May is already speeding and breakneck speed as we are already at the midpoint. We have had some beautiful weather last week here in England, which has encouraged the flowers and blossoms to bloom. So I thought to share a few Garden quotes with a few images Along with part of a poem I wrote some years ago.
The first image being Biscuit our Cat enjoying the warmth of the Sun.
Click the Images to enlarge in the gallery.
Yesterday’s flowers are today’s dreams. – Japanese proverb
“The soul cannot thrive in the absence of a garden.” – Thomas Moore
“A flower does not think of competing with the flower next to it. It just blooms.” – Zen Shin
Oneness is all I feel As into my garden I gaze surreal Tranquil thoughts as nature Blends My thoughts of Peace are what I send
I grow plants for many reasons: to please my eye or to please my soul, to challenge the elements or to challenge my patience, for novelty or for nostalgia, but mostly for the joy in seeing them grow. – David Hobson
Enjoy the rest of May, and your time out in your Gardens and within Nature.
May has to be one of my favourite months, not just because I was born on the day of Beltane, but because of all the blossoms and new growth to be found. On May the 2nd We took a drive out to go visit my favourite wood, we often go this time of year and I am never disappointed, for the Bluebells were bobbing their heads in the breeze and the scent of them wafted around me as the sun shone between leafy branches..
The squirrels were out in abundance as it is a nature reserve and many come to feed the birds and squirrels. But we hardly met anyone, as we walked slowly around the lake and into the woods.
There are ducks and geese on the lake, and as we walked around and we came across a very tame little Robin, who allowed me to get really close to him to take his picture
I think had I had some seed in my hand he may well have eaten from it, as these little robins are very used to people visiting and feeding them. Sorry little Robin I had no food for you today..
The carpet of Blue went as far as the eye could see.
Fungi and Ladybug
The Fungi growing from this trunk has a tiny lady bug on it
Lady Bug
The Blossoms are in abundance in our home garden too, I also have some blue and white bells in our garden.
White-bells Bluebells
The herb Rosemary is also in flower, as is the Clematis and shrubs. Click to enlarge photos on each Gallery.
Rosemary More May Blossom Clematis
The Allotment is now also getting most things set, the tomatoes and cucumbers are now in place, the beetroot is now starting to show new shoots through the earth, as are the peas, and parsnips all sprouting… The potatoes too are now showing signs of growth and are in need of the earth hoeing up around them now. Below is the Gallery of of the allotments.. May is truly a busy month, not only for gardeners but for the Bees too, I managed to capture a Bee on the Apple tree blossom.
Bumble Bee Busy Pollinating
Click to enlarge the Gallery photo’s….. Have a Wonderful rest of May,
and Happy Gardening and enjoying All that Nature has to offer.. Until Next Time..
June is turning out to be an exceptional month. as the fruits of our labours bring us rich rewards. While its been dry for many weeks in a row.. These last few weeks have given way to thunderstorms and heavy downpours of rain, which the gardens have drunk thirstily.. I love watching a good storm.. So everything got a boost, along with of course the mighty weeds, always in competition with what we plant, so keeping on top of them always an ongoing process.
So above you can see the Gooseberries, and still more to pick.. I will be making a Gooseberry Crumble at the weekend with some of these, the rest I have already frozen for later. The Strawberries, I am pleased to say the mouse only nibbled at half a dozen 😉. The Redcurrants also doing well with more to pick. And as you can see the Broccoli all coming at once.. These are a little past their best as they are starting to blow open.. But I made some delicious Broccoli and Stilton soup out of them.. The recipe for broccoli soup can be found here on my recipe pages. I used the whole Broccoli not just the stalks as in the linked recipe. and added some crumbled Stilton Cheese to your taste to melt at the end of cooking. The Cauliflower too was starting to blow open, but saved well in the fridge until I was ready to use with a meal.
The Home garden has been full of colour.. All the hot weather has suited the plants, so long as you water regularly. So I will just update with a few pictures of what is in flower in and around our home garden this month.
Click an image to enlarge it.
MY GARDEN
I look around my garden
What wonders do I see.
Neat flowers in the borders
All visited by the Bee.
The shrubs all gently swaying
In the afternoon hot breeze.
The birds sing out their warning
As my cat stalks beneath the trees.
I’m so lucky to have a garden
In which I find much peace.
To sit and ponder life’s problems
And wish all wars would cease.
We all think that we’re hard done to.
Never satisfied with our lot.
But I’m so thankful for my garden
Lord, help me settle for what I’ve got.
