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Eventually the completed year will be presented in a new format  Week-ending 7 November 99
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Caisteal Chaladair - Cawdor Castle
A Diary of a year in the gardens commencing July 99The Diary continues and enters a second web page. This page starts at week-ending 7 11 99
Return to entries from 4 July to 31 October
Eventually the completed year will be presented in a new formatWeek-ending 7 November 99Another week centered on the Laburnums. We have almost finished one side now. This week my colleague John Beaton joined me on the scaffolding. John started work with us in the spring and has settled in well with the rest of us. He has a fair bit of farming experience which has translated well into the responsibilities we have with the golf course: next season we won't see much of him as he is destined to spend most of the summer cutting the course with the tractor.
It is a good teamworking exercise up there on the boards, you have to watch out for each other as movements can sometimes be a bit tricky. David is back on Monday from a week's holiday so there will be three of us at this job and rapid progress should be made.
Wednesday and Thursday were rainbow days until the weather closed in late on Thursday afternoon and we had to come down and go into the greenhouses for some routine tasks that had been building up. Until then it was a joy to see the rainbows drifting across the landscape, I took a picture of one that lined itself up with the hill of the Ord (touch wood it will be a decent picture).
We were back outside again on Friday sorting out some drainage problems in front of the greenhouse, there was heavy and persistent rainfall and we had no choice but to tackle a blocked drain. Things soon resembled a construction site but as the rain eased off in the late afternoon we managed to restore things to their normal appearance by half past four. The nights are closing in on us and it is now difficult to see in the 4.15 twilight if there is any cloud cover.
Saturday morning saw snow over the Firth on Ben Wyvis. The Ben is just over 3,000ft and the snow looked to be down to around 2,500. It is still mild at our gentle level, but for how long? When will all this continuing green foliage turn black as mother nature shows her other side?
A personal highlight of the week was a walk in the woods by the side of the Allt Dearg (the Red Burn). This Gaelic name comes from the colour of the water which descends after taking on the colour of the peat from the hills. Not only was it its normal dark self but it was a moving picture of thousands of orange and brown beech leaves, journeying to the Cawdor Burn, the River Nairn and the beach where they will pile up in their millions, washed back in by the tide.Maximum temperature 14.5ºC Sunday
Minimum 0.9ºC Sunday
Week-ending 14 November 99
We nearly reached the end of the Laburnums. Now they are arched and cut again they look very spring-like with the few green leaves that still hold on to the branches. The result is again looking spectacular - one of the yearly milestones has almost been reached.
The sunshine and rainbows were in very short supply this week but it was still good to be up on the boards in the mild weather, examining each tree with care and affection as we renewed their individual acquaintance.
It is very therapeutic work and a good chance for me to learn a few words of Gaelic or French as the day passes by. This time I decided to learn a poem that a friend wrote - to see a copy of this poem please follow the linkMaximum temperature 12.4ºC Monday
Minimum 2.9ºC Wednesday
Week-ending 21 November 99
Monday saw the finish of the Laburnums. Our boss, Derek, was very busy bringing in the tender plants. He is always reluctant to move plants that are still in bloom but his common sense instincts always overcome his altruism as he senses a change in the weather. Thursday night was to bring us the first official 'air' frost of the winter but the Begonias, Salvias, Lobelias, Cosmos and others were all safely inside.
We spent most of the rest of the week clearing up some of the drifts of leaves that have accumulated around the gardens and in some of the other areas that are our responsibility. The Oaks still hold onto their leaves yet, some won't fall until well into the New Year.
The fountain in the Paradise Garden has been drained - and just opposite this area on the wall the Jasmin Nudifloram is out.
Wednesday saw some flakes of snow and hailstones but although the mountains have turned white down to low levels we have nothing settling on the ground. In the twilight of the day two oilrigs passed each other out in the Moray Firth, one going into Nigg Bay and the other leaving, their lights shining like giant Christmas Trees
There are still splashes of colour in the gardens to cheer things up on the greyer days but we are still getting our moments of sunshine
The sunrises linger now until almost nine o'clock with the low sun painting pastel colours on the quilted clouds. The week finished with a rise in temperature on Sunday afternoon.Maximum temperature 9.5ºC Sunday
Minimum - 1.1ºC SaturdayWeek-ending 28 November 99
This year we have had problems with mice coming in from the fields to investigate the delicacies on offer, both in the flower and the vegetable gardens. Even though the weather has stayed mild we have seen a decline in their activities. Coming into work on monday morning it was easy to see why. On both sides of the works entrance to the gardens are areas of young trees or 'policies' in estate terminology. A buzzard has made itself at home in this area and it was a savage, but inspiring site, to see it fly away with a large mouse trapped in a single talon.
