The Lost Garden Of Penicuik

At this time of year we try to visit the Lost Garden (the old walled garden of Penicuik House) by entering the volunteers' entrance to see if there are any leftover blackcurrants before the birds finish them off. Unfortunately all access is now closed, fenced off with notices of danger of unstable buildings - the gardeners' potting sheds, which form the north wall of the garden.

Although this is a great pity, it is understandable as, on our last visit, we met a volunteer who was basically clearing up anything moveable as there were simply too many tasks for the manpower available and the garden project would be terminated, consequently there has been no maintenance on any of the hard structures, which are deteriorating.

We walked round the western side to the main gate and were delighted to see the ground covered in flowers, all insect-friendly. In 2016 when we visited the garden this area was covered in Christmas trees and there was a raised pond in the centre.

I took a panorama photo for WidWed, which shows the broken west wall to the left and, centre, the terrace wall and, above, the north wall, so that's three for an odd number. In the floral mix I counted five main species, as seen in the extra collage, thus fulfilling today's theme of An Odd Number. I can't guarantee accurate ID but at a guess, clockwise from top left: Corn Marigold, Ox-eye Daisy, ? Mallow or ?a Cranesbill (a very strongly coloured bloom). Cornflower; centre:  ?Small Thistle. There may have been the odd red poppy but these would have been self-set, if you can find more in the main photo (not counting grass) I apologise.

Thanks to BobsBlips for hosting WidWed today.