Thursday, November 17, 2022

Elgin Open Gardens - A walk through Fresh Woods

Elgin Open Gardens is held over two weekends each year, the last one in October and the first in November
It’s a super opportunity to visit some wonderful gardens made by very skilled gardeners
and this is the season when most of their plantings are in bloom
We asked two gardening friends to join us and had a fantastic day
Fresh Woods was our first and all of us had visited this multi focused garden before

There is a small entry charge which goes to charity and Fresh Woods always has good plants for sale

There are magnificent mature trees throughout the garden, which has many different garden 'rooms' 

The bees were really attracted by this large magnificent raceme Eremurus Foxtail lily
it took several hours to identify this magnificent tall plant. Not a true lily but a rhizome and originally from Asia

In the woods there are lovely mature Rhododendrons and Azaleas, which are in flower at this time of the year
You can see the Foxtail lily in the same bed

Superb roses everywhere and the bees were enjoying them too

Another beauty. One of our friends bought a plant of a similar rose, the Rosa Chinensis Mutabilis,
which is yellow when it opens then changes colour to this rich pink when mature

A plant normally found in Europe, a Hellebore or Lenten Rose

Penstemon plant attracting many bees

The roses and other climbers have been allowed to grow rampant and they twine high up in the trees,
a glorious spectacle of blooms

Cool green woodland glades

The Pine forest with very tall trees

There are many different garden rooms at Fresh Woods
and the one to seek out is the Acer garden, planted with a good selection of Japanese maples

A dark wine-coloured acer with orange tips

Oh, to have a garden like this, full of colour and tranquillity

White with some green variation and the newest growth is pale pink

Fire in the trees

Vivid red leaves of an Acer against a background of bright green leaves

and an arrow of glowing oranges, a red hot poker beneath the Japanese maple

About to flower, a white Rhododendron 

Absolute perfection, a pink dune rose

A bed of red Geum

A matching Azalea

A beautiful purple Iris, Siberian ... or?

Is this the white rose of York?  Doubtful, because of the pale apricot when young

So delicate you can see through the petals of this old rose

A bed of cream foxgloves and blue Larkspurs in a border

Sea Pointers Joe & Kerry Abramowitz taking their ease in a shady nook

Time for tea and scones and they were delicious. R20 for two halved scones with strawberry jam and cream

We sat under a huge pin oak while having tea, a cool green canopy

The Fresh Woods house

Time to head for the next open garden

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