Walled Garden Volunteers' Blog August 2026
/‘More of the Same!’
fennel loving the sunshine
Four weeks since our last report from the Garden, and in all that time only 20 spots of rain…one of the gardeners counted them!
The heat is exhausting, limiting the time we can manage to do tasks outdoors before we escape and go home . But the vegetable plot has done well as the plants have enjoyed early-morning watering - we’ve managed six out of seven days a week, with one day off.
We have an abundance of beans and the squashes on the pergola are also doing well.
Dahlias also receive regular watering, and they soak up sunshine too - they look very happy, and bees love the open-faced varieties.
Cheerful Dhalias
Elsewhere there are challenges. We noticed that the knapweed in the meadow very quickly had turned to seed…..lots and lots of seedheads. This happened once before, a few years ago, when we learned not to let the seeds drop (a lesson we also apply to Miss Willmott in the Stellata Border!)! So, on a Monday in August, for ten minutes or so and after a rest in the shade and a drink, we all chopped off all the heads…just in time!.
Like all parts of the Garden, plants are ahead of themselves…plums ripening at least two weeks early, (and the best of them at the top of the trees, where no-one can reach easily); lettuce bolting and only fit for compost; Elderberries in the hedge are already black.
In the borders, we assess the damage, noting areas where we may need to re-think our planting to suit the changing climate. The Heucharas are sizzling at the front of the Bonkers Border. Hardy Geraniums, Erysimum and the African Daisy, Berkheya Purpurea, have roasted at the front of the Purple Border. We are studying advice from growers of drought-tolerant alternatives.
The Miscanthus grasses look strong, and are still a lovely statement in the garden, but are half the height they should be. All is not doom and gloom, however. The grasses and Cardoons look stunning in the Mediterranean bed, with with Stachys, though dried out, still standing smartly to attention!
And…oh yes! The grapes are almost ready on Dame Margaret’s vine….
