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Tag Archives: honesty

Inspired by Nature

12 Thursday Dec 2013

Posted by wellywoman in autumn, Christmas, Winter

≈ 34 Comments

Tags

hand-made Christmas decorations, honesty, natural Christmas decorations, photo shoot, The Simple Things

Winter's scene (this isn't a black and white)

A wintery scene

Much as I have loved the mild weather we have had so far this autumn and winter, it hasn’t felt particularly seasonal. We have had only two real frosts up to now and I have had to keep reminding myself that it’s December and Christmas is not far away at all. I’m torn really, I’m not a lover of the cold, but I am a sucker for a Christmas that looks like the images on the cards – all snow-covered houses, frosty trees and smiley snowmen. I know the reality is somewhat different, our transport system grinds to a halt and our hospitals fill with people who have fallen over but two of the loveliest Christmases we’ve had were recent white Christmases. We were snowed in at my parents for one of them. We played scrabble, we read, made an enormous snowman and warmed ourselves in front of the fire. The other time we were at home. The countryside around us was under several inches of snow and looked like wintery perfection. We saw people skiing in the Brecon Beacons, watched birds skate on the frozen canal and followed animal tracks in the snow. Of course, once it’s no longer pristine white and turns to slush it loses its appeal, even for me. But, for just a few days everything looks magically different. And I think that’s why I love it so much, a touch of frost and a sprinkling of snow transforms the dull and drab landscape of our typical winters.

Foraged finds

Foraged finds

With little sign of a white Christmas this year I have been thinking of other ways to create that festive spirit. Upstairs, in my spare room, I have boxes of goodies, reminders of the summer that has gone. Dried flowers, seed heads and grasses are joined by bits and pieces I have foraged over the autumn. I have always loved using natural decorations, particularly at Christmas. I used to just pick up cones and wind-fall branches when I was out on walks but over the last couple of years I have started to grow plants specifically for drying and decorating. The collection has grown bigger each year, so much so I have often ended up wondering what to do with it all.

A Brambly Hedge inspired natural wreath

A Brambly Hedge inspired natural wreath

Last year I was asked to do some flower arrangements for a dinner at Kate Humble’s rural skills farm. Problem was it was February and very much winter. Lets just say I was so very glad I hadn’t composted my honesty seed heads, grasses and teasels, as I had been planning to do the previous week. Jam jars of dried posies were delivered to them which were dotted about the tables, the honesty sparkling in the candle light.

Woven birch and crab apple decoration

Woven birch and crab apple decoration

This year my stocks of dried material were even bigger. I couldn’t get into the shed at one point I had so many bundles of drying plant material dangling from the roof. And the gas man looked more than a little puzzled by the collection of plants hanging in the airing cupboard. Using dried material is a really useful way to decorate for Christmas in advance. Much as I would love swags of evergreens around the house throughout December, shrivelled, dry leaves wouldn’t be so appealing by Christmas. So I use my dried material throughout November and December and then add in the fresh pickings in the days leading up to Christmas Day.

If you would like to see some more of my ideas for natural Christmas decorations, both dried and fresh, you might like to take a look at this month’s The Simple Things magazine which is out now. There were ideas in last month’s issue too which is still available to buy online. So the feature could be ready to be published in time the photographs were taken at the start of October. Wellyman LOVES Christmas, so I was surprised on the day of the shoot at how restrained he was. He didn’t greet the editor and photographer in a reindeer onesie with Wham’s Last Christmas blaring out, and instead settled for making Christmas tree-shaped biscuits, with a quick play of some carols on the piano. It was great fun making all of the decorations and fascinating to see the process of putting together a magazine feature. If you get the chance to see the outcome I hope you like it.

For more information about The Simple Things. And here’s a peek inside this month’s issue.

There are also a few ideas over on Wellyman’s own blog Pianolearner.

Productive morning on the plot

08 Thursday Sep 2011

Posted by wellywoman in On the plot

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

biennials, honesty, mulching, stocks, sweet rocket, sweet williams

The weather has been quite miserable and there is a real feel that autumn is here. I have that awful feeling that the descent into winter brings; the long dark nights, days that don’t feel much lighter and being couped up inside. Winter is not a good time for someone who thrives on being outdoors. It feels too soon, I should feel like this in October not at the beginning of September. I’m still hoping for an ‘Indian Summer’ like last year.

When I feel melancholic like this the best thing to do is to get up to the allotment and do something productive. So today I spent the morning bagging up some green waste to go off to council recycling. I have got several compost piles but they don’t heat up enough, so anything diseased or perennial weeds is left for the council to deal with. I’m producing so much waste to go on the compost piles I don’t know where to put it all. I suppose if you mainly grow produce to eat, this doesn’t happen but half of my plot has been devoted to cutflowers and they’re generating quite a lot of waste now they are going over. I also mulched with some ready to use compost around my biennial flowers – sweet williams, stocks, honesty and sweet rocket. I think these biennials are brilliant: you sow them in July when its quite a quiet time for the gardener, plant them up in September as space is becoming free and then they sit there over overwinter, giving you hope for the spring to come and then from the end of April you are rewarded with some beautiful, sweet smelling flowers. The mulching task was made harder by the flat tyre on my wheelbarrow which became like the toddler who refuses to move, a good deal of pushing and dragging meant I got the compost to its destination but I think Wellyman will have to sort out said tyre at the weekend. The weather hadn’t improved when I had finished but allotment-therapy meant I felt much better.

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My latest book – The Crafted Garden

My latest book - The Crafted Garden

My latest book - The Crafted Garden

My Book – The Cut Flower Patch

My Book - The Cut Flower Patch. Available to buy from the RHS online bookshop.

The Cut Flower Patch – Garden Media Guild Practical Book 2014

The Cut Flower Patch - Garden Media Guild Practical Book 2014
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