It was not my intention this year, to be absent for so long here within my garden blog. But as all good gardeners know, sometimes we have to prioritise various parts of garden that are in need of attention. This year I allowed my garden blog to slide, as I focused in on other things within my home. For those not familiar with my main blog, that too had to take a back seat in some months too..
As one year closes and another is about to begin, we are always filled with good intentions to do better or set ourselves goals… This coming year my intention is to be kinder to others, kinder to myself, and to count every blessing that we may not always see, until we are gifted them..
So I will leave you with my last blog of the year 2025, and the reblog of my post on my main blog over at Dreamwalkers Sanctuary..
May you grow not only wonderful food, but may your harvests be plentiful, not only in the riches from your gardens, but from the riches of life. as you share your love, and gratitude with others.. May those riches return to you ten fold.
May 2026 bring you abundant fruits of your labours, along with good health, happiness and harmony.. Much love to all ..
And Happy Gardening! and Gathering throughout Life.. Sue. 💖
The dry weather of around 6 or 7 weeks here in the East Mids, broke this last week, and we had some much needed rainfall, that certainly boosted the crops. Below you can see the potatoes are now through and I am sure they drank thirstily from the rain.
I had not been on the plot for over a month, and I have to praise my hubby, for all the hard work he has put in, not only in all the planting, but in keeping the weeds down… The dry weather has helped there, and you can be sure now the rain has fallen, the weeds will soon be pushing through. We were not going to grow any sweet corn this year, but the Universe had other ideas, as a fellow allotmenteer, gave my hubby some plants, and then another person gave him some more.. We just had enough room left, so they got planted.
Sweetcorn near the composting bins. Under the wire gridding on the soil to protect from foxes digging up, are planted, Parsnips, Beetroot and Spring Onions. Under the green cloche is the Winter Cabbage.
I managed to weed out some of the strawberry bed, and picked some strawberries too. In fact I have now picked at least a couple of punnets worth since.
Strawberry bed Washed Strawberries
The Greenhouse’s are now more or less all sorted out and the Tomato plants are in along with cucumbers and Peppers. The courgettes are also in the ground now, but I didn’t take a photo of them.
Tomatoes in one greenhouse
Cucumbers and Sweet Peppers.
The Middle Cloche has Brussel Sprouts and Purple sprouting Broccoli. And the nearest the bottom Cloche has Broccoli and Spring and Summer Cabbages.
Broad beans are the greenery you see, and under the wire are French beans, and Peas, that are just starting to sprout.
Furthest away is leeks, then onion set from Seeds, then onion Sets, and Shallot sets.
Kidney Beans, starting to climb the poles, being sheltered from the wind by the netting. Kidney beans are very susceptible to Frost and cold winds. If planting the seeds outdoors, you should not plant in the soil until around the 13th May, this gives the late frosts time to pass before the plant starts pushing through the ground.. These were started in the green house and later planted outdoors.
My Apple Tree I grew from seed, now has Apple’s that have set on the branches. I did a Happy Dance when I saw this. 🤣
Rhubarb Pie
The Rhubarb has been been picked several times and made into pies.
Next time I will share the home garden flowers and what is in bloom. I hope your own gardens are flourishing well… Until Next Time.. 🥦🍓🌱Happy Gardening.🌱🥦🍓
The Month of May, is one of my most special months of the year. And the delights of the Bluebell woods are something to behold. And so on the first day of May, we went to visit this ancient woodland and park. I posted more about that visit Here..
I have not been a regular visitor to our allotment plot this past month, instead my hubby as asked me to concentrate on the home garden, as I overdid it last time I went to help him and pulled my back. So I have no new photos to share at the moment, so instead I will share what is blooming in the home garden.
In the Home Greenhouse the Begonia’s are sprouting, and will soon be able to be put outside
A new Pink Dahlia in bloom Grown in a pot in the greenhouse
Aquilegia’s and Iris’s
Snapdragons
Flag Iris’s in Bud
Ferns and Yellow Welch Poppies with the Magnolia
My daughter brought me some Peonies and gave me some Lilies of the Valley from out of her garden.. She said that she had read that gifting Lilies of the Valley on the 1st of May which was my own special day, was a traditional Good luck charm. I went to explore in more detail later and discovered that this tradition originated in Japan and became popular in Europe going back to 1560.
Back in the days of Charles IX, on a certain May 1, 1560, it is said that the king was offered a sprig of lily of the valley during a trip to the Drôme region, and that he appreciated the attention so much that he decided to offer these white flowers to the ladies of the Court every spring, as a good-luck charm. A number of anecdotes followed, all of which contributed to the lily of the valley’s reputation as a sweet harbinger of happiness…
More can be found out about this tradition on the link above provided.
