At last the Bluebells are blooming in our garden. They were already here when we bought our house and spread themselves around as they like. Our house sits on land which is a mix of old farmland and woodland so I’m guessing these plants have grown here a while. The Bluebells are a mix of our native dark blue Bluebells and Spanish Bluebells which have paler blue flowers and pink blooms too. If you’d like to see the difference click the Bluebell on the left.
There is nothing quite like the sight of an English woodland full of Bluebells. Deciduous trees with fresh lime green leaves unfurling with a carpet of deep blue flowers so beautiful it takes your breath away. There’s patches of sunshine with ferns unfurling and dappled shade with mossy fallen trees. Bluebell woods are usually full of wildlife making the most of the early supply of nectar and pollen. Look closely and you’ll see bees and butterflies and wild birds taking advantage of the glut of insect life to feed their young. I was lucky enough to visit Bluebell Cottage gardens yesterday where the Bluebell Wood is in full bloom right now. If you know of woodland in your location where there are Bluebells then the end of April and beginning of May is usually the best time to see them in full flower. Times vary slightly from year to year depending on the weather conditions.
There’s so much going on in the garden at the moment. My husband is convinced that the trees just wait until our backs are turned then churn out a few more leaves and blossom. It seems that every time we look things are more voluptuous and gorgeous. Here’s a collage of some star plants for May here in Lancashire, North West England.
I hope you don’t mind a few more photos of Tulips! These shots were taken at Gresgarth Garden last weekend when the sun was shining brightly. It’s a little cooler here today but these pictures show how Tulips can look on a warm spring day.
Here’s Gresgarth House. Leaping forward in the picture are the bright red tulips in huge tubs on the terrace. Red is an advancing colour. It hits you right between the eyes and demands attention.
Tulips are still going strong in our garden and the photos below show some of the lovely pink varieties we have this year.
I know that the palest pink is Angelique, the mid pink and the deep pink I call my mystery tulips because it’s a mystery to me what they are! If you know please send me a comment!
The garden at Gresgarth opens once each month and I was lucky enough to visit last Sunday. Spring is a magical time at Gresgarth. The formal gardens close to the house are lovely but best of all right now in my view is the woodland that surrounds them. Woodland gardens are at their very best in spring before the tree canopies cover the ground with shade. May is a great month to see some fantastic plants for shady spots in your garden if you fancy a spot of garden visiting.
It’s all about the Tulips this week. In our garden and most of the neighbouring gardens Tulips are the shining stars at the moment. In fact everywhere I look I can see tulips in bloom! We grow all sorts of Tulips because trying new varieties each year is fun and it’s amazing how they all have different flower shapes and colors. I love the pastel creams, the pale pinks and lemons. I love the bold red, deep purple and bright cerise tulips too. It’s hard to choose my favourite but I do love orange…
In spring new life bursts into the open yet despite the exuberance and vigour of all the new growth flower colours are soft and harmonious. In our garden I love the pastel blooms of the first bulbs in shades of lemon, lilac and soft blue. Then we have blossom in all shades of pink and cream plus fresh white of course. Usually new leaves are a fresh shade of lime green which sets it all off beautifully. I love spring!
There are signs of spring everywhere I know but nothing shouts SPRING to me more than a carpet of Bluebells. We don’t have a carpet here yet… they are just coming into flower but we do have some pink and pale blue Spanish Bluebells and some darker blue English Bluebells.
Spring is well underway here with sunny spells followed by heavy showers.
As our days warm up the garden is bursting into life with blossom and bulbs.