Written 26th June 1994.
By Sue Dreamwalker
Today, I came across the poem above, which I had written in 1994… While my Cat I spoke of here, is not the same cat I have today, I still appreciate my garden, and my four legged companion of today who sits with me in my garden. Suning himself with me.
Biscuit: my Cat today ..
Enjoy your Summer, find time to relax and enjoy the fruits of your labours. Until next Time Happy Gardening
Lupins in the vacant plot next to ours These were seeded from the seeds blown over from the plants we had the other year. Nature left to her own devices is remarkable. This plot has not been worked in over two years. It doesn’t take long for nature to reclaim back what man wants to put in order.
Nature has a way of always thriving and if you wanted to plant a meadow yourself, no doubts it wouldn’t turn out as beautiful as this. Allowing Nature to do her thing often shows us how beautiful she can craft a meadow when left alone to do so..
A garden meadow with lupins, poppies and cornflowers, next to our plot.
Those of you who plant veggies, know this is a busy time of year, as seedling get planted into their permanent positions, and greenhouses get filled. That is just the beginning of it, for then there is the watering, especially if its been dry like this last month here in England, no rain to speak of in any great quantities, just a few spots of drizzle here and there. So watering the allotments is a big part of every day. Along with hoeing, and keeping on top of any weeds, which seem to thrive in All weathers…
But Summer is also a time to enjoy.. So we often walk down of an evening and sit. Our Cat, who we named Biscuit we found on the allotments in 2019, skinny, neglected, and wanting a home… We did trace the owner, who told us we could keep him, she told us his age, he was then 9, and he has made his home with us ever since.. He is a great mouse catcher and I have lost count of the gifts he has brought us, Sadly for the mice, but he is doing what comes natural to him. And keeping the rodents down. Though I do have a little mouse who is happily nibbling away at my strawberries which have missed his gaze! 😀
He is the only cat we have ever had that follows us around like a dog, very intelligent, and my hubby and he have a special bond, they seem to know what each other think! 🙂 … He walks with us to the plot and comes back with us, if he feels like it. Now most of the Allotment holders know he is ours and ask where he is if he happens not to be with us.
Thirsty work this gardening! And don’t worry we use a different watering can if we put feed in there and we don’t use chemicals on the garden. The water is uncontaminated.
So while while Biscuit was off hunting.. I decided to put fleece under the strawberry plants.. I really should have done the old strawberry bed sooner, before the plants got too large.. It would have saved me a lot of back ache… And a friendly allotmenteer I have to thank for the fleece… I was going to put straw around them, but he gave us this roll of fleece to try and didn’t want anything in return… This is community spirit among gardeners.. 🙂
I decided to put fleece under the strawberries instead of straw this year, We seem to have some mice who are enjoying the ripening strawberries .. Not much we can do, but share.
I finished weeding and and laying fleece on these young plants from last years runners.
Things are growing fast and I will add another slide show so you can see for yourself how things are growing.
From left, Potatoes, Lettuce, small row of peas, parsnips, Beetroot onions, and shallots.. Dwarf beans are going in the space near the short pea row
Parsnips, beetroot onions shallots and peas closer view
Brassicas and Leeks and that is Horse Radish the green on the corner
Garden Onions Peas and Brassica family
Here you see Hubby has been busy putting up a frame that netting is now over to protect the raspberries and redcurrants from the pigeons.. This will be tall enough for me to walk inside to pick them.
I also planted some Mint… Remember if you plant mint, to do so in a container.. Mint spreads. I Love it to make mint sauce and Mint Tea.
Speaking of Tea, Now the nettles are totally dried after hanging, until completely brittle, I crushed and put Nettle tea in airtight jars . It made me 3 large jam-jars full.
And remember, while gardening is hard work, it is also good to sit back, and relax and EnJOY them. So Happy gardening… And I will leave you with some pictures of the home garden. Have a Wonderful June.. And Summer..
“The glory of gardening: hands in the dirt, head in the sun, heart with nature. To nurture a garden is to feed not just the body, but the soul.”
February has been full of colour for me… It started on the last day of January when we both celebrated our 48th Wedding Anniversary. So, flowers were in abundance
And of course on the 14th, Valentines, so more colour and beautiful flowers decorated our home
The flowers too in our garden are starting to spring into life.
The primroses which have been out since January are showing their magnificence as too the Yellow crocus beginning to bloom..
Walking in the Woods the Catkins were gloriously wagging their tails in the breeze,
And the snowdrops were in abundance as they bowed their heads in the undergrowth.
