Handmade greeting cards

Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens.

Recently I managed to visit a garden I have wanted to visit for a long time – Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens.

These beautiful gardens are dog friendly, so we were able to take our lovely little dog Brinkley on a new adventure. On our trip out we were accompanied by our respective families.

I have to say we did get a little lost on the way there as our Sat Nav didn’t register where we were for most of the journey, because there are lots of hills and valleys in the area. So if you are planning to visit, I suggest you remember to pack a map, just in case.

A big plus was that you could visit the restaurant, shop and garden centre for free before paying to enter the gardens.

I love visiting the Lost Gardens of Heligan in Cornwall, Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens is similar in planting and design to Heligan’s Sub-tropical garden. The gunnera in the ‘Upper Pond’ and ‘Bog Garden’ areas in the gardens, are amazing. We saw beautiful fuchsias and hydrangeas dotted around the garden, and we all thought that the ‘Walled garden,’ ‘Victorian walled gardens’ and the ‘Lily pond’ were exquisite. It is a peaceful place to enjoy the plants at their best.

Other areas of interest are the sculpture trail and they hold special events for example plays, falconry events, and enchanted floodlit evenings. You can even have your wedding there!

It is a truly beautiful garden! The design and layout of the plants is cleverly done, as you are able to admire the views and planting schemes from many angles. To catch a glimpse of what you can expect check out their virtual garden tour

At the end of your visit, there is a nice garden shop, to tempt you!

If you are lucky you may catch a view of the extravagant Golden pheasant!

Brinkley thoroughly enjoyed the day out, as there was plenty to sniff and investigate!

As the well known saying says, as quoted on a beautiful wood carving that you see when you enter the gardens –

‘Enjoy the Garden.

Take only memories, leave nothing but footprints.’

So in conclusion

It’s a stunning garden, with a lovely restaurant, and shopping area. Brinkley enjoyed his visit and we will be back! Everyone in our party enjoyed the day it is a great day out for the whole family and I fully recommend a visit!!!

If you would like to visit here are the details –

Directions –

You can find this lovely garden in Abbotsbury near Weymouth in Dorset.

Admission fees –

Adult – £9.50

OAP, Student, Disabled – £9.00

Children 5-15 years – £6.50

Family Ticket – Group of 5 with a maximum of 2 Adults- £26.00

Near by is the famous Abbotsbury Swannery and Abbotsbury children’s farm. If you would like to visit these too, the gardens, swannery and farm run a special passport ticket scheme, so you are able to make the most of your visit to this beautiful area.

If you are an RHS Member check your handbook for when you can use your card for free entry.

If you have the Gardener’s World 2 for 1 garden visit card you can use it here, which is great!

Opening Hours –

Open everyday apart from the 18^th December – 1^st January

10 am – 5/6pm Winter until 4 pm

Final Note

If you would like to know more about our visit in terms of it being a dog friendly garden and a garden with disabled access, please see our post on Birds on the Blog – A Visit to Abbotsbury Subtropical Garden

I am a big fan of the National Garden Scheme also known as the NGS!

I love visiting gardens such as the large RHS Gardens, but I also love visiting smaller / personal gardens, loving created by people who love to share their pride and  joy with visitors, whilst raising money for charity.

Over the years I have tried to get to as many gardens operating under the NGS as I can, but there are still many on the list in my area that I am eager to visit.

As I regularly write blog posts about particular flowers, I often recommend particular gardens in the NGS to visit, as not only will it be a great day out, but  it is also good to support our local neighbourhood gardeners. You can learn so much by visiting these gardens, admiring their planting schemes and asking the owners questions.

If you are looking to redesign your garden, or add to your garden and are looking for inspiration, these gardens are ideal! As often we can be a little intimidated by the larger grander gardens that are looked after by teams of gardeners. If you want to know which plants would be suitable in your area, visiting local gardens gives you a great opportunity to see which plants work for your soil conditions.

Last weekend I had the privilege of visiting the Cerne Abbas Open Gardens in Dorset. I had been a few years ago and was looking forward to a return visit.

The weather was perfect which always makes a visit to a garden extra special. The Cerne Abbas Village is stunning.

