Category: What To Do Now

How To Plant Up A Hanging Basket

Plant up your own hanging baskets this summer, rather than buying a run-of-the-mill, ready-planted one. It’s so much more satisfying to do it yourself. You can put in plants you like, not those horrid little conifers and ivy that always seem to be included in shop-bought baskets. You could even include edibles like strawberries or tumbling tomatoes. You can choose… Read more →

May: What To Do Now

In my garden this month, the tulips have made way for the irises. Bearded iris flowers provide fat brushstrokes of colour that tower over the borders on tall stems. The smaller flowers of siberian and dutch irises are just as rich in colour, with contrasting throat markings and an intricate petal shape. They are exquisite. Aquilegia (also known as granny’s… Read more →

April: What To Do Now

For me early spring has been all about bold blues, yellows and acid greens. It’s a colour combination I love to see after the monochromes of winter. In our front garden, primroses and grape hyacinths (muscari) are self-seeding happily in one border (see photo above), while on the other side of the path, dog violets and a creeping sedum, whose… Read more →

How To Make A Mini Frog Pond

I got a text from my mum yesterday informing me that her pond was full of wrestling frogs. I think I can safely assume that “wrestling” was my mum’s euphemism for “having sex”. It’s that time of year when all sorts of creatures are busy making babies. The blue tits in my garden are frantically nesting, male blackbirds are squabbling… Read more →

March: What To Do Now

I just love the way gardens look this month. There’s blossom and pretty flowers popping up everywhere, and tightly wrapped, shiny leaf buds on shrubs and trees. There’s the promise of something wonderful to come in the air, and if you planted some last autumn, there’s also the gorgeous scent of hyacinths. The first of March is officially the start… Read more →

February: What To Do Now

Something drew me out into the garden yesterday morning when I got back from the school run. Perhaps it was the fact that there’s a bit of warmth to the sunshine again. I let the spirit take me and didn’t even stop to change my clothes. I had a lovely time clearing out a couple of small borders, chucking all… Read more →

January: What To Do Now

Winter landed here in a big way last week and we woke up to some stunningly beautiful frosts, the ground sparkly white, and plants and trees coated in a thick dusting of frosty crystals. I couldn’t resist wasting five vital minutes of school run time taking photos! It’s milder this week, the sun is out and we’ve got our blue, blue… Read more →

November: What To Do Now

This month has brought us some truly beautiful days. I still find myself entranced by the quality of the morning light and gorgeous blue skies of autumn in Norwich. We have enjoyed walking (and scooting) through showers of golden, falling leaves. There are more and more bare branches now. On wet days, we squelch and squerch through deep, shiny piles… Read more →

How To Build A Hogitat

Inspired by a recent newsletter from the RSPB, I decided we would use the next dry day to build a hedgehog house in the garden. So today, we fleeced up and mustered outside, to build a warm habitat for our hogs to hibernate in over winter. Hedgehog numbers are worryingly in decline in the UK: “Our beloved hedgehog has had… Read more →