Category Archives: Plants

#TBT to Chelsea Flower Show 2018

As it’s Thursday, and I didn’t have the time to write about it at the time, here’s my own little summary of the joyous day I spent at RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2018! This was my first ever visit to the show and it’s fair to say I was excited.  Very excited.  The event livedContinue reading “#TBT to Chelsea Flower Show 2018”

Spring has sprung…

…and my blog is suffering!  But it’s a good sign – I’m blogging less because I’m spending more time in the garden.  I have to – there are seedlings to prick out, beds to mulch, weeds to weed and plants to pot up.  And it’s only going to get busier from here on in! RealContinue reading “Spring has sprung…”

Houseplants

Blame it on the winter weather, blame it on Instagram, blame it on Jane Perrone and her brilliant On the Ledge podcast… Actually I think I have only myself to blame – it was only a matter of time before my plant obsession came indoors… Yes, I have succumbed to the charms of houseplants. IContinue reading “Houseplants”

Back garden planning…

It’s time to concentrate on the back garden for a while. I’ve been turning my attention to planning the front borders up until now because there’s just so much bare soil out there.   I now have this space three-quarters planned – there’s just one corner I’m not exactly sure what I’ll do with yet.  I’veContinue reading “Back garden planning…”

Garden visit: Cambo Estate

This is the perfect time of year to visit Cambo Estate in Fife, when it hosts its annual snowdrop festival. I make a point of going each winter/spring because there’s no better way to lift you out of the winter doldrums than gazing at hundreds of snowdrops.  And there are, literally, hundreds of snowdrops atContinue reading “Garden visit: Cambo Estate”

Sow many seeds…so many seedlings

I’ve been on a sowing frenzy. Although I work part time and theoretically have two days each week to spend in the garden/greenhouse doing lots of lovely gardening…it never usually works out that way.  Family/work/home responsibilities often creep into this time and so I have to grab gardening opportunities with both hands and make theContinue reading “Sow many seeds…so many seedlings”

Witch Hazel

I take photos of the witch hazel every year when it blooms.  I think it’s because I’m just so glad to see some colour in the garden.  This bush shines like a little beacon in the darkest corner of the garden, close to the compost bin, and I don’t always notice it straight away, butContinue reading “Witch Hazel”

A total redesign

These are scary words!  A TOTAL REDESIGN of the front garden.  This means digging, moving, sowing, replanting, more digging, weeding, propagating… I can’t wait. We’ve lived here for three years now and I have tweaked the front garden only slightly each year.  It’s been good to wait and live with the garden for a while. Continue reading “A total redesign”

Curly wurly

I’m noticing a certain kind of shape around me at the moment – for the past few days I’ve been spotting curls and twists, exposed I suppose by the bare branches of winter. One that I notice daily is the contorted hazel (Corylus avellana ‘Contorta’) which is right outside our back door.  This large shrub isContinue reading “Curly wurly”

Monkeying around…

I’m really quite pleased with this weekend’s main gardening project – moving my monkey puzzle tree. Actually I’m really quite pleased to have been in the garden at all – it’s been ages.  Pre-Christmas, Christmas and post-Christmas did not leave much time to get outside and tackle winter gardening jobs, and when there was aContinue reading “Monkeying around…”

Bittersweet peas

I’m having a love/hate relationship with sweet peas. Actually that’s not strictly true – I love them really, but I hate the way they make me sneeze.  I’m growing lots of different varieties this year and although it’s now September and Autumn is definitely peeking its head round the corner, they’re still going strong inContinue reading “Bittersweet peas”

An epiphany…

Looking around the mix of various shrubs, trees, annuals and perennials in the front garden I often become frustrated by its lack of consistency and theme.  Many of the mature plants were there when we moved in and I have enjoyed acquiring many more shrubs and perennials over the past couple of years and fillingContinue reading “An epiphany…”