Hubby finally got all the manure dug in, and has now started on making another larger raised bed as one of the old ones the wood was rotting, so this was repurposed.
My Knitting project of my Chunky knitted Jacket is finally finished today, and while I have enjoyed this project its not been without it’s challenges and mistakes.. But such is life, and It taught me not to speak, listen, and count at the same time 😊
My herb seeds are now sown into pots.. Along with some early cabbage and broccoli seeds sown to be grown indoors for a while, before planting out.
We could still have some very cold weather yet, and we never discount we could still have a frost until May arrives,
The church in Bakewell
It was wonderful to see how others in local communities are now banding and gathering together their produce to form small independent co-operatives..
I came across this one https://www.farmacycoop.org/ in the Market Town of Bakewell, where I used to go to Secondary School and later worked for 5 years.
Its great to see locally sources organic food being pooled for distribution. I hope to see more communities gathering together this way
This is how I feel our Communities will build the new ways evolving with local services and skills.. Its wonderful to see these new projects springing up as we become more self-sufficient in all sorts of ways..
I hope you have a ten minutes to listen to their video and the ideas being put forward.
I particularly loved the quote on their website. Which said.
Hold your Vision of the Future… Stay focused on what you wish to create and not on the Fear being generated…
So how have your gardens faired during this hot dry spell? I know we have been flat out early in the mornings, sometimes Hubby has been on the plot at 5am watering while I join him a little later. Watering is a two hour process most days, carrying watering cans back and forth from the cistern tanks that are placed at 100-yard intervals down the length of the allotments. It’s exhausting work.
But together we have managed not to let too many things shrivel up in the unusually hot Summer here in the UK… Not to mention those driving HOT winds?
Farmers in Lincolnshire have said how their potato crops are dying. And despite our watering our potatoes they are now starting to die off early and the main crop hasn’t even flowered yet.
It’s the same all around the globe for one reason or another it seems there is an assault on crops, and whether it’s the transportation or the chemicals used to grow them, it seems that shortages are a real threat.
People who have any sort of land I feel in the future are going to have to think really hard on how they are going to grow their own food supplies and look at ways of sustainability. We can already see a recession looming on the horizon as food prices shoot through the roof along with Energy Bills which are set to quadruple, they have already doubled here.
So new initiatives will be needed I feel as people I see are already coming together in small groups of pooling ideas of community gardens and ways and means of pulling together resources.
One thing that have flourished is the Gladioli. We replanted them the other year to form a line near the cold-frame which has afforded them some shelter from the winds we get that blow across the valley.
Gladioli and Biscuit
Here is a vase of freshly picked Gladioli, along with some of the Dahlias.
Our Cat Biscuit is at home here on the plot, he follows us there and back most days and it is his hunting ground for mice. Very often we will have two or three gifts waiting on the patio in the morning as he brings home his hunting trophies.
I will leave you with some more images and hope your Gardens are surviving and thriving.
Click the Images to make larger:
The waterlilies in the small pond with have with our fish, have done well too. Click Images to Enlarge
Our gardens take a lot of effort to maintain, but the joy in abundance and pleasure they bring is worth all the aching muscles and hard work..
The green thumb is equable in the face of nature’s uncertainties; he moves among her mysteries without feeling the need for control or explanations or once-and-for-all solutions. To garden well is to be happy amid the babble of the objective world, untroubled by its refusal to be reduced by our ideas of it, its indomitable rankness.
June all too soon flew by, as so many of our days just lately seem to be wisps of memories as we no sooner rise, that we fall into bed. Making the most of our days and being present within the gifts of our NOW moments brings so many rewards as we are grateful for all things great and small.
It’s remarkable to see how the Universe listens and provides… and how manifesting truly is working all the while, if you learn how to see into its synchronicities. For nothing is by chance…
My husband always planning ahead had been wanting to create some new raised beds for next year and had been thinking on needing wood to do this. Also a wooden post and a broken panel of fencing we had installed at the side of the green house on the plot, to ensure no one accidentally tripped from the grass pathway into the greenhouse. This had disintegrated in the high winds we had back in Spring. So my husband had also been thinking about this and needing to get wood to use as stakes for posts as the older ones had rotted.
So imagine my husbands delight when a neighbour was throwing out good quality wood he no longer needed.. He told my husband help yourself, to any of it as its all going to be skipped. Pieces that were just perfect for the jobs he had been thinking on. Manifesting in action!.
