Old School Garden

Where can we start to tell you what a privilege it is to stay at Casa de Sezim in Guimarães? This manor house is the perfect place to experience the glamour of aristocratic life. The house is built around a tower that remounts to 1376. The magnificent salons and the expansive veranda were added in the […]

via An 18th century oasis — Salt of Portugal

For two thousand years, the ‘peaceful undulating country of East Kent’ had pursued ‘an agricultural and seaside existence, perturbed by nothing more agitating than an ephemeral military conquest or so!’ But in 1931, as Patrick Abercrombie noted, a new coalfield seemed destined to change all that: (1) That deep peace is now permanently invaded; for, […]

via Aylesham and the Planning of the East Kent Coalfield, Part I — Municipal Dreams

A chill February wind is enough to send the hardiest gardener indoors, yet people love to gather round a bonfire. Installing a firepit creates the same focal point as a fireplace does in your sitting room, drawing family and friends into a cosy bonhomie round a flame-filled bowl, and extends the use of your garden […]

via Firepits in the Garden — Jardin

Now. that I’m getting on with tidying the borders, it makes sense to apply a mulch at the same time. Leave it much longer and it will be far trickier to spread the mulch amongst the growing plants. But what to use? Bark mulch in the woodland area Strulch on the borders A conversation with…

via Choosing the Right Mulch — The Enduring Gardener

So after Kanazawa, we took the train to Kyoto. Remember, this was in September of last year. Before it was Tokyo, Kyoto was Japan’s capital for about 800 years. Kyoto is to Tokyo sort of the way Boston is to Los Angeles. Kyoto is smaller, quieter, more refined – and with a lot more history. […]

via Kyoto’s Kiyomizudera Temple — gardeninacity

We’ve got a while yet before we get to the eagerly awaited and short-lived British asparagus season. This year it falls after the equally eagerly awaited and short-lived, but far less healthy, Easter Egg season. You can expect British asparagus to be in season from the end of April through until June. I planted some…

via Asparagus, asparagine, asparaginase — The Unconventional Gardener

I was at the NW Flower and Garden Show yesterday and saw the Ikebana exhibit. The designs were so attractive and evocative I wanted to share them with you. According to a pamphlet I picked up Ikebana is described as the Art of Japanese Flower Arranging. This show was put on by the Seattle […]

via Ikebana — Gardening in Greenwood

As promised we now return once again to share our experience and enjoyment of our visit to RHS garden Hyde Hall and in particular to celebrate the famous Dry Garden. This was a small patch when we first saw it but a recent revamp has seen it develop greatly in scale but more importantly the […]

via Hyde Hall and its Dry Garden — greenbenchramblings

I used to think that Mr McGregor in Beatrix Potter’s Peter Rabbit was a rather nasty piece of work. He was certainly portrayed as the threatening bad guy and Ms Potter clearly wanted us to sympathise with Peter and his Flopsy Bunny chums. (And by the way, if ever you travel to the English […]

via Empathising with Mr McGregor — The Scottish Country Garden

February is the last month of summer, and it’s still a fairly dry time of the year in Melbourne, so water deeply and less often during dry periods to encourage roots to grow down, making plants less vulnerable to heat and drought. Take advantage of the hot dry weather to do weeding, and lay the […]

via Gardening Calendar (Australian Temperate Climate) – February — Deep Green Permaculture