If you want to visit a typical traditional English village, then this is a must visit.

25 gardens took part in the weekend. If you love investigating every crook and cranny of old walls and pathways, you will enjoy visiting this village as there is always some thing interesting to see.

Tickets to this event was £5 for adults and free for children, which was extremely good value. You also receive a small map to help you find the gardens around the village.

The photo on the right was taken as I was looking over an old wall admiring the view. The rose and rose bud was beautiful and I thought it would make a nice photo for this blog post.

We didn’t make it around all of the gardens, but really enjoyed the ones we ‘discovered’ as we walked around the village. As I walked around the streets, down various paths and small alley ways, I was reminded of one of my favourite childhood stories – The Secret Garden. As you looked for the yellow posters and open gates, you were never sure what you would find. The gardens fitted each other like a perfectly made jigsaw puzzle, and if you had a peek over the walls you would get a brief view of the next door garden’s delights.

The flowers that were in abundance throughout the gardens was the stunning rose, in gorgeous colours and tones such as white, pink and red. Astrantia was also a popular plant in these gardens and to be honest I can see why. I have a fondness for this lovely flower, the colours and detail complement so many other plants, and when the sun catches their petals they just look stunning!

Not only were the plants beautiful to look at, but also the scent made the whole presentation even better. You could tell that the bees were enjoying their dinner, but I was also mesmerised by the varying scents of the tea roses and honeysuckle. WOW!! If I had a chair and a mug of tea in hand, I wouldn’t have been able to move for hours!

Some of the gardens also had small ponds and fountains, and on a day like we visited with the hot sun fully out, the trickling sound of the water made a welcome addition to the setting.

No garden visit would be complete without a cup of tea of cold drink. We enjoyed an ice cream and an elderflower presse at Abbots Brasserie and Tea Garden. There are a couple of tea rooms and pubs in Cerne Abbas, so plenty of places for a drink and something to eat.

If you would like to visit the Cerne Abbas Open Garden weekend, then they will be holding the next event next year on the 18th- 19th June 2011, so make sure you add it to your diary, as you are sure to have a lovely time.

If you would like to visit a local NGS garden near to you, you can select the county that you live on the NGS website and a detailed list with photographs will be shown. You can also pick up little yellow NGS booklets at various tourist information points, for more information.

Roses always come at the top of the list in literature and various gardening shows. The sheer abundance of varieties, colour and smell makes it a truly inspiring plant. Whatever garden you have, there will be a rose variety to suit whether you have a balcony, small patio or city or county garden, you can enjoy this flower.

One of the best times to truly appreciate the scent of roses, is just as the sun comes down on a warm summers evening, is absolutely heavenly.

Roses are always popular with weddings, anniversaries and valentines.

Every survey that asks the nation – what our favourite flower is, the answer is always the same – the rose.

The english country garden is not complete without one or two of these delightful flowers.

Last year, there was a survey to find out the worlds favourite rose, impossible you would think! Well the results showed that it is indeed the David Austin rosa ‘Graham Thomas’ do you agree?

In the language of flowers the rose stands for –

- Love

- The Yellow rose can mean  – jealousy

The rose is a perennial flower and has over 100 different species within the family Rosaceae. Every year the collection grows, with new varieties being introduced all the time.

David Austin has over 800 varieties!

The huge variety of roses means that if you want to grow a rose, there will be a variety for you; from the shrub, floribunda, tea, climbing, patio etc…

The RHS have provided a guide to how to plant roses

To ensure greater success with growing your chosen rose, the advice is that bare root roses are the best to buy, from a reputable grower. As roses are available everywhere, including the local petrol station and high street DIY store, you can never be sure of where the roses have come from, and how long they have been there.  Buying quality roses can be costly, but this is where cutting corners doesn’t usually save in the long run.

The problems associated with roses are – rust, rose black spot and powder mildew, greenfly / aphids and ants that seem to be attracted to container roses.

Greenfly can often be got rid of by using a water spray with water and a bit of washing up liquid, sprayed directly on the leaves. You could also ladybirds into your garden to munch them up – purchase a ladybird breeding kit.

