St John Village / Locus Amoenus

From the latin for a pleasant place it is a term which generally refers to an idealized place of safety or comfort. A locus Amoenus is usually a beautiful, shady lawn or open woodland, sometimes with connotations of Eden. A locus Amoenus will have three basic elements: trees, grass, and water. Often, the garden will be in a remote place and function as a landscape of the mind. It can also be used to highlight the differences between urban and rural life or be a place of refuge from the processes of time and mortality.


When i first started to visualised the garden project for the St John Village and when i considered my vision for where ultimately i wanted to take it and what i wished it to become, i drew on what i felt about the area and location in which the complex sat, asking my self what was it that drew me here and why does it have such a emotional hold on me; as with all things untangible and difficult to define, the latin language manages to define both perfectly and poetically, and thus we endeavour to create our own Locus Amoenus and a project was born.  

Good garden centres are few and far between here still, and i wanted
something different i wanted to plant indigenously and with a twist an
Asian twist, given that this is the cross roads between east to west, friend
told us of this place right of the beaten track and boy was it of the beaten
track but what a place run by a mad man but what plants, here's Chantal
posing as a gardener. I love Acer's and they had a species i never see
before a flamingo acer and i got 2  

It is said that to be happy for an hour get drunk, to be happy for a year get married, to be happy for a life time make a garden, boy am i one happy bunny i have a 19000sqm garden to make.










As you all know already Yana, Chantal and me now live on the complex and our apartment project will be subject to a separate blog, obviously part of our obligations as the FM prover is to tend to and care for the gardens however we wanted to develop it, and it will probably come as no surprise to those that know me that gardens and plants are one of my many passions, and to kick things of and start our vision for the future Yana and I decided to invest our own money and time in to kicking of this vision, why i here you ask when so much more needs to be dealt with, i tell you why, this place was dead in the water and looked like a collection of derelict building with no soul, no feeling no nothing, so our phylosiphy is that with some love and attention a little well conceived and planed planting and the beginnings of a proper management/maintenance process for the garden and thus the complex will come to life and so it is and now it feels alive and some where you would want to go/be, so much so that many locals and other development owners come bye and visited to have coffee and chat and say what a great job we are doing (yes i will blow our own trumpet) even the local police have reception down as a drop of and chat destination (and not just because of Yana's legs :)) even the developments around us have started to lift their game and have ask us for advise and praised us on how things have dramatically improve. The Bank Security have asked if they can work for us, workers at other complex ask if there are jobs available etc etc, St John Village is starting to be back on the map and because we are putting it there.

I love a hanging basket dont you

If we are to have any hope of attracting future investors people to let and holiday here it has to have kerb appeal and people have got to want to come here and something a simple as a great garden does this if only to start people realising that its not a white elegant any more or at least starts the ball rolling, yes probably there are great more pressing issues on paper but we are looking beyond this and using what resources and skill we have to start to make this place what it can be.
   
The design intent with the two parts of St John Village whilst connected are conceiver to reflect not only the feeling of the area but also the Architecture and in this they have as they do architecturally there own personality. With the Park it is essentially a blank piece of paper the Hill however is more about developing and enhancing its existing presence and personality.


Architecturally there is more drama inn the Park with its stunning roof line and so i was able to visualise a more diverse planting and integrate more unusual planting and a related scheme, here i will be as the project develops integrating a lot of my own personal items, brought over for my UK garden, which aside form my other 2 girls in England was one of the hardest thing to leave, i had had the opportunity to work with Dermot Gavin on it and it had been fettered in own of his books as well as a TV show, these have been housed at Yana's Nan's since we can to Bulgaria so its exiting for me to final have a place to put them.

The Hill has a more classic architectural stance and also an establish planting infastructure that like the Park (all be it not as bad) had just been totally neglected and dreadfully maintained. As with the Park (which it must be remembered has had the benefit of the end of last years summer and a 4 month head start on the Hill under our care) the Hill need a well considered and strategic plan to get it back under control and starting to look like the Locus Amoenus it could be. The dreadful weather we have had these past months the wettest in living memory (great for the new planting at the park) no good for starting a planed mantenance regime for the Hill, however at every given break in the weather we did our thing and it started to pay off this week.

Not looking bad ah

Still loads to do but getting there

The Hill brick patios have been a major issue as has been the path ways, weeds have been allowed to establish them selves, and the only way to deal with these is weed killer and dam good weed killer, obviously the rain has severely delayed the application of this and we need the weeds body in place to have max effect on the dam things, so we had our window a week or so ago what a difference.

Many more areas to cover but proper and planned management of the process always delivers results and results that last.  

For additional planting at the Hill we are taking a very organic approach and seeding with indigenous mountain foliage and wild plants in those areas not designate for leisure i.e: severely banked areas close to the Pirin Park border, such that we blur the border between urban and wild life. 

We all know the Park signage and i am really pleased with the plant we have put in place to complement it, which as it establish its self with further serve to blend the organic nature of the sign in with the nature, in from the sign we have transplanted from the forest wild foliage and herbs these can all be harvested to make Chi (Bulgarian for tea, very cool, and available at reception on request. 


The Hill signage has been a little more challenging for me, as i wanted a similar feel as the Park but the architecture of the Hill is less cohesive with such and i needed something a little more grounded, and during my walks in the mountains with Ronin (my Husky) i found it the perfect rock.

I know its difficult from the picture but the natural line of the rock almost mirrors that of the building roof line, we will add some timber uprights as with the park and the signage will link with the build, will look fab.

It must be said that in the moment at the Hill payments are very, very slow at best and this makes it difficult for us to do our job and also for us to invest as we would like to and as you can see we have, please all owners that have not payed PLEASE PAY its in everyones interest and to everyones benefit, and those that know owners that have not joined the OA and are not part of the FM initiative, get on their case, as not only are they harming their future there are harming yours and the complexes future. 

Friends with machines help; see in the images, a brief visual snap shot of the Hill stone's journey from the mountains to its proper place in life.


There is as you can imagine a long long way to go and as things unfold and the project develops at the Village (Hill and Park) we will post for everyone to see. But finally we really will have our own Locus Amoenus 

Acer's along side indigenous Plum trees and some strategic solid architectural elements 

In the Park we are able to give each entrance its own character  and as and when cash flow allows hang baskets will be place across the complex Hill and Park, just adds that little something and a welcome splash of colour.

my Flamingo Acer's happily taking hold after much care and attention, and actually the biggest problem we have had is the unusual amoute of wind which Acer dont like as burns their leaves, however we are through the first 4 weeks and all plants are liking there new home and all showing growth and new shots, i do talk to them a lot, as like the dog they listen, alway agree with me and never answer back.