Secret Garden

Very cold today, in the high 30s and low 40s, but chilly, damp and with a biting wind.

Flowering trees and leafing shrubs will not open; still nothing but tight buds on the 'Okame' cherry.

A good day, though, to cut the new sweep of garden that will link the west side walkway plants with the Birch Garden further out.

The idea was to make a Secret Garden, enclosing the space in a circle of overlapping half moon gardens with some openings out into the yard.

What we ended up with is a big sweeping S mirroring the curves of the border along the bluestone walkway to the back.

It still needs some shaping to get real curves in it and to finish the edges.  It doesn't form an interior circle, but with low and high plants it will offer a space with some privacy.  Much more to do to shape it pleasingly!

Jim worked like crazy on it, and together we got most of the space cut, if not the final edges and shape refinement.

It was so unbelievably cold that I did all this hard work digging and hauling and getting up and down, in my parka.  My ski parka!  I didn't even work up a good sweat.  But boy am I tired tonight.

Just as we finished it started to rain.

I'm thinking shrubs and an anchor tree, not a flower garden.  Let the Birch Garden be the flowery cottage garden, and let this area grow woody plants for a sense of enclosure.