Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Signs of Spring

At last there are signs of spring in the garden - buds appearing on trees and clematis, snowdrops and the first shoots of the daffodils. It is always a relief after a bad winter to see your plants sprouting in the garden again and a reassurance that the winter has not killed off your favourites.

As we patiently wait for spring we can also start looking forward to the flower show season again. The Harrogate Spring Show starts on the 14th April to the 17th April, RHS Malvern Spring Gardening Show runs from 12th May to the 15th and then of course we run up to RHS Chelsea from the 24th May. There are a lot of local and county shows in between those dates so check out the Reckless Gardener Calendar on our site at http://www.recklessgardener.com/events/events-diary

It is always good to see young gardeners encouraged to get stuck in and design their own gardens and recently Diarmuid Gavin and David Domoney launched the first ever Ideal Home Show Young Gardeners of the Year competition, in association withthe Prince's Foundation for the Built Environment. The competition aims to highlight the very best examples of sustainable practice in British garden design amonst student designers. There are eight colleges taking part from across the UK who have been selected following an invitation process. Entrants are tasked with creating a garden haven from a reclaimed urban area that demonstrates a clever use of space in a 5x4.5 metre plot.
Good luck to everyone taking part - the show is at Earls Court from 11th March and the winner will be judged and announced on that day. The Ideal Home Show runs from 11th to 27th March.

The Wildlife Trusts have announced a new series of Handy Guides for nature lovers - with easy to follow layouts the new guides will enable quick and accurate identification. The new guides include the New Holland Concise Garden Wildlife Guide, the New Holland Concise Insect Guide and the New Holland Concise Tree Guide. They are priced at £4.99 each and will be valuable companions on nature walks and holidays. Information from: www.wildlifetrusts.org


Allan Pollok-Morris celebrated photographic exhibition 'Close - A Journey in Scotland' has opened at the United States Botanic Garden in Washington. Running until June 2011, the exhibition will be accompanied by a number of guest speakers. You can find out more about the exhibition and details of Allan's wonderful latest book, ‘Close – Landscape Design and Land Art in Scotland’ from his website at www.northfieldeditions.com

Don't forget to check out the Reckless Gardener calendar of events so you don't miss out on a show or event near you.