We have cleared the beds in the top garden of their annual plantings in readiness to split up and replant two herbaceous borders.
More leaves have been collected - we were assisted by high winds that blew them into the appropriate places for us to simply come along with the tractor and trailer. The worms are still very active and it is marvellous to see how many leaves that they quickly dispose of: if you look closely at a carpet of leaves you will see clusters, where having selected their preferences, the worms begin to pull them underground.
The robins that follow us around have began their fights for supremacy - the champion will have the right to unchallenged access - sometimes I throw them or the blackbirds, worms that I come across.
Magnificent weather mid-day Thursday. The bright sun and patches of blue sky were like summer but the thin layers of cloud were very much of winter.
The week finished with a sharp frost on Saturday morning and heavy showers on Sunday.Maximum temperature 12.5ºC Thursday
Minimum 0.6ºC FridayWeek-ending 5 December 99
For me a week's holiday. But up at Cawdor a few inches of snow which had to be cleared off of a lot of the hedges and shrubs to avoid damage. The snow stayed on the ground for most of the weekend.
I had a few walks on the beach and along the river and spent a day over in Banffshire looking at the sea there. But the garden was never far from my thoughts. Inspired by " Jardin de rêves " (linked in entry for 14 11 99), I started this week to compose some poetry of my own. There is a poem about the main flower garden at Cawdor among my efforts. Follow the linkMaximum temperature 12.5ºC Tuesday
Minimum -2.7ºC TuesdayWeek-ending 12 December 99
A week of mixed fortunes for the plans of the gardening department. We embarked upon the next stage of the renewal programme for the herbaceous borders but were defeated initially by the rain. Later on in the week when the frost came conditions were much better for digging up the plants and transporting them to their temporary quarters. The short winter days are working very much against us now, with cloud cover it can be too dark to work outside by 3.45pm, but on the evenings with clear sky you can sometimes manage in the twilight for longer.
It is good to be getting on with this job, all the while you imagine the results that will come in the first summer of the next millennium. The four borders that we have renewed over the past two winters showed spectacular results and we hope for similar this time round. The fingers and the body are cold at first in the mornings but soon warm up with the activity, its all swings and roundabouts stuff really, to come are the beautiful summer days full of colours and scent.Maximum temperature 12.0ºC Monday
Minimum -5.6ºC SaturdayWeek-ending 19 December 99
The frost that was working so well for us went too deep into the ground and work on the herbaceous border was halted. We went to the long flower border below the maze to cut down the dead vegetation but after a day of great progress the snow and frost halted proceedings here too. This left us with the option of the ongoing
sterilisation of the greenhouses. We are also replacing some of the insulation material when the chance arises. We did get a chance to do a little in the vegetable garden inbetween frosts but, unfortunately, it became too muddy to go back to the border. Then with the deteriorating conditions towards the end of the week we went to the wild garden which is sheltered from the worst of the elements and began to tidy things up there. The weekend continued with heavy frosts and snow showers.
Soon the Solstice and the turn of the seasons.Maximum temperature 8.9ºC Thursday
Minimum -4.3ºC MondayWeek-ending 26 December 99
A week remarkable for the full moon of the 21st, a glorious day and at the end the biggest moon for over a hundred years rose over the Hill of the Ord, we were able to stay a little longer working in the Thistle Garden that night as the moon shone. We are now on the turn, on the way back to the glories of spring and summer, the spirit returns, the Earth revolves, time to reflect and look ahead to the colour to come.
The weather turned a little ugly on Christmas Eve with heavy rain and seas, five miles away in Nairn the river burst its banks early in the hours of Christmas Morning flooding parts of the Fishertown. There were some flakes of snow at the Castle but it only settled further up the hill and towards the Inverness Direction.