In reference to ladybirds there is currently running a UK ladybird survey, you can help them by recording any sightings.

Roses will bloom with a good feed such as a general feed or specialised rose feed, mulching, and careful watering.

It’s also best not to plant a new rose where other roses have been, particularly if they were diseased

If you love roses, then a visit to the Chelsea Flower Show is an absolute must! Hampton Court Flower show is also a great show to see this beauty.

Last year I had the opportunity to visit the Hampton Court Flower show, and their special Tudor Rose Marquee was breath taking. The crowds were horrendous and trying to get close to the displays was hard, but the display of toses were gorgeous. I wouldn’t have missed it! To see a 3D video presentation of the marquee take a look at the RHS video – Tudor Rose Festival.

Not sure which rose to choose?

David Austin has helpfully provided a guide to help you choose the perfect rose for you!

Some of the best roses for cut flowers are –

William Shakespeare 2000

Graham Thomas

Winchester Cathedral

Gertrude Jekyll

Evelyn

I also love the Albert Bell, with stunning yellow flowers and lovely scent.

Want to learn how to make a beautiful display of flowers?

Sarah Raven has an excellent website and also provides flower arranging courses

Sarah did a wonderful programme on supporting UK cut flower growers, if we can support our local growers, not only will have gorgeous flowers, but also help specialist nurseries stay in business.

More information about the beloved rose -

• The World Federation of rose societies

Where to buy roses –

Apuldram Roses

Country roses

David Austin

Peter Beales

The Country Garden Plant Centre

The Real Flower Company

Gardens to admire roses –

Each of the RHS Gardens – Rosemoor, Harlow Car, Hyde Hall, and Wisley have wonderful display of roses. Wisley are currently developing a new rose garden. If I had to pick one for roses then it would be Hyde Hall in Essex! One word – AMAZING! You will overdose on this beauty, if it’s possible to.

From the 19th -20th June RHS Rosemoor are holding a special weekend in honour of the beautiful rose -Scents of Summer

National Trust gardens tend to have a great show of the wonderful rose

Mottisfont house and gardens in Hampshire, have special events when the rose is in bloom, Check if there is a garden near you that has similar events.

Garden of the Rose in Hertfordshire

Coughton Court Gardens in Warwickshire

Castle Howard in Yorkshire

Any cottage gardens will have a host of wonderful roses added to their design. Check with your local National Garden Scheme , support a charity and see wonderful gardens!

We have a collection of rose cards  and gifts suitable for all occasions, including -

Engagements, Weddings, Valentine’s Day or just simply because you or the intended recipient of the card loves roses!

Add your special message for a truly special card!

www.sendaflowercard.com

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Recently we had the privilege of visiting Apple Court garden again.

When you visit, you feel as though it’s a secret garden, but I want to share this secret with you.

I suggest you ask for the garden leaflet for information about the garden, to get the most out of your visit.

This beautiful garden is situated in lymington Hampshire, near to the coast and the majestic New Forest; it ticks all the boxes for me.

The owners and gardeners are Angela and Charles Meads. They took over the garden in 2003, and in a relatively short space of time in gardening terms, they have a garden they can be proud of!

On both occasions we were fortunate to see the garden in lovely spring weather, you feel so at home in the garden that you could quite easily sit and have a cuppa watching the world go by.

They also had some amazing chickens with an enormous black velvet rooster, I don’t know the name of these chickens but I had to take a photo to show you how magnificent they are. They are great for pest control, very eco-friendly and a gardeners friend.

Often gardens specialise in particular plants and flowers.

Apple Court Garden’s specialities are – hostas, day lilies, and ferns.

On our visit last year in May, we had a lovely surprise, a beautiful wisteria was found over a lovely little seat at the beginning of the rope walk that I mention on my video below. We will be returning to admire this lovely scented flower again very soon. Angela was sure that the wisteria would be in flower very soon, and you could certainly see the buds about to burst into life.   

The planting scheme is planned very well as it looks natural, but you know that a lot of work has gone into the design. As I mention in the video it’s a restful garden, a garden to visit to let your stresses melt away and feel refreshed once more.

