Project Garden

Bank holiday weekend - time to take a break - why not tackle the garden, I thought. Garden! More like an unruly jungle. So I've spent 2 days out there and hardly made any impact at all. But I do have a plan: just attack one area at a time, and try to love the chaos elsewhere.

So, this is what I have to work with - not a very inspiring, and definitely not destined for Chelsea, garden. And there's a whole lot more the other side of my studio down there..

Just a long expanse of space with no real design. I need a path because of trolleying heavy boxes up from the studio, and Mr PLD wants easy lawn (that's his job, to keep it from becoming a hay meadow), so we're just sticking with the dull layout for now.

This is a small area of "before" - packed full of nettles, brambles and heaven knows what, but quite hard to get clear, especially as the ground is so hard, and also because the lovely birds have sown seeds over the years that have grown into trees! I love trees, but couldn't they be trained to plant the seeds somewhere more appropriate?

So after quite a few hours of hard labour, this is all I managed to do: a tiny area of future colour! But with the addition of strawberries and cabbages... 

This is the start of a herb area, but this will have other stuff in too - lupins, and maybe the odd raspberry cane...

And this is an area that I really think I will continue to ignore, and try to love, for quite a while longer!

 

Pensthorpe Nature Reserve

We’re off to Pensthorpe nature reserve in early June http://www.pensthorpe.com/events/index.php to take part in their annual Gardening, Craft and Food fair, as part of Dead Good Designs. It’ll be our first show working together as a team, so should be a lot of fun.

Pensthorpe? Yes, it might ring a bell as it was the nature reserve that played host to the BBC’s Springwatch for the last three years – just have a look at this impressive list of species that live or visit there.  What an amazing number of birds in particular! The reserve is recognised as a breeding site for numerous species of rare birds, and the Pensthorpe Conservation Trust works on the captive breeding and release of such species, especially those that are associated with the Wetlands. Looking through the species list has been useful in helping us to decide which card designs we should take when we go, how about:

It also made us realise that we don’t seem to have all that many bird designs! Somehow, I don’t think that there are too many guinea fowl wondering around the nature reserve.

So watch this space for a few more designs soon! I shall be taking my camera and sketch book to the show. The great thing about working with Dead Good Designs is that we’re a team, and so we will have the luxury of being able to go off for a wander. Now how good is that!

Dog's Trust Chester joins his local business community

Chester, our rescue dog from the Dog's Trust in Snetterton, joined his local business community last night on a netwalking event at the Norfolk Showground - and he had a thoroughly good time! There's no way he would have coped with the event when he first came to us, but that was some years ago now. I'm very pleased to say that he had no rude words to say to his fellow dog walkers (I can't say that his manners are always so impeccable!), and happily joined in the fun - one of the first to check out the stockman's accomodation (he's the black dog, the other is Malcolm),

and one of the first to the buffet at the end of the walk. 

He even tried to get a lift home with the Best of Norwich team! 

He so thoroughly enjoyed himself that he's wondering where the next one might be - he'll have to check out Norfolk networking here to find out!

The Malvern Gardening Show

I loved the Malvern Gardening Show - not exhibited at this type of show before, so it was quite a gamble but one that I think will pay off. I was in the Country Living Magazine's marquee, along with some really lovely people - it makes such a difference when everyone is so friendly and helpful. 
I allowed 2 days to get to Malvern and set up the stand - I like the more relaxed start to a show, and it gave me time to have lunch with daughter Emma in Birmingham. 
The stand went together really well which surprised me

and gave me a chance to wander around the showground. These are some of the gardens I liked, but I'm told that there weren't as many as in previous years - these are mostly the Chris Beardshaw Mentoring Scholarship gardens.

 

 

Once upon a time there were Three Little Pigs

And the Three Little Pigs I'm keen on is this lovely shop in Pershore, Worcestershire, who've been stocking my work since the start. I can now convincingly say that this really is a lovely shop because I visited it last week. Deceptively tiny from the outside, but what treats await you when you step through the door.

New to Three Little Pigs is their blog, written in part by Noah - this will be one to follow I think, as I have a feeling that Noah will have some good stories to tell.

Pershore, itself, is a place worth visiting with its Abbey, the river Avon, the bridges and lots more besides. 

I had a good wander around the abbey and along the river - just what was needed after a busy few days at the Malvern Gardening Show, more of which will follow later.

Another school reminiscence

Having just listened to the Food Programme on Radio 4, I am reminded of another special aspect of the school I was sent between ages 8 and 11, and that was the mulberry tree.

This was the most tremendous tree on one of the lawns, and it fed the school silkworms every year. We would pick leaves every morning and watch as the soft white caterpillars grew and grew - this was a joy through the summer term. Heaven only knows how they didn't all escape from the shoe boxes!

We weren't allowed to eat the mulberries themselves (but of course we did, and they were delicious!) - probably something to do with staining our uniforms.
But then the school holidays would happen and we never saw the full cycle through - I've no idea whether they were allowed to hatch into moths or were turned into silk thread; I'm assuming that at least some went on to hatch in order to produce the eggs for next year.

Sadly the school has been demolished and the mulberry tree is also no more.

There's heaps of information on mulberry trees here - I'm inspired to look into whether our soil conditions would suit growing one. Does anyone know? We're in the Waveney valley along the Norfolk/Suffolk border.

(I've one more reminiscence for another time....)

May - a time to celebrate the work of nurses

Now that we have a student nurse in the family we have become aware of International Nurses Day which is celebrated on May 12^th, the birth date of Florence Nightingale.

It seems that this is quite controversial as some would argue that she is no longer representative of modern nursing, and would prefer the day to be celebrated perhaps on May 21^st instead, being the birth date of Elizabeth Fry who founded the Institution of Nursing Sisters.

However, the day seems to be established for May 12^th – a day to celebrate the hard work and dedication of nurses throughout the world. 

Each year there is a service at Westminster Abbey, London, to commemorate the life of Florence Nightingale and celebrate the nursing profession. A lamp is handed from one nurse to the next and finally to the Dean who places it on the High Altar. This signifies both the passing of knowledge from one nurse to another, and Florence Nightingale’s nickname of Lady of the Lamp.

Many hospitals, day care centres, hospices etc hold fund raising and awareness events around this time – coffee mornings, open days etc.