In a Vase on Monday….almost

/ karen

Caught out by the snow, I’m lagging behind with my festive floral arrangements. I have to admit – the foliage I’m hoping to use is still on the trees and shrubs! However, I thought you might like a quick tour of my garden and I’ll show you what I’m planning. The hydrangeas have been hanging up in the potting shed roof for a few weeks to dry.

Update : managed to add photos, but each one took 10 goes. Internet speeds are terrible here! I’m starting to upload, and then going for a cup of tea….

To get round the problem, I linked with photos already posted on Instagram. Here’s a link to Instagram https://www.instagram.com/karengimson1/

photo 2: Isn’t the vase beautiful. A kind relative noticed my lack of vases and has given this to me. The mark on the base says Arthur Wood, Made in England. A quick search in the internet comes up with the name Victory for the pattern and the dates look to be between 1930 and 1940. I’d love to know more. It will be perfect for my 1930s turntable summerhouse.

Photo 2 shows a close up of the vase with interesting relief pattern of leaves and flowers. Anyone know what flowers these are meant to be?

Photo 3: A close- up of the hydrangea -which I bought for £1 from a National Garden Scheme sale. Open gardens are such good value and most Sundays in the summer Mum and I visit an NGS garden, have tea and cake, and buy something from the plant sales table. It’s a great way to support cancer charities. Lovely to have such a cheery colour in the middle of winter.

Photo 4. I’ll be using lots of paperwhite narcissi in my Christmas arrangements. Here’s one I planted a few weeks ago. I wrote about it here. Click on this link to see how it was planted Here .

Photo 5: As you can see, I’ve brought them out of the dark potting shed for today’s photo, and the garden is looking very snowy.

photo 6: Close up of the Paperwhites. I love the scent. The potting shed smells gorgeous at the moment.

Photo7: Paperwhite roots look so pretty growing in ornamental gravel and the tall vase helps to support the leaves.

Photo 8: Still yet to be harvested for my arrangements, these are enormous sealing wax hips, the size of marbles. The rose is called Scarlet Fire and has huge single deep red roses with very prominent yellow stamens. Bees adore it. So do I.

Photo 9: There are plenty of hips this year. The birds don’t seem to eat these first. They go for the tiny wild rose hips first.

Photo 10: I’ll be collecting lots of catkin stems to use in my arrangements. It’s so heartening to see them growing at this time of year. The catkins- or lambs tails- as we call them are 2″ long already. A welcome sign of spring to come. A cheerful sight is the sunshine catching the tops of cherry and willow trees at the far end of the garden.

Photo 11: A view of the garden, looking from the greenhouse. Plenty of twigs and evergreen to be harvested here.

Photo 12: I shall be cutting back the ivy on the spiders web pergola and weaving it around my wreaths. The spiders web was made by my husband and marks the centre of the horseshoe pergola that goes from the backof the house right round to the front drive. It is full of wrens nests, which we leave as life-saving winter roosts.

Photo 13: This year I’m spraying seed heads silver. Stepping outside my garden gate, I’ll be picking some lace cap cow parsley heads. But just at the moment they look like This.

Photo 14: And I’ll be picking some grass seed and rosebay willow herb seed heads to spray. They look so pretty at the moment.

Photo 15: Looking down the lane from my garden gate today, it looks like this.

Photo 16: At the end of the paddock we look across ploughed fields. There’s pheasants, partridge and hares there today. I’ll throw some grain out for the birds.

Photo 17: A favourite view across the fields. Such a beautiful place. I never feel the need to travel to be honest. I’m quite happy to look out at this view each day and note the changing seasons. No two days are ever alike.

Photo 18: For a change I’m showing a view looking the other way, towards the village. We always walk this way at dusk to catch the sunset. In the morning we walk the other way to catch the sunrise.

Photo 19: Here’s a photo of the 1930s summerhouse I mentioned earlier. It spins around on a turntable so we can sit and look at the fields, the garden, or the mini woodland and pond. I always hang some mistletoe above the door. A kiss is always lucky 🙂

Sorry for the delay posting photos. I was determined not to be defeated, so initially came up with the idea of using Instagram as well. I’m trying not to think uncharitable thoughts about BT!

