Spring Indoors

There's nothing more lovely than the start of spring. We've passed the 1st March, the official start of spring according to the Met Office and also the Spring Equinox, so spring is well and truly underway.  The daffodils are out in full force, tulips and bluebells are bursting through ready to follow and many spring garden plants like the forsythia, are either blooming or preparing to bloom. 

The weather is always so changeable in spring though, with warm sunny days where you can be outdoors and enjoy the garden and the birdsong to cold, wet, windy and even snowy days where it's not as easy to be outdoors for too long. This is why I love to have some plants and flowers indoors, to both cheer up the house on those changeable spring days and to reflect a little of the outside indoors. 

I find spring flowers so cheerful and uplifting and love filling vases of daffodils and tulips to spread a little spring cheer around the house. I also love orchids and colourful plants in the conservatory which add to the array of spring colours and make the conservatory a bright and sunny extension of the garden. 

First Spring Flowers

It's been quite wet, cold and miserable these last few weeks, but spring flowers are blooming in the garden again. It always surprising every single year how they seem to suddenly spring up at long last whatever the weather is doing. 

It's early March and according to the met office, spring has already begun. We've already seen the snowdrops and hellebores and before they've begun to fade back, the crocuses and the first of the daffodils have started to bloom. It's a welcome sight to see after the long winter months and an uplifting one too. There's a strong sense we're leaving winter behind and there's brighter and sunnier days to come. Some warmth at long last! 

The 'tete a tetes' are usually the first daffodils to bloom and there's quite a few groupings of them in the lawn and borders both front and back of the house. Some of the other larger varieties aren't far behind them and with a little warm sunshine will be in full flower too. Tulip and bluebell shoots are also pushing through the soil. 

The mornings are lighter and I've noticed the dawn chorus becoming noisier and the birdsong in the garden becoming louder. It's a lovely time of year and although the weather can change dramatically from one day to the next, the promise of the whole of spring and summer ahead is an encouraging  thought. 

The winter pansies are also full of flower as the days grow longer and heathers add brightness to the borders and pots. One of the borders is full of 'chrysosplenium macrophylium' with its pink flowerheads. Bergenia - elephant ear saxifrage - is putting on another show of pink with its flowers  and deep red stems. It stands out in the border. 

It's the beginning of show time in the garden again. The start of enjoying the flower displays that will now continue on and on through spring and summer and into the autumn. Time to be outdoors again. 

A Walk Around Elterwater

There's nothing like a cold and crispy winter's day and a good walk. We were back in the Lake District recently and decided to take one of our favourite walks from the village of Elterwater, by the river Brathay and the lake to Skelwith Bridge and back again. 

It was the end of the half term week and the only glorious day of the week so the walkers were out in force. It can become quite busy here as it is mainly a good, flat path which is ideal for families, buggies and dog walkers alike. There is also a good pub in the heart of Elterwater Village - the Britannia Inn - and a lovely cafe - Chesters by the River - at Skelwith Bridge. You can sit outside at both, so perfect if you have a doggy friend with you. 

The scenery is amazing, you feel as though you're in the heart of Lakeland - well I suppose you are when you are in the Great Langdale Valley. The Langdales provide a beautiful backdrop and we were lucky on our visit, as they were frosted in snow and looked simply stunning. The pathways lead along the riverside, by the lake and through woodlands and there is plenty of wildlife to see. We heard woodpeckers, saw blackbirds, wrens, robins, birds of prey, swans with their cygnets and wild geese. Of course, as it's the Lake District, there were plenty of sheep out on the fells too, so Ted our cocker spaniel stayed on his long lead. 

To complete the day, when we finished our walk, we drove up and over the fells to the east side of Coniston Water and enjoyed tea and cake and a wander around the grounds at Brantwood. 

A perfect day. 

 

Around Benington at Snowdrop Time

As February approaches each year, I always look forward to seeing the snowdrops appear and to visiting Benington Lordship Gardens to see the spectacular display of snowdrops in the gardens there. It's become a fixture on our February calendar and for me, the snowdrops blooming are the first signs of winter fading away and spring looking nearer on the horizon. It's the time the garden starts to unfold with new colours and life. 

Benington is a small Hertfordshire village on the outskirts of Stevenage and the gardens are usually open to the public during February, as they are home to a vast array of snowdrops of many differing varieties. There are also hellebores, crocuses and aconites in bloom as well as beautiful views across the lake and the rolling Hertfordshire countryside. The village is also very pretty and worth a wander around with its old church and duck pond. Refreshments are also available in the village hall or in the hall in the grounds of Benington Lordship for when you've finished your walk or wander. 

I think the pictures speak for themselves...