The garden in May.

Suddenly everything is looking fresh and green, the perennial borders are springing into growth, sadly not just the flowers but also that pesky, pernicious weed, ground elder.

I've resorted to a bit of hand weeding, which I'm sure is ineffectual but at least will stop the dratted stuff from setting seed.

There is still quite a bit of yellow in the garden but it is fading fast and other colours the I much prefer are starting to emerge.

The forget-me-nots that seed freely all over the place have been wonderful but are now past their best. I need to pull them out and put them on the compost heap. 

I'm always sad to see them go, but they will make space for my cosmos seedlings that are straining to be out of their pots.

Honeysuckle flowering on the house wall

and a row of iris in the veg garden.

Last years planting of chard has grown ridiculously large. I'll leave one to seed to plant for the winter. The spuds are growing well and have been earthed up - now that's a sight to gladden the heart of a Murphy!

Heckfield Place

We took a holiday last week and spent the night before our Gatwick flight at Heckfield Place. It sits in it's grounds like the perfect doll's house.

Inside everything is equally  ordered and pleasing to the eye. We arrived just in time for afternoon tea and cake!

I loved the outfits worn by the staff; soft corduroy waistcoats and three-quarter britches and collarless shirts for the men, (think Gabriel Oak) and for the women a choice of full skirts and blouses, all very covetable.

Beautiful flowers and paintings are everywhere throughout the hotel.

This well-dressed woman looks askance, she doesn't seem too approving of the size of my slab of cake!

I think that our bedroom was one of the nicest hotel rooms that I have ever stayed in, fresh, home-grown flowers once again and every detail of the items carefully considered, even down to the electric kettle!

We walked through the grounds. intent on visiting the farm and market garden where the hotel flowers are grown, but we needed to cross a field and a harsh wind was blowing the soil so we retreated.

All was calm in the walled garden, the conservatory looking immaculate, in strong contrast to my own crammed and untidy one at home.

Some of the prettiest ranunculus on display all over the place.

And just enough time  in the morning to study the papers before heading to Gatwick for our afternoon flight.

Rain today

When I look out of the upstairs window I can see the pond and get an idea how heavily the rain is falling. 

Its too wet to be outside, I just make a quick dash to pick some parsley for my kedgeree.

The apple trees are full of blossom.

This rain is most welcome as my plants are growing quickly. The delphiniums that I grew from seed are now in their third year and clumping up nicely.

And the citrus blossom in the greenhouse smells wonderful!

Easter

Well, what glorious weather we have had over the Easter break. Much of the country went to the coast to fry on the beach while we collected a daughter from the London train and enjoyed the peace and tranquility of the country. We drove to the outskirts of Bruton for Sunday lunch at  the Roth bar in the Hauser and Worth art complex. I wanted to see what the garden, designed by Piet Oudolf, looked like in the spring.

I was disappointed.

I last visited in the autumn amid waving grasses and partial views. This time everything was flat and, to my mind, extremely dull.

At the top of the Oudolf field is the pavilion designed by the Chilean, Smiljan Radić. 

And I don't like that either.

Perhaps you think I sound grumpy, however I did enjoy my lunch very much. (I'm not going to mention the art!) We sat out in the sun and had a tasty and leisurely time. Then in Bruton we looked around the former almshouse buildings

where the small chapel was decorated for Easter.

It is a lovely, tranquil corner of the town.

Easter Monday, more eating out in the sunshine, more leisurely talking. 

Instead of an Easter egg this year a tasty panettone. No, I didn't roll it down a hill, the tin is far too pretty!

We walked into the woods to enjoy the bluebells.

I know I keep on saying it, but it really is

a lovely time of year.