I particularly enjoyed the lovely spring, salmon and peach borders for the spring bulbs, the lovely camellias and magnolias and the hellebores.

If you like gardens with many rooms and little paths to discover new areas, then this is a garden for you.

It’s definitely a garden to see through the spring to the autumn seasons.

The garden is open under the National Garden Scheme (NGS)

Here is the video to give you a little taster of what you can expect from this lovely garden.

When is Apple Court Garden open?

It’s open from the beginning of March to the end of October.

Opening hours - 10-5 pm

Opening Days -  Friday – Sunday and Bank Holidays

Price £4.00. There is a season ticket available for £10.00 well worth it if you are planning to visit a few times in the opening season.

Shop There is a nursery area with a large array of plants available to purchase, to add to your garden. They also have an online shop

Refreshments there is a little area for drinks.

If you want something more substantial we can recommend Braxton Gardens that is about 5-10 mins drive away. Braxton Gardens is definitely worth a visit, especially when the roses are out as they have a rose garden, as well as a tea room.

Mobility if walking is hard for you; there are little sitting areas to admire the garden from. The paths are small, so using a wheelchair may be difficult, as it doesn’t have paved paths. I would suggest contacting the garden before you visit, to see if it is accessible for you.

I hope you enjoyed the video and find the information useful.

We hope that you will add this garden to your list to visit, as you won’t be disappointed.

For more details Apple Court Gardens website is – www.applecourt.com

It’s bluebell time!!!!

Can you tell I’m excited! Well I am, because I look forward to seeing this stunning flower every year!

In a mini series we looked at various businesses to see what flower would best describe them.

We looked at -  A flower for Arrow light Haulage

In order to choose an appropriate flower for a business we need to look at the business objectives.

Arrow Light Haulage -

• Is a professional Essex Same Day Courier and Van Delivery company.
• Their objective is to collect and deliver time critical goods and deliver them anywhere in the UK.
• Their drivers are polite and well trained; they know that your reputation is in their hands.
• They do the job right the first time, – a professional courier.

I have chosen the beautiful bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) to describe Arrow Light Haulage.

In the language of flowers the bluebell stands for 3 key aims and objectives for their business.

• Constancy
• Reliability
• Dependability

The bluebell is a favourite of mine, as soon as the New Year begins I look for snowdrops, then I count the days until bluebell season. I have a favourite wood near by that I simply must visit every year.

Bluebells grow and grow searching for any dappled sunlight, as the leaf coverage on trees are not at their full capacity. When the trees finally catch up, bluebells finally begin to drift off back to sleep to regain their strength for another year.

In Britain we have three types –

• Native (which can also include the white bluebell)
• Spanish
• Hybrid ( a mix of the above 2)

Bluebells flower from April – June.

The English bluebell is a delight to see, but due to the spread of the Spanish bluebell, true English bluebells are becoming quite rare.

If you would like to learn how to identify a native bluebell, the Natural History museum has provided a description and drawings to help you – identifying bluebells.

For some recommended places to see this beauty –

• Milton Abbas and Delcombe woods and surrounding area in Dorset
• Badbury rings and Kinsgston Lacey in Dorset
• Emmets Garden (National Trust) Kent
• Royal Botanic gardens Kew London
• Royal Botanic Gardens Wakehurst Place Sussex
• Arlington Bluebell walk and farm trail East Sussex
• Coton Manor Gardens in Northamptonshire
• Trevarno gardens in Cornwall

Do you have a favourite place to see bluebells?

Please share with us so that our blog readers know the best places to visit.

I am sure there are many other wonderful gardens to see the magnificent bluebell, check the RHS or the National Trust to see some suggestions in your area.

The Good gifts catalogue has a great gift available for someone who loves bluebells. You can help protect a bluebell wood for £50 through the Tree council.

If you want to fill your garden with bluebells, the process from seed can take a couple of years to flower; here is a video by Gardener’s World on how to grow bluebells from seed. Bulbs are available through most garden centres. Please make sure that you buy native bluebells, and that they haven’t been taken from woodland as they are a protected species.

