My January Garden

Just as I've started a New Year's Resolution on my other blog to post details of every bakery delivery I make to our local coffee shop, I've made one for this blog as well. In the first week of each month, I pledge to post about my garden...with photos taken in (roughly!) the same positions, so that we can see how it changes together over the year. I meant to do this in 2010, but I didn't think about it until February - and if you miss January then it's all a bit of a pointless exercise!

So I'll start with these pictures, which I took in the gloom and damp of this morning...we had heavy rain for most of yesterday afternoon and snow is forecast for tomorrow. But today the outdoor thermometer registers +2c...which feels quite warm compared to some of the temperatures we suffered in December!
ours is a small, walled, north-facing town garden. Relatively easy to keep an eye on, but big enough to be interesting!

I love this old bench....it's surprisingly comfortable-the little dish holds fresh water for the birds...

and this is what I call my 'bird tree'. They just adore it...there are many feeders hanging and I see so many different species - this morning: greenfinches, bluetits, hedge sparrows and our resident robin! Under the upturned metal bucket you can see on the right is a beautiful bowl of white hyacinth bulbs...getting ready to explode into scent and colour!

This is our 'David' who watches over the garden serenely...

my beautiful mophead hydrangeas are like papery ghosts right now. The old flower heads protect the new growth from the worst of the weather, so I won't remove them until late Spring...

My raised vegetable bed is covered in a thick layer of leaf mulch...but the olive trees seem to withstand all weathers and always look beautiful...
This old white ceramic 'butler's' sink holds some of my special herbs in Summer...and to the left of the picture you may be able to spot Paul's 'door in the wall'...a visual joke, but I love to think that it leads to a secret garden!

So, that's January...messy,brown, damp, patches of evergreen. A garden hibernating, nurturing the life that lies beneath the surface...and I hope it won't be too long before we begin to see some signs of the Spring to come...

There's always the rosemary to brighten everything....

Enjoy your day x

Comments

  1. Loved reading about your garden and seeing pictures of it. Thank you for sharing! It will be so nice to see how your garden grows through its various stages throughout the year. Although it is close to midwinter, your garden still looks somewhat alive, compared to mine. Our backyard is covered in snow, we can't even see the ground. I love to think that in just 2 months, spring will be arriving. Makes me excited!! Looking forward to seeing more of your garden! Have a lovely Thursday! xo

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  2. Wonderful wonderful wonderful! I am so glad I will get to follow your garden through the seasons. It's even lovely now. Subtle, rustic, quiet beauty.

    Hope you are enjoying these first days of the new year!

    xo

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  3. So glad you decided to let us share in the joy of your garden. It's going to be fun following it's progress throughout the year.

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  4. I love seeing pictures of your garden, so you can imagine how excited I am about following it through the year! I'm eagerly awaiting the lavender :)

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  5. I love the idea of seeing the same views as the seasons progress! Oh, the wonders of nature! Beauty is all around us, isn't it? Eagerly awaiting the changes in your English garden. Thank you for letting me glimpse your world! Love, Sherry xx

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  6. I never thought of January in England to be so charming! But I forgot that rain, gloom and miserable weather can have their charm too.

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  7. Your garden is so charming... even in the dead of winter! Can't wait to see what it'll look like come spring-time! ♥

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  8. How interesting to view your garden! My husband prepares a 30x60 ft. vegetable garden every growing season, and planted it in assorted greens (mustard, kale, turnips, spinach) in the fall. We have had an unexpected harvest, sharing with friends and neighbors. Our December temperatures, however, have given it all a rather droopy appearance. We are hopeful the spinach will rebound in the spring, as it has in the past. This morning, it was all under a snow cover, which melted today with some sun, but is expected to return again overnight!

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  9. This is so so fanastic!! I've gone out and taken my photographs, so I'll have my blog entry up and we can watch each other's gardens grow!! My hope is that others join in!!

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  10. So lovely to see the beautiful garden. I can feel the bitter cold, which I rather like now. xxxxxxxxxxx

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