April 2020 In Lockdown

How strange it is that everything about “normal ” life can change so quickly. So many concerns, fears, uncertainties, difficulties created by the pandemic but with the lockdown , life became much simpler. So few decisions to be made about how to spend our days but the usual rhythms of Spring carried on regardless. With lockdown came unusually lovely weather day after day in April – so unusual in this country that it almost felt like cause and effect. I thought I would have a lot of time for gardening but have been very busy helping to develop resources and support for my psychologist colleagues and all the people they work with – other health staff and patients – and for the general public that I had less time than usual

It is certainly strange to think we will not be opening the garden this year. Maybe an opportunity to be a bit more relaxed, make some changes. We will need to try to find ways to sell some of the plants we accumulate for Notts Wildlife Trust to get the some funds and to create a bit of space in the nursery

So this post is going to be a celebration of Spring flowers

Tulips

We have mainly restricted ourselves to early tulips this year so that the beads are not full of their leaves when we need to be getting more plants into the beds

A selection of oranges and yellows

and of pinks and purples

 

Garden Scenes

In the circle beds we put mixtures of later flowering daffodils and tulips which worked and lasted well

And below are views of the tulips In the beds running from the summerhouse

Wisteria

With all the sunshine, the Wisteria multijuga came out really early this year

Camellias

Camellia ” Donation” had a particularly good year, though the others were less good and their flowers didn’t last with the sunshine and warmth

Miscellaneous Spring delights

Top row: Clematis alpina “Frankie”, perennial Honesty –  Lunaria redidiva

Lower row: Annual white Lunaria (Honesty) , Epimedium sulphureum, Euphorbia polychroma

Wild Flowers

The Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland ( BSBI) have been running a Garden wildflower Hunt this year where you can upload records of native plants in your garden. We have many – some planted, others that arrive. Some that are welcomed and others that need more control!

Top Row: Bluebells, Sweet Woodruff, White Herb Robert, Geranium sylvaticum, ” Mayflower

Lower row: Greater Celandine ( actually a member of the poppy family: and Red Campion

Bottom Set: We are not mowing parts of our lawn this spring to see what grows following the advice of the charity Plantlife   – so far Ladies Smock, Thyme leaved speedwell, cowslips  and buttercups (these are in a bed but I will show them in the lawn in the May post!)

And finally

We have a view of the village church to the west of the garden. For a few evenings we got  this fantastic effect from the sunset through the stained glass windows