Cultivation

After years of various activities, the peaceful nature of gardening and cultivation now attracts me more and more.

We went out into the Wicklow mountains recently and came, by chance, to Hunting Brook Gardens. This is one of the most peaceful gardens I know and there is a walk in the woods that helps blow away all the mental cobwebs that accumulate from being indoors. Classes are held in the lovely wooden building on the site and there is always a warm welcome.

Back in suburbia, I continue to tidy leaves out of the now empty flowerbeds and plan to plant bulbs for Spring. It's a lovely time of year for the gardener, as everything seems possible. The reds and russets in the hedgerows are spectacular this year and the Virginia creeper in particular is a delight every time I look out the window... a blaze of dying embers.

More people are taking to gardening, thanks to recessionary times, but also because it is such a natural impulse. Here's to success in the next year...