April out of doors

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Spring flowers galore, West Dean gardens, West Sussex. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

Hello again. What a lovely time of year it is for flowers and foliage. I thought I would reflect on the month just gone by and post some images of things I have seen when I have been out and about these past few weeks.

Over Easter, I travelled down to England to visit my family in West Sussex. One of our favourite places to visit is West Dean gardens near Chichester. Until this year, I have only visited in mid to late Summer to see the wide variety of fruit and vegetables that are grown there. In early April, the grounds were covered in wild spring flowers and it made for a very pretty scene indeed.

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Sunshiny garden primroses. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

Back in the garden at home, there are primroses galore, and the grass verges and local woodlands are also decorated with these pretty yellow blooms. My favourite spring flowers, Snakeshead Fritillary, are also out in bloom in the garden, along with lots of Muscari and the first of the new season Bluebells.

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April garden flowers. Images: Kathryn Hawkins
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Loch Monzievaird, Perthshire. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

Out on a walk last weekend, just a few miles from where I live, there were plenty of primroses growing on the grassy banks of the loch. The golden clumps certainly helped liven up a dull-weather afternoon. The trees are just coming to life now, although I’m not sure how much longer some of them will stay upright given the activity of the local beaver population!

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April garden tasks: Hydrangea pruning. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

The things-to-do-in-the garden list is beginning to lengthen now that the plants (and weeds!) are growing again. Just as I pruned the old heads off this aged Hydrangea bush there was an overnight frost, but fortunately no damage was done. I managed to cover the fruit trees with fleece before the frost descended. Lots of lovely blossom again this year which I hope means plenty of fruit if the bees and insects get busy.

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April morning blue sky. Images: Kathryn Hawkins
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Cherry and pear blossom. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

I’ll leave you where I began, with one more image of Fritillaria, captured in West Dean gardens on Easter Saturday. Until next time, thanks for stopping by. See you again soon 🙂

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Easter Snakeshead Fritillary. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

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