Not far from the center of Blenheim, there is a sky court that seems unaware that it is a small garden surrounded by large, lush vineyards and stately homes.
In fact, Chris Fletcher, whose fault this place exhibits an ambition beyond its relatively small size, overlaid its sanctuary with boxwood and curly figurines.
He installed arched forest paths and strong Italian wrought iron gates. She creatively and artistically used mirrors, vases, trees and shrubs. Tents and climbing plants on the walls, as well as various trees, are striking.
Rounded shrubs and pointy topiaries add depth and dimension at eye level and below. Pots of colorful and attractive shapes fill the space.
CONTINUE READING:
* Three generations, one garden
* Stunning topiary close to the center of Wellington.
* A landscape designer creates his formal Masterton masterpiece
Each element plays a part in making the garden that surrounds this home so much more spacious - it's hard to believe how much can be squeezed into 300 square meters without feeling claustrophobic or cluttered.
“My friend told me about this house and garden, which was sold six years ago. He said I should see him,” Fletcher recalled.
“There was almost no landscape here, except for trees, a tall virgin tree blocked the view of the reserve across the road.”
"Two or three days" after Fletcher moved into the house, he cut the girl's (Ginkgo Biloba) haircut to give him an unobstructed view of the Taylor River Preserve, where he now likes to be, from his bedroom. floor of the house looks around the world. go with
Even if it was only the beginning. His initial landscaping created a garden that he felt was too cluttered. There were four lemon trees on one side of the house, three of which had already gone, leaving only fruitful Meyer lemons.
The outer fence is made by Choixia. He replaced it with Griselinia, but decided to keep the existing Eddie's White Wonder cornet.
He also trimmed one of the two skinny wisterias in the garden. “I took out what was left and put it back,” he recalls. Now hanging over the balcony railing in front of the house, it looks spectacular when in bloom.
There are three Michelias in the garden. He left only one at the top and then planted rhododendrons there, especially the fragrant 'Princess Alice' which has beautiful white flowers from pale pink buds. "But now I find him rather weak," he said.
Fletcher constantly evaluates his plants - not only in terms of their health and well-being, but also in terms of their place in the overall scheme of things and their place. Having inherited this garden from its previous owner, he fearlessly edited and meticulously organized the collection here to bring out the best of what he wanted to preserve.
“I have never been afraid to make changes,” he explains. “And if the change doesn't work, or if the plant doesn't like where you put it, or if it's in trouble, dig it up and start over. It is very easy."
At the same time, he was always wise when it came to the life or death of his plants. Pittosporum, which was already growing on one side of the house, seemed quite happy, so he left it there, and planted hostas and geuchera between them. "And all the walls are broken into Jasmine. They were barely blooming," he recalls. "I left everything and formalized a bit."
He did this with all the boxwood and topiaries he had brought from the garden earlier, many of which were already in pots (sounds easy until you realize Fletcher moved a lot of pots himself!), which he felt compelled to use. "I think they set the tone for this garden, so I added more boxwood hedges and a lot of the little things I love about the old garden."
Last but not least, the large Himalayan lilies from its much larger vineyards have also found their home here.
Looking back, he says that moving to this part of the city from its many vineyards and orchards was a relief for him. “In a big garden, you sit differently, although there can still be a lot of work in a small garden,” he says philosophically.
“I don't have a clear idea of what I want when I start a garden. I saw and visited other parks. I have ideas and ideas. For example, I can decide that I like something that someone likes, and not a barrel of summer and replace it with my pot ... there are always many unexpected decisions!
However, there are key elements, Fletcher admits. “Buxus has long been my choice for hedges and structure, along with some Lonicera. I love daffodils . I love hostas because they are textural plants.
It's no surprise that Chris owns many varieties of hosta and is a fan of the two-tone and color trend; among them, the favorites are "Hudson's Bay" and "Patriot". She loves Hosta plantaginea for its fragrant white flowers that grow up to 1 meter tall (too bad even snails love them, she complains), and 'Big Daddy' for its oddly curled leaves.
“Many visitors who come to Marlborough Garden ask what I feed the hostas to make them so big and lush, but I have to explain that this strain was only bred to be big. All they took from me was some blood and bones. .
She likes sometimes red (leaves or flowers) to emphasize different shades of green. Clivia is also "hardy", but keeps up with other plants, including the ever-popular geyhera. And in front of the garden, the little blue sea always fascinated Chris when the agapanthus were in bloom, though yes, he sighed, they always tried to overstep the bounds.
Quirkiness and charm sometimes stand out among these pillars of Fletcher Gardens. They are, of course, also great conversation starters. "Spotty Dotty," a Podophyllum hybrid related to Podophyllum peltatum, earns its place in the pot thanks to "fresh leaves," he explains, "but it's an absolute bad boy." Its distinctive, lobed, umbellate leaves are covered in large tan spots that draw everyone's attention.
Another popular plant that deserves closer attention is the native akakura (Metrosideros carminea). This climbing plant, also known as Crimson Rātā, grows in the lowland forests of the northern part of the North Island. It has small rounded dark green leaves and abundant dark red flowers in spring. Here you are climbing a wall leading into a rather narrow corner, "and I'm not at all sure that I want to get out of the corner," Chris thinks. "The stems and leaves got stuck quite far from the wall and it was quite difficult to move the cart around that corner."
Visitors aroused great interest and comments, drawn by two Graham Blandy boxwood plants standing against the wall. “Can you believe I got it from the local Miter 10? There are good things there and I have always believed in local support.
On the sunny side of the patio are two rectangular pots of vegetables such as lettuce, chickpeas, broccoli and peas. Some herbs also go where Daphne was (“they suffer in the winter, so I dig them up”), but there is no separate room for eating.
Instead, huge trees of extraordinarily luxuriant artichokes thrive alongside tall ornamental trees and shrubs, and Fletcher planted avocados last year. "So far so good, although I need to protect it from freezing and give it a little shake."
And the journey continues.
