FIELD OF FLOWERS

A TALE OF FLOWERS… AND SCENT…

To capture the scent…the pure, ephemeral, intangible essence that seasonally imbues the garden air has long been a very personal dream...

It’s many years now since I hatched a plan for a field of flowers here at Glenmore House. But as my skill set (especially back in the early days!) didn’t equate with being any kind of flower farmer, it was a dream that was shelved…put on hold time and time again: a step too far, without purpose.

Until, that is…the idea cross-pollinated with the real emerging twin-dream of capturing the scent of the garden in Botanical Water.

Combined with the idea of a magical workshop filled with flowers and scent (whose details I intend to hold close ’til I’m ready to reveal them in a flurry of excitement down the track!); all at once the concept of the field emerged from im..to possible, after percolating away all these years.

So far the field has gone from a rocky outcrop to one of a series of long, mounded rows. The beautiful earth (though thin atop the rocks) was re-arranged, smothered with compost and covered with hessian (to keep it in place and to help prevent weed growth). While the bulk of the plants I wish to grow were planted during the course of 2021, unfortunately some very specific ones didn’t make it from the grower last season. So I’m still holding my breath, while nurturing those that did make it into the ground last year (alongside those I struck from cuttings already here).

Over time, I’ll tell you why I’ve selected the plants I have. While much is about roses, the real story can wait ’til the field is more complete. In the meantime, how I’m enjoying working in this hithero little used paddock. Somehow the addition of the rows has made the extent of the garden feel ‘complete’ and yielded hitherto unappreciated views. It’s also the closest I’ll ever get in this lifetime to having a market garden!

The initial experimental planting yielded enough leaves for the first batch release of Rose Geranium Botanical Water. But everything during this past year has been about settling in the beds themselves; alongside tending and nurture (whilst also ironing out the rest of the immediate area which we once considered to be ‘down the back’…as out of the way as one could get at Glenmore!). It was where the wood  pile, the rolls of fencing wire and other building detritus once landed, so getting the area ‘finished’ may take awhile yet. But it’s getting there! Just the other day a hint of what lies ahead revealed itself as I half-closed my eyes…squinting into the morning light (while dragging a hose behind me!). It’s coming…and I must try to be patient.

So please watch this space. I hope that one day, in the not too-distant  future, you will be able  to join me here in the field of flowers to play…with both FLOWERS…and SCENT.

**The Field has flourished since writing this  page…which is due for an update…I’ll aim to do it…soon!

***And yet another year on…and an update really is on the way…as soon as I have a minute! How funny reading back on this…as too quickly to years roll by but, two years of workshops on…and with this year’s about to launch, please see the Field of Flowers Workshop booking page for 2024 here! Mx