Agecroft in the evening

Visit to Agecroft Hall recently and some garden pictures

Manor house was actually  built in Lancashire England in the 16th century. 

In 1925 it was sold at auction.

Thomas C Williams Jr. purchased it.  Dismantled and shipped in crates across the ocean to a Richmond Virginia neighborhood, Windsor Farms.

Stepping inside to get tickets

I took this picture because I like the shade, I must find me some.

Wicket door within this large door

Entering  the courtyard are 17th century plantings along with the ones we are more familiar with today.

Espaliered Pear trees against the wall.

Hampton Court Palace pond garden in England is what the sunken garden is based on at Agecroft.

The perimeter of the sunken garden are surrounded by boxwood.  I would have loved to have seen it in April when 4,000 tulips bloomed in Spring.  Summer are pretty annuals.  

Mostly white flowers are planted in the garden area now.

I am sure if it was later in the evening, the garden would almost sparkle with the white flowers.

The raised pond has  Iris and lilies 

Painted carp, turtles and frogs.  This area appears about the same as it did when Mr. Mrs. Williams lived here.  A 1920's garden

Gabrielle's Trumpets as Mom calls them will bloom such a pretty large trumpet flower and loaded with scent.  I know they are poisonous but I like to grow them and grew up with them. Just leave them be and enjoy the beauty.  Azaleas are poisonous also, most of us have those too.

To the left of sunken garden is the crepe myrtle walk.  Planted in the 1920's  with English style structure.

Looking towards the Crepe Myrtle walk and you can see the Myrtles in the distance.

Onto the knot garden - this urn near the garden

Two open Knot design gardens.   Typical of a garden dating back 400 years, reading from the brochure. 

Herbs are Germander, English Lavender and green Santolina create the knot.

I used to have Santolina  growing in my flower bed. It had the prettiest yellow flowers. Dries well.  I think mine got too much water as it doesn't require a lot and doesn't need much if any plant food.

Gate to Knot Garden

You can see cabbages and other veggies planted here. 

Like these potatoes

Tradescant garden

In honor of John Tradescant. He is the first Englishman to travel here to Virginia.  The purpose of visit was to transport botanicals to England.

Rare and unusual plants grow here.  A native Virginia plant includes Tradsdecantia Virginiana

 or Spiderwort as I have always called it.   Lobelia Cardinalis or Cardinal Flower and that is what I have growing in pots at home and at the lamp post.  The Hummingbirds love it.

Herb garden 

Medicinal, culinary and dye herbs used in the Tudor and Stuart times on display here.

Borage whose blue flowers were eaten to comfort the heart and melancholy

Flower heads of Fennel for seeds to flavor food.  Sage, whose leaves were used to treat colds.

In two woven baskets are hops grown for beer making.

 Bee skeps in the garden to encourage pollination and a good honey source.

Still house walk.  This stone wall has planting growing through the crevices.

The still house is where the lady of the manor would over see the distillation of herbs for culinary and medicinal use.

Sweet smelling scents for the home and perfume were prepared here.

On top of the still house is the Banqueting house

built from timbers left over from the building of the main house

Interpreting as a 17th banqueting house, 

wealthy property owners during Stuart and Tudor times would invite their guests for the final course of a meal, sweets dishes.

Inside the banqueting house looking towards the Linden walk.

The trees are little leaf lindens 

A method of pruning to cause dense growth called Pollarding.

Typical feature in English garden design

Reading for what comes next in the Linden walk

Here a rectangle  is the bowling green

A jack (small ball) is thrown onto the green as a target

larger balls are then played one at a time.  The one that is closer is declared the winner

Here you can see the maze.  Like the brochure says, Mazes have been know from antiquity to present time.  

More later 

Happy Saturday

Much needed rain we received yesterday evening.   Everything looks so much better after it.

What's growing now and looking good so far.
The PeeGee Hydrangea is in the pot and I think I better find a place for it soon.   It's growing fast.
This plant blooms on new wood.

I placed some dill in this pot and it's growing along with petunias

on the fence with cardinal flower on the right side.

This weed - Oxalis.  I call it a weed because it's growing everywhere.  Well I do have other weeds in the yard to keep it company.

I purchased this poly wood chair for Steve for his Birthday.  Watering can hint on the arm

Pulling flowers from my lavender wands to use on cookies or icing on cakes etc.   I  put them in homemade  ice cream.  They are sweeter this way.  Little too strong a flavor when I wait for the whole tip to dry and then take off.  I like the sweetness of the flowers.

