Oh thank you so much for these recent additions.I just pray that I can do your choices,justice. I am sorting through various plant nurseries inbetween posting so that I can be sure to get the delivery times right for best growing opportunity.I am spending the next few weeks preparing the bed,lots of diggiing to do which I plan to start later today.Yes. I am doing the digging.I don`t just aim to opt for the "pretty" bits.I can take the rough with the smooth and am not afraid of some hard graft.And I hope this reflects how determined I am to make this succeed...PD WILL NOT STOP ME....although I fell this morning whilst stupidly attempting to walk whilst my dystonia was in full flow.DOH.
Chris....such is your charm young man...lol . Already some kind female has bailed you out and come to your aid...listing possible choices.[ meant in the nicest of ways ]But I still think it would be fun if you browsed the list and came up with a fitting name suited to you. Gosh..I`m a hard taskmaster.
Aquario. A fitting choice for the location.Some of the flower beds will be amongst trees...so your choice is just perfect.My trees also,are incredibly old...so the bark itself provides a lovely textured backdrop which these beautiful hydrangeas can lean against.I have found 4 varieties which will be suited for the uk climate and can`t wait to plant them.Thank you.
Indigogo.The gardenia.Breathtakingly beautiful with its glossy green foliage against pure white flowers.I shall plant this in a pot and set it amongst the other flowers...and perhaps by a seat where its divine perfume can really be enjoyed.
Kiza...a plant which until today I was not aware of but so fitting for a cottage garden.I discovered that rabbit manure brought one gardeners Cleome bush to a height of 9 feet !!! So...I guess I shoould invest in some rabbits and make them work for their keep.Thank you for this. It is a lovely flower.
shcg. Have you read the book Bury my heart at Wounded Knee...all about the Trail of Tears,and a subject close to my heart.I adore the writings of Chief Dan George also...so simple yet so profound.What a lovely story and given your permission,it would be nice to include this in the inventory I aim to write.I would love to log the whole list of choices for folk to read so if your choice has a personal meaning that can be made public this too would enhance and give the purpose of OUR garden,greater importance and intimacy.
My grateful thanks once again.I hope you realise just how valuable this all is,to me.So encouraging and each post just serves to fuel my imagination and my determination even more.
Bless all of you.
Steff
x

If they adapt to your climate as well as they do to ours here in (sometimes summer-fogged) northern california, you may find in particular the lace-caps are a special beauty. Here's a web-site with pictures and descriptions:

http://www.hydrangeashydrangeas.com/lacecaps.html

i love peonies, and the white is my favorite.
Peonies are members of the same botanical family as the buttercup, Ranunculaceae, and belong to the genus Paeonia. They originated in Asia, and have been cultivated in both Japan and China for at least several centuries, perhaps even a millennium. Peonies are an early ground-breaker, producing reddish shoots as early as April in the Northern Hemisphere. They are a tall plant, ranging from 1–5 ft (30–150 cm) in height. Their branching stems produce glossy deep green leaves that taper to a point on each end, and grow up to 5 in (12.5 cm) in length. The peony root is brownish in color and tuberous.

The peony flowers are produced at the tips of the branching stems. Beginning as globular buds that produce a sweet, sticky exudate that attracts ants (that do no harm), these buds slowly open into large, showy flowers with diameters up to 10 in (20.5 cm) wide. The peony is an extremely long-lived plant, especially for a flowering one. It is not uncommon for peonies to live for a hundred years. They prefer moist, humus-rich loam and either full or partial sun. If peonies become overcrowded, the plants must be divided, and at the end of the growing season, it is best to cut the stems off at ground level and mulch for winter protection.

Though there are literally hundreds of hybrid varieties that have been developed over the centuries, most peonies share both a common origin and fairly similar characteristics. Many resemble a herbaceous shrub. Others that originated in western China have woody stems and are called tree peonies. Tree peonies do not die back completely in winter.
madelyn

Is the lace cap hydrangea what we call climbing hydrangea in U.K.They take ages to establish themselves but once they get going........

How about a white lilac? .......just in an attempt to keep the suggestions coming (don't be overwhelmed - only many flowers to choose from once you begin to plan and plant and see what is actually possible...).

that if you want to let everyone watch the progress of your White Garden, I could provide some webspace where pictures can be placed. Of course, you probably have such a place already, but if you don't...well, feel free to say yes or no to my offer.

michael b.

This is too overwhelming.You are so supportive and I hope that you are all gaining as much pleasure from this as I am.I can hardly switch off at night....I am counting blooms...not sheep.And what a reason to get up in a morning...such a sense of purpose.Thank you for your continued interest and wonderful suggestions.
Aquario...thanks for that link.I have looked at it and there are so many beautiful white hydrangeas I think we will have to include them all...lol
But say if you have a particular favourite. I certainly can`t choose.If it were left to me they would all be bunged in OUR garden ...period.
Madelyn.[Olsen] Would you be thinking about a holiday to the UK soon...well...to a little village with a little cottage and a Garden project on the go? lol
I could sure use your expertise. I grow paeonies but didn`t know a fraction of what you have presented here.This is fabulous.I do actually know to split them and have given scores of plants away...my soil is terrific so their success is down to God`s gift of fantastic soil rather than expert knowledge from me...so your post is so valuable.I have never cut them back either so will do this also.
My love of paeonies came after I was asked to decorate the church for a friends wedding.She couldn`t afford much so I relied hugely on what I had growing in my garden and what I could glean from the country lanes.I wanted to make a beautiful job of the task and fill the church with a perfume as well as beautiful flowers.
I decided to keep the theme simple...white and green with a touch of burgundy to blend with her dress.So I filled my bath to the brim, with tendrils of ivy...to condition it before making garlands...and used cow parsley from the hedgerows to add clouds of white...daisies, burgundy carnations which her grandfather grew...and the queen of them all..stunning white paeonies.The guests were blown away by the fragrance and I vowed to fill my garden with these fascinating flowers.
Sadly,my display this year was cut short by the torrential rain and my heart broke when I saw their magnificient heads,drooping under the weight of the water.I do have some photographs however,and this is where Michael comes to my aid yet again with his generous offer of webspace.
Thank you Michael.I would love to initially take you up on this in order to get started but do not wish to restrict your domain so if you can start me off...and then advise me how to get my own space and link it properly..then I would be so very grateful.

I hope I haven`t missed anyone out.
Until the next batch of suggestions..and I do hope more folk want to be in on this...
With my love
Steff
x

we also have our photo album here on neurotalk. doc takes care of the webspace.

Why didn't I think of that? lol.

michael b.

steffi what aa wonderful idea. White daisies are my absolutely favorite flower...and I think they are pretty easy to grow, are they not? Can't wait to see your garden, thank you so much.