Every year May astounds us in the gardens here. The difference that can be seen after only a days absence is beyond belief. A plant you left a few inches high can be in full leaf when you return, particularly after a good rain shower.

The Bluebell show this year has been exceptional all through the woodland walk, following as it does the snowdrops, daffodils and wood anemones.

Photo0092

Bluebell slope, wafting scent down onto the path.

We have also seen improvements in the flowering of the fruit trees, spurring me onto to further pruning efforts in the winter to come.

Photo0018

Apple blossom by the wooden shelter.

The borders are looking better thanks to a winter of replanting using donated plants and plants purchased using the donations to the garden.

Photo0038

A border just how we like it at the Ty Glyn Davis Trust. A jumble of wild-looking Geum rivale and Dicentra eximia with self -set Tellima grandiflora (Fringecups) and budding Sweet Rocket.

We are now well advanced in the planting of the vegetable gardens, peas, beans, leaf vegetables, herbs and flowers all joining the sprouting potatoes. Dahlias will be going in this week and the last few veg and flower plants to follow. Here’s hoping the rabbits don’t find us anytime soon and the slugs and snails are eaten by the friendlier wildlife.

Along with the plants growing the stickyweed and it’s friends are back, hopefully the plants we deliberately added to the border will catch up and crowd the worst of them out soon.

Here at the Ty Glyn Davis Trust Walled Garden and Woodland Walk there have been many changes over the past 6 months. Two Trustees have retired, making way for new blood. In addition to this the strange set -up of the legal position of the garden in terms of the Trust has now been altered and the gardens are now formally part of the charity. These changes are leading to the development of a new culture at the Trust with more emphasis on the importance of the grounds to it’s work and also to the local community. It is for this reason, in this the 20th anniversary of it’s donation to the Trust, that we would like to better reach out to and connect with the communities, organisations and tourists which form our visitors. We would like to form a new Friends of the Garden Group, where you can find out what we are doing in the garden and the equally important question of why we are doing it. In the past the Friends groups have formed work parties on the garden, fundraised for the garden and also organised events to which they receive free entry. If you are interested in becoming more closely involved in our gardens please get in touch and our closest Trustees to the garden, Ann and Sian, will be happy to have a chat with you. Please email tyglyngardener@yahoo.co.uk or call and leave a message for them.

If you are or know of a group who may be interested in visiting the gardens, please get in touch at the above email address too.

We will also (weather permitting) be at the Aberaeron Garden Festival on Bank Holiday Monday if you would like a face to face chat with me once you have bought your plants.

The garden is teeming with wildlife again, from the fish in the pond, the orange tip butterflies, the bird life which may now include a cuckoo to the gorgeous metallic Damselflies again.

Photo0109

The blackcurrants are looking like they will produce a really good crop this year again.

Photo0040

I was trying to take a picture of our large Paeonia lutea or yellow tree paeonies, when I realised they were being photo bombed by one of our cheeky robins.

Photo0037

I will leave you with a photo of a glimpse of the Gardeners cottage, under the Walnut tree, through Aquilegias (Granny’s Bonnets) and good old yellow Welsh Poppies. You can see in the background that again this year Oak is leafing up before Ash so as the old proverb goes, ‘Oak before Ash, nary a splash, Ash before Oak you’re in for a soak.’ Looking forward to a good summer then!

Photo0056