Yew trees and snowdrops

Painswick had been on my 'to visit' list for well over a year. I'd been patiently waiting for snowdrop season to come around again before making the trip up into Cotswold heartland. Painswick is a handsome village, beautifully situated in the verdant Cotswold Hills, with renowned walking routes on the doorstep and stunning countryside views. She is the undisputed 'Queen of the Cotswolds'. 

Our main focus on this trip was seeing the famous snowdrop display at Painswick Rococo Garden. An impressive carpet comprised of millions & millions of tiny white blooms cascaded down slopes and spread through the wooded undergrowth of the garden. But unexpectedly, it was the yew trees in the churchyard of St Mary's that emerged as the highlight of our visit.

For a long time, 99 yew trees grew in this churchyard, and according to legend if a hundredth tree was to be planted the devil would destroy it. At the turn of the new millennium every parish in the diocese of Gloucester was presented with a yew tree to plant to mark the occasion. Parish officials faced a dilemma... 

Painswick was chosen to host the blessing of these trees as they were handed out to the various parishes. The 100th tree was planted at the start of the new millennium and, contrary to the often cited legend, is growing well. 

The trees are clipped every September, producing in excess of 2 tonnes of yew clippings. These clippings are actually used in the manufacture of an anti-cancer drug, specialist contractors are employed to process the clippings.

I look forward to a return visit one day, hopefully in late spring when the Cotswold Way is lush and overgrown with wildflowers and the day light stretches late into the evening. 

Kate  x

Bare rose bushes

Summer roses are a very distant memory now. My three rose bushes are in a deep slumber. They were only planted in the spring, so hopefully an autumn and a winter to settle their roots will result in a more prolific flowering period next year.

Kate  x 

The world-famous garden at Stourhead

Stourhead is always a popular place for visitors, but that is especially true in the autumn months when the trees put on a spectacular show and tourists flow in to see a riot of burnt oranges and yellows. 

We arrived first thing, when the early morning shadows were still long and the sun hadn't quite risen high enough to dry out the dewy lawn on the banks of the lake. But this meant the lake path was still relatively quiet. It was a perfect early autumn morning, crisp but sunny with no breeze, giving the added bonus of a completely still lake that acted like a mirror, reflecting the autumn foliage perfectly.

The Pantheon is the primary feature, the temple of Apollo a close second. But as you make your way around the lake to the Pantheon, there are other surprises. Grottos and follies have been built into the landscape, hidden until you come upon them suddenly. They're peaceful places, classical style statues spout water, and carefully placed 'windows' draw the gaze across the lake. The path passes by this scene too. The Gothic Cottage with its flaming tree on the doorstep looks like something from a Grimms Brothers fairytale. 

The Stourhead estate is more than a Palladian mansion with impressive landscaped gardens. It is comprised of over 1000 hectares of land, the village of Stourton, as well as farmland and woodland. These cottages, on the estate, are both lived in and rented out as holiday lets.

By mid to late October the trees are really at their best, but even when we visited almost a fortnight ago they were pretty colourful, showing signs of what is to come.

Really though, I imagine its an estate worth exploring no matter the season. I think it would be spectacular on a bright winter morning blanketed in a hoar frost.

Kate  x

Bibury in bloom

Last Friday we met up with my cousin and her family in Bibury for lunch and a stroll around the village. We had been to Bibury before, but it looked a little different when we were there in the depths of winter compared to last week. You can see the iconic cottages of Arlington Row covered in frost HERE. 

The promise of summer was heavy in the air last week, even with the grey sky threatening us with rain. The cottages were awash with rambling roses, gardens were filled with foxgloves, and the River Coln featured a family of swans.

I did lean down to the water to gauge its temperature... still chilly. I am sure the cygnets didn't mind too much, those fluffy down feathers looked quite cosy.

You can get a sense of how popular this walk is by the number of people strolling past the cottages at any given time. It is one of the most iconic places of rural Britain, touted to be one of the most photographed streets in England. Arlington Row even features inside the British passport.

The foxgloves are currently at their peak, growing prolifically in cottage gardens and wild along roadsides alike. I love them and wish some had appeared in our new garden this spring.

This is Matilda. Matilda looooves flowers. That little purse strung over her shoulder was filled with flowers by the time our stroll ended. Roadside weeds, elderflowers from over-hanging trees, valerian sprouting out of walls, foxgloves on cottage doorsteps, Matilda didn't discriminate. Any attempt to teach her that we don't pick flowers from just anywhere was frankly futile. If only I was as brazen as this little five year old. 

I had such a fun time hanging out with my littlest cousins, and they made me laugh so much. Matilda asked me how old I was ("that's so old" she replied), if I liked Harry Styles, and then invited me for a sleepover in her bunkbeds. At one point three-year old Esme was asked to share her pasta with her big sister, to which she replied, "If she wanted pasta she should have ordered it." We couldn't fault her logic, but a conversation about the virtues of sharing was had anyway.

An afternoon with little kids is sometimes the perfect antidote to all the trauma and suffering in this world.

Kate  x

On the cusp of summer

I feel this week signals the tipping point from spring to summer around here. Though, I might retract this statement when the week-long rain that is forecast for next week arrives.The air is very warm, and it smells of grass and moisture, in the way that early summer always does. 

27 C is our predicted high today. I am making the most of the clear and warm days by drying a few loads of washing, opening all the windows and the French doors, as well as walking barefoot around our courtyard garden to admire the English lavender I just planted. I have plans for lavender ice cream, and almond & lavender cake too. Dining al fresco is on the cards. Lemon-spiked G&Ts are already a regular occurrence. 

The garden is in a little lull- the blossoms and bulbs of spring have long faded- but the summer blooms haven't quite arrived yet. The honeysuckle and climbing rose at the front of the cottage will burst very soon. As will the elderflower tree at the bottom of the garden. I have tall spires putting out as-yet mystery flower heads. I think they'll be larkspur. But they might be delphinium. It's a waiting game.

Mr Red-breasted Robin is giving himself afternoon dust baths below his beloved hawthorn tree. He's rather flighty. I try to photograph him, but he's very shy and much too fast. I'm hoping if I start putting seed out he'll allow me to make friends with him.

In late March I sowed a box of 'mixed blue garden' flower seeds. Who knows what was actually in it, but the seedlings are pushing up at quite a rate now. I'm hoping there will be forget-me-nots and cornflowers in there somewhere. 

Kate  x