And then the mizzle drifted in

Mizzle is that combination of fine rain and mist so common on Dartmoor and its surroundings that it has its own noun.  It certainly makes photography at The Garden House interesting at times.  So it was on Monday when I was in for my regular weekly visit.

When I arrived it was very light fine rain but no mist yet.  I can easily work in that and it does tend to saturate the colours so I went out and started getting my shots.  Images like this...

A bench in the Cottage Garden in front of a Cornus kousa dogwood

...or this

More dogwood with Rodgersai pinnata in the Birch Wood area

Clear, clean, without the harsh shadows of a sunnier day I was happy with them for our weekly Facebook and Instagram posts.

And then the mizzle drifted in.  Light at first, a distant haze in the background of the Acer Glade.

Getting heavier as I worked my way through the Walled Garden, the mist component of the mizzle fading out the background.

Until the rain got heavier as I reached the end of the lake in the Arboretum.

Time to call it a day for the garden scene shots.

Having said that the conditions also generated some rather lovely plant portraits, the combination of soft light and the fine droplets of mizzle bringing the images to life.

An Iris sibirica variety we've lost the name of.

Moraea alticola, one of the Cape irises that's survived our frosts and snow

Stewartia sinensis, just opening to show the golden stamens

A deciduous and heavily scented Azalea (name unknown, I'm afraid)

The mark of a great garden is to be beautiful no matter the conditions.  By that criterion The Garden House is a great garden.

Paulownia kawakamii - the Sapphire Dragon tree

Paulownia kawakamii at The Garden House

The arboretum at The Garden House is still relatively new 25 years after it was created from what used to be a nursery and otherwise uncultivated area. Many of the trees are not yet fully mature but for me one has stood out over the last ten plus years that I've been photographing this wonderful garden.

For most of that time I've admired it for its rapidity of growth and the massive leaves, far bigger than the smaller and far more common Paulownia tomentosa, the foxglove tree.

Then, last year, came the first flowers.

Large, pale blue and very exotic looking, they were a bit more sparse in their first year of flowering but have made up for it this year, smothering the branches as the flowers erupt from hairy brown buds.

The display lasts for about three weeks during May, and, unlike its commoner relative is usually late enough that the risk if frost has passed by the start of the flowering season.

Originating from Taiwan and Southern China, it's endangered in the wild, and the best hope of survival is in cultivation.  But for that you'll need a fair bit of room.  Looking at the UK literature it's described as a small to medium hardy deciduous tree. Hardy yes, deciduous yes, small to medium?  Not judging by our specimen growing in the cool damp conditions of the western edge of Dartmoor.  How big it will end up we don't know but it's already massive.  So one for a very large garden, park or other public planting to provide a late spring display to rival the Jacaranda displays of Mediterranean and sub-tropical gardens.

 

 The terraced gardens at Powis Castle

Last September (2025) we spent a few days on the Welsh border near Shrewsbury.  Within easy distance, near Welshpool, is the National Trust property of Powis Castle.  Renowned for its massive terraces, this is a garden I've long wanted to visit.  I was not disappointed.

Seen from the lowest part of the garden the terraces sweep up the hillside, each level linked by steps and pathways.  For 75 year old me getting down and getting back up again (entry is at the top) was a little bit of a struggle but I managed.

As the terracing is bounded by brick walls, stonework and paved pathways each of the terraces benefits from a warmer microclimate than would be expected from mid Wales.  And this has been exploited to use more tender exotics in the broad borders on each terrace.  My type of gardening!

Individual terraces are broad, allowing lawns on some, such as this one in front of the conservatory.

With space available giant containers filled with a host of interesting tender annuals and perennials are a prominent feature.  I'd like to try some of the planting combinations in our own garden if we only had the room.

And every terrace offered a view across the valley to the hills beyond.  Breath taking, given the contrast in early Autumn colour with the garden's Japanese maples and the natural landscape beyond.

If I lived more closely this is a garden I'd visit time and again.  The only downside?  Maria couldn't come with me as the terraces are not disabled friendly.