Maximum temperature 8.4ºC Thursday
Minimum -4.1ºC Monday & TuesdayWeek-ending 2 January 2000
We moved into the new Millennium so quickly, we all took various combinations of holidays which meant that those of us that were in were kept fairly busy preparing vegetables for the Castle.
It is also a time of year when we get involved in a few non-gardening tasks around the place, and so the day goes quickly.In the garden, bulbs are starting to appear, once again they are early, in some palces Blubells are over an inch out of the ground. The Witch Hazel buds are about to burst and the days are a little longer, winter seems to be no harsher than normal but we still have the traditional 'danger' months ahead. Happy New Millennium!
Maximum temperature 9.5ºC Friday
Minimum -0.1ºC Friday
Week-ending 9 January 2000
Our first full week of 2000 went so quickly. We had another major clean-up session in the top flower garden and made some progress on the area between the rear of the Castle and the Cawdor burn.
The first colour of the new millenium gave us the treat of the yellow flowers on the witch hazel and also the winter aconites, splendid in their display under the Sycamores on the Castle lawn. The sun rises a little higher through the trees, we gardeners alert to every change in the light and shadows.
Maximum temperature 11.1ºC Friday
Minimum -4.2ºC Friday
Week-ending 16 January 2000
Another week flashes by, bit by bit we move through the top flower garden making ready for the spring, pruning, removing debris and making adjustments as we go. We finished emptying one of the herbaceous borders of its plants and we have carried in the dung to help revitalise the soil for the new design.
We completed the area behind the Castle that runs along the Cawdor Burn, this part of the Garden was terraced in the 1960's and is a magnificent sight in the spring time with the bulbs, rhododendrons and azaleas under the cover of mature trees and always the sound of the Cawdor Burn flowing towards the River Nairn and the sea.
Monday will see a new man officially start on the squad, Gerald has been working with us for a fortnight to see if it was the sort of job that he wanted, he likes us and we like him, we'll be delighted to have his company.
Maximum temperature 9.1ºC Monday
Minimum -3.4ºC TuesdayWeek-ending 23 January 2000
The better weather enabled us to do more to the two herbaceous borders that are due for replanting, we dug out the remaining plants, selecting the best for the new designs and discarded the old, tired material. We took in more dung and started the trenches.
With the dry conditions we were able to get the tractor on the golf course and make large headways with the debris mother nature has deposited under the oak trees. Considerable amounts were taken away, only a few months before the golfers return to enjoy the nine-hole course.
Some pruning was done on the Apple trees in the Orchard. Sowly but surely we move through our winter work programme. A treat this week were the displays of snowdrops.
Maximum temperature 10.4ºC Monday
Minimum -1.5ºC Friday
Week-ending 30 January 2000
More intimate moments with the herbaceous borders and long walks with wheelbarrow loads of dung. Every gardener has his or her favourite aches or pains or more correctly those that return after a prolonged period of digging and this week we all had symptoms: not much you can do about it really, there's no stopping the march of time.
More colour on the heathers now and the rhythm of the Wood-Peckers as they make a few holes in the mature Beech trees on the east side of the garden.
Colourful humour punctuated the work as we proceeded to the conclusion. I was a little anti-social and for long periods listened to some French tunes on my personal stereo
The maintenance department arrived at the new sheds by the greenhouse with a mechanical digger to put in a power cable. Our big move will soon be on the cards.
Maximum temperature 9.9ºC Sunday
Minimum -3.5ºC TuesdayWeek-ending 6 February 2000
A week dominated by a clean-up after a strong gales prior to Monday morning, there were two major casualties, a Sycamore in the wild garden and an ash on the golf course. You can have the week ahead planned to perfection but Mother Nature will spring her surprises on you.
The remaining working time was spent on pruning climbing and shrub roses, pulling out the dead wood and tying in the fresh healthy shoots of last season. It takes a bit of time to work along the length of what we call the 'restaurant border', this is the angle that many visitors choose for a picture of the Castle.
The week finished with remarkably mild temperatures, It felt spring-like but it shouldn't. Along the restaurant border there is a Ceanothus 'Edinburgh', already some flower buds have began to open slightly. There are crocuses out and one or two of the bulbous Dutch irises.