The Clematis has been in full flower too, enjoying the Sun.
Biscuit enjoying the Sun.
I will finish off with a photo of our cat Biscuit.. He wasn’t too well this past couple of weeks, which resulted in a visit to the vets after what looked like a bite on his mouth led to an abscess.. After a course of treatment he is now back to his normal self. And he even felt well enough to go with his Dad, my hubby, for a walk and play on the allotments. Here are some previous photos of him keeping his Dad company on the plot.
We are so very grateful that Biscuit came into our lives 5 years ago, and he chose us, he will be 14 this year.
I hope that all of your own gardens are thriving, sending you much love and
Spring is such a wonderful time, as we witness the opening of buds after their deep winters sleep. I never fail to marvel at Nature’s beauty in looking deep into a newly opened flower, to the unfurling of a fresh green leaf.
We planted out some of the lettuce’s into the raised bed… Here you see them protected under the netting.
Lettuce
Last week when I took these photos it was dry, but we have since had a few showers of rain, so we were still watering. Below you can see the Shallots and Onions watered and how much they have grown since the last photos I took when planting them.
Onions and Shallots and Broccoli and cauliflower under the netting.
I am absolutely thrilled with my Apple tree I grew from seed, and I make no apologies for going on about this tree.. The blossom is a deeper pink than my other mature trees. I just wish I could remember the variety of apple I took the seeds from… I know they were a delicious apple I bought off a Farmers Market Stall, which is why I grew the seed..
A Darker Pink Apple Blossom from my home grown seed
New Apple Tree, You can clearly see the darker shade of blossom against the back drop of the other apple trees
The Greenhouse at home as also been busy, as Hubby re-potted the Begonia tubas and a couple of new Dahlia tubas as well which are now beginning to sprout
Begonias
A Dahlia well and truly sprouting and wall pots filled with compost ready for new plants.
In the home garden, we have more colour as the wall flowers, honesty, and bleeding hearts open up in flower. And the Iris leaves along with forget-me-nots and primulas and primroses. Here in the Gallery. The Magnolia tree we gave a very good prune last Autumn as it was getting to high to manage. Click each image to enlarge.
Bleeding Hearts flower Honesty and Wallflowers Bleeding Hearts Flowers Magnolia Tree Forget-me-nots. Bleeding Hearts Honesty and Tulips Iris Spike leaves, primrose and primulas
On the days I have not been out in nature, I have been either painting, or sewing.. I painted this fox, on a small card.
Fox in Watercolour
And I dedicate myself about 2 hours a day aside for sewing. I am completing another Mother’s Day gift from my daughter. I shared one of here gifts I made, and shared in my other main blog Dreamwalkers Sanctuary. A Stargazer Hare in felt, in a post called Expanding Joy. Hare Today Gone Tomorrow. linked to the title.
This project needs lots of concentration, along with patience. As this is stitched through canvas, with tiny beads,. The project is called A Singing Bird by Abris Art. And I am loving doing this bead work. The needle is that fine, it often bends as I push through the canvas. I have since done more since taking this photo and I am now working on the tail feathers.
Singing Bird Bead Work
I hope you all had a wonderful Easter last weekend… I am still in the relaxation mode as this next week is another celebration week for me personally.
Remember, Life is for living, for growing, and for creating.
Make the very best of each and every moment. Fill it with Love, and Joy, and Happiness in everything you do. Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can achieve today. For you never know what tomorrow may bring.
Fairies at the Bottom of our Garden A Watercolour Card I painted.
Well perhaps not… But today is St Patricks Day, and I while I do not myself celebrate this day here in England, I know many of you who perhaps read here may do. I would like to think there are the little folk tending the plants and seeing that our Natural Rhythms and cycles of the Seasons are all in order…
I have just finished reading a wonderful magical book by D Wallace Peach. Which I found enchanting, along with so many analogies as we all weave our way through life. As we dive deeper into our talents and believe in our own abilities to create magic from our imagination.. I have to say Diana, kept me spell bound throughout the whole of this book with its Magical creatures and vivid narration of the Charmed ones. A recommended read.. I have left Diana’s Blog link below .
While we await the potatoes to sprout a little more and the brassica family to push through and grow, I have been in my own creative space.
Potatoes in each of these boxes in the shed sprouting before they go in the ground in a couple of weeks time Here are Cauliflower, Broccoli Early Cabbage.
