Garden
Spring Plant Fair – Scampston
On Sunday I’m at the Spring Plant Fair at Scampston – with these stone pots and a little collection of pieces made in stone for the garden. Spring Plant Fair Sunday 31st May (10am – 4pm) Scampston Hall Malton North Yorkshire YO17 8NG
I didn’t know spiders ate snails
Whilst taking refuge in the greenhouse during this morning’s hail-storm, I noticed this spider. It had snails caught in its web – I’ve never seen this before – do spiders eat snails? I can’t think why the snail would wander into a web – or perhaps it was ambushed and then secured by silk. I wonder […]
Planting in swirls
Stone bowls waiting – at rest in the sunshine after being hollowed and fettled. Waiting for gardening hands to fill them with plants. Planting in swirls.
Swirling
Hollowing out in swirls. Hollowing out by hand. Making swirls in bowl-shaped stone pots.
Cornerstone and Conservation
Not surprisingly, I very much like the Cornerstone garden at RHS Malvern Spring Festival – the delicate alpine planting in the stone troughs, and the clever stone walled seating area with a stone table. The balance, planting and sculpted panel in Constraining Nature designed by Kate Durr Garden Design is both exuberant and elegant. […]
The Rievaulx Terrace
The Rievaulx Terrace was created about 1749-57 by Thomas Duncombe II, to provide a long view of the medieval abbey ruins in the valley below. Duncombe would bring his guests over from nearby Duncombe Park to enjoy the landscape. As they walked along the curving Terrace, a carefully contrived series of thirteen different views of […]
In the Spring sunshine
The warm spring sunshine inspires gardening doesn’t it? I’ve been out with fork and trowel, proddling the soil and planting up little stone pots (partly in readiness for Scampston Spring Plant Fair) to give fresh, pretty colours to celebrate the change of seasons. I like the textures the optimistic new growth bring to the senses. This […]
Hedgeside
My hedgerow is just beginning to come to life with little buds and fresh green shoots starting to show. I call it my hedge as it is the hedge which holds the gap where my gate hangs, marking the entrance to my workshop. Those who have been to my Open Studio will recognise it, but […]
Potted Cowslip
The hedgerow here is greening, and cowslips push their clusters of curled lush leaves upward in vibrant wrinkly fronds. They’re promising slender delicate stems abundant with pale yellow flowers. Since early times cowslip has been cultivated in the British Isles and was popular in medieval herb gardens – having magical and medicinal properties. Farmers […]
A bit of micro-gardening
Sleety, snowy, windy cold drove me indoors from the workshop early today – I promised myself that I would give the greenhouse a bit of a cleanup this weekend too, but it will have to be tomorrow now. I haven’t abandoned the gardening idea entirely though. These little pots have been sitting empty on a […]