So plan a trip to your local bluebell woods and enjoy the stunning colour and smell of the gorgeous bluebell.

Enjoy!

Note: if you would like us to look at a flower for your business please contact us, we can provide a package of choosing a flower that best describes your business and a framed print of your flower that you can display in your office.

Please contact us for further information and we will let you know our package prices.

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Today we are looking at the lovely tulip.

Words to describe tulips could be –

• Cheerful
• Elegant
• Showy
• Colourful

What words would you use to describe this flower?

In the language of flowers, the tulip means –

• Beautiful eyes
• Fame
• Love

Interesting facts:

• There are over 109 species, with approximately 3,000 different varieties in the tulip family the Liliaceae.

• If you buy tulips as cut flowers, they will continue to grow in a vase.

• The first tulips originated as a wildflower in Central Asia. It was in the 17^th century that tulips was introduced to Europe. Tulips were so popular in Holland that some special varieties became very expensive to buy; it could quite easily cost the same as buying a house!

• The Flower Design Institute have provided a useful video on how to care and arrange tulips. Please visit their website for further tips and hints for arranging beautiful displays of flowers.

There are 3 flowering times –

• Early flowering – March – April
• Mid season flowering – April -May
• Late flowering – May

• There are 12 viruses that can affect tulips, causing problems with the flowers and leaves, as well as problems with growth. The RHS provide a useful information page to help you notice symptoms and give advice on how you can help improve the health of your tulips – Tulips Viruses

• This bulbous plant is lovely to see in spring, with its amazing range of colours and patterns at various heights from the tall and elegant, to the striking compact variety.

• Tulips can often be seen in our local parks and roundabout displays as well as a garden favourite.

I have been very fortunate to see the wonderful tulip farms and gardens  in Holland when I was a child. It is something I would like to return to and see again, as it left me speechless, admiring the fields of rich colour.

Above 3 images of Tulips and daffodils from Holland, are taken by my Dad from one of our trips.

I have been enjoying various gardens in Dorset and Hampshire admiring this beauty. There are so many different varieties it’s hard to choose a favourite, do you have a favourite?

Tulips can be grown successfully in containers and spring borders. They often provide a sense of structure to a garden border, and mixes well with other plants. I have particularly enjoyed gardens that have concentrated on a green and white colour scheme, with white tulips, daffodils and snowflakes dotted around green foliage. This provides a cool restful scene. An example of this can be seen at Apple Court Gardens in Hampshire, which we will be writing a blog post about our visit very soon.

If you would like to visit a garden to admire this lovely varied flower, the following is a small selection of gardens and farms recommended to see tulips.

• Keukenhof in Holland has some 32 acres of Tulips!

• Skagit Valley Tulip Festival near Seattle in the US

• Woodburn Tulip Festival Oregon US

• Springfield Festival Gardens in Spalding UK

• Pashley Manor Gardens in Sussex have a tulips festival, running from the 23^rd April –  3^rd May. They have some 23,000 tulips to admire!

• Kew Gardens in Surrey

• The NGS (National Garden Scheme) has a very helpful website detailing gardens under this scheme throughout the UK who grow tulips. To find gardens in your area please visit – Tiptoe through the Tulips

Where to buy Tulips

All garden centres sell tulips, but if you are looking for a specialist grower –

• Blom Bulbs have won 59 gold medals at the prestigious Chelsea flower show.
• Avon Bulbs who have also been awarded 21 gold medals at Chelsea Flower Show.
• Rose Cottage Plants for detailed information on the 80 tulip varieties that they offer, please visit their website

At Nita Joy Craft Design we have some special personalised tulip cards for a variety of occasions, or add your personal message.

We will also have some tulip designs available for kitchen splashbacks through My Kitchen Store, which we will be announcing soon!

Wherever you live, there is sure to be a garden near you where you can enjoy the beautiful tulip.

Enjoy!

We would love to hear your recommended places to see Tulips so we can share them with our blog readers.

I visited Kew Gardens many years ago and it has been on my list of must see gardens to visit this year.

