Diary Of A Wild Country Garden

One of the wonderful parts of having a garden is that even in the depths of winter you can look out the window and see nature. Even on a freezing cold and windy day like today when, even as a keen gardener, I know I will probably do more harm than good tramping across wet grass and muddy borders, I can look out and see our lovely garden and all the wildlife that visit. For me now the garden and the wildlife are intrinsically bound together. What happens with one affects the other so now I always try to keep both in mind with everything I do. I love birds and get so much pleasure from seeing all the different ones, hearing them singing away so beautifully, having them nest in our garden and all their lovely antics all year. I always want to help them through the often difficult winter months. So at this time of year I sort out all the bird feeders and go to the shops or the farmer's markets and stock up on the b...

Wrapped up warm and cosy, walking with my hubby through the countryside near us, what could be better.  I just adore Autumn, everything seems to slow down, become more mellow, softer, and we are treated to a spectacular show of colour. Reds, greens and golds dominate the landscape. I love walking through fallen leaves, crisp and crunchy underfoot. Glorious in their falling from the skies, a carpet of rich colour. Memories of childhood games and crafts collecting the leaves to make wonderful pictures. The skies here are often amazing. Being nearer the sea and flatter in this part of the country, we are treated to gorgeous sunsets and dramatic storm clouds scattered across the sky. Morning mists hanging heavy, slowly giving way to a glimpse of sunlight breaking through. When the sun is out everything takes on a golden sheen which bathes the trees, houses and fields in a warm comforting glow. Wearing warm sweaters and woolly hats, a walk in the countryside at this time of year on a...

Now is the time of year many people like to get away on holiday. It may be somewhere abroad for a week or two or in your own country for a short or longer break. Wherever you go it does mean leaving your plants behind at sometimes a critical time.  Action Plan For Your Plants While You Are On Vacation 1. If you can ask a friend, family member or neighbour to come in check them, mow the lawn, open greenhouse windows and close them again, water and feed your plants. It is quite a big ask, I know I have done it for a friend who had a huge garden with a massive veg plot for 3 weeks once!If the kind soul does this for you it is so nice to get them a gift. If they are a gardener maybe a lovely plant or cuttings from plants they admire in your own garden, some veg from your garden or just a beautiful gift. Even better offer to do it for their garden when they go away.  2. If that is not possible then you need to help the plants through what could be variable weather. I also a...

Why I Love Summertime Summer is a lovely time of year. In summer we have long days and hopefully longer warmer days and sunshine, vacation time and beautiful flowers. Its quite an easy time of year to love. Life is easier in the Summertime... Vivaldi Four Seasons-Summer Gorgeous music which is beautiful to listen to. You may like to have this video playing while you look through the rest of the page....I find it puts you in the summertime mood. I'm Loving Summer!! What can I say about Summer? In a country where it's not that warm most of the year Summertime is our big chance at some high temperatures, occasional balmy days and warmer evenings....for a little while at least :)  A time where we can actually eat out of doors have picnics and breakfast on the patio.  Summer is a time to wear lovely dresses and beautiful cool fabrics. Maybe even a sun hat! A time where the days are long,...

You can feel the presence of a gathering storm. It hangs heavy on the air. This photo was taken while hubby and I were out walking in the countryside and it was so weird that to the left of us were clear such bright blue skies and to the right were these deep dark rolling gloomy storm clouds. It felt that it could go either way. The air became very still and the animals around went to shelter. The deer in the far distance huddled closer together. They looked agitated. No birds sang. We were out in the open in the middle of a huge field. For us too we knew, some deep instinct within that we needed to find shelter and soon. We headed off to find it. A few minutes later the wind picked up wild and blustery and trying to tear our coats off. We clung onto our hats! The air was heavy and damp as we walked quickly to find the cosy warm cafe we had passed on the way here. There was an air of anticipation, of something so much bigger than us. Upon reaching the cafe liter...

As it has not really been possible to do any gardening lately due to the extremely wet weather I am remembering some of the trips we took to other gardens in the  Summer and Autumn.   It  One of these visits was to a lovely stately home near us that has a wonderful walled garden vegetable and fruit plot. It  was rainy so we went into the greenhouse for a bit of warmth and dry and there it was right in front of us! It was not promoted, they didn't make a big deal of it. We would have missed it if we hadn't wanted to get out of the wind for awhile.  The gardener just said they were part of the crop and they had recently brought them in. It was an amazing pumpkin crop! I have never seen one like this in my life. What a beautiful, bright spectacle of colour and shapes greeted us! Some of the pumpkins were so small they easily fitted into the palm of my hand and some were so enormous it must have taken several people to lift them into position. ...

I have two bushes of dogwood in our garden. There are many variants of dogwood. In the summer the species I have in our garden is a large yet unremarkable plant. It does get tiny white flowers and small white berries and the leaves are quite pretty, but there are certainly more beautiful looking plants around.  So why does Dogwood deserve a place in my garden? For me with dogwood it's all about the stems. I grow red-stemmed dogwood as we love the colour red. In the late autumn when most of the leaves have fallen I cut about half of the stems. These stems are now very tall some are six feet high or more. Many are very straight, some are twisted or curved it depends how they have grown. So these stems are cut to size and in winter I use them to decorate our home. Some of the more unusual shapes and curves go into clear vases where the red stems and shapes really shine through. Others I tie up into a rustic bundle and place in a natural wicker basket by the fire. T...

I just wanted to share these springtime photographs with you.  The weather here is grey and dismal and has rained, rained, rained for days. It feels like weeks with little sunshine. The hours of daylight are increasing gradually, but it is still dark early. This photograph was taken last year and I just love the life and colours and the beauty of the flowers on a lovely warm day. I can even recall how relaxed I felt, the fresh air, the scent of all the flowers, the gentle touch of the leaves and the rippling movement of the water- safely in the lake- from a light breeze. Amazing how a photo can evoke such memories and feelings. I do like to live in the moment and appreciate all of the days whatever they bring, when they are here, as they will not come again.  There is much beauty to be found in winter too. Today though I just needed to have the experience and memory of the spring colours!  So these photos are just a wonderful memor...

I Love Autumn- Nature And The Memories   Reasons To Love Autumn/Fall This post is a little look back on Autumn's past and why I love the season. You will see Autumn photographs, gift ideas, poetry and memories. I hope you enjoy it.  Autumn or Fall is a gorgeous time of year. Nature gives us a spectacular show of colour and richness to enjoy before we are plunged into winter. Yes, the days get shorter and colder but some of my favourite colours appear in Autumn. Cosy sweaters, hats and gloves start to be worn and out come the richly scented candles evocative of spices, warmth and comfort. We have a wonderful harvest and the benefit of reaping what we have sown earlier. Often beautiful sunsets and sunrises occur and we can watch nature as the year ripens. Wonderful childhood memories come flooding back to me of walking through deep layers of richly coloured leaves and learning about all the trees. All in all Yes I love Autumn ! Viva...