Northeast Gardening: Finally, I'm posting pictures!, 0 by Pfg

Pfg wrote:
On the other side of the middle lawn, the Falling Down Wall leads to the lower lawn (there are 4 lawns in all). The first section has a high wall, planted with box and other shrubs on top, with a low hedge in front. Then comes what we call River of White, a cascade of small stones that may once have been a stairway. In this picture taken in May, between the Rhodies Dame's Rocket is blooming near the top, along with Cerastium tomentosum, Arabis and Iberis. There is also lots of white salvia, white alliums and lavender. I just put in some Veronicastrum at the bottom, mixed with Boneset, ferns, Gooseneck loosestrife, and cimicifuga, leading into the 'falling down' part. Several huge clumps of hosta must have volunteered, and there is a wonderfully enormous white baptisia. Next to it was a large clump of white Physostegia that I wiped out inadvertently in my battle against tradescantia, raspberries, rampant ferns and all the rest.

I think this must have been a white garden. He would have been planting it starting in the med-to-late 30's, and Sissinghurst was new and exciting then. I'm not sure yet how slavishly I want to re-create the all-white thing, but I replanted P Miss Manners last fall, and keep adding white and silver wherever I can, both foliage and flowers. So far it's hard to tell how it will all come together, still too spotty.

J said there used to be lupines at the bottom but one year they didn't come back. So this year I started a new patch. So far they're growing...