Planning

There are a few key points in the year when it feels really natural and easy to plan. I added bluebells to my ‘to-do’ list after spotting this lovely scene of bluebells under one of the hedges in the garden that merged into a shock of stinging nettles. I have a battle with stinging nettles.…

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In the Veg Patch

Last year we built a couple of raised beds in our veg patch. It’s something we’ve wanted to do for ages and lock down gave us the perfect opportunity. The veg patch is at the bottom of the garden and luckily for us, was already full of delicious and established fruit like rhubarb, strawberries, raspberries,…

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Growing From Seed

Growing from seed requires a certain amount of patience, which is not something I have in spades. It also requires persistence and occasionally a good sense of humour. I have a window sill in my utility room which gets pretty good sun and is ideally positioned for lavishing attention and expectation on lots of little…

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Ground Cover

No-one likes a bald spot right? For any garden big or small there are going to be spots where you might appreciate a plant that will take over like a blanket. This provides cover and interest, but also helps to stop weeds proliferating. These are the scrubby areas next to a building or beside the…

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Sunflower Seeds

After chucking a load of seeds around the borders last Spring this beauty of a sunflower popped up. We nicknamed her Farrah Fawcet and I “papped” her every time I went into the garden. After she had gone to seed we collected loads, as I’ve no idea what type she is and can’t even remember…

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Succession

Nope not the super cool HBO series, but the need to replace and rejuvenate horticulturally speaking. Kind of scary if like me you moved into an awesome garden and then realised you need to keep it going by doing more than a bit of watering, weeding and pruning. Doing this means taking care of: Planting…

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Clematis Experiments

This is the first year in the garden when I’ve truly wondered what clematis I have. It sounds a bit mad, but there are maybe half a dozen clematis here and I don’t know what most of them are. This leads to pruning quandaries and for the first time looking back through dozens of pictures…

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Tree Rescue

A note on how robust nature can be: I’m so happy this little Witch Hazel was looking so bonny this Winter. The image below is from about a year ago. He’s in there, but you can’t see him, just a twig. He was squashed completely flat when this wall tumbled. These ancient dry stone walls…

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