Spring into Action
For a taste of self-sufficiency and a beautiful outdoor space
Are you feeling revived and reinvigorated after the colder winter months? Well in case you hadn’t noticed, it’s Spring! The season of new beginnings with tree leaves and flowers unfurling, frogs spawning, buds bursting and the confetti blossom of fruit trees out in all their glory.
If the lighter, sunnier days are drawing you out into the garden this Spring, here are a few reminders of what you've got to look forward to;
“The most beautiful garden is one we have created with our own efforts”
Enjoying a beautiful outdoor space
Spring is the perfect time to get your garden into shape. Apart from keeping the lawn neat and decluttering the shed, it's space where you the gardener (yes you) are free to create anything imaginable. Whether you want to use it for growing organic fruit and veg, as an al fresco dining area, a flower garden for relaxation or as a chilled place to roll out your yoga mat. Your garden can be everything you want it to be and it can be beautiful. Spring is the time to put a bit of effort into turning your garden into its own beautiful paradise. In return, you'll learn new skills and will feel the satisfaction of turning effort into beauty. Oh, and without knowing it (until it's too late), you'll realise you've developed a new hobby for a lifetime.
Phlomis, lupins and love in a mist
Cucumber and red onion harvest
Fresh, Organic Food
It is a joy to eat produce that you’ve grown yourself. Whether that’s in your own back garden, an allotment, balcony or windowsill, growing your-own makes the connection between what you put in your mouth and where it comes from. It allows you to re-connect to the earth and realise whats truly important.
You don't need to be the next Alys Fowler, armed with a trug with a soil knife in your back pocket to embark on a yearly ritual of trying to grow something you can eat. The rewards are plentiful; satisfaction, food with all the flavour and none of the chemicals or excess packaging. If you're really going for it though you'll know that fruit and vegetables that ripen in the garden or allotment have more nutrients than store-bought vegetables that are picked too early and if you grow what you like to eat, you will save money. For the price of a single vegetable, you can get a pack of seeds and grow your own organic crops to supplement your supermarket shop. If you get the kids interested, you're passing the batten of good health and sustainability to the next generation.
Hummingbird hawk-moth visiting the nectar rich Red Valerian in our garden
Connecting with nature
Fresh air, bird song, sunny skies and watching the plants grow. Just getting out into the garden gives you direct connection with nature but if you're wild at heart you might want to go that little bit further and do a bit more.
It's not too late to hang a nestbox to provide nesting opportunities for some of the UK's most iconic species like blue tits, great tits, nuthatches and tree sparrows who's natural nesting sites are in decline. Install a camera into the box to watch the birds building, incubating and feeding from your TV. You might also want to keep a bit of garden wild to support insect pollinators. Whether that's designating a small corner that was already a bit neglected or you have a patio container planted with seed bombs. A stunning mini-wildflower meadow can be achieved in a small space that will be a haven for bees and butterflies.
Another great way to encourage wildlife to your garden is a pond or water area. Midge larvae live in water and attract bats when they hatch and fly. If your space is large enough you may discover frogs, newts and toads using your pond and of course birds, bees and other animals will use it to drink from.
A garden can be many things; a place for food production, somewhere to cultivate passions, a restorative haven or bursting with blooms for the bees and butterflies. One thing's for sure, these green spaces attached to our homes are good for our health and wellbeing and with a little TLC have the potential for truly anything to grow. What will you be doing in yours?
