Tuckshopgardener

LATEST ARTICLES ( 139 )

• Clear up and Clear out

  

  As my study was slowly filling up with what can only be politely termed as crap, yesterday was the day to push back the rising tide of clutter and clobber... Read more

  Posted on 27 February 2014 GARDENING, HOME

• West Midlands Meet Up - Flowers from the Farm

  

  We came, we saw, we ate lots of cake. And along the way we discovered that most of us were career changers with a major crush on flowers. Read more

  Posted on 21 February 2014 GARDENING, HOME

• Eclecticism in Action

  

  A rare blue sky moment last Friday saw me grabbing my fleece, donning my wellies and venturing out to clear, weed and sow sweet peas in the greenhouse. Read more

  Posted on 10 February 2014 GARDENING, HOME

• Clearing out the Dead Things Whilst Sticking to the Paths

  

  Wet. That's the only word which describes the squelchy state underfoot in my garden.But yesterday the sun shone and although fearing I might be sucked into the... Read more

  Posted on 03 February 2014 GARDENING, HOME

• Season Stretchers

  

  When the garden is a fairly blank muddy canvas from December to February, it is easy for the spirits to sink. Borders brimming with flowers seem a million... Read more

  Posted on 21 January 2014 GARDENING, HOME

• Signs of Life

  

  It may be soggy, but the first signs that things are still living in the cold, damp world outdoors are now visible in the garden. Read more

  Posted on 19 January 2014 GARDENING, HOME

• Joining Flowery Forces and Growing a Business

  

  New Year, new resolutions.Yes I'm trying to do a bit more exercise, yes I'm trying to eat virtuously and all the other stuff we all vow every time January 1st... Read more

  Posted on 09 January 2014 GARDENING, HOME

• Revolution in the Seed Box and Space on the Bookshelves.

  

  Happy New Year and a floriferous 2014 to you all.The lashing rains and winds have kept me indoors, going slightly stir-crazy, with only the odd nip into the... Read more

  Posted on 02 January 2014 GARDENING, HOME

• Christmas Quiz

  

  No prizes, but fun to find out the answers - I'd love to hear some of them.1. Name 5 plants which flower (naturally) in the UK in December.2. What is the latin... Read more

  Posted on 22 December 2013 GARDENING, HOME

• All I Want for Christmas Is…. No Viburnum Beetle

  

  It's not every week that the predominant question asked by my teenage son is: "Mum, did you find a pick axe today?"He has had a bee in his bonnet about it... Read more

  Posted on 21 December 2013 GARDENING, HOME

• End of Term and Time for the Big Clear up

  

  Last Christmas fair of the season today and my wreathed out fingers are breathing a huge sigh of relief. Much as I love making them, I have now officially... Read more

  Posted on 15 December 2013 GARDENING, HOME

• Berry Bounty for the Wreaths

  

  The hedgerows have yielded luscious Christmas trimmings this year and my school run (or should that be amble?) has never been so foragingly productive. Read more

  Posted on 04 December 2013 GARDENING, HOME

• Pale, but Otherwise Unharmed, Prisoners Emerge from the Cellar.

  

  Even the gas man is giving me funny looks now. He knocked on the door to do a meter reading this week, and was ushered down into the darkness of the cellar, wit... Read more

  Posted on 21 November 2013 GARDENING, HOME

• Frosts Herald Tulip Time

  

  First frosts have hit Birmingham, so now it is time to get the tulip bulbs in before winter earnestly sets in. Planting them after the frosts lessens the risk... Read more

  Posted on 17 November 2013 GARDENING, HOME

• A Necklace of Crab Apple and a Feather of Grass.

  

  I've been grubbing around again….Today's colour was definitely yellow. The windfall crab apples in the school garden, the uprooted cotoneaster berries in a loca... Read more

  Posted on 14 November 2013 GARDENING, HOME

• Baublicious

  

  Every year, my children get to purchase a new bauble for the tree and we have had some beauties - a handblown green glass globe strung on a velvet ribbon, a mat... Read more

  Posted on 09 November 2013 GARDENING, HOME

• Today We Are Wearing.....

  

  ....mostly twigs.This one is made from a metal wreath frame wrapped with silver birch twigs. Two young teenagers on bikes saw me picking up twigs on my way... Read more

  Posted on 06 November 2013 GARDENING, HOME

• A Virtuous Circle

  

  I'm the nutter in the park, picking up cones and birch twigs and eyeing every mossy branch I pass. Which means that we're heading into the festive season and... Read more

  Posted on 04 November 2013 GARDENING, HOME

• Wordless Wednesday. Burnished.

  

  Read more

  Posted on 23 October 2013 GARDENING, HOME

• Let There Be Light

  

  Autumn is always a good time to evaluate the garden - what went well, what earns its space, and what poor specimens have been selected for the chop. Literally. Read more

  Posted on 19 October 2013 GARDENING, HOME