A year ago I wrote about the sad demise of my pergola on the back deck, brought down (literally) by a rampant wisteria. I grieved its loss. It was a verdant, shady space and it seemed stark and uninviting once the pergola and greenery were removed.

The original wisteria in all its glory

Oh dear. All fall down
But time heals all things, even pergolas, and Mr Judge has built a pergola that will outlast me. It will outlast the house. It may well outlast the apocalypse. It has a small shade sail that will have to suffice until the greenery re-establishes itself.
Having learnt at first hand the ferocity of a feral wisteria, we opted for an ornamental grape instead. Hopefully it will turn a rich shade of red during autumn. Its growth has been phenomenal. We only planted it in October and it has grown about 3 cm a day and is still growing. We’re now starting to train it along the wires.