Maximum temperature13.3ºC Saturday
Minimum -1.4ºC ThursdayWeek-ending 13 February 2000
Again another clean-up after high winds. We had a day sterilising pots as the weather broke down to a more traditional February pattern. Although we were still out and about pruning and tidying up for most of the week. The redcurrants on the wall facing the orchard received some attention. We took a few cuttings for possible future replacements
Friday turned warm and very sunny, defying the forecast until around 1600 with the emergance of showers. The sun climbs higher still and we continue to feel spring like despite the heavy fall of snow at the weekend.Maximum temperature10.00ºC Wednesday
Minimum -0.1ºC Saturday & SundayWeek-ending 20 February 2000
The snow didn't stay long but lingered, as usual a little higher up the hill. We got some more on Wednesday however and on the way to work we encountered 4cm on the road out of Nairn. Normal in days gone by but exceptional in these changed times. Things were a little slippy but myself and John got in safely from Nairn and Gerald had a similar experience on the way over from Inverness.
Little pockets of snow still remain and considerable amounts up the brae at Auchindoune. Here a half-open daffodil stood proudly above the snow covering
Early in the week we pruned and tidied up the border that sits along the outside wall of the bottom garden (facing the castle). This border doesn't really come in for much attention from vistors but it is an enjoyable splash of colour in the summer, interspaced with honeysuckles and roses with perennials at the base. There is already coulour in this border with the fragrant creamy-white flowers of Lonicera Purpusii.
We also managed to start pruning the big rose arbor in the other garden. We put about 50 barrowloads of home made compost into the vegetable garden and marked out a site for a polytunnel. The winter aconites and snowdrops continue to smile underneath the Sycamores on the lawn in front of the Castle.
Incredibly on Friday afternoon the purple flowerbuds of an azalea are almost out at Cawdor.
Maximum temperature 9.00ºC Monday
Minimum -3.9 ºC SundayWeek-ending 27 February 2000
A week centered on moving into the new sheds and finishing our digging in the vegetable garden. Thankfully we completed turning the soil before the weather turned wet again.
The weather and the cloud cover towards the end of the week detracted a bit from the early promise of spring that was in the air. It was good however to see the deep reserves of humour in the squad rising to the surface to counter the gloom.
Maximum temperature 10.7ºC Saturday
Minimum -2 ºC Tuesday
Week-ending 5 March 2000
A week's holiday for me in Lincolnshire England, back in Cawdor there was a reasonable amount of snow that hindered operations towards the end of the week
Maximum temperature10.2ºC Sunday
Minimum -2.8ºC TuesdayWeek-ending 12 March 2000
Noticeable already is fresh growth on the Holy trees that make up the maze, all 1,290 of them. Chionodoxa are out. We weeded the knot garden and the nearby long border. An owl was clearly audible making its call during the daytime.
Whilst cutting the ivy on the Castle drawbridge the first signs of activity from the wild beehives in the castle roof were visible. Great to see more signs of spring.
Maximum temperature10.2ºC Sunday
Minimum -2.8ºC Tuesday
Week-ending 19 March 2000
Lots of activity on the large Rose arbor, pruning the rambling roses, also work bringing in laef-mould into the bottom garden. Tuesday was an unpleasant day with heavy sleet and snow showers but the sunny moments inbetween allowed us to work on the lavender rose beds.
Later on in the week, drier conditions meant that the new design for one of the herbaeceous borders could be planted.More signs of life with daffodils out and many of the perennials growing. Some amazingly warm sunny moments, more insect activity and the sight of a blackbird taking nesting material into a yew hedge, to lift our spirits.
Maximum temperature14.7ºC Sunday
Minimum -2.6ºC SaturdayWeek-ending 26 March 2000
A week when it was hard to keep up with all of the miracles of Mother Nature coming back to life, buds everywhere seem to be swelling, and everything moves faster, the gardeners subconciously step up a gear to have things looking their best for the first visitors that will step through the door on May 1st. The birdlife is more noticeable as territorial fights begin. From the wild garden comes the sound of amourous woodpigeons.
On Monday the Orchard grass was cut for the first time and a fine sight it looks after the clippings have dried and all but disappeared in the warm sun. We continued the week by planting more herbaceous and by bringing in leaf mould to the lillie and paeony beds and the shrub rose borders, we even ventured into some of the herbaceous borders with our barrowloads of finely decomposed leaves, many of them having been removed from the garden many years before.