Squash I have picked from this plant already and these are almost ready.

short clip of cukes in a bed and containers.   These are pickling cukes. Short and they are coming in fast.

Happy Tuesday

Tonight is late evening from 4:00 til 7:00 viewing of the gardens at Agecroft hall and we are looking forward to seeing what is growing there.

  Meanwhile here at home
I planted my twynings Smartie Dahlia tubers in March inside  and babied them.  They have blooms and are or were so strong and healthy till I decided to move the pots as it was beginning to thunder and rain and spilled over the wagon.  I put them back in the pots but I have no hope really for them. Some of the tubers fell off.  SO UNHAPPY ABOUT THAT.
I shall see.

I picked a few squash today.  This squash picture was from a few days ago.

A few cheery flowers from the yard for the bath in the hall.  Yes that is sage green tile put in when house was built in '69. It's in good shape and I like it.  Had thought about changing it but I like the color.

Another bloom.  This has been blooming a good while now.

My tea rose is blooming

At the garage. Probably way too many plants in here.

A mini  rose I picked up from walmart after valentines day.

Cleaning up the azaleas a little.  They seem to bloom better when I cut off some long limbs

I know these potatoes in pots are way too many and this is the first time I grew any in pots.
Will see.

Cukes

I broke off a piece of rosemary and its rooted in the planter.  I think things do really well in this mushroom compost.  I will always use it now.

I do like the celery flavor parsley and the tarragon I have been cutting on.  The chives behind it are very good and I have cut many of those and dried.

I had to divide the chives here from the ones I have growing in a pot

This lavender I can't bring myself to disturb right now.  I do need to move it again.  It is now about 8 or 9 years old.  It is a hardy plant.  Provence it's called.

I did do quite a bit of chopping it back this year but didn't seem to mind it.

I planted this last year.  It was looking like it was going to die but when the neighbor removed trees, it now is doing great, it loves the sun.  I pull off the fragrant petals and wash and dry them stored in the refrigerator.  When I get soft purple flowers to pull off the Lavender, I will make some jelly.  I rather pull off the purple flowers instead of waiting for them to dry because they are sweet and not as strong as the seed.

My tomato in the pot along with a dill plant I put beside it.  These cherry tomatoes are different colors. Orange, yellow and red.

Italian tomatoes and red pepper doing fine so far. I pulled off the lower leaves to keep the air circulating around it nicely.

I didn't have the heart to pull up this lone romaine lettuce I tied at the top to keep it together.  It has been in this planter in mushroom compost and dirt for a month maybe two.

oxalis is pretty but it is a weed as far as I am concerned.  It will grow any and every where.

Cleaned out the bed here and now will put some shrub and tree dirt with fertilizer and  mulch around them

I will have more than this to cut off but it's a start.

Excited to see this hydrangea with a few blooms.  Will see if it is going to bloom red. 

Grapevine I really didn't think would grow. I originally was going to let it grow on a trellis over the gate but changed my mind.  Now it's growing nicely and it's green grapes.  Will move after the season I guess.

Tonight I am going to make some mushroom soup.  I also will try some celery flavored parsley in it.  I love mushroom soup, Steve likes it with potatoes.
I hope he is not reading this on his lunch break and then give me a call to place potatoes in his.   Hmmm.

Forgot Edgar

I am still looking for and trying to organize my pictures on this p c.  Will eventually get there and I found some other pictures I meant to put in the previous post of the fort. 

A well known,  who enlisted in the Army on May 26, 1827 under the alias of Edgar A. Perry.  Stationed at Fort Monroe with the 1st Regimental Artillery from December 15 1828 to April 14, 1829.

  

I chuckled when I read that he received the rank of Sergeant Major in such a short amount of time.  Quite obviously no formal review process was conducted at that time.

  Edgar Allan Poe's required service was not finished and he was officially discharged on April 15 1829.  Under an arrangement with Sergeant Samuel Graves who was to finish Poe's enlistment.  

Sergeant Graves never received the promised payment from Poe.  

Not long after leaving Fort Monroe 

a collection of his works entitled Al Aaraaf, Tamerlane and some poems were published in December 1829.

 A find after 150 years.

this is a little blurred  but if enlarged can be read

A view of  what it looks like from the top and  thinking I would not want to have the grand girls running around up here.

Happy Sunday all