Some years ago, I took over from a friend who was helping a very old man with his garden. Mr J had moved to Dorset on retirement and built an award winning garden from scratch. The way he’d planned out the garden from a bare plot round a bungalow was amazing, and he’d then filled it with unusual shrubs and perennials. By the time I knew him, he was ( Read more... )

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For years I kept up a tradition of a Shakespeare flower count: everything in the garden flowering on Shakespeare’s birthday. Although I have far fewer flowers here I decided to revive the idea. Here’s the list.

Alpine strawberries
Brunnera macrophylla variegated one, can’t remember its name
Dandelions!
Dicentra spectabilis ‘Alba’
Erysimum ‘Bowles ( Read more... )

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Gardening two afternoons running! I know some parts of the country are less well favoured but here it’s like spring has sprung, although not that warm. The cherry is in bloom, the bank covered with daffodils, primroses and celandines. So pretty. But oh, my poor back. I’m trying to clear a bed of rubbishy old self-seeded plants so that I can put in ( Read more... )

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Before.


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