Last year we replanted many of our raspberry bushes which we put in line with our Redcurrant bush. My idea being we could then put large posts in corners and then cover with netting so I could walk inside to pick berries. At the moment we have a net loosely tied over them which I have to undo and scramble underneath to pick berries. So these longer pieces of wood ideal for the jobs we had thought of.. We want to allow the bees and insects in, but keep the pigeons out… They are our main problem on the allotments.. they can strip a bush of berries in no time and decimate the brassica family by eating leaves.
Red Currant Bush
The Red Currant bush is now taller than I am, and produces lots of berries, I eat these with my breakfast and yogurt and freeze some for pies or trifles. They also make very good Red Current Jelly.
Cleaning Red Currants I soak for ten minutes in salted water with a pinch of bicarbonate of soda and rinse thoroughly. If I freeze them I allow to drain, air dry for a while and then freeze on a baking tray trying to keep them as separate as possible. Once frozen I then put into containers.. This way they come out of the container separate and not a solid lump.. I do the same to Raspberries and Gooseberries .
Gooseberries
Rich Pickings out of the Allotment this week, have been broad beans, peas, lettuce, courgettes, Lemon Cucumbers, Spring Onions, Rainbow Chard, and radishes.
More Rich Pickings. A Mornings Harvest
Raspberries, Lemon Cucumbers Redcurrants, Dahlias and Sweet-peas
A selection below of the flowers in bloom at the moment.
Click the images to enlarge.
With all of this, my life is Rich…. and when we choose to Pick out and nourish our body and our soul in aligning ourselves with wholesome foods, and wholesome thoughts.
Life brings us gifts in abundance..
“Gardening adds years to your life and life to your years.”
~Author Unknown~
“When gardeners garden, it is not just plants that grow, but the gardeners themselves.”
~Ken Druse~
“To forget how to dig the earth and tend the soil is to forget ourselves.”
These weeks and months are just flying by so quickly these days, I hardly turn around and another week has gone by. But that in itself is a good thing, as I live in the now of moments, and to think too far into the future right now with all that is happening within our world only makes us anxious as we see what is unfurling before us.
A Mornings Harvest
This was a mornings harvest of tomatoes, Carrots and cucumbers , two varieties. The green ones as normal top middle and the yellow round ones are called lemon crystal cucumbers.. Very tasty.
Crystal Lemon Cucumber
French Beans
This is just a mornings pickings of french dwarf beans. This year we decided to try the yellow variety. These freeze well, and all of these were frozen after washing and preparing them. We also have had a great harvest of Runner Beans.. We have been eating these as an when and supplying neighbours with free handouts as they are better eaten when young and tender…
The allotment has given us great yields this year, and the excess of tomatoes that always seem to ripen at once has meant I have been able to make fresh tomato soup… Recipe of which you can find Here which shows you how I have made it in the past.
Blackberries
As well as picking lots of blackberries from our bushes we keep behind our garden sheds, we have also had lots of raspberries.. That is until the wet windy cooler weather came. And then in a matter of a couple of days, many had spoilt and went mouldy… So I was pleased I had made the effort and got some into the freezer before they spoilt… Looking forward to Apple and Blackberry Pie 🙂
We have had some very stormy strong winds with driving torrential rain at times, and while I listened to the forecast of these storms coming. I went to tie up my gladioli and make sure my dahlias were secured.. I thought my Sunflowers which hubby had staked would be secure… But the wind was so strong it snapped several of them clean off. Below are the survivors.
Sun Flowers
You can see how high these are above the green house and you can see some of the stalks that snapped in the wind.
Sun Flowers
These fared better in the wind and you can see how high these have grown as hubby is 6ft tall.
Behind these Sunflowers is the nettle patch for insects and nettle tea for me leaves best picked in spring for this 🙂 and the Blackberry bushes How to make nettle tea Link HERE
By the way you should be able to click onto these images and open up to view larger.
My flower garden has given me extra pleasure this year, and below are just a few blooms in a Slide show to end this post. I hope you have all had a wonderful August.. The days are now beginning to draw in and the chill in the air can also now be felt. Take care all of you and thank you for dropping by… Have a Wonderful September and HAPPY GARDENING!
