Our garden

The garden consists out of 6 units. These are the Major Axis, the Agora, the Clouded Hedge including an perennial inlay, the Orchard, the Apple Tree Walk and finally the Lime Tree Alley. The drawing below offers an overview of the spatial layout.

The Major Axis 

 

is our latest brain child.  Spatially considered it is an elongated rectangle in the upper part of the garten. Along the long side of this rectangle you find old apple trees, standing in a geometrical line.  In this structure we 1) stepwise complete the line of apple trees by new plantings and 2) we design a semi formal layout on the ground by a strict mowing regime. Within the regular mown area defined blocks are allowed to grow up while the surrounding space is regularly kept down. Next to the typical grass species the blocks harbor thousands of spring bulbs and many stress resistant natural perennials. In addition to the difference in height we get thereby colorful seasonal impressions.  The blocks are allowed to grow from march till june/ july when we will have our summer mow.  Up from this time, after everything is cut in the middle of the year about 40 Pinus mugs mops get visible. These shrubs are regularly spread over the whole axis so that their appearance visually keeps the space together – as one unity, our axis.

 

The Agora

 
 
 

this place is the junction of our two main garden paths. Basically you find here the left over soil resulting from a ground leveling of a former adjacant sporting field. This soils forms a little hill in which we situated some brick walls and a stair case, arranged in a circle with openings for the crossing paths. 

 

The Clouded Hedge with a Perennial Inlay

in the center of this part of the garden you find a perennial planting on about 300square meters. A variety of species is tested on this place for its suitability to our micro climate conditions. Irregular and low amounts of perception put a heavy strain on the survival on many cultivars and since our first days I have lost a lot of plants due to these harsh constrictions. Now, by testing I have my own research field that strictly advises me for suitable species and lowers the likelihood of future planting failures due to heat and dry periods.  The overall maintenance is hold on a limited level. The whole field is cut down only once a year. For the rest of time being the place is almost left on its own, so the uninformed visitor gets an impression of a colorful “natural meadow”.

Surrounded is the perennial field by a hedge out of field maple (Acer campestre). Every fortnight from May till June/ July it has to be trimmed so that the clouded appearance can be achieved.  

 

the Orchard

this is our apple tree meadow. Here you find about 40 trees, most of them planted in the beginning of the last century.  The vision of old trees, brunches and trunks dominates the appearance. It is foreseeable that in future time many of these old relicts will stepwise die back.  In order to sustain the orchard we steadily plant new trees (apples, cherries, plums and pears) so that we rejuvenate the spot and keep it vivid.  

Among the trees you find a huge meadow, that is cut two times a year.  Thousands of spring bulbs emerge from March to April and provide colorful crocuses, daffodils and other species. After this spring flower traditional natives (grasses and perennials) provide a steadily growing block of vegetation that is accessible by constant mown paths. 

 

The Apple Tree Walk

this part of the garden exists only out of chance.  Fore years we thought this spot to be only a woody area consisting out of wild plums (Prunus cerasifera). Only by chance we spotted some day apple trees within the plums and finally found the remains of an old apple tree walk that once connected the Old Nursery with a former tea pavilion beyond our estate. Of course this Pavillon doesn’t´t exist anymore but with the remaining apple trees and some of the wild plums we formed this walk that is now a layout for shade/ semi shade tolerant species, mostly perennials.

 

The Lime Tree Alley

is one of the final places that we haven´t touched so far. As part of the former estate you find here a double array of lime trees that goes on beyond our estate. From time to time we remove broken down branches and cut the trunks free from offspring, but that is all, what we do at this spot.