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Waddesdon in bloom

Posted on Sep 7, 2009 in Gardening | no responses

The last time I wrote about Waddesdon Manor http://daithaic.blogspot.com/2007/11/waddesdon-manor-buckinghamshire.html the wonderful Victorian gardens were wrapped in their winter coat of repentance. This is not entirely an allegorical flight for the statues and garden ornaments are wrapped to protect them from the frost and the house is closed up for maintenance, conservation and a deep clean. […]

Let it Grow! Let it Grow!

Posted on Jul 28, 2009 in Gardening | no responses

The Television Gardener and raconteur, Alan Titchmarsh, once remarked that “They say gardening is the new sex. I preferred the old stuff.” I bore this thought in mind today when with the brief outburst of summer sunshine midst the rains of London it was time for me to womble into my favourite London Park, the […]

A Tale of Two Parks

Posted on Jul 21, 2009 in Dublin | no responses

The Fair City has undoubtedly given much to the descendants of Arthur Guinness whose St James Gate Brewery gave a distinctive waft of roasted barley to the banks of the River Liffey and whose ships transporting the “Black Stuff” were a feature of the quayside opposite the Custom House when I was growing up in […]

The Blooming Tube

Posted on Jul 1, 2009 in Gardening | one comment

At this time of year on the Tube staff are feverishly planting, hoeing and watering to prepare to enter that hardy perennial the “Station Garden Competition.” Amongst other things it serves to remind us of the impact the Tube has on the fabric of London. For instance few realise that Underground trains run across 220km […]

Kos Flora

Posted on Jun 7, 2009 in Gardening | no responses

Kos, with its volcanic soil and plentiful water has always been a fertile island, providing a replenishing point for Roman galleys from Alexandria and Syria and giving its name to the Cos lettuce. Today there is still extensive market gardening, farming and viniculture on the island. Visitors to Kos often comment on the beautiful array […]

Jardins Majorelle, Marrakech

Posted on May 6, 2009 in Gardening | 2 comments

In a hot climate the idea of a secluded garden with water at its centre was a haven from the heat and noise and in fact the word so redolent with meaning and symbolism in our culture, “Paradise” comes from the Persian for a water garden. From the time of the Achaemenid dynasty the idea […]

Bledlow Manor Gardens

Posted on May 3, 2009 in Gardening | no responses

The Manor House Bledlow Having written recently about the gardens at the Manor House Bledlow it was pleasant on this Bank Holiday weekend to head back to Bledlow to see the gardens for the first time in a number of years. Bledlow’s main residence is Bledlow Manor, the family home of Lord Carrington who opens […]

Chiltern Spring

Posted on Apr 19, 2009 in Gardening | no responses

Spring is always a delightful time in the Chiltern Hills when the snowdrops, primroses, bluebells and daffodils appear in the undulating wooded hills. So we found ourselves on this sunny Sunday morning heading across the lovely countryside to two of my favourite places, Bledlow Ridge and the delightful preserved GWR branch line at Chinnor. Bledlow’s […]

Blooming June

Posted on Jun 5, 2008 in Gardening | no responses

One of the great unsung tasks performed by the Master is the way he acts, sans honararium, as Hortus Praetorius of Ye Antient Privee Garden at Castle Caldwell. In June this comes into bloom in some atonement for its sullen winter countenance. Or as Robbie Burns said: “But pleasures are like poppies spread: You seize […]

Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, Dublin.

Posted on Jan 31, 2008 in Gardening | one comment

Curvilinear Range One of the unsung joys of Dublin City are its delightful Botanic Gardens set in its Northside suburb of Glasnevin around 3 miles from the city centre. Glasnevin is a village which has been swallowed up by […]