Garden Belle

New Garden ❤️ I have been very quiet on here for a few months as we have moved to Suffolk and I have a big new garden of my own to plan and get stuck in to. I am feeling slightly overwhelmed but very excited at the same time. I plan to create three areas: a kitchen garden, orchard area with wildflowers and an ornamental area with a lawn. We love a lawn ! Well that's the current plan...it could change 😆 first job is cleaning the greenhouse and reusing our moving boxes to create the no dig kitchen garden. I plan to restart my gardening business in the Spring 🌞 💐 🌳

Foxgloves in the morning sum. These have taken a few years to self seed continuously and I leave them to grow where they.i think they ate beautiful. Thank you Jen at the Flower Barn for the original plants.

Spring is definitely here 😍

This border is very pretty in spring but in need of some summer colour. Client also had border extended so was looking a little bare. I added Echinacea, Verbena bonariensis, Erigeron karvinskianus, Saliva, Perovskia and Scabious. Happy Days 😊

I watched this Blackbird in a client's garden this week, cleverly picking off the Box Moth caterpillars that are ravaging through these Box topiaries. A good example of pests being food for other wildlife 😊 the Box will disagree I am sure and at some point they will come out and need replacing 😔

Wildflower meadow update....the Yellow Rattle is now in full bloom 💛 We will let it do its thing and self seed. It will then be cut in the autumn and wildflower mix sown. Very exciting 😀

Yellow rattle or Rhiananthus minor starting to grow at pace in a clients wildflower meadow. We are super excited as they seem quite tricky to germinate This is Phase 1 of creating the meadow as the yellow rattle will keep the grass population in the meadow at bay and then Phase 2 will take place with autumn sowing of wildflower meadow seed. The last photo is the meadow area mowed very low and then scarified last autumn.

I am so excited....after last years allotment failures, I sowed lots of hardy annuals and they are so close to flowering 💐 corncockle, ammi majus, orlaya grandiflora, cornflowers, wild carrot to name a few. Still got veggies on the go too and about to add another arch for squashes. This lovely spring rain has helped them all get a good start. 😃 🥕 🌼 🌸

Tulip love ❤️ and a few daffs and hyacinths thrown in for good measure. The tulips are fab this year thanks to the spring rains.... just lovely I can't stop looking at them 😍 💕

Playing around with dried flowers. The wreath is made from vine, dogwood and silver birch cuttings. The flowers include dried Achillea from my allotment last year and other flowers from ❤️ 💐

Spring is in the air 😍
Cornus mas and Prunus flowering prettily in the sunshine 🌞

More houseplant joy and winter walks . Glorious weather and a bit of plant shopping too ....Great way to spend a Sunday 😊

Palms and Bananas everywhere I look 😃 these beauties can be grown in the UK but will need winter protection or just grow as a houseplant.....I think I need a bigger house 😆
These are Foxtail Palm (Wodyetia), Banana (Musa) and Slender Palm Lady ( Raphis humilis)

After spending a week in Phuket I dragged my hubby around the resort that we have stopped over in to discover local flora.. We found these beauties: species of Water lillies (Nymphaea) and Lotus flowers (Nellumbo) so pretty 😍. I am also developing a thing for palms and think we need to invest in more for our home.....always room for more plants 😆

Making wreaths from scratch, starting with vines to make the hoops, mossing and then adding the foliage. Good fun but my fingers are a little sore 🎄 😊

Replacing a very sad looking Box hedge. This has taken a few weeks to dig out and replace as the weather has been so wet but got there in the end. Replaced with lovely looking Euonymus 'Jean Hughes'. It has lovely light coloured new growth and will respond well to clipping.

Creative morning .....and we can eat the pumpkin when the flowers go over too ....winner 😋 lovely morning at Bedfordshire Flower School. 🌼

Wildflower meadow Stage 2...hard scarification to remove thatch, moss and quite a lot of grass 😄