I am enjoying displays of tulips this season! There’s a lovely selection in the front garden of a Victorian house nearby. The tulips are a gorgeous cream colour. Each time I pass by I am envious of the garden. It’s a shady spot, a compact space & for me it comes just about eye level.

The owners have designed the colour scheme well, using creams & whites to lighten the space. Shrubs form the backdrop to the garden & these are just coming into leaf. Bright green leaves of hydrangea provide a lime glow. The whole scheme fizzes. I consider adopting a similar colour scheme. This would involve replacing, replanting. There would be the fun of researching new plants, using different planting combinations…

I would have to dig out my heathers, say goodbye to the grannies bonnets that pop up at random in their dark midnight blue hues, remove the pink perennial geranium that creates ground cover…

Many of these plants have been bargain finds, adopted over time. They are not great treasures, yet they are a part of me  & my garden. I realise I cannot part company with them. The white flower garden is beautiful,  I continue to admire it as it changes through the seasons & the huge hydrangea flowers bloom white. But I no longer desire this as my own front garden. My ecliptic scheme holds memories, a plant collection that’s grown over time. It has a beauty & joy of its own.