Welcome to the GVAG Blog

screen-2Bshot.jpg

Reflecting on Site and Insight

Site and Insight. I’ve used these words many times in talking about gardens, in thinking about landscapes, in writing about both. Recently I’ve added a third word to the list. Sight, Site and Insight. This is what art, landscape and design are based on: looking at what surrounds you, observing the lay of the land, the…

Read more
blog-2Bpruning-3.jpg

Pruning: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

Pruning shrubs has always been one of my favourite garden occupations. It’s satisfying to clear away the dead wood (literally) — and when the work is done, you can see what is there. It’s a practical activity as well an aesthetic one. My aim may be to shape a shrub so that it looks its…

Read more

Going and Coming

Before and after photos are a great way of showing the effect of changes — if you have them. Which, in this case, I don’t. Last week the weather was wonderful, with warm days, bright blue skies and a touch of crispness in the air. This week, the sky is grey and the temperatures are…

Read more

Following my tree, down a colourful garden path

It’s that time of month again, time to write about the tree I started following in March this year. My corkscrew hazel (Corylus avellana ‘Red Majestic’) is looking about as tired as the rest of the garden — late August and early September are not prime times at Glen Villa. Something is eating the hazel…

Read more

At the End of The Aqueduct

A few posts ago, I wrote about the journey that water makes as it flows down the hill and into the lake. A few posts before that, I referred to the ‘haste makes waste’ pond that is just above the boathouse, the final spot on the water’s journey. Today I want to show how important…

Read more