Persius and Medusa

Posted on August 28, 2019August 28, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Art, Exhibition, Garden, Lake, medusa, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Orme Art, Persius, Plants, Staffordshire, Statue, The Brampton, Trentham, Trentham GardensLeave a comment

On a lighter note this statue of Persius and Medusa is at Trentham Gardens, Trentham, Staffordshire. The statue is inside the gardens next to the lake which means you have to pay to go in. I’m sure there is information about it but this is a photo from last year. I haven’t been in the gardens for months and probably with the heavy rain we’ve been having the plants there might be a bit battered but they are usually very beautiful.

I’m going to try and finish my painting of mars that I shared a couple of days ago to get in our Orme art exhibition at the Brampton in Newcastle-under-Lyme and try and go back to Trentham again on Friday.

Nasturtium

Posted on August 28, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Colour, Decoration, Edible, Flowers, Food, Gardening, Grows in poor soil, Nasturtiums, PlantsLeave a comment

One of the most interesting flowers, simple to grow from seed in poor soil. The leaves are flat and round with veins spreading in rays from the centre. The flowers have petals spreading out from a centre that has holes in it and a sort of pointed spike on the back, (hard to describe). The flowers come in a variety of colours, from cream, yellow, orange and deep red, usually with stripes on them. The plant trails and sprawls and climbs.

The flowers are actually edible! They taste like a sort of peppery orange. You can use them to brighten up a salad. A taste of summer. I’m not sure about the leaves and the seed pods, always make sure a plant is safe to eat before you try them.

Indoor plants at spode

Posted on August 21, 2019August 21, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Indoor gardening, Interesting lighting, Photo, Plants, Silhouette, SpodeLeave a comment

Someone’s put plants in the washroom at Spode. Great to see life inside the factory.

No need to water.

Posted on August 17, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Colours, Environment, Flowers, Garden, Hanging baskets, Life, Photos, PlantsLeave a comment

Despite the sunshine in these photos the rain keeps coming down. We have had a lot of blustery showers over the last few days and I’ve only had to water my hanging baskets a couple of times. I can’t get up the bit next to the house because it’s getting really overgrown. I think I’m going to have to take a few leaves off the tomato plants soon so what tomatoes we have get some sun to ripen them!

This is the view outside the window.

Shed view

Posted on August 9, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Colour, Copper, Design, Environment, Garden, Green, Photo, PlantsLeave a comment

I like this, the way everything seemed to line up. The wind spinner, lilies and the chair, and I like the colour combinations. The copper colours with the greens and browns. The cloud cover seemed to enhance the shadows as the sun crept out from between them. The calla lily infront of the budda.

Close up flowers.

Posted on August 8, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Blog, Colours, Flowers, Garden, Life, Photos, Pictures, PlantsLeave a comment

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Bit busy but just took quick photos of some flowers in the garden. Used my phone on magnification.

Flowers

Posted on August 7, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Art, Blogging, Flowers, Fun, Gardening, Hanging baskets, Life, Pattern, Photos, PlantsLeave a comment

The hanging baskets were fine last week but when we came home two of them were upside down on the ground. The screw they had been hung on had given way under their weight and with heavy rain they had collapsed down onto the ground. Now they are hanging forlornly lower down the fence. They might grow and recover. I’m feeding them and watering them. Anyway the photos are of the growth of the other ones. Some are doing better than others. I really need to dead head them (take off dead flowers). It will have to wait till I feel better.

Here’s some patterns I did from them…

Evening light

Posted on August 2, 2019August 2, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Agapanthus, Blogging, Flat calm, Photos, Plants, Sea, Sunset, WeatherLeave a comment

When you go out in the evening at the coast everything can look great. When the sea is a flat calm and the flowers of wonderful plants shine in the light. Then you forget the cold wet, windy, miserable weather you get for the other half of the year.

Window views

Posted on July 27, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Flowers, Green, Life, Micro poetry, Plants, Poem, Poetry, TreesLeave a comment

Just a couple of views from my windows.

See that?

It’s plants and trees

Green stuff

To help us breathe.

It’s made of wood

Or green leaves

Flowers too

To frame the view.

Inside and out

On sill and in pot

My view is enhanced

By all these plants.

How I avoid hayfever

Posted on July 15, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Birds, Cats, Dappled shade, Flowers, Garden, Gardening, Hay-fever, Mammals, Plants, Sunshine, Trees2 Comments

This is how I avoid hayfever in our garden. By completely eliminating a lawn. Luckily I don’t have an allergy to tree pollen. Over the years the trees have grown big, but I like having my own personal forest glade with bird life and small mammals like hedgehogs and of course cats who patrol the garden and mug my hubby for fresh cat food. At least that stops them getting interested in the birds…. Tweet tweet tweet pounce! I’m sitting here with a busy road just yards away and although I can hear the traffic it’s not as loud. I can hear the tsee tsee tsee of birds singing. The flap of wings as they look for bird food in the garden. The rustle of vegetation. At the moment I’m sitting on a bench in warm dappled sunlight. I guess this type of garden is good for capturing CO2 and for feeding the birds. We got very few cherries this year but the blackbirds are gobbling the ripe ones up high in the tree. In previous years we’ve made the effort to climb step ladders to get them but this year we are being generous!

A few years ago we rented the garden from the previous owner of our house. She then decided she wanted to build on it, and while she sought planning permission we were not allowed on it except for a four foot strip of path alongside the house, she even painted a line along the length of the path to show where we could go! Luckily she was refused planning permission so after three years we bought the garden off her. But the damage was done. Everything had grown enormously and out if control. We have struggled to get it back to some sort of tidiness.

I’ve been very busy with the election and the mystery play over the last two months so I haven’t been able to sit and chill. But today is dry and sunny, came and ate breakfast out here and since my WiFi seems to reach this far I thought I would write about the garden. No sneezing, my eyes are not running and I don’t feel like I can’t breathe, bliss.

Later I will do a bit of pruning. There are a few stray Ash and Sycamore saplings that need removing. Also I want to try and let a bit more light through.

Gardening, never-ending……

Mallaband-Brown

Tag: Plants