The hazel gate to our small Devon wood

 One of my first small projects when we moved to our property here in mid-Devon was to replace the gate through which access to the woods is gained. The original one was heavy, ill fitting and so difficult to shut. I was also keen to get stuck in to some green woodworking and make use of some of the wood cut down when clearing parts of the garden that had become overgrown. We needed a gate to the woods because deer roam freely around here and we didn't want them eating plants in the garden. Previous owners had put up a 6ft high deer fence around the top of the property so we had a fair idea of the need before we moved in.

The gate to the woods is at the top of a set of 12 steps which are in turn flanked by a Devon hedge - that is a stone and earth bank topped by hedging plants - on one side and a grass slope on the other. The walk up the steps is a pleasant climb at this time of year as the hedge bank is full of forget me nots and celandines and the grass slope also resplendent with celandines.                                                   

The gate is made of hazel and of simple design. The screws fastening the strap hinges on the old gate couldn't be removed so had to be reused. beciase of that I made the gate a light as possible in a rustic style - vertical rods forming an arch at the top and 3 rails to hold the rods together and secure the top and bottom hinges. In retrospect it's a perhaps a little too lightweight but nevertheless does a job of marking the tranistion from the garden to the woods and giving a glimps of what lies beyond.

Either side of the gate on the garden side wild flowers had already been established and each spring, first the bright white stitchwort then the red campion, celandine and purple bush vetch snuggle around the gate posts.

I love the stitchwort. it's profuse around here on the banks under the hedgerows and around the margins of woods. It has continuous flowering over the spring and early summer months and those bright white flowers with yellow centres make quite a show. At first glance it appears to have 10 petals but there are in fact only 5. The illusion is due to each of the 5 petals being deeply lobed so giving the appearnace of being two petals.

Red campion is another favorite of spring. Again it grows profusely here. The medium sized, soft downy leaves do not seem to promise much but when the flowers emerge the striking pink stands out. Being one of the taller spring plants it readily catches the eye. Last year we gathered seeds from the pods and sowed them where we had cleared brambles. As a consequence this year we have even more of these magnificent plants.

Bush vetch has been present in the garden since we came here, thriving on the lower parts of banks. Bees and other insects are drawn to it and whilst the purple-blue flowers are duller than some of the other vetches it's a welcome spring sight.

From its position on the bank to the right of the gate a blackthorn has thrown a branch across the top forming an arch. These trees are amongst my favourite for their beautiful white flowers in early spring before a single leaf forms. For all that beauty, they are beastly too: hard fierce spikes sprout all over and the wood itself is stiff and unbending. They will bear tannin rich fruit of course which, when crushed produce a pink juice, ideal for wine or flavouring gin. The blackthorns will throw up suckers though and unless kept in check, will in time make an impenetrable barrier through which nothing living can pass.