Celebrating gardens, photography and a creative life
Northern garden lovers may already be familiar with Harlow Carr. Its long streamside garden is an almost irresistible lure for me when the swathes of candelabra primulas or blue poppies are in flower, but it’s well worth a visit at almost any time of the year. Continue reading “New for 2016 – RHS Harlow Carr Flower Show”
The post inspired by this week’s photo challenge (circle) has been hatching for some time – since July’s RHS Hampton Court Flower Show to be precise!
When I first saw the garden, the snug dimensions of the globe wicker structure puzzled me until I realised it was a bird hide, woven by willow sculptor Carole Beavis. I must have been experiencing sensory overload at the time (Hampton Court can be like that) or you would have thought the bird houses on the walls, the log pile to attract insects and the wildlife-friendly flowers might have been a clue that this is an urban bird watchers’ garden. Even the cushion covers inside the hide have birds on them! Continue reading “City Twitchers’ Garden”
The weekly photo challenge asks us to photograph something from three different angles. You’ll not be too surprised to learn that I only managed two shots of this wicker installation at the Chorley Flower Show (yes, you read that correctly) before my eye drifted off to the flowers in the background. Continue reading “Weekly Photo Challenge: wicker family”
I took my first picture of Rosa ‘Desdemona’ when I popped in to hug some dear friends working on the David Austin rose display at this year’s RHS Hampton Court Flower Show. Their new white English rose for 2015 was named to commemorate one of Shakespeare’s most independent, open-hearted and gentle heroines: an inspired choice!
Large fans were keeping the air circulating in the nearby Floristry Marquee to prevent the cut flowers wilting, but there was no such luxury in the Festival of Roses Marquee. The conditions were cruelly hot for humans to endure, but to my surprise, the roses appeared to relish being held captive inside a tent on the hottest July afternoon ever recorded in England. Continue reading “Desdemona – a new white English rose for 2015”
It’s a terrible pun, but The Wellbeing Of Women garden was the one to wow me at this year’s RHS Hampton Court Flower Show. I wasn’t alone: it won the prestigious People’s Choice in the Small Garden category. Continue reading “Hampton Court Flower Show’s WOW garden”
We were about to leave the RHS Tatton Park Flower Show when we stumbled upon my garden of the day. Lovers of the quintessential English Romantic garden style read on – this one’s for you! Continue reading “The Sunset Garden by Tamara Bridge”
Susan Rushton 