Category Archives: Gardening

getting up….

Posted on July 10, 2015 by

Warm scented early mornings with bare feet on smooth tiles are the longed for moments. Like childhood summer holidays each day is fraught with the fear of this contentment passing, of being returned to the pleasant from the sublime. The hot night has … Continue reading →

Posted in 2015, apricots, Breakfast, Childhood memories, Cooking, Emotion, food, Food and Photography, Food photographer, France, Garden, Gardening, melons, Photography, summer, Uncategorized, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 32 Comments

A puree of Gorgons’ heads…

Posted on January 18, 2015 by

“Cheap” is a much maligned word. Cheap skate, cheap shot, dirt cheap and on the cheap are terms that denigrate, that define something or someone as less than it or they should be. In our wealth driven society a divide has appeared. … Continue reading →

Posted in 2015, apples, Apricot jam, Baking, bananas, Caroline Conran, Cookery Writers, Cooking, Cuisine bourgeoise, desserts, Digital photography, food, Food and Photography, Food photographer, France, friendship, Fruit, Garden, Gardening, leeks, Leeks in red wine, lifestyle, Mary Cadogan, Pear Sponge tart, Pears, Photography, photography course, tart, Uncategorized, Vegetables, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 36 Comments

While Eve delved Adam watched and criticised..

Posted on June 30, 2014 by

Overshadowed by Eve’s magnificent crop of lavender sits Adam’s humble bowl of wild rocket. The difference in effort and application is clear, but the paltry handful of leaves garnered by  Adam’s scissors produced a fiery summer salad whilst the tumble of … Continue reading →

Posted in 70's, Cooking, Digital photography, food, Food and Photography, Food photographer, France, Garden, Gardening, Herbs and Spices, lavender, Photography, photography course, Rocket, Still life, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 51 Comments

Wickedleeks….

Posted on March 17, 2014 by

I don’t know much about a science book, and I don’t know much about the French I took …but anything I’m not sure about, as long as it’s to do with vegetables or local French, can be resolved by our … Continue reading →

Posted in Baking, Cheese, Christmas, Cooking, Cuisine bourgeoise, Digital photography, Eggs, food, Food and Photography, Food photographer, France, French countryside, friendship, Garden, Gardening, Humour, Leek and cheese souffle, leeks, Photography, photography course, Recipes, souffle, Uncategorized, Vegetables, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 42 Comments

One fine morning…..not

Posted on June 17, 2013 by

I, like Caesar before me, walked out into the ruins of what was, but yesterday evening, a garden in the full pomp of June flowering.  On surveying the flattened, flowerless, green mayhem Caesar would have addressed his trembling gardeners in … Continue reading →

Posted in 2013, Art photography, Bad luck, Emotion, Garden, Gardening, Humour, Language, Photography, photography course, Photography holiday, summer, Weather, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 36 Comments

Death of a chainsaw…..

Posted on January 23, 2013 by

The chain saw stopped sawing. There was no apparent struggle against going into that dark night, it just stopped making a noise, let its chain turn powerlessly for a couple of rotations and entered eternal rest.The giving up of its … Continue reading →

Posted in 2013, Art photography, Bay leaves, Digital photography, Emotion, Garden, Gardening, Herbs and Spices, Photography, photography course, Photography holiday, Rosemary, sage, Seasons, Thyme, Uncategorized, Weather, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 51 Comments

That’s very sexy, Petal

Posted on September 14, 2012 by

Gardening is good for my soul. Digging and laying paths are good for my body, at least so I try to convince myself as I nurse my aching ageing muscles. Watering, as long as the garden is small, is mesmeric … Continue reading →

Posted in Autumn, Digital photography, Excellence, France, Garden, Gardening, Geranium, Lobelia, Photography, photography course, Photography holiday, Soul, Still life, Uncategorized, Watering, Writing | 37 Comments

The weather man says clear today…….

Posted on September 3, 2012 by

Forecasting is, at best, an imprecise science. Sitting in the garden this evening the light is soft and beautiful. Summer’s end is hard to accept when corners of the garden are illuminated by the incarnadine glow of  geraniums in full … Continue reading →

Posted in Art photography, Autumn, Digital photography, Expectation, Food photographer, France, French countryside, Garden, Gardening, Geranium, Landscapes, Lobelia, Oleander, Photography, photography course, Photography holiday, The Forest of Mervent, Vendee, Weather, Weather forecasting, Writing | 52 Comments