Welcome

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Welcome to a new blog that will wax lyrical about my love of plants, my relatively recent journey into the discovery of the joy of plants, and my progress as I study horticulture with the Royal Horticultural Society. 

I will talk to you at length about my favourite plants. I will tell you how gardening has become a sort of meditation to me.  

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13 things I’ve learned being a gardener

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You can never have too many pairs of waterproof trousers A bowl of Coco Pops is not a sufficient breakfast to keep you going Do not underestimate the value of a hot cup of tea or coffee in winter WATCH OUT FOR CAT POO Don’t scrimp on good quality secateurs Fleece lined gloves are the one in January It’s important to go and do your admin in a cafe as you will likely not do it at home. Will you. Because there’s Netflix there.  Take your boots off before you get in. Your hallway will thank you There is literally nothing better than a really good weeding knife You are going to have to accept that you are going to lose good boots, shoes, clothes to gardening. How did those cuffs even GET so filthy? A Diet Coke on a hot day can give you life Use a goddamn kneeling mat! Um. You've got mud on your glasses.
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Damp summer tales

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It's been an immensely wet and not-very-hot July so far. We're all at war with snails - every gardener I speak to is at their wit's end. One friend recommended going out at night with a torch and peeling the buggers from each precious stem. I must admit I have taken to this.  I also used wool - the kind of natural wool that comes with certain food deliveries. It's good for insulating plants in the winter, and I've swathed my cucumbers and cardoons in it to put off those slimy gastropods. I went out the next morning to find the wool covered in SLIME for goodness' sake. The wool has now been given over to sparrows who cutely peck at it in the mornings (literally at the same time every day) and swish off with it for their homes. I can allow this. My gardening work has boomed this month - hence the delay since my last blog. I've done garden clearance, removed saw palmettos that attacked me and drew blood over a 6 hour work stint, started working in a garden that...
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The cold snap

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IT'S THE 6TH JANUARY, and my second proper day back gardening after Christmas. I must admit, I'd predicted that jobs would slow down in the run up to Christmas (they didn't) and would almost definitely drop off in January (they haven't). So here I am, in my many  layers, on my hands and knees, on frozen ground.  I'm talking figuratively. I'm not actually writing from the field. I'm warm and toasty and have hot soup in my tummy and a huge woolly jumper on as I type from my dining room table. But this morning, I was up and out as soon as the sun rose, and it was -2. My nose was frozen. I passed my nephews on their way to school. Jack, 8, said "Rach, you look like you're going skiing!" He wasn't wrong, I was in my fleece lined waterproof trousers, a fetching purple, a Christmas gift from my mum.  My first job of the day was in one of my favourite gardens to work in. A gorgeous mix of lawn, borders, decking, paving. It's south facing, in on...
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