From my window this morning, I see bright sunshine, dew heavy grass and most of all a garden that needs some attention ... so that is where I shal be spending my day
Thank you for all your wonderful words about Gibson yesterday, he is bowled over!
Showing posts with label my garden. Show all posts
Showing posts with label my garden. Show all posts
Friday, March 23, 2012
Sunday, January 29, 2012
snowdrop sunday
A 'lively' day here today, so I'll just leave you with a picture
of our first snowdrops that started flowering this week.
Thank you for stopping by.
I wish you all a serene Sunday.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
but baby it's cold outside ...
A stunning start to the day today, with bright sunshine and a heavy frost. I left the breakfast table, grabbed my camera and snapped a couple of shots of the box bushes along the driveway.
What a wonderful plant this is, slow growing maybe but so dense and regular in it's shape and foliage. I love the way the frost creates a little white halo around each leaf.
What a wonderful plant this is, slow growing maybe but so dense and regular in it's shape and foliage. I love the way the frost creates a little white halo around each leaf.
On the lawn the frost was heavy too and the daffodils are beginning to wonder if it was such a smart idea to push their way through the grass so soon! Spring must be on it's way!!
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
optimism in the garden
Although this isn't the prettiest time of year in the garden, it may well be the most optimistic.
January is the time to stay in the warm and plan, to dream, to remember what worked well last year, to forget the heavy work and simply enjoy the prospect of things looking good.
I am not shy to admit that with age I am becoming lazy! I look for easier solutions. That's one of the reasons I use so many perennials in the garden: plant them, water them, a few kind words and they are away!
The snowdrops and daffodils are already pushing through the grass ready to flower in February and March. Last Autumn I was really lazy and didn't lift the dahlia bulbs, but the winter has been so mild that I'm not too worried.
I have to check my books, but I fear I've left it too late to divide any peonies, so they'll have to stay put for another year too.
Very sadly we have lost this wonderful rambling rose, I planted a replacement nearby at the beginning of the winter, we shall see how that gets on.
Of course some perennials are a bit too sure of themselves and can easily get out of hand, like the purple flowering sage in the potager;
others are real show-offs, like these perennial poppies; they brag and stand straight as possible, willing to do anything to draw attention to themselves, blissfully unaware that they'll soon die back and leave a space for someone else to move into.
... and do I have a favourite? well , I try not to let it show, but against our old walls I do love the towering spikes of the delphiniums and foxgloves. Every year I sow and plant a few more, no doubt this year I'll do the same .... and dream a little longer .....
Hope your week is going well, and you're finding time to dream a little too!
Saturday, October 15, 2011
autumn work to do
We have got to that stage in the season where I walk out into the garden and think UGH ..... there is so much to do, to cut back, to get rid of, to change place. This is not the moment for a ladylike wander around the flower beds with a small secateur and a cutting basket, no way! This is the moment for boots, gloves, shears, wheelbarrows, the moment when the compost heap will grow to giant proportions.
There is no way around it, I shall have to bite the bullet this weekend, the sun is shining, I have no excuse.
Here are a few shots taken on crisp frosty grass this morning, as I walked around summoning up some courage. Because now I've made it public, I have to do something about it, right?!
A happy weekend in the garden to you too.
Saturday, September 17, 2011
autumn pleasures in my garden
Leaves are beginning to tinge orange and rouge, the wind is picking up and it's time to pick apples to store for winter. This is the season of excess, of strained branches, of deep pinks and purples, the sweet perfume of ripe fruit on the air.
We like to store our apples in the cellar on 'clayettes', special trays designed for storing fruit. I sometimes buy these stacking trays in brocantes, love that they are practical and beautiful.
and if you'd like to see more pictures taken in our garden pop on over to see Julie at Being Ruby, she's showing more shots from her stay here, and they are way better than mine!
Saturday, September 3, 2011
a country weekend
September is proving to be beautiful (OK I know we're only the third, but I'm optimistic by nature!).
The weekend got off to a good start as Ghetto came home for a couple of days and tried to impress Gibson with some slick tricks he learnt in Paris!
The horses are surprised, they thought we had gone into the fall but the renewed heat forces them into the shade under trees and they only want to be ridden at the end of the day.
and the special weather magics us beautiful skies for our warm evenings
I wish you all a wonderful weekend in your favourite company, be it two legged or four!
Thursday, September 1, 2011
setting the stage
Don't you think that half the success of a good dinner is the 'setting'.
Last week we had a couple of friends around for a last minute dinner, just the time to put together a simple meal and lay the barbecue table with a few flowers and candles ... night fell, good wine, nice food, lively conversation and before we knew it it was ... well I won't tell you what time, but we didn't have much sleep that night!
The table was laid with a mix of modern and old for the plates, antique glasses and new, candles in small glass votives, brioche moulds and vintage chandeliers. A linen tablecloth but paper napkins - I'm meant to be on holiday, right?!
Maybe this is part of the charm of a climate where warm summer evenings are short lived and to be made the most of. Music in the background, heated French discussions punctuated with laughter, and we're lucky that we have no insect problems.
This is how we like to share evenings with friends, entertaining French style
Thursday, August 11, 2011
lavender from my garden
The summer has been warm, the spring was dry and the lavender is ready to cut earlier than normal. It's not a quick job, cutting back the plants, drying the lavender then separating the grains from the branches, but oh boy! it's worth it.
Yesterday my first batch was ready to put into sachets. I used pieces of old linen, filled with fresh lavender and decorated with a simple bow. A timeless pleasure.