The work on the construction of the Polytunnel continued and is going to plan, Friday was sunny but quite cool, the weekend was marvellously sunny.
Week-ending 02 April 2000
More like construction workers for a day or two as we mixed concrete for the
foundations of the polytunnel. The fairways were cut on the golf course and the potatoes were planted, always proof of spring when the gardeners know the time and the hour to offer the seed potatoes to the wonderful skills of Mother Nature, it's a big event in our year the tattie seed going in. It always seems to be a sunny day and at the end we stand back and admire the drills and the new labels, the soil drying in the spring sun and blue skies above us.
Another milestone, the grass in the main flower garden was cut.Maximum temperature10.4ºC Thursday
Minimum -0.1ºC SundayWeek-ending 09 April 2000
More work in the polytunnel, at last just levelling the soil on the inside and tidying up the outside area, by the end of Monday several lines of seed were set. After the weekend's inclement weather some of the daffodils are looking a bit sad as they lie rather too close to the ground.
It was a joy to get away from the construction of the ploytunnel and back into the normal routine. In the top garden everything is again making remarkable progress, a Dicentra has reached a height of two and a half feet and a pink Camelia is in bloom.
Things are proceeding well in the greenhouses, the annnuals are coming along fine and the Begonias have been potted up.
The Acer Campestere (field maple) hedges along the three walls that border the maze and Laburnum walks have turned a cheery light green.Maximum temperature12.5ºC Thursday
Minimum -3.6ºC ThursdayWeek-ending 16 April 2000
We commenced with a drive to cover the remaining two of the 4 herbaceous borders with a thick layer of leaf mould and after this went on to clear some of the annual beds of weeds and fork them over.
In the middle of the week wet weather forced us indoors and we cleaned up many of the dead leaves from the potted plants: also this was a chance to kit out our new sheds with shelves for our equipment that now finds itself all under one roof for a change.Back outside again on Thursday afternoon and Friday morning only to be stopped by a heavy snowfall just after 10am (an April tradition in these parts), spring wouldn't be spring here until you see the contrast of the daffodils against the fresh snow. I believe the cherry blossom will not open until it feels the gentle touch of some spring snow - but that's just me.
Thankfully for the camelia and everything else the snow melted as fast as it came and we finished the day tidying up the maze and cutting a few grass edges.Buds are bursting on many trees and shrubs, notably the Larches, I always like to see my favourite tree go green.
Week-ending 23 April 2000
With the castle and gardens opening on the 1st of May this time of the month can sometimes turn into a mad rush. All keen gardeners will tell you that once you start one job you will notice something else that needs to be done and so on.
We made considerable progress again in the Lavender/rose beds and the selection of roses inbetween the giant yew pillars and the Tibetan cherry trees.
Later on in the week we cut the top of the giant yew pillars, assembling a three part ladder for this delicate and potentially dangerous task. Nice to see blackbirds stretching out their wings to enjoy the sunshine. Further attention was paid to the rose beds: we weeded them leaving in place all the pansies that had survived the winter - an early bonus of colour - and spread fertiliser. Extra attention had to be pais to the greenhouses and coldframes due to the heat.Week-ending 30 April 2000
The week started dreadfully with three days of rain, all our plans were in tatters. It stopped on Thursday but didn't really dry up until Friday when we were able to get down to serious last minute stuff. By virtue of all the hard work in the previous weeks we were ready and the gardens in an acceptable state.
Spring moves along swiftly but to a timetable a bit slower than previous years. we will still have large displays of daffodils for instance, in the prvious past two years they were all finished.Week-ending 7 May 2000
Bluebells now to add to the colour and some red Rhododendrons, but no mistaking the real stars of the week, the delightful cherry blossom: only the white fully out in the warm sunshine, the pink will wait until next week. Trees are budding everywhere and the herbaceous borders are showing massive spurts of growth. Another grass cutting session followed. Every year we in the garden squad are convinced that the gardens look a little better, we were relieved to hear visitors back up this opinion. There are still things that need to be done, however, and I feel a little disappointed to go away on a Friday afternoon not quite having delt completely with a patch of Bishop weed that has invaded the back of one of the shrub borders.
