Feeding Time

Nature is a forever enthralling spectacle. It can be red in tooth and claw but, simultaneously, intriguing and beguiling in equal measure. I have grumbled on occasions about the deer eating the roses, the slugs destroying the dahlias and the badgers decimating the lawn in the search for worms. But throughout, I have advocated the notion that we share our garden with the wildlife.  A sanguine outlook is what I might espouse but the price might be a bit more chicken wire than I would really like.

This week I noticed a fascinating juxtaposition of the wildlife eating the plants and the plants eating the wildlife. Below is the sarracenia that lives in the conservatory. Sometimes known as the pitcher plant, it happily lives in a disused wall fountain ornament. This is ideal as it still holds water to give the plant the boggy conditions it requires. But on closer inspection it was clear that this carnivorous plant was in the midst of feeding time.

By contrast the blackbird decided that a tasty, ripe strawberry was much more to his liking. I will not grumble as we have already had a much better harvest this year than ever before. 

So, to use a phrase first coined by Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe "lets share and share alike!"

 

Red Hues of Autumn

 

The autumnal palette of colours is a seasonal treat not to be overlooked. Before our short break away (see next post) the garden was awash with red. Whilst this display was mostly berries, it was also leaves, such as those on the Virginia Creeper by the upper pond. The birds and other wildlife will certainly benefit but hopefully not before we have had a little time to savour the seasonal ambiance.

The rowan in our garden and in many of the neighbouring plots is perhaps the most eye catching of them all. The clusters of bright red berries make a colourful autumn splash. High in vitamin C the berries can (apparently) be made into a jelly which goes well with game meats, though on their own the berries do not taste pleasant. In the past it was not uncommon in Wales for an alcoholic liquor called "diodgriafel" to be brewed from the berries; the process, according to an 18th. century traveller to the region involving: '...pouring water over them (berries), and setting the infusion to ferment. When kept for some times, this is by no means an unpleasant liquor...'

However, I shall be leaving our berries for the birds!

Spring is in the Air

Even high on the English Pennines spring will eventually arrive. The signs are here. The clocks have gone forward, frog spawn is in the pond, daffodils are looking lovely, buds are appearing on the clematis and (hooray) the covers are off the garden furniture. My appetite for the garden is freshly whetted.

Sadly, outdoor time this weekend has been curtailed by the need to pot up 120 plug plants that arrived courtesy of Royal Mail from van Meuwen. They range from echinaea, coreopsis and dianthus to delphinium and digitalis. Twelve different plants and twelve of each. I have not really tried to start plants from plugs before, but I am cautiously optimistic. The biggest immediate challenge is where to put all the newly potted plants. The conservatory which doubles up as the greenhouse is now full to bursting.
The hope is that they will fill a new bed that I intend to create this year, in the style of a cottage garden. As I understand it, this will mean a variety of colourful plants and flowers intermingled with some food crops. Quite a challenge I think. To date I have been completely unsuccessful with the cultivation of foodstuffs. Apart from a few tomatoes grown indoors last year I have never been able to produce anything worth consuming. Suggestions on the easiest to grow crops, that will also look at home in the cottage garden will be welcome. The only definite to date are potatoes, as seed potatoes have already been bought and left out for chitting. Incidentally, 3 have already been put into a sack and have been growing for several weeks already, an update will follow.