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Caught in the Act
I have finally admitted defeat in my efforts to have Hosta plants in pots by my back door. These had hardly started to produce leaves this year when the snail attacks started. To my mind this is earlier than usual and if other years are an indication I will soon have no leaves left. I…
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Juxtaposition
I am always surprised when the cherry blossoms appear just after the crab apple trees are at their best, as they all seem far too delicate to survive here. Even more surprising is that the blossoms can withstand strong winds and cold. One of the things that I particularly like is the juxtaposition of the…
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Rejuvenation
The mating season for foxes is supposed to end in February, but there is no sign of this here. My sleep is still interrupted on a regular basis by a cacophony of sounds, including screeching foxes and an apoplectic Millie (my collie terrier cross), who sees it as her duty to ‘raise the dead’ at…
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December Blossoms
I always think that it is a minor miracle that I can find enough flowers in the garden to decorate the house for Christmas. I divide the sources into three categories – those shrubs that usually flower during the winter such as Camellia, Correa and Viburnum, those summer plants that keep producing one or two…