As spring is well and truly here, this is a great opportunity to visit this beautiful large garden to admire the spring bulbs, cherry blossom and magnolias.

I visited the 300 acre gardens last week, with my husband, best friend and her children, and had a fabulous day.

If you visit before the 31^st April you can join a free guided walk – The darling buds of April to get the most from your visit. Pick up a guide and / or map when you enter the gardens as you will need this.

For children they have a special play area to help run off some steam, but the gardens are so large that there is plenty of space to run around in.

The children enjoyed looking at all the flowers, leaves and also the exquisite peacock!

My husband loved seeing the gardens, but particularly enjoyed the roast pork and apple roll for lunch!

There is plenty to see and do on a day visit, but in order to get the most out of your trip to the gardens, it’s best seen over a few days. It’s definitely a garden to see in each season, to truly benefit from their planting schemes.

I really wanted to visit the Treetop walk but unfortunately the lift wasn’t working, but hoping to visit another time as this looks wonderful.

Favourite areas:

One of the favourite parts of my daytrip was seeing the wonderful fritillary area which can be seen on the Princess walk. This area is fenced off to protect these wonderful delicate flowers, but you can still get a great view of them, as seen in our video clip.

You can also see these flowers alongside the river walk.

Dotted around the gardens are lovely areas of cherry blossom and magnolias. If you visit soon, you will receive a leaflet highlighting areas of the garden to see them.

The Japanese Garden was a favourite of mine on a previous visit and I have to say I wasn’t disappointed this time. It’s a very peaceful area, with very thoughtful planting, a place to sit and contemplate.

Many of the specialist daffodils have finished for this year, but there is a wonderful area next to the palm house, full with narcissus, tulips etc… don’t miss this!

Due to the wide variety of planting you can see beautiful plants and be up close and personal with nature, keep an eye out for the parakeets! While we were there we had a wonderful sighting of a green woodpecker.

Because the gardens are so large, I wasn’t able to visit the  Palm House, Temperate House or Princess of Wales Conservatory , as I was focussing on spring colour. I hope to visit again soon so that I can see the areas missed.

The Temperate House is in need of funds to restore the beautiful building. If you would like to make a donation please visit -The Temperate House appeal

Kew Gardens Millennium Seed Bank also run an adopt a seed programme, helping to preserve and keep seeds that are becoming rarer. We can make a difference in raising funds for this very important inititive. If you would like to know more about their work please visit – Adopt a seed, save a species website

Have you visited Kew Gardens?  What are your favourite areas?

Prices:

Adult: £13.50

Concessions: £11:30

Children: Free.

Kew Garden offer a yearly or lifetime membership scheme

Accessibility:

Kew Gardens has a very helpful website to help you plan your visit.

If you have a disability / mobility issues, they have a fantastic service where you can hire an electric mobility scooter, which is free, but a donation would help keep this service available. The paths around the gardens are smooth and wide, so using a wheelchair should present no problems.

For more details – Kew Gardens visitor information

To help plan your visit:

Kew Gardens have an interactive map – Explore Kew , to help you decide which areas to concentrate on.

Parking:

Parking is limited, so travelling by public transport is a good idea, especially in busy holiday times.

Video taken by Matt Hunt

The Flowering Cherry Blossom Tree  is also known as Sukura in Japan.

Today we will be looking at the flowering cherry tree blossom.

I have been enjoying the blossom slowly coming into flower, throughout Dorset. The roads always look so much nicer with cherry trees dotted around. I even notice pedestrians stopping and admiring their beauty, with a smile on their faces! Oh I love Spring, don’t you?

The cherry tree typically flowers in April-May.

Tree blossom is just stunning! I love  the beauty of cherry and apple tree blossom.

In the language of flowers the cherry blossom stands for

• Spiritual beauty
• Beauty

There are over 200 varieties of cherry trees growing in Asia, North America and Europe.

The cherry tree belongs to the rosaceae family.

If you need help in identifying a cherry tree, the Natural History Museum have a useful Cherry tree identification guide

In Japan the cherry tree blossom is associated with good fortune and a symbol of love. It is also the unofficial flower for Japan. They hold special cherry tree parties (Hanami) when they are in flower. They also have a special cherry tree festival with tea ceremonies and so on.