Red Dazzler- Cosmos
Begonia
Dahlias and Gladioli from garden
Dahlia
Corner Garden
Pathway to Light
Health is the greatest possession. Contentment is the greatest treasure. Confidence is the greatest friend. Non-being is the greatest joy. Lao Tzu
And there is nothing like loosing yourself in the garden and BE-ing in the present as you become NON-Being in the Moment…. That is my quote 😉 ~Love and Blessings Sue 💚
Hello my gardening friends. How have you all been?…
Here in Dreamwalker’s Garden, there has plenty to keep us occupied. And the big bonus here in the UK has been the weather has been exceptionally warm and dry over May. It has meant lots of water carrying too and fro on the plot. But I have enjoyed even that, as we go early in the morning.. And it takes with both of us carrying water about an hour to water completely..
If you click the photos they should enlarge in a new window.
Dahlia’s now out of cold frame, waiting to be planted in their permanent position
I will start off with the Dahila’s… We had several over night frosts at the beginning of May and despite us having to move the Dahlia’s into the cold frame as we needed more room in the greenhouse as the Tomatoes were getting ready to pot on, The Frost caught the tops of several of the large plants… But they should bounce back..
We have now moved them out of the cold frame into a sheltered position between the raspberries and where I planted the sweet-peas, as hopefully as we near the end of the month fingers crossed we will get no more frosts… Next week we intend to plant them into their flowering positions.
Here you can see the Tomatoes and Cucumbers now in place in the Greenhouse
The Strawberries are the new plants we bought last year, They are now getting more established this year and already lots of fruit is forming.
Strawberries forming.. I have since put straw under the plants to help protect the fruit.
The Peas in stages of growth, so Harvesting them is staggered You can also see the Lupins in Flower.. We planted these all down the side of the plot, as they attract blackfly, and aphids and I would sooner them eat the flowers than be on my veggies 🙂
On the Home Garden, I got busy with the paintbrushes and painted the sides of the garage with wood preserver.. We had this Charcoal grey paint left over from the garden fences we did last year.. So I painted the border in the dark corner near the garage as well as sprucing up the fairy doors with a new lick of paint… And if you wonder how those fairies climb the distance from the ground… They fly of course!!! Silly… 🙂
Fairy Doors
And last but not least, I made a little video of the garden blooms within my own garden in flower this month of May…
I Hope you Enjoy and Happy Gardening as I send Love and well wishes to All…
Hello again, well October has arrived and with it many places have had flooded roads and rivers are running high to overflowing here in the UK, as for the last few days its done nothing but rain, rain, rain day and night..
Click on Photos to Enlarge .
Cleared out the sweet corn and general tidy up The sprouts are now clearly visible standing to attention
But thankfully before the rain set in last week, we had a wonderful week of sunny warm weather. Which my hubby and I took advantage of as we got stuck into more chores of clearing on the plot.. The sweetcorn came out and we cleared a space ready for the delivery of manure which we order later this month. You can see by the picture below just how the lettuce is growing and we have picked quite a few now, and the swedes are also filling out as are the carrots growing which will be weeded out once they get much bigger.
Lettuce on left, Swedes, and carrots, leeks, January Kings Cabbage and Sprouts far right
We also reaped in our Butternut Squash and have stored around 24 largish Squash so we are very happy with our harvest of these as you see below.
Butternut Sqaush
I also cleared out the borders on the front garden of the summer flowers which had gone past there best and also took down the hanging baskets and replenished the wall containers with winter pansies and cyclamens.. Which I forgot to take photos of.. Maybe next time.. I planted lots of chrysanthemums in various colours as well as dwarf daffodil bulbs. My intention is to fill the front border with more perennials next year so as to help with lower maintenance of Summer and Autumn planting..
But there is still lots of colour in the back garden and these fuchsias were made into standards by my husband are now three years old taken from one plant as cuttings. They have now been moved into the greenhouse as we have a pending forecast of frost for Wednesday..
Rainbow light from hanging crystal
Since my husband cleared and cleaned the pond in the spring its done really well, the fish are happy and the waterlily he cut back hard, and its produced many more flowers this year. I think in total this year we have had nine or ten blooms in total, where as in other years we have only had a couple.
Water Lily in our pond.
You may remember a few months back I began knitting an Aran sweater, It got shelved in July when I went on holiday and upon our return we then started decorating our home and then had to catch up with the neglected plot, so this now knitting project has been completed. And I am very happy with its fit.
My hand knitted Aran sweater .
Have you any projects unfinished? Or have you about to start some.. I am being urged by my inner prompting to start painting again now the garden chores have been caught up with. So I will leave you with a gallery of some of the flowers still in bloom and the Dahlias are still in wonderful flower until the first frost hits them on the plot.
Dreamwalker's Garden 
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