It is delightful when the sun highlights all the flowers in the garden. At present the hornbeam hedges are an almost luminous, emerald green and are dazzling in the early summer sun. But I am glad that it is gently raining this morning and I have to sit and do some work. Yesterday was a busy one as ten tonne of gravel and three bags of grit and stones were delivered, a long-postponed last stage in the continuing saga of the seaside garden.

It meant that the raised beds could finally be topped with fine grit, which made them look so much better, and grit and gravel were spread over the whole area. There were old scaffold boards left after the house construction and these were sawn and made into a deck-walk. An area of decking still has to be completed around the shed – should be done this week. The rest of the gravel will go around the veg beds and into and around the ponds, after it has been rinsed.

Beside this, the hosta and hazel garden is finally starting to look a bit more mature. This should be the year that the hazels start to provide some shelter and shade for the hostas.

Some of the hostas are now (at three years old) starting to show their true character and are making me happy.

hosta captain kirk, Hosta krossa regal, hosta whee