Jaquemontii' that complete the landscaping work on the north side of our home - the side that visitors will see first.

Simple planting schemes usually work best. So we have underplanted the main birch bank with drifts of ivy, sweet violets and bergenia cordifolia.

The beds nearest our front door are planted on a pink and blue theme and include hydrangeas,  Japanese anemones and some of Jill's favourite grasses. Catmint and dwarf persicaria are there too. And I've sculpted a small pond that will be hidden away to help wildlife.

This has been a long and exhausting journey. And work remains to be done. But just now we're just enjoying the moment.

Let your roots grow while the soil is warm little plants, rest over winter and grow beautifully in the spring.