Summer Solstice musings

Today is the longest day of the year, the height of summer light and sunshine.  I've already heard the jokes about how we are now heading towards winter, but it isn't quite like that yet.  The roses are at their most luscious and fecund.  I've brought several into the house today, the red roses are just stunning at the moment.

I'm not even sure the pictures show how deep and velvety the red is.  Sadly you will have to take my word for it!

The raspberries are starting to ripen and we have redcurrants and gooseberries starting to ripen too.  The last of the frankly disappointing rhubarb is just coming up.   All of this is made possible by the bees that buzz around our garden.  We usually see a large range of bumble bees and the odd honey bee.   However last Sunday we saw this outside the back door

A swarm of bees!  I'm reliably informed that bees swarm when they are looking for a new home.  I don't know where these came from although they are centred in next doors garden.  The garden next door is not cultivated at all and the people who live there rarely go outside so the bees have been using it for a home or whilst resting.  I'm not entirely sure they've gone as even though they seemed to buzz off, we've seen them again since.

After many weeks of barely being in the garden and feeling somewhat distanced from all that is happening, it was lovely to briefly gather some flowers today.  Everything is lush and twice the size it was the last time I looked...  The insects and the birds carry on regardless.

Dales diary...

I'm afraid this blog has been somewhat quiet again of late.   For several weeks life has simply got in the way.  Last week we went away to the Yorkshire Dales, an utterly beautiful area that I had never seen before. 

Having a week in such a lovely place has done us the world of good.  Even in the pouring rain this is a special place.  The wide open spaces, the mile upon mile of dry stone walls, the thousands of sheep, the rivers and becks and waterfalls are everywhere.

 

And then, finally when the sun comes out, the effect is quite magical. 

The tops of the hills are windy and slightly bleak.  You can see for miles and you can hear the lapwings and skylarks all round.  Down in the dales and in the meadows, the flowers and the woodland birds take over.

Buttercups, clover, germander speedwell and daisies are everywhere and the swallows dip and swoop over the fields.  In the evenings the swifts are up above the houses in their screaming parties, but the swallows dip low almost to our head height.  Occasionally they even rest...

The artist Turner came to the Dales and painted this lovely place, I like to think he appreciated the wonderful light and gentle wilderness .  He stayed at the King's Arms Hotel in Askrigg and the Green Dragon at Hardraw and drew many of the places nearby, including Mill Gill Fall and Hardraw Force.   It is a special place and one I shall remember for a long time.

"There's no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing.” 

Alfred Wainwright

Hedgerow in spring

I always find hedgerows fascinating.  When you come across a proper English hedgerow, six foot high and three foot wide, it is a thing of real beauty.  We explored such a hedge last weekend in Devon, it was mainly made up of hawthorn, hazel, holly and oak. 

At this time of year, the trees and shrubs are growing very rapidly, the ferns and bracken are starting to unfurl and a huge number of wild flowers are scattered through the hedge.

Red campion

Stitchwort

Bluebells

Everything is sweet and fresh and so very very green.  The birds are chattering in the hedges and trees and all seems new.  I am still trying to improve my knowledge of wild flowers...

Unfurling fern

Primrose

Cow parsley

Wood spurge

In amongst all the flowers are a huge variety of insects.  Even in our own garden, we are constantly amazed at the variation, you can never keep up with it all.  In a hedge, it is its own ecosystem, everything is here.

Some kind of fly

A caterpillar?

To see a World in a Grain of Sand
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand
And Eternity in an hour.

William Blake

Little star and Little brown one

Now that it's spring, all kinds of birds that visit our garden here at Hazel Cottage are making more noise, and there is no bird noisier than the common starling.  We have been watching them closely and we have heard some quite remarkable sounds!  I never realised how much they mimic other birds - we heard a bird of prey followed by the quack of a duck today which sounded rather funny.

 

Starling and winter jasmine in our garden

 

Starlings are often seen as noisy and swaggering birds, which is probably true, but they are quite remarkable.  They are acrobatic in flight, you only have to see the photos of the wonderful murmurations in the countryside to see that.  We often see a little group at our bird table, squabbling and chattering amongst themselves and slightly intimidating the otherwise bullish woodpigeons. 