So while I managed to get a little weeding out of my strawberry patch done on the fine days, There is not much else I could help my hubby with last week. So my paint box was out again and I decided to add to my card collection.. The Elementals have been in my mind all of this year, so I allowed my own imagination to just go with the flow. and the Gallery below is the results… Some of you who visit my Main Blog Dreamwalker’s Sanctuary Linked at the side panel of this blog, may have seen a few of these already.. Others are new.
Click each to enlarge.
Some Whimsical birds Mushroom Fairy Butterfly Dragonfly
Watercolour Paintings
Have a wonderful St Patricks Day.. And Enjoy the rest of March, I hope Spring is arriving where you are or Autumn is delivering its colourful glow… And as D Wallace Peace Book suggests.. Each of the Seasons are essential for our survival… May we all honour our Earth Mother and All of her Seasons, along with all of those Little Folk who are working their Magic..
The primroses I bought from a garden centre years ago and I have split up to replant in our boarder are bringing colour to the garden.
The Daffodils too are beginning to bloom, as they bring their yellow delights of sunshine into our spring gardens.
A lone daffodil showing the way.
Winter I know in many parts around the world is still in full swing, as the snow and ice still blanket the earth… And here in England, I know we still have plenty of time yet for snow fall. I have lost the count over the years, how when the Daffodils are out in full bloom, they are dashed and broken back into the ground by heavy snow. But the flowers remind me of our own inner strengths, as we weather our own storms in life… We push on through, to stand tall, in our resolve to be the best we can be…
And the flowers, do exactly that, showing us their best, despite all that the elements throw at them..
As I walked to the allotments this morning with my hubby, to inspect how things were after some more very high winds over the last couple of days. I spotted near a hedgerow these beautiful snowdrops.
The snow drops are always among the first to push through the frozen ground, and despite their delicate looking appearance, they stand proud and tall. Showing us all that we are stronger than we think, especially when we stand side by side in numbers.. Reminding me of the saying, Together we Stand, Divided we Fall…
The Allotment has the horse manure now sitting on top, ready to be dug in. Here hubby is about putting some of the plastic sheeting back which had blown over in the wind from the neighbouring plot… At last someone has taken this plot next to us, and has covered it to allow the weeds to die back down. Its been empty for over 4 years. we hope the plot the other side of us the people who took it on, take a new interest in it, or give it up so others may make the most of it…
We had some tarpaulin ripped off the shed roof, but there is still a rough layer in place, so that is a job for finer weather. but compared to others we got off lightly.
Some of the seeds are already beginning to sprout through, which are cauliflower, and early cabbage. Hubby has to reset the peas as mice got into the greenhouse and decided to have a feast on them, (What is it with us and growing Peas!… 🙂 ) Lets hope the second setting we get better results 🙂 And once in the ground the pigeons don’t spot them, fingers crossed 🙂
Here below are the broad beans coming through along with last autumns leeks, which we are still pulling to eat.
Broad beans and leeks
It was good to get back into the allotments. I have not been in it for a while, as I have been busy with my needle crafts. Which I will share at a later date. We are fortunate, as some in the high storms in the recent weeks, had their green houses totally collapse and smash….
I am looking forward to Spring, and planting time, to get back out into the garden, get soil beneath my nails again.. As we feel Mother Earth beneath our feet. She feeds us, and heals us…
I will leave you with some colour from plants and flowers inside our home… The blooms of roses, were part of a bouquet for our Golden Wedding Anniversary in January.
This is a dual post serving both my blogs including Dreamwalker’s Sanctuary. So it may be a little deeper than my normal monthly update here on my garden blog.
After the slow and cool start to Summer, August so far has more than made up for it.. We have had some beautiful Sunny warm days, which has helped ripen, the growing veggies as well as open up the blooms in the garden. The warmer days have enabled me to sit out in the garden, read several books, and finish off one embroidery table cloth, while starting another.. It has been relaxing and empowering. For some days I have needed the escapism of the outer world. Being empathic, it is hard at times to separate oneself from the wounds others are feeling, and there are so many wounds that need healing right now in England and around our world. As we are witnessing many turbulent emotions beginning to surface, causing anger and conflict.
“In nature, nothing is perfect and everything is perfect.” – Alice Walker
So finding that safe haven, that tranquil space, while tempers cool, and rational thinking of common sense reaches out to bridge the barriers of indoctrinated thoughts of those time old divisions. Is why I retreat often, into my creative sacred space of my garden and crafts.
People are sifting through their emotions, which recent tragic events on innocents here in England have sparked. These emotions, which were inevitably always brewing beneath the surface, especially in these times of energetic shifts, which flush out and bring to the surface many of our ancestral emotions. Causing both inner and outer conflict. Every action has an impact upon another. As the collective experience reverberates to be experienced in one form or another by all..
