When the fairies tire of dancing each night, they slip off their tiny shoes and hide them beneath white dead-nettle blooms. But beware, should a centipede find them there, it will steal them away and wear them out, dancing until dawn! 🧚🐛 #FolkloreSunday #wildflowers

One of my favourite plants in the garden at this time of the year is this smoke bush, Cotinus ‘Grace’. Its dark purple leaves transform into the most extraordinary, glowing colours, in shades of oranges and reds! #DailyBotanicalBeauty #gardening

A few flowers still bringing light and joy to my garden in November: Rosa ‘The Fairy’, a Calendula ‘Snow Princess’ bud slowly unfurling its pretty petals, Cosmos ‘Candy Stripe’, Dahlia ‘White Onesta’, Geranium ‘Nimbus’, and Nicotiana mutabilis. #SixOnSaturday #gardening

“It’s ok to feel delicate sometimes. Real beauty is in the fragility of your petals. A rose that never wilts isn’t a rose at all.” - Crystal Woods. #FlowerWisdom #FlowersOnFriday #FlowerFridayFamily

I’ve just been for a lovely wander around my garden, marvelling at how the autumn colours, the oranges & yellows, seem to glow as dusk descends. Suddenly there was a memory of summer, a waft of honeysuckle and sure enough my honeysuckle is flowering, in November! #gardening #joy

“By the lake or river-side Where the Alders dwell, In the Autumn may be spied Baby catkins; cones beside - Old and new as well. Seasons come and seasons go; That's the tale they tell!” Illustration & words from The Song of the Alder Fairy by Cicely Mary Barker. #FolkloreThursday #poetry #nature

In some traditions, November’s #FullMoon is the Mourning Moon, and marks a time of reflection and release. Often the last full moon before the #WinterSolstice, it invites us to grieve what is lost, honour what has been & clear space for renewal in the year ahead. #WednesdayWisdom

In Norse folklore, mayweed was known as baldersbrår, meaning “Baldur’s eyelashes.” Named for Baldur, god of light, beauty, and purity, these flowers, with their lash-like petals, were said to symbolise his radiance, and the gentle peace he brought to the world. #FairytaleTuesday

"E'en in these bleak November days There's gladness for the heart that heeds." - C. D. Shanly (1811-1875) Hogweed, red dead-nettle, shepherd’s purse, bristly oxtongue, common dog-violet, red campion, bramble, cornflower, meadow buttercup, and yarrow. #WildflowerHour #TheWinter10

In old English folklore, rosemary symbolised remembrance and fidelity. Brides once wore rosemary in their hair, or wove it into wedding wreaths, as a token of love and constancy. Used to scent hair and garments, it was also believed to bring beauty and virtue. #FolkloreSunday

The Chrysanthemum is a birth flower for those born in #November. In the Victorian language of #flowers, it symbolises cheerfulness and optimism. Bronze-coloured blooms are said to represent friendship, making them a thoughtful and fitting gift for a friend celebrating this month.

Not everyone’s a fan of #Halloween, so if you prefer orange blooms to spooky, orange pumpkins, here are some fabulous flowers to feast your eyes upon! #DailyBotanicalBeauty

An old superstition says falling leaves hold magic. Catch one before it touches the ground on #Halloween and good fortune will be yours. Some say each leaf caught brings a lucky month in the year ahead, so be ready when the wind begins to blow. It’s not as easy as you think! 🍂

Fall, leaves, fall; die, flowers, away; Lengthen night and shorten day; Every leaf speaks bliss to me Fluttering from the autumn tree. I shall smile when wreaths of snow Blossom where the rose should grow; I shall sing when night’s decay Ushers in a drearier day. Emily Brontë #poetry #autumn

Any rose that’s still flowering its socks off, on a damp, dark day at the end of October is worth its wait in gold! Rosa ‘The Fairy’ photographed in my garden this morning. She’s truly magical! #RoseWednesday

These packs of cards were very popular last winter, and I now have a handful of packs back in stock. If you would like any, please order soon! There is a link to my website on my profile page. #SmallBusiness #GreetingCards #art

A Cornish tale tells of a pixie who loses his laugh at a #Halloween dance. In one version of the story, Jack-o’-Lantern & a witch gathering ragwort stalks (said to be the very plants witches ride upon on All Hallows’ Eve) help him search until he finds it again. #FairyTaleTuesday

Looking up through the tree canopies, autumn light filters through the leaves. The Japanese word komorebi describes sunlight seen through leaves — the shifting radiance where earth meets sky in gold and flame. #Autumn #Trees

Can you see the profile of a warty, wizened, old face in this tree? I took the photograph yesterday when I visited Westonbirt Arboretum. Very spooky! #FolkloreSunday #HalloweenIsComing

Some of the fabulous colours at Westonbirt Arboretum today, before and after the rain! #AutumnColour #nature

These 2026 Calendars are now available to pre-order. The link to my website is in my bio on my profile page. Lots of lovely Christmas cards to browse through too! #SmallBusiness #flowers #photography

Cosmos still blooming beautiful in my garden, and producing new “buds of hope” as we head towards the end of October. #FlowersOnFriday #FlowerFridayFamily

Long ago the fairies played too long catching sunbeams. When night fell, they hid them in their flower cradles and slept. By dawn, the beams had spilled out, turning some flowers gold – the buttercup and the marigold – and leaving a golden heart in all the rest. #FolkloreThursday

