A Spring in the step....

Another grey and distinctly damp day has dawned again and all thoughts of dusting off the deck chairs or  wielding a trowel in the garden, still seem a long way off ..

This winter has been a long dark haul and I for one, will welcome warmer brighter days and some splash of colour in the garden, to brighten the scorched earth look of our patch. There are some signs that the seasons are willing to move on, with the discovery of some very pretty Hellebores and Primroses and the dark jewel like flowers of the Crocus.

When we moved to this house last June, the Spring flowers had long faded and we were left with a wall of green.. mostly shrubs..which we ruthlessly dispatched to the great compost heap in the sky.
  I was keen to unveil the beautiful stone walls that surround our small garden and provide a wonderful stage for some good old fashioned favourites... climbing roses, Clematis, Honeysuckle and anything else that I can persuade to grow vertically that can earn it's keep with some pretty blooms.

As the summer never really got off to a good start.. or any start at all come to think of it, I have not had the pleasure of seeing our new garden in full bloom.

Climbing roses were purchased and placed at the foot of a long dead apple tree, along with a Clematis Montana. A climbing rose which promised blousy fragrant blooms, was placed against a stretch of bare wall and fingers were kept firmly crossed for a swan song of flowers at the end of the summer.

 Sadly after weeks of persistent rain.. any blooms that were brave enough to open, were soon drenched and bedraggled. This year I hope we will be rewarded with not only a swathe of fragrant flowers but also some warm sunny days to sit in the garden and take time to smell the roses!
I am afraid you will have to make do with last year's pictures when the garden still showed some signs of life and new plants had been planted with hope in my heart that they would flourish.

Now as the Easter weekend approaches and some of you may have the urge to purge... Spring cleaning will start in earnest. We at The Vintage & Handmade H.Q.. have been having a bit of a sort out and will be taking our vintage chattels down to Rangeworthy village hall on Saturday 23rd March for another popular vintage Jumble Sale.. If you thought the Six Nations Rugby tournament had the best scrums.. just wait until you see the action at the jumble.  Hope to see you there for a good old rummage!