Armchair Gardening

Gardening in winter

The wind is howling, roof tiles rattling and the rain is beating against the window. We’re not halfway through January and spring seems a long way off.

Here on the west coast, although there’s been no snow to speak of, we’ve had several storms, fog, heavy frost and huge hailstorms; but out there in the garden, some brave little roses are still hanging desperately onto their stems. It’s an inspiring sight.

At the beginning of this week,

October Beauties

The garden was looking rather sad at the end of August.  Perennials appeared to have reached the end of their flowering period – much earlier than expected.

But then the weather changed.  You don’t need me to tell you how beautiful September was. Dry, still and pleasantly warm days.  At this moment the wind is blowing and the rain is hitting against the window. The central heating has been switched on…probably until next June…or July…

However, the garden had some little surprises

Bill’s Garden

In a wee bit of a departure from the usual monthly post,  “The Garden in August (etc)”, I thought it would be good to look at one of our ward member’s garden.

But a little explanation first of all.  Part of the inspiration behind our Additional Meeting in April was Bill Tate’s first-year garden in their new home.  Bill sowed the seeds, grew the plants, while Frances cooked, baked and preserved.  Their first-year crop in 2013 was impressive.  The other source of motivation was

The Garden in August

What a dreadful weekend of rain!  I ventured into the garden on Monday morning to survey the damage to the plants.  The secateurs went into action and by Monday afternoon the garden was mostly just a sea of green.  But it’s only early August, and there’s still new growth on the roses, so hopefully (weather permitting) there will be some fresh colour in a few weeks time.

If you’re feeling a bit fed-up with your garden right now, scroll to the bottom and just listen to a lovely little bit of soothing inspiration!

I did say in the Garden in June post, that I’d let you know how the cut-and-come-again seedlings from

The Garden in July

Gardens are usually at their most abundant in July, with large displays of flowers and many fruits, salads and vegetables ready to harvest.

Our Additional Meeting in April was partly the inspiration to plant up a 6 ft x 8 ft raised bed (that displayed an amazing collection of weeds last year!) with some vegetable plants. The other source of inspiration was the impressive yields that Brother Tate’s first-year garden (at their new home) produced. Hopefully we can feature brother Tate’s garden here on the blog before too long.

Our patch isn’t particularly large, but

The Garden in June

Summer Delights

June – my favourite month!  What is yours?  Gardens are bulking up and the flowers will be blooming abundantly throughout the month. There is so much competition for colour, fragrance and form in gardens right now.  At this time of the year roses, perennials, annuals and hardy annuals are so fresh and, well…just beautiful.

With the weather warming, it’s tempting to sit back and just enjoy the visual feast that a garden, no matter how small, can offer.  But to look its best 

The Garden in May

The colours and perfumes of May

If you could choose the loveliest plants to shine in your garden in May, which would you choose?

For up in the air I would choose Japanese Acers – they are glorious in May, and June, and July…all the way through to Autumn! The tree’s graceful shape and elegant stems make them a number one choice. Their spreading habit provides shade from the sun when you need it, their leaves are delicate and colours are vibrant. What more could