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Lottie Bulbs

A mid-February walk around our lottie site on a dull grey day was much improved by the colour of the earliest bulbs. Each autumn we invite donations of bulbs from members and now we are seeing and appreciating the results of our members’ efforts.

We grow lots of these early bulbs as they provide very early pollen for any bees that come out on mild days. We need to look after our bee friends as they help pollinate our fruit, peas and beans and many more crops.

The gold of crocuses (or should that be croci or perhaps simply just crocus?) brightens the orchard meadow.

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Snowdrops and Winter Aconites go together like chalk and cheese. Together they light up the Winter Garden.

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Even in the Summer Garden spring bulbs have a place. These beautiful blue iris cheer everyone up as they pass by.

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The tiniest and most delicate flowers of February are those of the cyclamen which mingle with the bark and fallen leaves in the Sensory Garden. The leaves have fallen from the nearby old Oak tree.

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Accidental juxtaposition of plants often give the best combinations. These crocus surprised us when they chose to flower above the bronze leaves of a Saxifraga.

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We now eagerly await the masses of Daffodils planted around the site and on the grass verges outside our gates. They will be closely followed by the Tulips in their myriad colours.

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Thanks

I have been nominated for three awards in the last few days so this is a thank you message to The Garden Smallholder for nominating me for the One Lovely Blog Award and the Very Inspiring Blogger Award and to Ariston Organic for nominating my “Echinacea the Coneflower” post for a Very Inspiring Blogger Award.

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As a part of accepting these awards I have to say 7 things about myself and pass on the awards to 10 other bloggers.

So here are 7 things about me –

1 My middle name is Arthur after my Grandad who called me his Little MacGregor.

2 I am building up my Flickr Photostream but it is taking me ages.

3 I am an obsessive seed sower.

4 My Daughter keeps reminding me of the time I dropped her in the snow in order to save my Nikon from falling into it.

5 I became a fisherman when I was 4  and still love fishing 57 years later.

6 I am rekindling my love of painting.

7 I enjoy the work of land artists such as Andy Goldsworthy and Richard Long and sculptors who work with nature such as David Nash and Peter Randall-Page.

My 10 blogs I want to nominate for these two awards are

1 thescottishcountrygarden

2 mybeautifulthings

3 allotmental

4 grandparentsplus2

5 the pyjama gardener

6 pbmgarden

7 gettin’ fresh!

8 The Gardening Canuck

9 Penny’s Garden; a harvest beyond my front door

10 Christy’s Cottage Wildlife Garden

I appreciate that not all bloggers like the idea of awards. Please accept my nomination as an appreciation of your blog.

If you accept the awards please follow these “rules”.

1 Thank the person who nominated you.

2 Add the awards to your blog.

3 Share 7 things about yourself.

4 Pass the awards on to 10 nominees.

5 Include this set of rules.

6 Inform your nominees by posting a comment on their blogs.

 

 

Categories
autumn autumn colours garden design garden photography gardening gardens open to the public ornamental grasses ornamental trees and shrubs photography

Looking Back Two – Trentham

In this post in my series featuring looking back at gardens visited in 2012, I will share photographs of an autumn visit to the wonderful Trentham, one of our favourite places to visit.

We took friends Jean and Tony with their granddaughter Lucy to share our enjoyment of this latest of our regular visits to these wonderful gardens designed by favourites, Piet Oudolf and Tom Stuart-Smith.

Perhaps this sign in the first photo is inviting us to get lost in wonder.

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The garden is still full of colourful flowers in October. Each flower colour is enhanced by the gentle neutral shades of the grasses.

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Lucy needs regular re-fuelling! She also needs time to play and enjoy an occasional sit down.

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Through windows and doors. DSC_0028 DSC_0029

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 Trentham once again provided us a real treat. We’ll be back again soon.

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