Waterford, southeast Ireland, 9th. January 2021
It is that time of year when we look backward with fondness and forward in hope and, when the garden is presently bare, it is encouraging to view again the days when it was full and lush, when the sun shone and all looked fresh and alive. Those days will come again but we can only enjoy them through our photographs at the moment.
The photographs for each month are organised as a series of slideshows so click on the arrows to go through the shots.
July:
August:
September:
October:
November:
December:
I’m sharing this blog with a group of fellow bloggers who contribute to a “Six on Saturday” theme which is hosted by “The Propagator” on his blog site. To read more contributions to the Six on Saturday theme go to The Propagator’s entry for today, scroll down to the comments and you will find other bloggers have posted links to their Saturday entries there. Lots to read!
Paddy Tobin, An Irish Gardener 
Part 2 certainly didn’t disappoint! Your photographic expertise really shows the garden at its best! I tried to chose a favourite month but it was too difficult a task!
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I take lots and lots of photographs so there is never a shortage or lack of choice.
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What a glorious garden you have, Paddy. i see you called yourself a ‘keen amateur gardener’, but your garden is so perfectly beautiful you must have the greenest of green thumbs.
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I have an excellent head gardener and she has it all planned and organised and tells me what to do!
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What a glorious garden you have Paddy, I really enjoyed your slideshows, fabulous!
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I thought the first 6 months were good, but some of these were even better in full flower. I am going to look out for the rose ‘For your eyes only’ as I love the colour and flower shape. I think I already have one from the series called ‘Tiger eye’ which is yellowy with a touch of pink in the centre and a very slight scent.
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Sunny days always look better! Yes, that ‘For Your Eyes Only’ is a nice one.
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What with this reminder of your garden in summer and a retrospective Gardeners’ World on yesterday evening it comes as a shock when I look outside and realise it’s still only January. Do you open your garden to the public during more normal non-pandemic times?
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Sunny days always look good. Opening to the public – god, Noooooo! I couldn’t face that!
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Stunning photo diary of your beautiful garden. I had a look this morning but can’t find any snowdrops in their usual places. Every year they take me by surprise and appear in new places, at least it seems like that! 🤔
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If we get a few mild days I’ll have a lot of snowdrops in flower as there are snouts everywhere at the moment but it is so cold.
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You have some lovely, unusual colour combinations. I really like the Eryngium with Achillea Tutti Frutti, for instance. I will come back to look at these photos again, very inspiring.
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I’m glad you enjoyed them. Any good combinations are down to Mary’s planning; not mine!
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Mary has an artist’s eye, in that case.
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Please let the Head Gardener know that she does a splendid job!
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I do that regularly! I send her thanks to you for your kind comment.
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Lovely photos Paddy – some outstanding plants you have there. I think the cornus must be my favourite.
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Yes, it’s an excellent plant.
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What a lovely garden, a wonderful place to practice your art. Is that a suspension bridge in the last picture? It is quite beautiful.
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Not quite a suspension bridge, I think, but along those lines.
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Absolutely beautiful. It is hard to choose a favourite, but if pushed I’d choose the first picture in August with the crinums and the arbour.
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Thank you very much for your kind comments. I dither with selection, rarely getting down to what I consider an acceptable number but, I suppose, that’s not the worst complaint.
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Just Fabulous Paddy a work of art
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Many thanks, Mary – and it is the Mary here who should take the credit!
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Wonderful photos of a wonderful garden. Love to visit again if/when it’s safe again. Happy New Year to both you and Mary.
On Sat 9 Jan 2021 at 09:33, Paddy Tobin, An Irish Gardener wrote:
> Paddy Tobin posted: ” Waterford, southeast Ireland, 9th. January 2021 It > is that time of year when we look backward with fondness and forward in > hope and, when the garden is presently bare, it is encouraging to view > again the days when it was full and lush, when the sun sh” >
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Hopefully, we’ll be able to get out again, Mary. We really missed our days out this year – one of the very few things we have misses, that and grandchildren. Happy New Year, Mary and we look forward to meeting again.
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I hope your garden has been on a garden tour of some sort because everyone would want to see it! Is that a bridge in the last photo?
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No, not on any garden tour and no desire to ever be on one. Yes, a bridge in the background, quite close to the house but, thankfully, not too much of a bother.
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Thank you for posting the pictures of your wonderful garden.
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Thank you for sharing these lovely images of your impressive garden. It is helpful during winter’s lengthy gray-brown dormancy to remember all that the other seasons hold for us. I was particularly struck by your photos of the gladiolus and brugmansia. Must be drawn to the warm colors this time of year.
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It’s good to look at the brighter days, especially as we are kept indoors by cold and covid these days.
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Thank you for sharing your beautiful garden. There isn’t a view of it I don’t love. The Head Gardener has an amazing eye for detail and colour and the Under Gardener is obviously good at helping to bring it all to fruition
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I once overheard the Head Gardener, speaking to a visitor, say “he works well under direction”. That’s how it is!
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Gorgeous photos, especially the featured photo! Lovely seeing the year in your garden in review!
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Paddy, how long has it taken for you & the wife to get the garden to this point?
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It’s a garden of two parts. There was half and acre or so around the house when we came here in 1987. When the bridge, you see in occasional photographs, was proposed about 20 years we were going to move but didn’t find anywhere we preferred so bought extra ground around the house, roughly an acre. So, the older part of the garden is 33 years old and the newer part 20.
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Oh! It’s a BRIDGE! I couldn’t figure it out. I thought maybe it was some sort of really creative trellis.
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I occasionally refer to it as my piece of garden sculpture! Put it up myself over the weekend!
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ha!
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Absolutely stunning Paddy – both photographs, garden design and even your special Irish light… Thank you. What a way to start the day as Storm Christoph hits us here after 50 mm of rain already in the last 24 hours,
Best wishes
Julian
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Thank you, Julian. Storm Christoph is with us but just heavy rain and, thankfully, not high winds.
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After a quick visit to your blog, I see we share an interest in snowdrops!
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What a garden you have. A private paradise, of the type that’s sure to keep your hands full – and your minds at ease
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As we say, it keeps us out of the pub!
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