I have spent 2 weeks refurbishing a neglected part of the garden taken over by a rampant self-seeded honeysuckle. Now full of #roses from pots. Today I ordered Dwarf Polyantha 'Katharina Zeimet' (Lambert, 1901) & Climbing Hybrid Tea 'Mrs Herbert Stevens' (Pernet-Ducher, 1922). 🌹

Chilly morning. The Muscovy boys dom't care as long as breakfast is served promptly. Glad I fleeced the potatoes last night

Pippin & the rainbow (we both got a little wet) 🌈🌦

The cheap pink rhododendron I bought last year from Aldi is excelling itself. Potted on into a large pot with ericaceous compost (we have a limestone soil it wouldn't like) I have left it to its own devices & it has thrived. No idea of the variety but the bumblebees adore it. 🌱 🐝

Sunset emu as the cold blustery wind finally begins to ease down a little. Feeling chilly again.

Wisley Crab apple blossom. Such a pretty tree with its deep pink flowers & coppery red leaves. Raised at Wisley in Surrey, 1924 from a seedling of the now critically-endangered Malus niedzwetzkyana it develops large squarish dark red fruit which makes great jelly

A grey morning to test out my new second-hand binoculars, which arrived yesterday. These are my 'window binoculars', left where I can quickly spy on the birds in the garden trees while sipping my cup of Assam tea. The optics are lovely & they were only £18

Sun setting behind a blossoming pear tree. A day of contrasts - warm in the sunshine but feeling cold in the shade. Blackcaps warbling away in the hedge as the distant sound of traffic quietens down. As soon as the last chores are done it feels like a very fine night for a G&T.🍸

The cowslips tall her pensioners be: In their gold coats spots you see; Those be rubies, fairy favours, In those freckles live their savours: I must go seek some dewdrops here And hang a pearl in every cowslip's ear." [A Midsummer Night's Dream, William Shakespeare, 1596]

Evening check on the sheep. The Shetlands were mostly keen to see if I had brought any biscuits. #SkySheep

Poor sad plant. I spotted it outside the supermarket last night, alone, unwatered & on the verge of death. I wasn't sure I could save it but I had to try. A massive soak & it is beginning to recover. I have repotted it in specialist citrus compost rather than its sand. A kumquat! 🌱

Pitmaston Duchess, my favourite pear. Raised 1841 by John Williams, Pitmaston, Worcestershire, the result of a cross between Duchess d'Angoulême & Glou Morceau. Large juicy pears that are good to eat fresh or cook with. Makes gorgeous pear jam. Very popular in Victorian Britain🍐

Common loons call out in the morning quiet: 🔊 #AGoodPlace Source: www.reddit.com/r/NatureIsFu...

Contemplative peacock at sunset

As the weather warms up & the days lengthen I have dusted off the bbq grill/smoker. I have had this hand-made stainless steel cooker for years & years. It is so well made it almost looks new despite having lived outside for the many years I have had it. Made by a true craftsman🔥

Japanese crab apple, Malus floribunda. Brought to Europe from Japan in 1862, it blooms early while most apples are still quite dormant, providing attractive food for the bees

The emus are enjoying the warm, dry weather & all the blossom, which they like to eat. Gardening with emus is all about damage limitation!

A goldfinch sunbathing amongst the unfirling leaves of a horse chestnut tree

Peacock surveying his domain under a late evening clear pale blue sky

Leeks out, cabbages & Brussels sprouts in! The leeks are beginning to flower so need to come out now. Some will head to the fridge to be eaten in the next week or so (perhaps potage Parmentier or Vicheyssoise) & the rest cut into rings & dehydrated to preserve them. 🌱

A lovely still morning, the light catching the petals of a small clump of Tahiti daffodils. I have been watching a pair of goldcrests foraging along the leaves & twigs of an apple tree; they move quickly & occasionally noisily, searching every crevice for a morsel for breakfast.

Easter Sunday sunset sky. A quiet evening out in the countryside with only birdsong & the sound of the wind ruffling the trees.

