Making up the Christmas Wreath!

I've never made one of these before but inspired by a recent episode of 'Gardeners World' on the box and a stallholder selling similar at Stratford market, I decide it's time to have a go!. The challenge as ever in the Fothergill household is to see if it's possible to make one up entirely from foraged and recycled items found in and around the garden.

Well, not bad so far...a couple of coathangers and some wire salvaged from the old fencing are a good start!

So now all I need is some ivy (plenty of that around), some holly with berries (in the front garden), moss (foraged from the roadside), some fir cones (erm...well I did have to buy those from the stallholder), some gardening wire (ok ...had to buy that too!) and a bit of ribbon (plenty of that in our resource box)...oh and some chillie peppers (from an old flower arrangement).

All looks a bit of a mess so far but hey ho...this has to be better than Sunday afternoon ironing! First thing is to wind some ivy around the frame and then add in the moss to create a base. A bit fiddly and realise that without some sort of binding the whole lot starts to fall off! So.......off to the local farm shop to buy some garden wire to wind around the structure and pull it all together! Add in the fir cones and it's starting to look promising....interesting bug life emerging too - ladybirds and devils coachmen..will have to put them outside in a mo...

So now - to pretty it all up with some variegated holly with berries, a few bundles of chillie peppers and some ivy berries and flowers to add a bit of colour. Add in a green bow for the final touch and Voila...we have our very own Christmas Bouquet! All from mostly home grown or foraged finds and now hanging prettily in our little porch! Thank you Gardeners World!

Potty about Pots

I've always had a few potted plants in my garden and whilst they can be high maintenance during dry months, there is something rather sculptural about arranging different shapes and sizes of pot with a variety of interesting plants.

At our previous home, most of the borders were in constant shade so if we wanted some colour it had to be from potted plants on the south facing patio.

Here is a different ball game altogether....plenty of borders and space for planting so hardly any need for potted plants. However I can't resist planting up just a few and placing them on the new seating area. Inspired by our local pottery at Whichford and their amazing display of courtyard potted plants I'm off to the local garden centre to see if I can find something that will add a little cheer to our garden during the bleak winter months.

So here we have a little display of pots, Euphorbia Characias, Heuchera, Skimmia Japonica, Carex Brunnera and at the back a newly replanted Mahonia, transplanted from another part of the garden, adding interest and height to the corner of our little veggie plot. Let's hope it didn't notice the move!!!
Oh...and there's that little doglett again!!!

Meanwhile, the terracotta pots newly planted up with bulbs rescued from the borders are already showing signs of life and green shoots are breaking through the compost!

One of the other things we inherited here were 3 water butts. I've always wanted one of these so to have 3 is a total bonus! Perfect for dry summer months when we need water for the garden most and no worries about hosepipe bans when we have our own supply of fresh rainwater or extra water rate charges for use of utilities.

Water is something we all take for granted but in many countries this is simply not the case. This was brought home recently when we went to a local supper at our village hall and listened to a talk by one of our residents who currently volunteers in Uganda at the White Eagle Project. Amongst the many things they do to help local communities including helping to educate street kids, building schools, working with local youths and orphaned children, they are also on mission to bring clean and drinkable water to the community. Whilst we have an endless supply of water in our homes, in Uganda water is a valuable and scarce resource - on many occasions children and adults have to use fetid and stinking water wells as their only source of drinking water when regular supplies dry up.

It is a sobering and humbling experience and I am full of admiration for these young people who give up their time and effort to give people in difficult circumstances a better life. What can I do to make a difference?? 4,000 miles away it seems all rather remote and alien and not quite real. Perhaps though we can all do our bit by spreading the word and thanks to the internet it's easy to do these days.

So...I'm off to sign up and donate a few pounds each month...it's a small contribution but amazing how much of a difference it will make to each individual some 4,000 miles away and maybe through the power of facebook and the internet you can help to spread the word too!!!

www.riveroflifeuganda.org