Elinor loves her garden, and we can see why.

It is a haven of curiosity, with carefully selected plants and unique items, all hand-picked by herself or family members who know how much she treasures her outdoor space.

Elinor and her husband Ross have been nurturing their garden since they moved into our independent living property in Welsby Road, Leyland, 13 years ago.

Elinor says: “When I came to look at the property, the garden was so big that we fell in love with it.  We just did a section at a time and decided what we wanted. We have then just been working on it over the years."

Elinor talks fondly about the items she has added to her garden over the years: “I like my garden to be different. I have a lot of fun items, such as a gorilla, a mannequin and a mirrored door way which tricks people. I have a sign, Elinor’s garden, which I did for my grandchildren, as they love things like that. I have a lot of grandchildren – 11 to be exact, plus four great-grandchildren.

Elinors Garden Small 1

“Tucked away behind some trees is a fireplace I bought from the internet for £5. I paint it in different colours every year. Next to that is a waterfall which lights up at night. I buy things from all sorts of places, like car boot sales, Homesense, and Wayfair.”

Elinors Garden Small 3

Using a creative way to make the bins 'look pretty,'  Ross built a giant red bin store with a flower bed (above). Elinor explains: “We grow wildflowers at the top, with gardenias and geraniums, which look lovely when I look out my kitchen window. There are rockery plants that come up every year.”

Ross also built the summer house, using second-hand materials and wood. It also has a grass roof-top. 

Elinors Garden Small 4

Elinor spends around three hours a day tending to her plants, making sure they grow well. At the entrance of her garden, she grows geraniums, brightly coloured fuchsias, and she has a clematis growing around a trellis. Her twisted willow is a magnificent feature, one of the first things she planted when she moved in.

Bordered around the garden are bedding plants and perennials.

“Perennials come up every year and are low maintenance. I also like daisies and I have some roses and sweet pea that come up every year. It grows up through the clematis.”

Over the years, Elinor and Ross have planted 19 trees, including a cherry tree, camellia, and a buddleia tree. As a big fan of home-grown cooking, she also has trees growing pears (see below), apples, and plums. There is also a vegetable patch; a greenhouse with tomatoes, cucumbers and chillies; and two strawberry barrels.

Elinors Garden Small 2

Elinor adds: “If I am not in my garden, I am baking or cooking. I like making my own food and often make soup from the vegetables I grow. I also make fruit pies to give to my grandchildren.”

Elinor used her two favourite hobbies to host a garden party for charity when her late daughter was diagnosed with cancer four years ago.

Elinor says: “I did all the baking and charged people to come to our garden for the party. I raised £1,000 for two cancer charities. Sadly my daughter has passed away now, but we had many lovely memories in the garden.”

Elinor certainly has a garden to be proud of. She has several vantage points where she likes to sit with her husband, including a hot tub in the corner.

She says: “We love sitting out in the garden. It is very relaxing – I just sit with my own thoughts. It is also a nice place for my grandchildren to visit. They love coming.”

Elinor says she loves to enter our Progress in Bloom competition every year, where she most recently won a gold award.

Well done Elinor!

 

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