One of my favorite fruit trees we grow are our two Asian Pears. They began blooming about a week ago, and I would say they are in their peak bloom as I write. They have the classic, delicate pear blossom, with bright green leaf growth following behind, then in September, delicious orb shaped pears hang from the boughs.
Read MoreMay is the month of the garden, the month of getting hands in the soil and planting things out! As we finish sorting out the structure in our annual gardens we start planting out, always watching the weather. Slowly we bring seedling out, let them test their wings a bit and covering them back up if it is going to be to chilly at night. We start planting out more and more, and by the end of the month the green house is cleared out of all the tables and trays and instead tomatoes create a jungle inside.
Read MoreApril is a month of immense growth. At the beginning ,the world around us is still relatively brown, the grass is sodden underfoot and many branches are yet bare, but by the end, Spring is sweeping away all the grey and brown, replacing it with a bright new green punctuated with blooms.
April is also a month of busy busy work. Where there is much to do in the garden. And what’s more, things done at this time of year pay you tenfold, the plants simply love having the full season to grow.
Read MoreIn this last few weeks of March I have spot a handful of Cornelian Cherry trees and I have been struck again how beautiful a tree they are. The Cornelian Cherry is actually a dogwood, Cornus mas. In early spring, the tree will be covered in a profusion of small yellow flowers.
Read MoreFor this month plant spotlight I wanted to highlight Bulbs!
Now, to be fair, I am not really highlighting a single plant, but a number of plant, but I couldn’t pick just one. Because there really is no equal to seeing the bulbs come up in the later winter / early spring, at times even through bits of snow. Their presence in the a garden can carry that garden while other perennials are still waking up and annuals are not ready to put out. If you have ever come across a bed full of snow drops or crocus then you know what I mean, they transform the early spring garden.
Read MoreWhen I first started writing this it was decidedly winter out there, the snow was softly falling, and the air cold. But the end of February brought us a week of warmer weather, and March 1st proved one of those glorious early spring days. Here in Essex a light rain fell for most of the morning, giving way to a warm, late afternoon sun. The snow is rapidly disappearing everywhere we look, only the shady nooks and spots where it was piled in heaps remain. Walking through my gardens on the 1st, I did the only sensible thing to do in an early spring thaw, I found a bit of warmed earth and put my hands in, feeling the wet soil and smelling the earthy musk. Stooping here and there, examining the garden, looking for life, I push leaves aside and shift the heavy mulch, revealing the tiny spear tips of daffodils and crocus just poking up through the crust. Snow drops are popping up under the Hazels, just coming up in places, delicately slender, and in others just coming into bloom.
Read MoreThe beginning of February brings us a bit closer to spring, winter has by no means left us yet, there are still many days, months even, to keep a fire blazing in the hearth and to bundle up as we move about the garden. But February always feels to me that we are over the hump of winter, and even if it goes on for quite a bit, there is a steady hope that spring is just around the corner.
Read MoreThe winter garden depends on good evergreens, for their structure, their obvious greeness, and the host of life they bring to the garden even in our coldest months. They are without a doubt crucial in the winter, but they are just as important in the summer, but they move to the back then, letting other players take center stage. I have come to realize their sculptural structure shouldn’t be under valued in any season.
Read MoreEvery January I find myself reading a lot, thinking a lot, and dreaming a lot about my gardens. It feels simultaneously a time of reflection and introspection as well as a time dreaming and planning.
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