An old tale tells that mushrooms are umbrellas, carried by woodland spirits to shelter them from the rain as they go about their nightly tasks. When it is time for them to return to their underground world at dawn, they plant them in the earth for safekeeping. #folklore #nature

“The chestnut trees turned yellow, The oak like sherry browned, The fir, the stubborn fellow, Stayed green the whole year round. But O the bonny maple How richly he does shine! He glows against the sunset Like ruddy old port wine.” - Christopher Morley (1890-1957) #poetry #nature

The beautiful heart-shaped leaves of the American redbud (Cercis canadensis ‘Forest Pansy’), displaying their vivid #autumn colours. #DailyBotanicalBeauty #photography

In Lower Germany, honeysuckle, woody nightshade and other twining plants are called “albranke”, the witch-snare. Folklore held these plants aided witches in their escape by tangling pursuers in their coils, thus allowing the witch to slip away safely. #MythologyMonday #Halloween

The #wildflower greater stitchwort (Stellaria holostea) is also known as ‘Jack-in-the-Lantern’, a name associated with the goblin who bears the ignis fatuus or ‘foolish fire’, a ghostly flame said to mislead night travellers across bogs and marshes. #FolkloreSunday #Halloween

Pink Chrysanthemums photographed in the walled garden at Thenford in Oxfordshire this afternoon. #DailyBotanicalBeauty #photography #flowers

"Gardening has compensations out of proportion to its goals. It is creation in the pure sense." - from 'The Province of the Heart' by Phyllis McGinley (1905-1978). #gardening #SaturdayMotivation #SaturdayMorning

Anyone started planting their tulips yet? What varieties will you be looking forward to next spring? #DailyBotanicalBeauty #flowers #gardening

Here’s Dahlia ‘Wizard of Oz’ creating some autumn magic in my garden with a profusion of pretty-in-pink Aster ‘Little Bella’ flowers behind. Have a wonderful Friday everyone! #FlowersOnFriday #FlowerFridayFamily

Soft pink petals unfurling to wish you a peaceful evening. #DailyBotanicalBeauty #Photography #Flowers

16th October is the feast day of St. Hedwig (1174-1243), patron saint of orphans. J.K. Rowling was inspired to name #HarryPotter’s owl Hedwig after this medieval saint. Her name comes from Scandinavian ‘Hedvig’ meaning a battle or female warrior. #FolkloreThursday #BookChatWeekly

I’ve finally chosen the cover photo and images for my 2026 calendar and ordered the proof. I’m so late with it this year, but hey ho! I hope you like them! #SmallBusiness #flowers #photography

"Many haws, many sloes, many cold toes!" Old country wisdom says that an abundance of hawthorn berries and sloes in autumn is a sure sign of a cold winter to come. Have you seen a plentiful crop of haws and sloes in the hedgerows near you? #WednesdayWisdom #nature #folklore

Wolfsbane, or monkshood (Aconitum napellus), is a deadly flower tied to werewolf lore. In medieval Europe it was said to repel or cure lycanthropy, the power or curse of turning into a wolf. Some tales claim witches used wolfsbane ointments to change shape. #FairytaleTuesday

Memories of summer. #DailyBotanicalBeauty #photography #flowers

“How beautifully the leaves grow old! How full of light and color are their last days!” - John Burroughs. #MondayMotivation #nature #art

October…“When all the lovely wayside things Their white-winged seeds are sowing, And in the fields still green and fair, Late aftermaths are growing.” Hogweed, hollyhock, campion, creeping thistle, autumn hawk-bit, yarrow, green alkanet, feverfew found today. #WildflowerHour

The Cailleach, of Celtic myth, is winter’s Faerie Queen and ancient hag. At Samhain she strikes the earth with her blackthorn staff, withering fields and forests to sleep. Her breath brings frost; her touch, stillness. Until Imbolc, she rules with ice and shadow. #FolkloreSunday

“Then I sally forth, half sad, half proud, And I come to the velvet, imperial crowd, The wine-red, the gold, the crimson, the pied— The dahlias that reign by the garden-side." - Edith M. Thomas (1854-1925). #DailyBotanicalBeauty #Photography #flowers

“I found, and plucked, an autumn-blooming rose, And shut my eyes, and scented all its savour … “ - Alfred Austin. #poetry #photography #flowers

“Autumn carries more gold in its pocket than all the other seasons.” - Jim Bishop, American journalist and author (1907-1987). #photography #autumn #nature

Begonias brighten the dimmest corner, bringing joy to the heart even in the shade. #DailyBotanicalBeauty #photography #flowers

Žemyna, the Lithuanian goddess of the Earth, embodies all living things that grow from her soil. Oaks, lindens, and spruces are sacred to her, and in their highest branches, it is said, the secret of life itself is hidden. #FolkloreThursday #trees #nature

October roses in warm hues for #RoseWednesday

Japanese anemone and a hoverfly. #DailyBotanicalBeauty #photography #flowers

The marigold (Calendula officinalis) is the last birth flower for those born in #October. Sacred to Apollo, the sun god, its golden blooms were thought to hold protective and healing powers. To keep marigolds in the home was to invite sunlight and good fortune. #folklore #flowers

The hop, Humulus lupulus, is the third birth flower for those born in the month of October. It is also called the ‘beer flower’ because it is used as a flavouring in beer making. The leaves and flower-heads can also be used to produce a fine brown dye. #folklore #flowers #nature