Another week without any rain. The garden is beginning to look very dry and crisp and across the lawn you can see where hoggin paths went, which were laid in the original walled garden, by the browning of the grass. Due to the hoggin under the turf these areas always dry out first. (Hoggin is a compactable ground-cover that is composed of a mixture of clay, gravel, and sand or granite dust that produces a buff-coloured bound surface. Once laid, the surface is somewhat permeable to water and therefore does not easily hold puddles or generate rapid surface runoff. )
The weather forecast is for more sun and heat into the low thirties next week which by English standards is very hot. So more brown paths!
The most significant disaster is the large pond in the Italianate area.
You can see that the water level is low. This is despite frequent topping up. In fact it has developed a leak! The pond was built about 19 years ago and at that stage we used a liner which forms the floor of the pond and runs up behind the walls to complete the pond without any unsightly liner showing. Alas, it also means that leaks are impossible to find. Nevertheless I have a plan to solve the issue over the next few weeks and will cover it in a later blog.
I do not expect to replant all the water lilies so let me know if you need any.
However, there are many delights to be had:
A second brood of swallows sitting on the side of the conservatory waiting to be fed. The dry weather has been good for the swallows and there will soon be hundreds flying around before they migrate.
The garden itself is not looking too bad despite the lack of rain.
August is now well under way. Many of the roses are having a second flush of flowers and the dahlias are flowering and demanding dead heading. Seed heads are becoming dry on the poppies and alliums adding to the overall look.
Some of the August delights from the garden are in the following photo mosaic :
Not to be forgotten is the hanging baskets. This one is on automatic watering which helps the garden maintenance enormously.
| Gardening Hours | ||
| This week | Total since June 19th | Average per week |
| 10 | 132 | 17 |
Glebe House Garden 
I feel for you. Here in Portland, we have been extremely lucky with moderate temperatures, and even some rain, this summer. We had an early heat spike in May, but June and July were wonderful. Now, we’ve had some heat, but given the overall blissful summer, and hearing what the rest of the world is experiencing, I can’t possibly complain. Feeling quite thankful, actually!
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Thanks, no rain but not so hot as they forecasted.
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