Narcissus 'Lucifer' waving in the stiff breeze under heritage variety apple trees in the orchard. Bred in Howth, co. Dublin, Ireland by Alice Louisa Lawrenson & introduced in 1890. 🌱

Camellia japonica 'Nuccio's Jewel'. Happy Easter 🌱

For those over in the other place I have a new version of me. Please come & say hi. @NetherfieldV2

A sad morning. My twitter account has been hacked & I can no longer access it. I guess I am moving permanently here now

Sunset sky with peachy clouds

Fresh Timperley Early rhubarb for pudding tonight. First of the season 😋

Good Friday. Grey & breezy. Buns to eat & roses to plant (I can never resist an end of season bare-root sale): Polyantha 'Yvonne Rabier' (Turbat, 1910), Bourbon 'Souvenir de St Annes' (Hilling, 1950), Hybrid Tea 'Ellen Wilmott' (Archer, 1936) & climber 'Lady Sylvia' (Lowe, 1933). 🌹 🌱

Mature yew bark. So much texture

The 14th century ruins of St John the Baptist, Boughton, Northants. Associated with the deserted medieval settlement of Boughton, the village is now located further west. A very peaceful spot, the churchyard is said to be the most haunted in the county but it felt welcoming to me

No April Fools here just a pair of geese whiling the day away

Camellia x williamsii 'Spring Festival'. A chance seedling from a cross with C. cuspidata it was bred by Toichi Domoto in Heywood, California & introduced 1976. Absolutely covered in pretty pink blooms. 🌱

Narcissus 'Kedron'. A Jonquil hybrid introduced from America in 1974 where it was hybridized by Willis H. Wheeler, Arlington, Virginia. Warm apricot yellow petals catch the eye (the colour is quite striking) & the rich fragrance is lovely. A superb, highly prized daffodil 🌱

It is March yet the Old #Rose 'Gloire de Dijon (Jacotot, 1853) has its first bud. Large, quartered, gloriously-perfumed, buff yellow to apricot blooms (often pink in warm weather). A Tea-Noisette from a cross between an unknown Tea & the Bourbon 'Souvenir de la Malmaison'. 🌹

Sunset sky. Feeling cold in the bitter wind. All the animals were keen to go to bed - they aren't keen on being buffeted by blustery gusts; can't say I blame them though it did help my washing dry. Might light a fire to warm the cockles when I get inside 🔥

Sunset tonight

An expensive day but the car has 2 new tyres (the one without a puncture was worn & needed replacing anyway). An added bonus though - I picked up some free tyres in addition to my old ones to fill with sand & turn into dust baths for the hens, guinea fowl, turkeys etc.

I bought this little air pump/compressor years ago & it has been worth its weight in gold. I opened the window at 6am (to let a starling out!) to see that the car had a flat tyre. New tyres weren't in my budget but I have hit so many potholes in the dark it was perhaps inevitable

Grey & pink sunset clouds over a barrow of glass clippings (heading to the pigs). Feeling chilly

Camellia x williamsii ' Margaret Waterhouse' looking glorious in this morning's sunshine 🌸 🌱

For #RoseWednesday the dwarf Polyantha Marie Pavié (Alégatière, 1888). Bought as a bare-root & potted up, I planted her out in the garden yesterday beside a new path. I can't wait for masses of continuously flowering fragant white to blush pink blooms 🌹🌱 #Roses

Trays of sweet peas ready for potting on & pinching out. This is the first year I have chitted them on wet kitchen paper in a sealed tupperware lunchbox & they are so much better than my usual effort with much better germination. Very pleased. 🌱

My latest Charity Shop bargain to while away hot summer days on. I just need to make a cushion for it. It is super comfortable

A pink sunset through thick cloud

Sunset sky

A pretty narcissus growing among a clump of yellow Carlton daffodils. The 'black sheep' in the pack & I love it for its difference. Not sure of the variety but it is pleasingly eye-catching. 🌱

Shepherds' delight' pale pink sky with plum blossom

Camellia japonica 'Brushfield's Yellow' looking glorious. Bred by Keith Brushfield in Somersby, New South Wales & introduced in 1968. This is a young plant but seems very happy. 🌱

Sunset with goat willow. A few wispy clouds on the horizon at the end of a lovely day full of foraging butterflies & birdsong