Cherry trees flower at different times from January – March in Japan. Nago for example has some 20,000 flowering cherry trees in their park! Here is a guide to cherry tree viewing.

This is on my list of special things Iwould love to see. I would absolutely love to see the cherry tree parties and tea ceremonies, enjoying the thousands of cherry trees in blossom!

In America, Washing DC, they have a national cherry tree festival.

This is to celebrate spring and to honour the cherry tree gifts that were given to them from Japan in 1912.

I have hade the privilege of visiting Batsford Arboretum in Gloucestershire, which holds the national collection of cherry trees.

If you have a small garden, there are smaller varieties of the flowering cherry trees, growing to around 2 meters in height.

The Prunus Triloba a double flowering almond cherry tree has beautiful flowers

I also love the Prunus Shizuka – fragrant cloud Japanese flowering cherry tree

Not only are the flowers beautiful, but some varieties have wonderful autumn colour like the bark pictured below.

To choose a suitable place to plant your flowering cherry tree, consider an area that receives a lot of sunshine, fairly protected and that has well drained, deep soil. It’s advisable not to plant a tree, where there was previously a tree with a disease. Take into account the expected height of growth of your tree, before you plant it. Some cherry trees require a pollinator, so check the details before you buy one.

The RHS have a guide to show you how to prune your trees.

The Cherry tree is susceptible to black fly, here’s some advice from the RHS.

The RHS have a Cherry Tree Fund as part of their ‘remember a loved one’ fund

Suggestions of where to buy cherry trees

The Ornamental Tree Nursery has some nice small trees

Trees online has some lovely varieties

Mail Order Trees

Gardens to see Cherry tree blossom

Exbury Gardens in Hampshire

Hiller Gardens in Hampshire

Hergest Croft Garden in Herefordshire has a wonderful collection

Lost Gardens of Heligan in Cornwall

Dudmaston Estate in Shropshire

The blossom trail at the Vale of Evesham has some 40 miles ablaze with cherry, apple and plum blossom from mid March- mid May

Many woodland gardens will have this pretty tree in their collection and can often be found growing in church yards.

So get out there and enjoy the lovely blossom!

Update: The National History Museum are running a Cherry Tree survey, if you would like to add the details of where you have seen these beautiful trees, please visit -

The Daffodil

Daffodils are known as the flower for March birthdays, so would be a great idea for a gift and personalised birthday card.

In the language of flowers the daffodil means–

• Regard
• Respect

This greeting cards is available through our online shop – Easter Cards

I think this flower would be most appropriate for use in business, as well as for a personal message.

Business strive to be respected in their given profession, and want to show respect to their customers /clients.

It could also be a great gift to give someone as a thank you.

Various cultures and religions have various associated meanings with this flower –

• The Greeks have a rather sad mythology associated with this flower, involving a punishment from God for our human failures, such as the story of Adonis. There was also a man named Narcissus who thought of himself better than anyone else. He died staring into his own reflection in a pool of water. A flower grew where he died and was named the narcissus.
• Psychologists use the term ‘narcissist’ to describe those who are obsessed with themselves, excluding all others.
• The Egyptians used the daffodil bulb skins as part of their burial ceremony.
• Christians associate the daffodil with re birth and resurrection; the daffodil is used as a symbol of Jesus’ death and resurrection. We use the daffodil as a part of our Easter card collection for this reason.
• On ‘Mothering Sunday’ or ‘Mother’s Day’ – it’s traditional to give your mum daffodils. The tradition goes back to when those who were in service (maids and servants), were allowed the day off from work to visit their families. As a gift to their mums they would pick wildflowers, including the daffodil. In church services, it’s common for Mums to be given daffodils as part of the service celebrating this day.
• The Daffodil is the emblem for Wales – also worn with pride on St David’s day (Welsh - Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Sant) St David is the patron saint of Wales and the celebration takes place on the 1st of March.
• William Wordsworth in 1804 wrote a poem called Daffodils. To hear Jeremy Irons read it beautifully -  Daffodils
• The Marie Curie Cancer Charity has the daffodil as their emblem.

