Green view

Posted on December 16, 2019December 16, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Animals, Autumn, Blogging, Cats, Garden, Gardening, Ivy, Life, Plants, Wild birdsLeave a comment

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Cold, wet and windy, but still a bit green where the ivy is growing up trees in the garden. Really it needs cutting back. I don’t want it strangling them. There are bird feeders out there, but there seem to be less birds than normal. Perhaps they have enough food, we haven’t seen evidence of them being predated by cats thankfully. I want to get out there and cut back the buddliea bushes. They need pruning.

The pond is OK, it’s hidden below the cherry tree. It has only frozen a couple of times and only thinly this autumn / winter. We hope to have tadpoles in the spring.

Garden design.

Posted on December 9, 2019December 9, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Colouring, Design, Drawing, Ellipses, Fun, Gardening, Ideas, Ruler, SketchLeave a comment

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Firstly, I’m not a garden designer, but I just wanted to talk about putting ideas down either on paper or digitally. I’m using my sketch app on my phone to work something out. It’s a bit scruffy but gives you an idea. I’ve used a short oblong because it’s approximately the shape of our garden. I’ve drawn in some of the trees using the elipse tool. Then marked in possible paths using a ruler tool for straight lines. Then filled in with a spray tool. I’ve added a blue patch to indicate a pool and sprayed in colour where I want flowers. As there are a lot of trees I’ve shifted the flowers over away from shade although you can get woodland flowers to cover the ground below the trees.

Basically it’s worth doing a drawing if you can to get an idea of what you want. Also work out the compass points. Then you will know where plants will do their best.

Sunrise

Posted on December 8, 2019December 8, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Busy, Dawn, Fun, Gardening, Leaves, Rosy glow, Sky, Sunshine, Trees, WeatherLeave a comment

Soon all the leaves will be gone. A big storm is due in overnight so I guess they will be torn from the trees. My hanging baskets still have a few flowers opening in them despite the minus temperatures we have had. The sky has been lovely in the last few mornings, with gentle hints of colour, rosy glows and golden hues.

Then it will be time to cur back and prune some of the trees. Tidying up a little bit, but not enough to harm where the birds sleep. Now dawn is getting later, after 7am. It means I get to see more of them. X

Bright poppies

Posted on December 3, 2019December 3, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Colour, Flowers, Gardening, Gardens, Petals, Plants, Poem, Poetry, Poppies, SummerLeave a comment

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Bright poppies shine,

Glow with sun

Grow so red,

Buds stretch and burst.

Dehissance it might be called?

Or is that leaf fall?

Something like that,

There is a word…..

Turgid petals push out and open,

Colour shoots out

Shocks

Surprises

Cheers!

Spiders webs….

Posted on November 9, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Frogs, Gardening, Life, Nature, Slugs, Spiders, Squirrel, Winter3 Comments

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Now the winter is starting there are less of these about. Spiders are probably finding quiet corners to hibernate. So what to do….? Spiders catch all sorts of creepy crawlies, keeping pests down without using pesticides and insecticides. Hopefully your garden finds a balance.

Recently we found frogs in the garden. They eat slugs and insects.

The only other incomers are a couple of squirrels but they do like digging up spring bulbs and planting walnuts and pinching bird food. But they are lovely so I wouldn’t do anything about them!

Hanging basket in November

Posted on November 4, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Begonias, Blogging, Cold, Colours, Flowers, Fushias, Gardening, Hanging baskets, November, PlantsLeave a comment

I’m looking out at this today…. _20191104_111358

My hanging baskets are still in flower on 4th November! My Christmas cactus is coming into flower on the window ledge, global warming certainly is having an effect on plant life.

The baskets were planted up at a nursery in May and we have had them ever since. They have done really well. The plants are begonias I think, but there are other flowers in there still including fushias. I’m not emptying them till the frosts get them. It’s so nice to look out the window at some colour at this time of year.

Succulents

Posted on November 1, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Design, Gardening, House leeks, Inspiration, Photos, Plants, Rockery, SucculentsLeave a comment

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I love house leeks, a type of succulent that makes a rosette of leaves. They are often found growing on walls and sometimes even roofs. They are called succulents because their leaves are swollen with moisture, a bit like a cactus…. Some have weblike coverings, as if a spider had spun a web across the top of them. These plants look good on old fashioned rockeries. Stones and rocks with succulents peeping through the gaps.

This photo has been manipulated to duplicate the pattern. I like doing this and seeing what comes out of it….

Pears

Posted on October 31, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Fruit, Gardening, Juicy, Life, Pear tree, Pears, Sun shine, Taste8 Comments

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People who read my blog a few weeks ago know that our pear tree had blown over, leaving the branches only about eight feet above the ground. We have had to prop it up with large pieces of wood. I have almost collected what was left on the tree and the ones we have are criss crossed with scars and dents. But once you peel the skin off they are juicy and sweet to eat. This photo was taken last year and I like it because the warm light is shining horizontally and turning the pears into almost liquid gold colours?

Waiting for Spring.

Posted on October 19, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Art, Autumn, Flowers, Garden, Gardening, Life, Spring, Sun, WarmthLeave a comment

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It’s Autumn and I’m already waiting for Spring! I need to work on the garden, cut shrubs back, plant tulip bulbs, plant snowdrops, then… Wait, wait, wait… Through the cold and rain, through the shirt dates and long nights.

I want to see the baby birds, the squirrel and its kits, the tadpoles in the pond (if we have frogs we must have tadpoles). I look forward to warmer, not too hot, days. Life returns.

In the winter here it usually does not get too cold. But it can be grey, wet and windy.

The clocks go back at the end of October, then the sun will go down an hour earlier, I hate sitting in the dark in the winter, trying to keep warm. Looking forward to the winter solstice when the sun starts coming back a little more every day.

☓

Sitting listening…

Posted on October 10, 2019October 10, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged 1"challenge, Art, Blogging, Books, Gardening, Grey, Hat, Hedge cutting, Life, Shears, Urban sketch, WeatherLeave a comment

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It’s quite cool today, so after going out for lunch, then coming back and doing a bit of gardening I’ve come into the relative warm (about 18.5°C) and I’m sitting listening to the Radio.

I’ve decided to try and keep the heating off as much as I can. It’s getting expensive and it’s not that cold yet.

It’s grey and showery outside. We had to cut the hedge back because our neighbours need access on the path round to their back yard and it runs past our garden. The trouble is one set of shears handle is coming loose and is held on with gaffer tape! When you cut branches with them they bend inwards so you can’t always get a good purchase on the twigs.

So anyway, the hat in the drawing was given to me by a friend when it was raining last week. I meant to take it back but forgot. Just dumped it on the pile of books by the front door.

Mallaband-Brown

Tag: Gardening