Clear it! Clear it all!

When we moved into our house in September, the back garden was very overgrown. Common ivy (Hedera helix) and brambles clung to the surrounding walls, while other weeds and thorns had spread over the patio and flower bed. It looked even more unloved because previous tenants had somehow left broken plastic furniture, saws, ladders, rusty garden tools, and even a barbeque, strewn amongst the wilderness – floating on a sea of greenery. On the whole, the poor thing looked in dire need of attention.

I was fairly brutal in the clearing.

If I could do it again, I would have been less aggressive when cutting back the ivy, as the back wall now looks a bit bare. Keep in mind when clearing a garden of your own, that you still want the garden to look established – all the best things get better with age – and a bit of ivy on a wall can create just that effect.

I had to cut back the sage (Salvia officinalis) because it had been forced under the thorns to sprawl outwards, and also had brown spots on many of its leaves. It now looks a bit rough, but as I’ve said in an earlier blog, a little time and care should slowly get it back to a healthier state. Sage is generally quite hardy, and it has come through the winter well – with a beautiful silver touch in its leaves, might I add – but can struggle when neglected for too long, which seems to have been the case for mine. I might get a younger plant to put nearby, if only to draw some attention from the current sage’s woody branches that had once been hidden by the spotted leaves (now removed to prevent further contamination).

The way I go on about all these ill plants, my garden sounds like a care home for neglected flora, but I do have some rather lovely specimens. The rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis), in particular, is my pride and joy in the garden.

I use often use rosemary in my cooking, so was very pleased to find a healthy plant under the tail-ends of brambles – closest to the kitchen. There’ll be a recipe for rosemary and garlic pasta coming soon, too.

Grab some tips for your garden clearing project here.

Keep sweet,

Lara x