Monday, June 22, 2015

Jungle Days

With the summer months the jungle part of the garden takes on its usual lush appearance and so far this year it seems better than ever. We have had a mixed summer so far, some warm days and lots of wet ones too, as such the garden seems to be responding well.



We have a number of ornaments in the garden with the pergola covering the bottom patio has a selection, with carved African birds hanging from the beams, and some other inhabitants on the ground below. 


This concrete tortoise was a gift from my parents, my sister is also the proud owner of one.... (thanks Dad!)


Whereas this one is made from metal coming from recycled oil drums.

Trachycarpus martianus
 The Trachycarpus martianus by the bottom patio is kept in a pot, its borderline hardy but we have decided to keep it pot grown and move under cover in winter. It seems content with this arrangement, and whilst it would grow faster in the ground, we dont want to risk it if we had a repeat of the bad winters we had between 2010 and 2012.



The pergola is covered by a grape vine, as well as Clematis armandii, the Schefflera on the right hand side is now well over 8 feet tall and similar across. This seems to be growing faster this year, so much so that it may need hacking back. If we do then we must try and get the propagating technique right. 


On the other side of the old koi pond from patio the Gunnera also seems to have enjoyed the mix of rain and warm weather and has taken off this year.

The other aspect of the Jungle - The Jungle Hut had to be rebuilt following the fire in 2013. Now it doesnt look like anything happened in this part of the garden, with a wall of green greeting us from the verandah.






All in all the garden seems to be enjoying the early summer well. Lets hope it continues!

Gaz

23 comments :

  1. Looking very jungly! The fire is a distant memory now, with no evidence (that you've shown at least) of it ever occurring. The only disappointment here: that you had bottled drinks on the table and not something more tropical! :)

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    1. Thanks Alan :) we should have more variety on the drinks I know but we're definitely big cola drinkers...or one of us at least!

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  2. I, too, am shocked and amazed at those bottled drinks :-) It is all looking very lush and given a bit more summer you will be at the machete stage. It's a me too on the Schefflera front. I will have to give mine the chop this year and intend to do a bit of air layering (wish me luck).

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    1. Good luck with the air layering Don! We've given a schefflera a hack back last spring and it responded well so not bad :)

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  3. Wow, it really does look like a garden in the jungle :)

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  4. Gosh Gaz, if I wouldn't know your garden is located in England I really thought it would be in the tropics. It looks fabulous! My favorite plant today is Trachycarpus martianus, what a beautiful looking palm.
    Wishing you a great week!
    Christina

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    1. Thanks Christina :) just wished it was hardy enough to be planted permanently out but unfussy enough to remain in the pot at least.

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  5. Your jungle garden is amazing! It's incredible how you've managed to relegate the fire to a distant (if not entirely forgotten) memory.

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    1. Thanks Kris! Well over with the fire but there's still a big reminder over the horizon as our neighbour hasn't bothered chopping down their tall burnt trees. Oh well, at least our side of the property is fine now :)

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  6. So green and lush again! You did a terrific job of recreating this part of your garden!

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    1. Loving spending time here Peter, the shady area is a nice place for a spot of alfresco dining :)

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  7. Your garden really does look not only like it's in the tropics but that it's been growing for years. I think it looks even better now than before the fire, if that's possible. Love the birds too.

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    1. Glad to hear that Missy :) the jungle area seems to have recovered very well, just the middle patio now that has traces of the damage

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  8. Lovely views of one of my favorite parts of your garden. Wait, what am I saying? Every part of your garden is a fav!

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    1. Thanks Loree! Still have vivid memories of your visit almost three years ago now :)

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  9. What fun! Love the birds. Amazing how the garden's recovered - or perhaps we shouldn't be surprised. Nature will prevail.

    By the way, if ever you wonder why your comments on my blog don't always show up immediately, for some reason Typepad insists on putting them into Spam. It's annoying, and sometimes my replies end up in there too! Still, they're much appreciated and I'm trying to remember to check the folder more often.

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    1. Thanks Helen! And yes we've noticed that, sometimes it lets us comment whilst sometimes it doesn't. But at least we know now that they all still go through one way or the other :)

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  10. That seems like the ultimate garden/jungle to me! I love how green and flourishing everything is. It looks great!

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  11. That view from the jungle hut verandah could be a view out of my brother's house in Hilo, Hawaii. All you need are a few of his wild boar roaming the paths!

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    1. Wow Denise, both you and your brother live in beautiful parts of the world :))

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  12. It looks amazingly jungle-y for the UK--you have a tropical vacation to come home to. Must be lovely.

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