Week-ending 14 May 2000
Monday starts with some grass cutting, a few plants into the herbaceous borders and some replacements for sickly lavenders.
Wednesday saw us tackling the Maltese Cross hedges, you only get one chance with a job like this, once again Derek, the head gardener was satisfied with the straight lines we restored to this feature. We moved on to finish the day in the rose beds, weeding, hoeing the surface. Whilst in this area it was good to admire the pansies, survivors of winter, coming into full colour so early in a new season.A change in the light conditions under the wooded areas now as the sun hits the young leaves on the Beech trees, below the Bluebells take advantage if their moment to come into full bloom, here and there Forget-me-nots too and the last of the Daffodils. And so much sunshine and lush green growth everywhere, azaleas and rhododendrons taking full advantage of the heat to join the dance of colour. Spring was a little behind this year but we've caught up this week.
The ligularia shows signs of the mid-day wilt: an alarming but easily explained sight - a plant's natural defence system against the heat. Comfrey has reached 6ft and needs staking. The Rhubarb is in full flower. White saxifraga in the paradise garden, the Wisteria, some early Irises. Insects dart across the sunshine on their seemingly direction-less flights. Fledglings make their appearance, sometimes they will sit on a branch as you approach and open their mouths in anticipation of food, it won't be long before they realise that gardeners are not their parents, but we will probably see them all following us around for worms in the winter.
A remarkably beautiful plant is the white double woodland anemone. One of my colleagues on the estate staff Murdo, a painter and a born again gardener, was quite taken by this little flower. I asked him if it would be possible to reproduce that colour with all its vivacity and luminosity. 'Never, not 100%', he replied.
Over from Cawdor the Hill of the Ord is green and yellow patchwork as the gorse and broom glistens in the sun.
Week-ending 21 May 2000
A week of mixed weather but generally good for the continuing growth in the gardens. A lot of staking was done to maintain the apperance of he herbaceous borders. Staking is often a contentious issue in gardens, too much can ruin the natural apperance - we like to insert the stakes insuch away that the plants themselves hide the wood or bamboo we use, it isn't always easy to achieve but we usually succeed. This is one particular job that seems to make time fly, quite often a look at the watch will tell you it is only 5 minutes before lunch when you were thinking it was still much earlier.
Visitors from more arid areas of the world have been commenting on the lush growth and verdant backdrops to the gardens: to them such a display is incredible. although it must be said the growth this year is exceptional.
How delightful to have the Meconopsis out - one of my favourites.
Out and about around Nairnshire the yellows of the broom and gorse are now dominant plus the wide carpets of bluebells in the woods. It isn't just the gardens and the castle that are the attraction at Cawdor, there are the walks in the 'Big Wood' and the beauty of the entire surrounding area.
Week-ending 28 May 2000
The laburnum walks that surround the maze are now in flower, for around 3-4 weeks this stunning scented disply will delight visitors, this part of the garden is very different as one stands and admires the beauty of nature molded a little into shapes and lines by man: but nature is still king here, the lines may be inspired by the human eye but they radiate with the gentle beauty of Mother Nature.
We cut the grass on Monday ahead of a predicted breakdown in the weather. When the weather did turn a little wet we seized the opportunity to put plants into gaps in the many borders. Plants do die, sometimes old age and sometimes for mysterious reasons, so there has to always be something ready to replace the unexpected casualties.
Goldfinches have nested in the maze and everywhere young birds are to be seen. Many of the birds at Cawdor are very tame and will approach and delight visitors. Everyday we check the progress of the wagtails that have nested in a pile of sticks on one of our wheel barrows.
The final earthing up of potatoes in the vegetable garden and the sunshine to destroy the weeds we hoe.
Week-ending 04 June 2000
It is hard to describe the continual process of the gardens now, as one attraction fades another takes its place. Who can really do justice to the beauty and the return of so many wondeful species. We are fortunate enough to see the changes everyday and many people buy season tickets and return every week. I'm lost for words for the magnificance of the garden some times - just happy that I'm there so much. Just like the visitors, the gardeners enjoy the peace and quiet and the wonders of life within the garden walls.
Star of the week is the Chilean Flame tree (Embrothicum Coccinium) with its beautiful scarlet flowers. Also to be mentioned is the wonderful Rose 'Dublin Bay' which thrives on the south facing wall of the castle restaurant next to the marvellous actinidia with its pink, white and green leaves.