I cannot change how another feels or acts, I can only change how I feel and how I act and react. And yes, some days its hard, because we are human, with human emotions. We vent, and we shout, as we release those pent up feelings, as we witness upheaval and injustices. But if we focus in on that anger and hold onto it, it serves no one. All it does is separate and divide even wider.
“A garden requires patient labour and attention. Plants do not grow merely to satisfy ambitions or to fulfil good intentions. They thrive because someone expended effort on them.” – Liberty Hyde Bailey
Embroidery Tablecloth: — It takes thousands of stiches to weave a design.. Just think how many thousands of years we have all been weaving in the collective.
The various coloured threads I used for my embroidery, each separate, holding no form or shape, just a long, single thread, a straight line. It is we who have the skills to create, who bring to life, and blend together as we weave and mix colours to bring form to shape and design.
At some point we have to come together, we have to weave and create that which we wish to experience. And I can only create through my own focus and intentions. So I try to concentrate on Peace, and Harmony as I create, be it with needle and thread or my pruning shears. There is much we still need to prune out of our lives, and more still to create, and the more we create Harmony within, the more harmonious will be our experience.
Sewing stitch by stitch, allows the mind to focus. While we can not ignore what is occurring and changing before our very eyes, we each have to be mindful of the parts we each play in those changes. By stepping back within our own creative space, it allows us to see from a different perspective. Like taking a deep breath, before we speak in anger, give yourself space to feel calm, and peace.
We all of us are in need of those feelings of peace, to surround us at the moment. For so many things will be brought to our attention with the aim to cause confusion and chaos. No matter where or who you are, there are always two sides to every story, We are seeing those two sides more clearly now, more than ever before. So when a society feels only one side is being heard, and they are not being listening to, by those who are supposed to listen, then those voices get raised louder, and tempers flare. The tempers were always set to flare, as various sparks were ignited, to fuel the flames of emotions. And Emotions during these current planetary phases are running high.
We each of us right now have to be responsible for our emotions, and actions, as we inner-stand that what we think. so we create, and that we each hold personal responsibility, no matter how our emotional bodies rebel, two wrongs do not make a right.
“The garden suggests there might be a place where we can meet nature halfway.” – Michael Pollan
So, as you take a deeper breath, be mindful of your reactions, as you first take those inner moments to breathe, let go, and find your hearts centre. Know that we are all of us co-creators, manifesting our future. May it be one that revolves around harmony and peace. I will leave you with a couple of galleries.. The first is of the veggies garden in the allotments. The second is of flowers in the home garden. Click on each photo to Enlarge.
I hope you all find Peace within your creative pursuits and tranquil gardens and walks. 💚 Much Love 💚 Happy Gardening!
Well you wouldn’t believe it but we are only17 days away from the longest day of the year, Summer Solstice, and then we are on our way back down the other half of the year again.. This year has seemed unreal in many respects, not only in terms of time, but observing nature in general. Everything seems to be also growing at warp speed also.. Weeds as you gardeners always know, thrive no matter what the weather, but our exceptional wet then milder days seem to have given everything a turbo boost.
Most things on the allotments have thrived, all that is except our peas… We had to set twice, I think first time the mice got to them, and while the second setting grew beautifully, the pigeons got to them and demolished them. So we are on our third set this time in the green house in pots, to set out under some netting next time around.
Our allotment sandwiched in the middle. The righthand side not been touched for a few years has reverted by to a field, the one on the left recently been taken over and is trying to kill the weeds with plastic sheeting to smoother them.
Strawberry Bed before and after weeding out . Use the slider in the middle to see the differences
The Dahlia bed before and after weeding. The Dahlia’s were covered over once they had died back through out winter, with a fleece and plastic to protect from the frost.
One really good thing we have noticed is the amount of bees, mainly bumble bees and masonry bees, but our Rhododendron Bush has been covered in bees and so has our climbing hydrangea I took pictures of the bees enjoying them. Click images to enlarge.
Climbing Hydrangea Bumble Bee Small Bee Rhododendron.
Below you will see we already have a cucumber and the tomatoes are also in flower
Small Cucumber Tomatoes and cucumbers
I am sorry that not all the photos are clear, I reduced their sizes before uploading as room on my media on my blog now is limited. Click to enlarge
Onions and shallots, and lettuce
Brassicas, Sprouts, Broccoli, Spring Cabbage & Cauliflower
Red currants and raspberries
Blueberries and black currants
Broad beans to the left, Parsnips, beetroot.
