At the lower part of the garden, beyond the garlic and the asparagus and the leeks, is a small opening in the shrubbery.
Duck down low,
don't bump your head,
and enter...
...if you dare,
The inspiration for the Dark Garden came from seeing a display garden at the Northwest Flower and Garden Show several years ago, which was designed to look like an old cemetery.
Making a cement gravestone was quite simple, but what plants could I use that would be appropriate to the theme, yet also able to live in the deep shade?
Initially I tried plants that were either poisonous or plants that had some "dark" history connected with them. But many of my selections struggled to survive in such dark growing conditions and ultimately failed.
However some, such as Stinking
Helebore (Heleborus
foetidus), Monkshood (Aconitum sp.), Valerian (Valeriana
officinalis), and Deadly Nightshade (Atropa belladonna),
have managed to cling to life.