How are you faring in the snow? Hope you are all keeping safe and warm. Sending my love to you all xx

Thanks to Cathy at ramblinginthegarden for hosting this meme. Go over and see what everyone is displaying in their vases this week.

51 thoughts on “In a Vase on Monday….almost”

  4. I loved your photos of where you live, and understand the lack of wanderlust, the pictures captured the sense of calm, quiet, and cold, made me want to be there, as of course I could be with your pictures! Thank you. Jackie Knight.

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  5. The vase is a show-stopper Karen, and complements the floral arrangement in it, rather than the other way round. It is my most favourite picture.

    Happy holidays to you and your family and I hope 2018 is good to you all.

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  6. I enjoyed your gorgeous photos. It’s marvelous that you are so satisfied with where you live. We moved to the mountains three years ago, and I feel as you do, that it is wonderful to look out and see the ever-changing scenery. What a blessing!

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  7. I can see why you aren’t interested in traveling further than your own village. A lovely site you have there. A house on a turnYour photos with the low sun are so lovely! I hope you post photos of the arrangements you’ll be making for the holidays!

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  9. Pingback: In a Vase on Monday….almost | Bramble Garden

  10. Wow, what a lot to take in. I do love the vase. I’d forgotten your trick of planting paperwhites in a tall glass with stones and since I have a few N. Bridal Crowns left I am going to try it tomorrow. Hope you get sorted with the internet. It’s mobile coverage that I struggle with!

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    • Thanks for reading. I’ve just managed to repost the blog with photos. Sorry it was such a convoluted process. I was determined not to be beaten! Yes, do try with bridal crown. I had success last time with them. I gave them a bit of liquid plant food, although not sure it’s needed to be honest. We haven’t got mobile coverage either. We must be in a kind of Bermuda Triangle. Wouldn’t mind if we were in the outer Hebrides or somewhere, but we are just a mile down a lane in the Midlands! Thanks again for reading. x

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  11. Yes, I couldn’t match all the photos and haven’t seen the vase yet – hopefully Waitrose cafe wil oblige in due course! Thanks for your persistence in the face of adversity. I will pop over again tomorrow and see if things are any different 🙂

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      • Good to see the photos properly, Karen – and I think they are anemones on the vase. I didn’t go out between Fri and Weds (missing swimming and other exercise things, but not worth the risk driving), but yesterday (Fri 15th) was awful first thing – coming back from an early swim the traffic was just crawling and then the canal/railway bridge was covered in ice from thin snow on top of rain from the night before and I couldn’t get over it and had to leave the van and walk the rest of the way! Should be a bit milder tomorrow which is good as I have some bulbs to plant!

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      • Oh no, hope it wasn’t far to walk. We have just come back from looking after the inlaws and there were 5 cars in the ditches between our village and Leicester. Feel so sorry for the people involved. Hopefully the temperatures look set to rise over xmas. Fingers crossed. I think they are anemones. Thanks Cathy. Stay warm and take care xx

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      • Crikey – I read that grit can be ineffective when freezing rain causes black ice. Hopefully the cars were going slow and no one was injured. It was just a couple of miles (and downhill on the return journey!) to walk and was quite enjoyable apart from not thinking to take my gloves out of the van when I left it!

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    • Thank you Brian. I don’t like to be beaten by anything, hence the idea to use Instagram on the phone. The beech leaves do look pretty against the summerhouse. Am hoping to get out tomorrow to stock up on food. I’ve been stuck here for three days. It’s raining now, so hopefully that will clear some of the snow. All the best. Karen