Here is some information about the lovely daffodil

• The Latin name for the daffodil is narcissus.
• There are thousands of different types of daffodil.
• Due to the huge number of varieties, they have been divided into 13 specific groups to help narrow them down to particular styles, shape, growing conditions and so on…
• Plant them from September onwards to flower in the following spring.
• Need help with growing daffodils? -  Then The RHS have provided a helpful guide – Daffodils
• Daffodil Bulbs are a tasty treat to snails and slugs, and squirrels have been known to dig them up. They are also prone to diseases such as bulb rot.
• You can grow them indoors as well as outdoors. The indoor varieties brighten up your living space and often have a wonderful smell.
• Advice from Gardener’s world suggest that the best varieties to grow indoors are -

-          Grand Soleil d’Or an early flowering narcissus

-          Minnow

• J Parker have a lovely Narcissus indoor bulb collection
• Fentongallon Flower Farm in Cornwall has an amazing array of Daffodil bulbs and cut flowers They donate £1.00 to the Marie Curie Cancer care from each cut flower purchase.
• Scilly Flowers – offer daffodil cut flowers

Gardens to admire the beauty of the daffodil

Daffodils tend to be a park favourite, and you may also see them planted alongside roads and roundabouts.

• Exbury Gardens in Hampshire
• Docton Mill in Devon – they have also been awarded best tearooms!
• Hartland Abbey and Gardens in Devon – they have a daffodil day on 21^st March
• Easton Walled Gardens in Lincolnshire
• RHS Wisley in Surrey
• The National Trust – Grasmere

– Daffodils at Glencoyne Bay, Ullswater

-  ‘Doras Field’

We have daffodil cards and a daffodil tote bag.

Please see our online shop for further details – www.sendaflowercard.com

Where are your favourite gardens to see daffodils?

Last week, I went on my annual trip with my dad, looking for snowdrops.

Snowdrops in the Dorset and Hampshire region have flowered quite late this year and after all the cold windy weather we have been having, some snowdrops which are open to all the elements, have had a rough time holding their delicate heads held high.

In the language of flowers the snowdrop means – A friend in adversity and hope.

If you know someone who is having a hard time, a trip to see the lovely snowdrop is sure to life their spirit.

Now is the time to plant snowdrops ‘in the green.’ Planting them now will give you a fantatstic display next year.

On my day out we decided on visiting 2 areas that we knew would be excellent to see this lovely flower.

• Damerham Church (Hampshire)
• Breamore church (Hampshire)

Damerham church has the wow factor of several thousand snowdrops planted together in the church grave yard. They often hold special snowdrops days to welcome visitors. It was lovely to see, and just how I remembered.

The snowdrops were beautiful, even though they were a little windswept. If you want to see snowdrops in their thousands, then this is a lovely place to visit next year.

We then moved on to Breamore church.

As we carefully moved around the wonderous display of snowdrops in the pretty church yard, I counted around 5 different varieties growing there. There was probably more, but this was the number I spotted. These snowdrops had a little more protection from the elements than the ones at Damerham, so there was plenty of opportunities to photograph them.

There was also a lovely area of winter aconites.

The yellow of the aconites and white and green of the snowdrops had a really fresh, spring feel.

I watched Countryfile the other week, and the presenter looking at snowdrops in Scotland said he thought snowdrops looked all the same. Well if you view them from a far, you may agree. It’s not really until you examine the detail of each of them, that you will see how different and special they can be. It’s epecially hard to see the differences, due to the fact that they are low to the ground, and the flower heads point downwards.

This particular snowdrop wanted the world to see her beauty, as this flower head was pointing outwards. I was so pleased to have spotted this one and capture the image. I have heard of some people using dental mirrors to see the insides of low growing flowers, and I can quite see how useful this would be.

If you like this snowdrop image, it is available to buy as a framed, mounted or canvas print

As I have said before you can see beautiful flowers all over the place. You don’t always need to go to a specific garden to see them, it’s often fun to look into alternative places, such as church yards, roundabouts etc…

Where are your favourite places to go?