April was a bittersweet month. Among many positives were the beautiful weather and being able to spend extra time in the garden with The Beau, Max and Millie. It is hard to conceive of going back to work as I did only six weeks ago,…
Oh the irony. For the last three years our National Gardens Scheme area organiser has been asking if we’d open the garden for a spring viewing and this year we thought we might just take the plunge. It’s always been such a guessing game, anticipating…
Who could have predicted that the Month of March would end as it did? Over the course of two weeks our daily routines changed in ways we never imagined possible and there is more of this to come for sure. We are living in a…
Do you remember, several months ago, when we were all potting up our spring bulbs …. each and every one of us full of excitement at the promise of the floral display that would follow? Well, here we are in springtime, confined to our homes…
I may be a composting virgin, but now that I have an allotment I am getting serious about the dark art of decay. Since the New Year I’ve been swotting up and assimilating all manner of advice about building, filling and maintaining a successful heap.…
Winter thus far has consisted of a handful of slightly chilly nights with a lot of benign, mild, wet weather in between. The garden is bursting with signs of spring, some of which I have captured to illustrate this post. Rosa banksiae ‘Lutea’ is already…
January has been a month of quiet reflection. There’s been relatively little to do in the garden, the house is clean and tidy post Christmas and social engagements have been thin on the ground. Unusually we have spent most of our evenings in the library…
You may or may not have noticed, but I have not been posting quite as regularly of late. There is no intention in this, I’ve simply been up to my eyes in managing my work/life balance and enjoying time with my little family. Being perpetually…
I’m always surprised by how good the garden looks at the beginning of November. The Gin & Tonic Garden, though lacking the abundance of flowers enjoyed in late summer, is as good as it has ever been, only richer and lusher. Looking down on my…
Not a square inch of my tiny garden goes uncultivated. Over the years I’ve found plants that enjoy, or at least tolerate, every environment I have to offer, from bright sunshine to deep shade, and from exposed to sheltered. It’s involved a process of trial…