I will add a couple more photos of the yellow Iris’s in our home garden
Home garden Yellow Iris
The Rhubarb has now gone to seed, but I have had lots off it and given plenty away also to my daughter who I have this idea to thank, .. I didn’t make it exactly as she did, as she is Vegan and used a vegan recipe, but I cheated and used ready puff pasty and lightly stewed the rhubarb in a tiny bit of water and some maple syrup to sweeten.. This was the result..
Rhubarb Pie
I hope you are all enjoying Nature and your Gardens… Remember to make the most of every day, come rain or shine. On the wet days, I have been dabbling in my watercolour art… Creating a little bit of fairy magic.
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..
It has been a long while since I wrote here in my Garden Blog. The absence wasn’t intentional, but maybe the Universe had diverted my attention to be less on line in recent months, and more in my creative zone. Since the Allotment is more or less put to bed over winter, there wasn’t a great lot to report.. I allowed my Garden blog to sleep for what now is 6 months.. So I wouldn’t be surprised if any of you who followed here also put this blog to bed for good also.
I now feel though, that it’s time to emphasise the importance of growing our own food, or to bring awareness of the Farmers plight across the world. About our Food production in general. Which has been constantly targeted by officialdom. If you are not already aware of the campaign of NO FARMERS NO FOOD then this link is a good place to start in educating yourselves on the plight many farmers are facing across the world not just here in the UK.
But change is happening and there are now many more people who are wanting to help, be it help cut out the middle men, to help farmers, to growing their own food and starting food hubs and co-operative type initiatives. One such none profit organisation is this one Open Food Network here in the UK, but its not just here in the UK these hubs are springing up organically all over the world, as people become more aware of the importance of connecting with Nature and organically grown produce, and the value to health of good nutritional food that hasn’t got a load of chemicals added to it.
A wonderful conversation on how this is now coming about, can be viewed by listening to this great conversation on the subject of the Open Food Network and how communities are coming together with Farmers and local growers, to see how best to help farmers connect directly with communities in helping distribute and find new ways of diversifying their strengths in helping produce and distribute food on a local level, as well as utilising skills.
The transition is not going to occur over night and the pressures farmers have been under via these huge Supermarket corporations to produce their products to the specifications of what to grow and when, as supermarkets demands be met, be it straight carrots or Kiwi Fruits of a certain size.. Farmers are being squeezed out of business, by so many pressures put upon them.
And as more and more farms close, this will impact ALL of us eventually, for when our farmers are no more, will you be one to eat Bugs? as some in the WEF are suggesting. Oh and by the way, are already adding unknowingly to many foods, unless you look very closely at labels, which are already on our Supermarket shelves!..
Those who have followed me know that we have had our allotment plot for many years, and the excess food we do grow we often give away to family, neighbours and friends, Its good to see also many more of our plots being taken up as people gravitate back to nature and growing their own again. Keeping chickens to lay eggs, etc… We now have fresh new laid eggs from another allotmenteer each week, paying the allotmenteer what he feels is a fair price, and let me tell you its half the price of Free Range Eggs and much fresher than some supermarkets.
As prices in our shops and our energy bills escalate substantially, people are now seeing for themselves this may well get worse before it gets better. And as the weather here has added an extra burden on farmers, they have not in some areas of Lincolnshire in England been able to get to plant crops, because their fields are under water. So no potatoes were planted or wheat, Food shortages and prices will rise. So I hope this post gives a little food for thought when you next buy your veggies, to see where they came from, as you perhaps support your local farmers to keep them in business..
Below is a slide shows, on the current state of our Allotment.. We have the potatoes in, 3 rows of earlies, 5 rows of maincrop.. the onion sets are in, the pea rows are about to go in. The lettuce plants are also planted, as are the broad beans which were set last Autumn, now coming into flower.. The greenhouse is full of leeks, cauliflower, and sprouts seedlings potted on ready to go out, at the end of the month.. And the tomatoes, cucumbers and squashes all raring to go, they have been sitting on my home bedroom windows and landing windowsills for a while now…
Potatoes are in the ground and the soil dug and hoed
Various Lettuce in the cold frame under the netting
More ground freshly dug over
Beneath these arches which will eventually hold nets once the fruits are set, are Blueberry, Raspberry, Red and Blackcurrant and Gooseberry bushes. My hubby who didn’t know I took this photo 🙂
Tomatoes and Cucumbers have been growing on the home windowsills ready to transfer to the greenhouses.
While I have not been in the allotments as much as I once was, I have kept my fingers busy with my arts and crafts.. Here is just a small sample of some cards I had made.. Some are with dried pressed flowers and others are with my watercolour paints. Click to enlarge individually. and see descriptions.
Thank you for reading, until next time… and lets hope its sooner rather than later..
Dreamwalker's Garden 
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