Photo a day.....13th June.

Shinglesea.......!
A little fantasy garden for the real romantics among us. This was inspired by the little holiday homes at Winchelsea Beach, near Hastings in Sussex.
The blurb in the Chelsea guide says that.....
"During the early 1900's, redundant Victorian railway carriages were installed as holiday homes at Winchelsea Beach. Shinglesea reflects this more tranquil age, using a reproduction railway carriage as a backdrop for a shingle garden.


Topically, the garden features drought resistant, easily maintained plants. The carriage facade has a tin-roofed veranda, providing shelter from sea breezes. The fence is made from split chestnut topped with garlands of hagstones from the beach.

Close to the sea the garden faces south; the soil may be poor, but the drainage is excellent. The garden is protected from the wind by a shingle ridge, and the planting is deeply mulched with shingle and pebbles. A path, made from driftwood interspersed with thymus and erigeron, leads to the carriage past a small wooden boat awaiting repair. A pine and tamarix establish the setting, and pink and white flowers contrast with a stunning blaze of red poppies. Tall Cynara cardunculus and Euphorbia characlas complement mounds of Ametaria maritima, hardy geraniums and santolina. They need little watering-this is a holiday home after all....."
I have a great soft spot for the railway carriage as holiday home concept. Regular readers of my blog might remember when I showed a photo of the ones that used to be along the seafront here on the Isle of Wight (see blog entry for January 29th). And we have paths to do here at home and I think I might try the driftwood with shingle style if I can get some driftwood!