Foxy Visitor

While we've known we have foxes that come nightly to our gardens in England, we rarely see them during the day. However, one fox seems to be particularly brave and unconcerned that we have a Border Collie, Sophie, who usually is quite demonstrative about unwelcome parties. While this particular fox was scrounging around the bird seed, I was able to snap some photos through the window next to my crafting table.

Canadian Geese

These Canadian Geese seem to be right at home in our back yard in Loveland! They are coming every afternoon before sunset.

Snow Pictures

Here are some photos from the latest big snow, which began on Tuesday November 30th and kept snowing through Thursday, December 2nd. Now it is about 23 degrees F, so the snow is going crunchy!

Snow cometh

Our Hillside home during the snow. Sophie our Border collie loves the snow!

Feathered Friends in the Garden

We've had lots of feathered garden visitors over the last number of weeks. The Blue Tits have been bringing their fledgling chicks to learn how to feed on the suet nibbles. In particular, they love the RSPB's Buggy Nibbles. These precious little birds aren't too bothered by me, as I'm the mad woman with all the food! You can hear the Blue Tits flitting to and fro in the shrubs and trees with their young. There is a very specific song they sing when they have the little ones in tow. I plopped myself into a chair, not too far away from one of the feeding stations, and the Blue Tits happily came and fed while I snapped these shots.

Daisies in the Garden

I planted some Ganzia, African daisies, in our back garden last Thursday. At that time, the daisies were standing tall and blooming brightly in the English sunshine. However, after planting them, our weather turned windy, overcast and downright cool for the weekend. Hubby kept looking at the Ganzia flowers, with their heads completely shut, and questioned why I purchased such reluctant specimens. I promised him that they are stunning when the sun shines and the flowers spread open.

Now that the weekend is over, OF COURSE the weather has improved, the sun has returned, the wind has died down, and the temperatures are warmer. I have taken photos of the Ganzia as proof to my husband that they really do open up during the day!

In addition, the Livingstone Daisies are finally blooming, too. They also wait for the nudging of the sun before they open and share their vibrant colors.

Strawberries in June

If it's June in England, there must be strawberries!

These are strawberries from one of the six plants that I bought last year. They have been prolific this season.

And, last autumn, I potted up about 30 baby plants from the runners from the original plants. This spring, I planted them into an old rubble pile in the back garden.

The plants have lots of lots of little strawberries, ready to ripen. Where's the cream?

We've also had a lot of success with the potted roses this year. There's something in the climate this summer that favors the roses. The entire neighborhood is filled with roses, and you can smell the lovely scent hanging in the air when out walking.



The potted plants in the back garden are just starting to bloom and fill out. In a couple of weeks, they will be a lot fuller and more vibrant, but it's always interesting to see their progress over the summer.