Freedom
“Save it for a rainy day.” I could never understand that phrase when I was a child. We certainly didn’t shop more when it rained. Rain meant donning a sou’wester and gum boots and jumping in puddles. Why did I need to save? As it was raining today I couldn’t work. This meant that I was free to accompany my mum to Scotsdales nursery garden in Cambridge. A vast emporium packed with plants, seeds, pets and every gardening geegaw that you can imagine from inflated model robins to bird tables to attract the small, live...
read moreThe shrub that slept all summer
If you plant a shrub that has been grafted onto root stock too deeply in the soil, the root stock can take over. This happened to my pretty viburnum. It fought back and was eventually dwarfed by a tall ugly shrubby tree. “We have to remove this and start again!” “But it has formed a perfect arch with the viburnum on the other side of the path. It doesn’t look ugly to me.” Danny did have a point so I kept the louche shrub for a couple of years and finally asked John to remove it and replace it with a pretty...
read moreAmaryllis and honey bees
This morning was clear and crystal bright. When the Min Pins and I tramped to the chicken run we were stopped in our tracks by the loud buzz from our apiary. Hundreds of young bees were making test flights in the crisp sunshine. They do this to orientate themselves to the hive before making their first solo foraging flight. Having worked out the coordinates (they use the sun) they can venture for miles and always find their way back home. I collected 3 eggs from the run and returned to the kitchen with the lightest step. Sunshine just does the...
read moreJapanese maple. Acer palmatum ‘Atropurpureum’
I bought this little tree on eBay three years ago. It looks bereft now in autumn and it is rapidly losing its leaves. They have turned from dark purple to a stunning red. For nine months it delights me. The foliage is small, dainty and exquisite. I had always thought that Japanese maples were a bit prinky, until I got one. Somehow this diminutive tree has crept under my skin. I would like to buy more. Old friends had a large one in a stone pot in their garden and it looked superb. I was disappointed when mine arrived. It looked so small and...
read moreTaking water cuttings of pelargoniums
The kitchen is sweet with the smell of lemon scented geraniums. I finally hoicked out our two giant 3.5 feet plants and put them in the greenhouse. We are hoping that they will survive the winter and delight us again next summer. We are planning to plant them in the half barrels either side of the front door. I rarely take cuttings but this year we have taken quite a few from the scented geraniums. We are hoping that we have discovered a giant strain. The cuttings are insurance. Years ago, Bunty taught me how to take water cuttings. I have...
read moreBarrels and a bug
I crept home early from work today with a bug. Everything ached. So it was off to bed with a hottie, the Min Pins and a giant cup of tea. I slipped in between the cool sheets and fell deeply, instantly asleep. So there is no post tonight just a photo of the barrels of annuals either side of the cottage front door. The plants in these barrels have given us so much pleasure throughout the summer. The white pelargoniums are cast offs from my mother. They bloomed in her Cambridge window boxes last year. They rested in our greenhouse for the winter...
read moreAutumn flowering perennials
My mum always says that the best gardens have a decent show of flowers in September. Walking around the garden last week, most of my autumn flowers are just on the cusp of bursting into flower. There was very little to see apart from pink Japanese anemones and white Michaelmas daisies. This morning I looked a little more closely and saw blue flowers on the plumbago, evening primroses, cosmos and sedums. I was thrilled to find that our first delicate autumn crocus has emerged. With the prospect of not buying flowers for the house, I have been...
read moreBlack Monday: Box Blight
Every now and then my sister Sara and I treat ourselves to a deluxe garden tour. I don’t know how we discovered Border Lines but found that we liked them. The tours suited us. Every now and then when we are feeling flush, we embark on another adventure. The best garden tours seem pricey but having visited three amazing gardens in one day and enjoyed an excellent lunch, the Border Lines tours seem wonderful value. The memories stay with you for years afterwards. We first started garden touring about fifteen years ago. A high points were...
read moreThe round border
In the first part of the garden we have a round border, surrounded by a mature box hedge. As this is visible from the sitting room window and fairly near the house, I took my mum’s advice and planted the beautiful hybrid Hamamelis intermedia “Pallida”. Bred from the regular Hamamelis Mollis (Chinese witch hazel), ours flowered in January. Small spider like, sulphur yellow flowers clustered close to the branches. The scent was delicate and sweet. We loved it. But in the summer the leaves looked rough and...
read moreA secret garden
There is a plant stand in Fordham, Cambridgeshire. Bang opposite Scotsdale’s Nursery Garden. It could easily be overlooked after visiting the largesse of the nursery garden. That would be a shame because it’s packed with cuttings and baby plants from a wonderful garden. I started buying plants from the stand (40p each or three for £1.00) about a year ago. I became a regular. The photo is of a small border that I planted with bounty from this stand. Everything has flourished. Every time that I visit the nursery garden, I cross the...
read more
Most Recent Articles
I made two litres of dog food by mistakeOn Monday I decided to test out the theory that cottage pie is best made with pieces of beef rather than minced… »
Recipe for meatballs and spaghetti with red wine, tomatoes and bell peppers. Foolproof slow cooker/crock pot recipes“Please don’t buy mince again. I just don’t like it.” Danny grumbled out of the kitchen. “But you like… »
Win £50 worth of B&Q vouchers with The Cottage Smallholder and Direct Line Grand DrawFor those of you who missed out on the metal bedstead competition: we’ve got another great prize to offer you!… »
New layout for CSH – testers wanted pleaseDanny here, everybody. 14% of our visitors use mobile devices, such as tablets, iPad, smart mobiles and so on.… »
Update on the remaining Min PinsIt’s been seven weeks since The Conteesa died suddenly in her sleep. Danny buried her in the garden under the… »
It’s the little things that make the differenceI don’t often write much about the little things that give me pleasure. They initially seem too insignificant to… »
Recent Comments
{ I was thinking the same as Magic Cochin but then like you I don't have my phone attached by an umbilical cord wherever I go.... } – Wed 8 :47 pm
{ Good point but I don't tend to take it about with me everywhere 
} – Wed 7 :25 pm
{ Doesn't your mobile phone have an alarm setting? C x } – Wed 6 :32 pm
{ I would put it towards a bbq, it's just a shame you can't purchase some sunshine from b&q } – Wed 12 :04 am- { Hi Lesley The clucking means that she is brrody also plucking her own feathers is a sign too. } – Tue 11 :58 pm
- { Hi Lesley They have to stay in the broody coop 24/7. Could you put in a garden shed or garage? } – Tue 11 :57 pm
FD