The yew hedges take on a different colour, a dusty light brown, as the growing tips enlarge. The delightful yellow flowers of the Welsh Poppy (almost reaches weed status sometimes) pop up out of the shrub borders. Still we have the delightful colours of azaleas and rhododendrons both in the gardens and outside in the 'wild' area betweeen the castle and the Cawdor Burn.
Week-ending 11 June 2000
This week we finished putting in our bedding plants, each year we raise approximately 3,500 bedding plants for various locations in the gardens. In six to eight weeks, the full glory of these designs will be apparent.
So delightful at the moment is the outside wall of the restaurant that looks onto the main flower garden; along the length of this 2-storey wall are roses, Wisteria, Actinidia, Clematis, Ceanothus 'Edinburgh' - at the bottom of the climbers on this south facing wall, are Irises, an astonishing pink Thalictrum, synoglossum, Phlomis, Cherianthus, giant cotton thistles, oriental poppies, an Aubutilon and a few bedding plants to fill out some spaces.
It was rather cooler this week but not without some sunshine. More scents now in the garden as we move to midsummer, more roses and primulas and more stirrings of great promise in the newly planted herbaceous borders. The Blubells fade and die so quickly now as we leave that part of the year firmly behind us.
Worth a mention are the Virburnum Plicatum shrubs in full flower, one at the entrance to the castle, and the large Laburnum near the wild garden gate - displaying its full golden glory.
Week-ending 18 June 2000
Sudden high winds at the start of the week gave us a lot of clearing up to do. It was imperative that we staked some plants before the winds destroyed them as well. The orchard suddenly had an autumnal look as the gales ripped hundreds of leaves from nearby Sycamores.
These are the scenarios you can never plan for in gardening, You can be doing so well and then out of the blue you can find yourself tidying up while routine 'urgent' tasks have to wait - you can't cut a lawn if there are hundreds of twigs on it.
Eventually we got back to normal and so did the weather, the Maltese Cross was planted out with the customary red and yellow Begonias. On Friday it was nescessary to water many of our annual plantings as they wilted in the strong sun, things were considerably cooler outside of the walled gardens but the temperature inside was a different story.
Week-ending 25 June 2000
Things turned a little damp and overcast but for the most part remained warm - a surprise mid-morning on Friday, however, as the automatic heating in the greenhouse came on. We all seem to remember the same thing happening last year around this time. It is a long time since the Solstice morning has started with full sunshine.
Some things can wait no longer. Thousands of daffodils flowering in the village in the early spring is a magnificent sight but the downside is a couple of months later when they have to be cut and cleared with everything else that has grown amongst them protected from the mowers. We leave the large orchids alone, taking great care around them with the large petrol-driven strimmers. It's a good job to be getting on with when the rain prevents more routine maintenance in the Castle Grounds proper.
Roses a plenty now on the walls, in the shrub borders and in the beds, their scent fills the air, the Laburnum flowers fade and fall, like gentle yellow rain, covering the paths around the maze. The swallows circle low and fast, singing joyfully, and visitors admire the scene. The flag on top of the Castle is licked by a westerly wind as the gardeners dig the celery trench and crack jokes, there is very little sun but it is warm enough for them to be comfortable in T-shirts.
Week-ending 02 July 2000
Crambe Cordiofolia effortlessly reaches the year's maximum height and gracefully displays hundreds of small white flowers on its massive framework. Nearby remarkably large Delphiniums and Cephelaria stretch out and complement the architecture of the Castle, the light blue and the yellow also mirroring the sky and the flag of the House of Cawdor - the flag itself licked by gentle and unseasonal north-east winds.
It is the last week of the diary - a year in the life of the gardens - a few images sketched in words and delivered to your eyes by the four winds of the world wide web.
Hopefully I've captured some of the magic of this wonderful place, this constantly changing, scented, verdant, colourful, natural - almost spiritual place.
There can be words and pictures but I can't give you the scents, the constant symphony of birdsong, fleeting glimpses of red squirrels and a million other things that are the basis of the adventure for the senses that is a stroll around the gardens.
Best wishes and good gardening.
Return to entries from 4 July 99 to 31 October 99