So far, here in East Sussex, the winter has been very unsatisfactory. With very few of our usual stunning sunrises but with tremendous amounts of rain and cloudy weather, interspersed with icy cold spells and strong winds, we’ve had little to celebrate. Yet there is still some beauty in the frost covered skeletons of winter […]
I love this time of year. The frosty mornings, the stunning sunsets/rises, the garden planning, the ground cleared ready for planting, the leaves hopefully swept up, few weeds as yet and the veggie seeds arriving in the post. This year I’ve reduced the size of the annual planting area in the kitchen garden by introducing […]
We’ve had so much “weather” recently that the garden has been rather abandoned. Apart from a little hedge cutting, pruning and leaf sweeping I’m waiting for the new year before I really get going again. We will also start planning for next years Rye Flower and Veg Show which will take place on Saturday 19th […]
MARCH IS FULL OF SAINTS The 1st of March brings happily, not only the first day of meteorogical spring but also, St David’s Day the patron saint of Wales. One of the symbols of Wales is the cheerful, golden daffodil, a flower that really signifies the end of winter and the start of a new […]
The cold earth slept below; Above the cold sky shone: Percy Bysshe Shelley We’ve already experienced a satisfactory number of fabulous starts and ends to our winter days this year with skies reflected in the waters of the Tillingham, Rother and Breed and glowing over Rye Bay, lighting the silvery sand of Camber Sands. Some […]
“The falling leaves, drift by the window, the autumn leaves of red and gold”…………. so sang Nat King Cole. As I sit to write this my leaves are still green and hurtling across the garden with branches still attached. I know many people love Autumn but its not my favourite season at all and this […]
“Summer afternoon, summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful in the English language” – Henry James Researching summer time gardening recently I came across this quote by Henry James that struck a chord. A familiar name to those who live in Rye, James came to live in Lamb House in […]
Spring is finally here….. I am writing this on the 1st day of March, a bright, sunny, uplifting sort of day. The 1st of March is recognised as the meteorological start of spring which is fine by me. Those of you who prefer the astrological spring can wait until March the 20th. There are even […]
“There are two seasonal diversions that can ease the bite of any winter. One is the January thaw. The other is the seed catalogues”. – Hal Borland What better way to spend a wet December day than planning for next year’s planting. It gives a real feeling of hope and a spring to look forward […]