We've been learning more also about the Dunnock.  Its name means 'little brown one' and it is one of the unobtrusive birds in the garden, usually quietly hopping amongst the undergrowth.  For such a small, generally quiet bird it has many names, hedge sparrow, accentor as well as dunnock.  This time of year of course, the dunnock is singing beautifully - I think this year is the first time  I've heard it sing and known what it was. 

Dunnock in a small hazel sapling

Two common birds in the garden, but by watching them more closely we've learned quite a lot about them and probably learned to appreciate them more.  The weather this week has been bright and lovely and great weather for taking pictures as well as gardening.  I'm very pleased with how the garden is coming along, and we haven't reached the height of spring yet.

Today in the garden

Rare as hen's teeth

Today was one of those seemingly rare things, a sunny and warm Easter Bank Holiday.  I always equate bank holidays with watching old black and white films whilst the rain pours all day outside.  Today after a non-descript Easter weekend weather wise, it was sunny, warm and clear for most of the day.

The flowering currant is now resplendent with its pink flowers.  Looking from one end of the garden to the other, you can see the pink of the currant next to the warm yellow of the forsythia.

The weeds or wild flowers are growing apace as well.  We now have speedwell growing in our lawn.  Luckily our garden isn't manicured and perfect, we rather like wild flowers unless they choke everything else!

For some reason we also have chives growing in a shady corner of the lawn as well.  Which makes a change from moss I guess.  It was wonderful to spend hours outside, looking at everything growing and listening to the birds singing.  The last week has been very busy at our local church and preparing for various social occasions at home.  I even helped our flower ladies with a few displays.

I'm sure most people would think me crazy, but when it comes to Easter, I do like to make an effort decorating the house with flowers.  And eggs and chicks!

I also enjoy making a simnel cake with home made marzipan.  This year's simnel cake went particularly well I think.  It was very tasty.

I do hope you have all had a good Easter weekend.  I would love to hear how you celebrated.

Awake, thou wintry earth

“It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade.”

 

A day off and some lovely time gardening.  The weather was changeable; cool in the shade, suddenly warm and lovely when the sun made a rare appearance.  We are trying to tidy up the garden before spring completely arrives.  There are definite signs of spring starting now.  A shrub I've had for a few years is flowering for the first time, it is quite exquisite, but I'm not sure what it is. 

 

Can anyone name this shrub?

 My spring garden is starting to look pretty.  The daffodils are in bud and the primroses and primulas are in full flower.  Tulips and bluebells are further behind, hopefully to greet us in April and May.

Mr C has planted his garlic and is now planting onion sets.  Garlic did well in the garden the last time we tried it, so hopefully we will have a glut.

Garlic

We are also planting several fruit bushes - here are three gooseberry plants, and we have two blackcurrants and a further redcurrant.



Gooseberries

The acid yellow of the spurge or Euphorbia is quite startling and cheers up the garden, most of which is still quite dormant.

 

I may need to make a trip to the garden centre to find another couple of these, they look really good the whole year.  I'm really keen to get on with growing flowers this year, I just need to thwart the slugs and snails!

 

 

In small pockets of the garden however colour and fragrance are appearing. From now onwards, the garden will only get more lush and green and I just cannot wait! 

Awake, thou wintry earth -
Fling off thy sadness!
Fair vernal flowers, laugh forth
Your ancient gladness!
~Thomas Blackburn, "An Easter Hymn"

Glimpses of spring?

Walking in woodland in Devon last weekend we saw a few signs that Spring may be on its way.  March is always a strange month, often you can get several warmer sunnier days and then suddenly the wind rises and the ice and snow appear again.  It is certainly too early to plant very much.  I did notice in Devon the daffodils are starting to come out, so in a week or two ours should appear.  In the meantime, in the woodland and at Hazel Cottage, the snowdrops are charming us.

Funghi doesn't seem to be quite so fussy about temperature as the flowers.  We saw this rather impressive tree funghi.  Does anyone know which one it is?

The primroses are coming up with their dainty pale yellow flowers.

“O fairest flower, no sooner blown but blasted, Soft silken primrose fading timelessly.”

John Milton

 The winter aconites were still plentiful if you knew where to find them.

We also spied the beginnings of ramsons or wild garlic.  Not yet ready to pick, but in a month it should be everywhere!

If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant; if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.
Anne Bradstreet