On Sunday we went out for the day with my parents. On Saturday afternoon it had been wet and gloomy here which made me a little concerned about our plans for the next day, but Sunday dawned bright and sunny with beautiful blue skies, and we drove out into Essex to the Forgotten Gardens of Easton Lodge, where the gardens were open for one of their two snowdrop days this year.
We spent a very pleasant hour or two wandering about, in some areas it was quite hard not to tread on any snowdrops. There were various things to look at as we walked around, including a tree that had been carved, a memorial, a kind of topiary sundial and a dilapidated Italian sunken garden which would be wonderful if it could be restored. There was mistletoe in some of the trees, it fascinates me the way it grows in host trees. I have always wanted to bring some fresh mistletoe indoors at Christmas, but I know the berries are poisonous and our labrador eats everything. She ate another sock last week.
There is another snowdrop day next Sunday 26th February, be warned before you go that the 'tea room' is outdoors. it also had a long queue. Tea and cake would have been lovely, but not enough to queue and then to sit in the cold and have it. We ended up in a McDonalds, after finding the local pub had stopped doing food at 2pm. I think next time I will pack sandwiches and flask of tea.
At the plant stall by the entrance there were various plants for sale, including snowdrops 'in the green', you can even order them in advance in large clumps on the website. I wish I had room in my garden for lots of bulbs. I settled for a couple of hyacinths and a little snowdrop in a pot which is now sitting happily on my garden table.
Oh Spring time! We're coming into to Autumn here and the biggest reminder is the wonderful Spring pictures on the blogs from the Northern Hemisphere.
ReplyDeleteSuch a great time of year, the freshness in the air.