These days, I’m happy with those plants that give me a little less work in the garden! No, I’m not getting lazy, nor am I falling into the camp that sees gardening as just another chore, heavens no! It’s just that I don’t have quite as much pottering time as I used to, what with work and all, and every now and then, it’s nice … Continue reading Hurrah for the naturalisers this spring!
I find autumn to be a very satisfying season. You quite literally can enjoy the fruits of your labour, or even just enjoy the fruits that you didn’t necessarily labour over! Have you tried Quince? It’s been a great year for quince, a forgotten fruit that is enjoying a bit of a revival. We are lucky enough to have a tree in our communal allotment … Continue reading Autumn fruitfulness and an unwelcome visitor…
At this time of year I always appreciate those plants that did lovely things in spring or summer – delicate spring blossom or glorious summer flowers for instance – but now give a little bit more into autumn and winter. They’re like the best type of friend, those who go the extra mile for you when you weren’t expecting it! Plants with 2+ seasons of … Continue reading Plants that go the extra mile!
There’s a specific moment in the garden when it’s poised between the excitement of early spring, when each sign of life is a treasure beyond compare, and the mad rush of exuberant growth in the heady months of May and June. A lot of the spring bulbs have done their thing, but the herbaceous perennials aren’t quite ready to fill the gap. This is where … Continue reading The indispensable gap filler: Forget-me-not
Hello! It’s a while since I did a Six on Saturday, a more personal post about my garden and what I’m doing. There are some lovely highlights to share with you at this exciting time of year when everything is bursting into leaf and life. 1 Bulbs and breakfast The garden table, still covered, is put to good use at this time of year, serving … Continue reading A Six on Saturday: Spring Surprises
…is sometimes dreary, grey, a little drab. Let’s be honest, unless you have a garden stuffed with artfully placed, tightly clipped evergreens, that look good no matter the weather, this is just par for the course. Plants die, colours fade, the light is low and weak, the sun becomes a stranger, and it rains. And rains. And rains. And yet…gardeners can always can find little … Continue reading The garden in winter
Continuing my mini-series on marvellous Middle Eastern plants, this one is so impressive that it warrants a post all of its own. PS: this is an expanded version of my recent post on Instagram/FB. Cedar of Lebanon, Cedrus libani, ‘Arz libnani The mighty and venerable Cedar of Lebanon is associated with divinity, epic heroism and the exploits of some of the greatest ancient civilisations to … Continue reading Tree of the gods: Lebanese Cedar
For this week’s Six on Saturday am going to focus on what could be both a blessing and a challenge: gardening under trees. In my garden, that is what I do. Big mature trees of lime, hornbeam and oak rise up from behind our walls, a bank of green laden with leaves and seed. The trees give the garden its special character, a green cocoon … Continue reading Six on Saturday: Gardening under trees
I am typing this on my phone in the garden on a Friday evening, sitting in the sun, the washing drying on the line for the first time in ages. The sun feels good on my skin. The pollinating insects know it too, they are out with the very fist ray. Yesterday I sent out August’s edition of my newsletter – The Green Gardening Newsletter … Continue reading Six on Saturday: the pollinator edition
Hello everyone! It’s been a cold week here in Belgium but the compensation has been some stunning blue skies against which the plants and bare tree branches look gorgeous. My gardening activity has centred around sowing seeds indoors, and laying down some mulch outdoors. I can’t stress enough how valuable mulch is in improving the soil, retaining water all through the hot summer and doing … Continue reading Old friends in the garden (6 on Saturday)
