Marathon weekend

We had a busy weekend in London for the Marathon. Emma successfully comleted not only her first London Marathon, the hottest ever, but also her first Marathon. No doubt she will update her blog when she gets her breath back, but we are all delighted at her wonderful achievement.

Personally, I have never seen so many people, and it is quite a culture shock to visit London at any time when you usually live in the country where life is a little quieter and slower.

There were so many people trying to get on the tube to get to the start that I was reminded of those Japanese trains where guards go along and push people in! That is not the life for me, I am afraid, but I suppose it is quite normal for Londoners.

The weather certainly was glorious and their gardens are quite advanced. There is Wisteria everywhere in full bloom and the Royal Parks looked lovely.

Our next trip down will be for Chelsea so that it the next focus.

spring is here

I write this on a beautiful spring morning which gives encouragement that the better weather is now definitely here. Our visit to the gardens of Staffordshire at the weekend was a great success and once again we were blessed with wonderful weather.

Staffordshire certainly has a lot to offer and you will be able to read all about it on the reckless website shortly. We visited Shugborough, Weston Park, (picturte right at top) Biddulph Grange (picture left at top) and paid a call on David Austin Roses.

Visiting David Austin was rather like being let loose in a sweet shop, or in my case, cake shop!
To see all those wonderful rose trees lined up just waiting to be adopted was sensational. The great thing about going to Austin's centre at Albrighton is the vast availability of their stock. You can also order direct from Austin's by email or phone but the chance of actually going there and picking my own rose trees was just too good an opportunity to miss. The staff were terrific and we really enjoyed ourselves.

I won't talk about our other visits as they will be posted on the website but needless to say if you want to find yourself in quiet country lanes leading to lots of properties with really wonderful gardens then you can do no better than head for Staffordshire. It really is a county of hidden talents - very enjoyable.

The Camellia trees are still flowering and I am amazed that we have had three full months of their wonderful blooms. Everything is coming to life now in the garden and it is, in my opinion, the most exciting time of the year. Every morning there is something new emerging or budding and the early Spring and warm sun is bringing on everything even sooner than usual.

In the fast lane

Gardening is supposed to be about peace and contentment but the last few days have been more than hectic for me - you know the phrase headless chicken. A friend remarked yesterday that she too had gone through a rather roller-coaster week and wanted to go and lie down in a dark room. I know how she feels!

Keeping on top of the website and all the news and information that everyone sends in is a job on its own, but add to that the fact that we have to visit gardens, go out there and meet all you wonderful people and dutifully report back - well it can get a bit hectic. However, it is a nice kind of hectic and I would much sooner be doing that than sitting in a traffic queue waiting to go to an office each day. We are very fortunate in that respect.

The thing is we are all enthusiastic about our gardens and want to share that with others, which is great, and it is that kind of 'gardening freemasonry' which adds so much to our gardening lives.

So this week found me at Holker Hall with Lord and Lady Cavendish in their delightful and very spiritual garden. It is always a pleasure to visit Holker Hall and the enthusiasm of Lord and Lady Cavendish is infectious. Their knowledge is awesome but what is more uplifting is their complete "oneness" with their garden and the sheer delight of sharing that with others.

Very careful thought goes into their preparations for each season and how they can make their garden even more appealing to visitors both young and old. The spring garden was already bursting into life and there was plenty of colour. If you have never visited Holker Hall near Grange-over-Sands in Cumbria you should make an effort to do so, you will be richly rewarded with a special gardening experience, as well as all the other attractions which are on offer, including some rather good special Cumbrian food.

As April progresses we have a number of trips to make the first of which will be a special feature on the gardens of Staffordshire. So keep logging on for that. Not long to go now before Chelsea and we will continue bringing you up-to-date news on the build-up.

If I had time to go and lay down in a darkened room I probably would but think I will content myself with re-potting my cuttings, talk to my plants, and try not to notice the weeds. That should be good for a start.