The Highwayman

 

Or is she a Lady of the Highway?  Perched high in the ash tree, camouflaged from view, the buzzard sits silent and still.  The only clue to her presence is a deserted seed-loaded feeder... where are all our hungry feathered friends?  Certainly, an unusual sight in these cruel arctic conditions...

 

 

Sticky globules of frog spawn litter the grass below the pond like the remnants of alien warfare, the leftovers of our Highway-Lady's breakfast: 'freshwater caviar on ice'.  Hidden in the hide I have the perfect view of this agile stealth bomber as she lays in wait, preparing to swoop down and abduct lunch.   Eerie woodland silence indicates that the starving garden birds sense her presence and prefer to remain hidden in the fledgling hedgerow.  Desperation is in the air, Winter refuses to release its grip on the countryside where the birds, both hunters and gatherers, are being forced to take risks just to survive.  This Highway-lady is no bored 17th century aristocrat desperate for thrills to escape domestic tedium, she is a powerful predator fighting for survival in a harsh environment.   Nature reflects the human condition, every day acts of heroism and desperation abound...

The Secret Life of Bees

What a difference a day makes! How can we be back in the depths of winter just one week before Easter?
  Earlier in the week I sighted our industrious honey bees feeding on hellebore and snowdrop, hopefully, a sign that our Queens, 'Diana' and 'Epona', now have brood in their hives as they prepare for spring.  Today's sub-zero temperatures and biting winds have deterred our little stripy friends from flying and foraging, instead they are huddled in the hive keeping warm and feeding on their stores of last season's honey - seems like a good idea to me!
Inspired, I too tucked into their delicious 2012  liquid gold, lightly scented and flavoured with the imprint of last season's flowers.  Honey provides a snapshot of the season in which it was harvested, just like a old fashioned photo-negative, its blend and flavour are unique to the growing conditions in the garden at a specific moment in time. 
For a traditional remedy to soothe a sore throat: blend honey with lemon  and a teaspoon of organic cider vinegar to make a delicious hot-toddy; the perfect antidote to these chilly arctic conditions...

The Director's Chair

 

Staging a new planting is exciting, if a little exacting!  Each plant will have a role to play as the story unfolds over the season, the art is in identifying the the stars at audition. For me,choosing new roses is like filling a bag of pick'n mix at the cinema; a kaleidoscope of tantalising colour,sumptuous scent, delicate form; complete sensory overload. With modern horticulture there are so many to choose from, depending on the desired effect, am I looking for 'Shabby Chic' or 'Understated Elegance'? It's hard to say before I settle into the Director's Chair and wait for the magic of the muse. 
One of my favourites is Darcey Bussell, a rich crimson rose which blooms freely all summer, scattering the soil with purple-petal confetti throughout the season.  Elegant and stylish, just like her namesake,  'Darcey' will provide depth and poise in the planting, her co-star is another  David Austin, the English rose 'Grace'.  Flamboyant in apricot she will add a touch of Hollywood glamour to the scene, a perfect contrast to Darceys delicate but controlled form. Grace blends well with reds and purples, forming a branching shrub with repeat flowers that scent the air throughout the summer.  Her arching tendrils will silhouette sensuously against the deep crimson back-drop, setting the scene perfectly for the perennials!

Bonnie and Clyde

For the last few days we have woken to find a young buzzard perched on Wassala's head in the middle of the pond.  Not being a natural fisherman, he has teamed up with the local heron to catch a breakfast of fresh water-wildlife, their particular favourite is frogspawn. The high water table is proving catastrophic for indigenous small mammals whose burrows have flooded, drowning complete communities.  This loss is very evident along the hedgerows where birds of prey, starved of their regular diet, are being driven to extreme measures to survive, such as the unlikely partnership between our buzzard and the heron.  This morning, in honour of their hilarious antics, we nicknamed them Bonnie and Clyde.  Clyde, the buzzard, is a first class look-out man; with senses honed for fight or flight, he anticipates my every move thus evading the camera every time. Poor Wassala is losing her poise with Clyde using her head as a perch, so this morning we crossed to her island and gave her a quick lesson in Alexander Technique! For the moment her peace and serenity have been restored as she looks out across her kingdom ...

An Owl Box in the Walnut Tree

This afternoon there has been great excitement at VGP - the much anticipated wildlife boxes have now arrived for our furry and feathered friends.  On the cusp of Spring, we are hoping to tempt owls, robins, bats and dormice out of the woods to come and live in the garden with the honey-bees. Wrapped up like Eskimos, we spent three freezing hours carefully positioning the boxes: an owl-box is now facing north-east, under the canopy of the walnut tree, it has a direct flight path into the woods. Bats are to have two boxes in the ghost tree, each faces in a different direction allowing these tiny mammals maximum exposure to warmth from the sun. Ivy camouflaged Coletit and Bluetit boxes now nestle, cradled in knarled apple tree branches; this spring the chicks will be festooned in sweet blossom and seranaded in 'Buzz' by the bees.  We have tucked the dormice boxes away on the back of the composters where they will benefit from maximum privacy and bio-heat from the breakdown of garden-waste.  With wild nests appearing in the stone bird-holes on the studio, I feel like a site-agent allocating plots to 'Captain Beaky and his Band'!  I have always adored this song...

' They march through woodlands singing songs, that tell how they have righted wrongs...

                                             

 Timid Toad, Reckless Rat, Artful Owl and Batty Bat...'

The bat boxes are rough hewn to enable the tiny residents to
climb aboard.  The build-spec and attention to detail in these practical boxes is superb!