26th MARCH 2026

 

CHANGES

This was the pergola on Sunday 22nd March.

It was designed for people below 5 feet in height.

The wood was completely rotten and the whole thing swayed in strong winds.  

The mess on top was a mixture of a rampant pink clematis that I adored ... every Spring it was covered in flowers and the smell was heavenly!  .... a very old wisteria that NEVER flowered even though I pruned it as instructed and a couple of climbing roses.  

We decided this year it had to go!

The new one is so much better in every way ... it is high enough to allow my six feet tall husband to walk through without stooping.  

I found a tiny sprig of the clematis had survived so that is tied to one of the posts and my fingers are crossed!  The roses are fine but the wisteria has been sacrificed.  

Today we attached a couple of bird boxes to the uprights because bluetits have nested here each year.  Hopefully we will gain a couple of new neighbours again.

I went quite mad on the bulb order last Autumn but it has paid off now ... The wall is packed with pink, white, purple and blue hyacinths, various daffodils, blue and purple iris and blue muscari mixed in with the aubrieta and wallflowers.  Quite a difference from earlier in the month ....

 

 I am very happy with it but will plant more at the pergola end next Autumn.

The pond also benefitted from the Autumn planting ...

I have also began work clearing the back of the house ... a big job I kept putting off last year so the problems got much worse!

Here it was in early March ... what a mess!

The couch grass and creeping buttercups and moss covered this side ... ivy was climbing the trellis this side and covering everything on the ground on the field side.

There is a lot of work to do but ...

... one corner was cleared during the recent short spell of warm weather so there is some hope I can tame it again before Autumn!!!

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25th MARCH 2026

 SPRING!

The garden always looks great in Spring ... fresh growth, flowers and blossom everywhere ... but within a few weeks I will begin the race to beat the weeds and by mid summer I will have lost control!  

Do I care?  

Not a chance ... I don't expect to have a perfect garden ... just one I can enjoy pottering about in.

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15th JANUARY 2026

 I wrapped up warm and went out to feed the birds a few days ago but the freezing cold got me and by the time I went indoor I was feeling really ill so gardening was the last thing on my mind.  

BUT it felt quite warm today so I wrapped up warm again and ventured out with the intention of working on a section next to the house. Needless to say I got distracted by a different area altogether!  

The paved area at the far end of the garden was completely inaccessible when we moved here in 2018. Andy had to hack through the five feet tall nettles then we assumed we had a plot of bare earth to work on.... we did but it was only a few inches deep.  It was a lovely surprise to plant my spade in the ground and discover these slabs.  Leaves from the overgrown laurel hedge and the neighbour's trees cover this patio every autumn but no one had cleared them for years ... hence the nettles ... and the leaves had composted down to soil.  We have tidied the space up but not really utilised it so today I began planning the alterations.

First job was to clear the leaves ...

Sounds quite easy but it took me 3 hours!

The place is still covered in moss!

Next I have to fix the fence and plant a couple of rambling roses to stop the rabbits coming in.

Then the existing shrubs and honeysuckle need a trim.

I planted a couple of box last year and they are now large enough to trim into ball shapes.

There are a couple of empty planting holes which will be brightened up with a variegated  or a flowering shrub and I need to transplant a few foxgloves, lupins, iris  or verbena into the border.  I planted a few bulbs in there last year but there's no sign of them at the moment ... a couple of pesky nettles have come back though!

Obviously colourful additions are needed in the pots but the main change will be the addition of some solar lights.

There was an electric light in the lych gate but our electrician friend immediately disconnected it as it was a death trap!  It was a normal internal light fitting not a safe external one!

I want something like these to stick in the ground ...

... and simple string lights in the shrubs and trees.  

We have a metal table and chair set that we rarely use but if we cheer the area up we might be inclined to eat out there over summer.  

Who knows!

First snowdrops are beginning to appear.

Love this time of year!

SPARROWHAWK

 

So many birds congregating around the garden feeders was bound to attract a predator so it was no surprise to see the Sparrowhawk swoop in.

It was fast but went away hungry as one of our small guests saw it coming and gave out an alarm call.

The garden emptied immediately leaving the Spar to sit on the fence looking round for an opportunity elsewhere.

SNOW!

 The garden is full of birds today.... 

The bird feeders have been covered with hungry beaks cramming food in to produce enough energy to stay warm.  

47 blackbirds and fieldfares are fighting over the windfall apples! 

The cat is out there stalking them with no chance of success!

It looks very nice but I hate the stuff if we have to go anywhere.

The neighbours don't seem happy either!

Unless it melts away the lane will soon turn into an ice rink ....

so I am going nowhere!

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1ST DECEMBER 2025

 We have had a new visitor to the field next to our house ...

It had been raining most of the night so his coat was dark and wet.

The field had been full of common gulls before he arrived.  They were not happy to be displaced and a few swooped over his head making their displeasure known.  He appeared to be gauging how high he could jump to grab his next meal!

He was very interested in a patch of grass where the roe deer has been resting recently but it wasn't long before he wandered out of sight again.

I thought it was lovely to see him but our farming neighbours would not agree!

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20th NOVEMBER 2025

 

Woke up to this today!

I have never been a great fan of snow but it looks nice out there, the house is warm, there's plenty of food in the cupboard and we have loads of books to read so I have no complaints.

A Great Spotted Woodpecker was desperately trying to get at a few crumbs left in one of the bird feeders so the pristine snow is now pitted with our foot prints as we went out to feed him.

He has been joined by the usual colourful crowd in the tree and a large Magpie strutting around on the floor.  Entertainment for us but survival for them.

Don't know how long the snow will last.  I still have a few begonias and dahlias in the garden but they are probably dead by now!

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