Christmas from the garden

 Each year I gather materials from the garden for the Christmas decorations.

We do not have a lot of room in our small house to put up a normal Christmas tree, sometimes we get a small one and cut one side off, so that it fits on the window sill! But recently I have taken a branch from one of the apple trees as we prune them and used that.

Decorated with baubles and lights it looks great and fits the space.

Wreaths are always made from materials collected from the garden. This year the one by the front door has a culinary feel with rosemary and sage, then a hint of colour with the addition of helichrysum dried flowers.

Another wreath is made for the gate into the walled garden. A framework made years ago from ivy stems and decorated this year with holly, ivy, mistletoe and fir cones.

We have a hedge of holly, made from seedlings grown from berries off a tree where we used to live. Only one of the plants ever has berries but we were lucky this year to get quite a few.

We sit in the dining area eating our meals, looking out onto the patio. So I thought it would be nice to have a table decoration on the table on the patio to look out at.

Using an old chimney pot and grasses, seed heads and other bits of foliage I am pleased with this new decoration.

The little Christmas trees grown in pots from seedlings are sometimes brought into the house but this year I have decorated one and put it on the patio.

With 2020 being such an unusual year with so many people at home over Christmas, some of them alone, the villagers have decorated a window in their houses to send Christmas greetings to everyone in the community. This is ours.

Have a nice Christmas wherever you are and how many you are. Lets hope for a much improved and fruitful 2021

Funny Year

2020 has been a strange year for many reasons including the weather.

The plants and creatures in the garden are so confused.

The honey bees are so active for this time of year, butterflies still flying around in November and the blackbirds, who usually strip the cottoneaster berries in a matter of days have not even visited the bush yet. There must be lots of food elsewhere this year.

Flowers too are unsure of the date! There are new flowers on the poached egg plant (Limanthes douglasii), many new rose buds and fringed campion (Silene frimbriata) is also in flower. These usually flower in the summer!

We even saw blossom on one of the apple trees as we were collecting the mistletoe.

But there is one flower that is supposed to be open now and it is beautiful.

There are several evergreen clematis in the garden and this one, Jingle bells is the best this year.

This photo, taken at the end of November was full of bees, all sorts including several kinds bumble bee and many honey bees, buzzing away busily.