Rocks and Flowers
I was
reading Heidi Gildemeister’s book when looking up her comments on apricot trees
and I found myself reading again the chapter on ‘Gardening among Rocks’. And I
thought ‘that’s what we have to do here.’ As she writes ‘any mediterranean
gardens are distinctly rocky.’
She goes on
to write that rocks have a highly sculptural quality, and that they provide
good growing conditions for roots to find a cool root rut and secure anchorage.
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| A plant taking advantage of a cooler spot |
We do not
have the outstanding rocky outcrops of her garden, which enhance her designs,
but we did have an abundance of rocks to build walls and edge paths.
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| No rocky outcrops in our garden |
As I
consider what we have done I’ve noticed I used the following as guidelines.
Traditional
Japanese Gardens
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| A traditional use of rocks |
Traditional
Rock Gardens?
Not for me,
too much weeding
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| The traditional rock garden, well weeded! |
Yes, good
idea, translated to pots
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| A cactus mimicking a crevasse plant |
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| Pelargoniums always work well in a mediterranean garden |
In or On Walls?
That too
suits our Lemnian garden, where we have stone walls in abundance. I have found
that the walls and pillars give some shade at certain times of the day. Plus
offering a wonderful aesthetic combination; a solid background against which
the colour and texture of the flowers are enhanced.
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| The front wall and a climing morning glory plant |
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| The back wall and yellow Canna Lillies |
Around Stone Pillars
Again we
have used this idea a lot in our mediterranean garden. Our pillars give shape
and height to the garden, plus and shaded beds at their foot, and a place for
flowers to nestle or climb, offering shade on nearby terraces and paths.
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| Roses and pillars, how classic! |
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| Pillars, gravel, and succulents |
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