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  13. Karen, I’m very sorry for your problem with the Internet. In the country house the only way to get a signal was a pin that you put the Gigas or Megas that you wanted and it was very expensive, to connect it to the mobile phone, but it did not always have a strong signal on the phone and it was worth a lot. The best solution was to put Internet by Satellite. They put a satellite dish and inside the house a wifi router so there is a signal throughout the house. It goes almost as fast as fiber optic and I have a lot of mega or gigas. I do videoconferences an hour and a half almost every week with my brother and his wife on Skype. I see a lot of videos, photos, ….. And I never stay. It costs me 63 Euros per month and the installation was free for the Community of Castile and Leon so that in isolated towns they had Internet. But I think it cost 150 Euros or so. It just does not work well when there are thunderstorms. If you run out of gigs or contracted megas do not cut the service, you sail at low speed. I have been with them for 4 years and I have never exhausted what I have hired. It works even with an icicle hanging from the device that has the satellite dish in the center! It is an international company and I have not raised the monthly fee. If you are interested, I give you the name. Your post is marvellous and fun, jumping from one page to another. Your garden and the fields are beautiful with snow. Paperwhite Daffodils are beautiful. The rose hips are red and big I love them. The vase is beautiful and I’m sorry I do not know what flowers are. The detail of the mistletoe on the house of 1930 is great. The instagram crowns are divine. You have lots of things to pick from the garden and use them. Regards with affection to your Mother. Karen next to the heat of the fireplace. Very loving greetings from Margarita.

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    • Thank you Margarita. Your internet sounds like a very good set up. Yes please, let me know the name of the company. You never know, it might be easier for me to get broadband from a satellite in another country. I wouldn’t be at all surprised! Thank you for your very kind comments on my photos and my garden. Snow hides a multitude of sins. You cannot see the weeds! We are also sitting by the fireside. Warm and toasty indoors. It’s -5c outdoors. Greetings to you and your parents. Love from karen and Mum xx

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      • Karen I have been looking on the Internet and Eurona Wireless Telecom (which is what is called the satellite internet company) also works in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Belgium and more countries. In Spain now the installation is free and they give more gigas. I have also seen that other internet satellite companies operate in Britain. For you to report. I hope you find something interesting. Good luck. Greetings with much love from Margarita. 🙂

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  14. I think the flowers on the vase are just generic ‘flowers’, made by someone who does not know flowers very well. They are pretty, so who cares?
    That twiggy wreath with the few remaining colorful leaves is rad.

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  16. Your snow looks so lovely, but what I’m envious of are those brilliant rose hips! 🙂 Mine never colour up brightly, and I don’t know whether it’s the varieties or the lack of cold weather – or both!
    So glad you were determined to get the post up as it’s wonderful even with navigating betwixt and between! I hope your internet woes are resolved soon. I wonder whether you could tether internet access from your phone to your computer. I’ve been doing a good deal of that lately… Speeds aren’t equal to good broadband but much better than nothing! 😉

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    • Thank you. That Scarlet Fire rose is really bright isn’t it. The flowers don’t last for long, and it’s not repeat flowering. But it makes up for it with those massive hips. It’s a big shrub. In fact, I’ve slung the trailing ends along the top of the hedgerow. Looks like I’ve put up Christmas decorations all along the hawthorn. I’ve tried syncing with phone, but it just keeps timing out. And then a message pops up saying, failed to upload. It’s a real pain. Worse for my daughter who is living at home but attending uni. All her work has to be submitted online, we’ve had a few panics in the past with deadlines etc. Thanks again for taking the time to read. I’ve not made it easy, posting between the blog and Instagram. So I’m grateful you have bothered to read it 🙂 x

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    • Oh that’s good to hear. Well, the snow hides a multitude of sins here. Can’t see the weeds. But highlights the brambles. I’ve just been out knocking the snow off the poly tunnel. Don’t want it to come down. Keep warm 🙂 xx

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  20. Had great fun toggling between the text and photos, which were a bit scrambled for me, and trying to figure out what was what…a very enjoyable puzzle to go with my first cup of morning coffee. Goodness, how lucky you are to live in such a beautiful place!

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    • Ah, thank you Marian. I might have made a hash of it as the internet has gone down totally now. Glad you were able to see some photos at least. It’s truly beautiful here. But the lane is so slippery. My youngest was on duty at hospital this morning and set off at 6am. Hope she gets home safely after a 12.5 hour shift. Thanks again for taking the trouble to read and match up the photos. I didn’t like to be defeated! xx

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