Things are so strange for everyone at the moment during this pandemic. I feel lucky that I am well and that I have paid employment. I miss the contact with other people that I would normally have through my work and I really want to see family and friends who are not with me. I am very grateful for what I can do though including pottering about in my garden and on the allotment.

I am trying to mark the seasonal changes and the turn of the year so I have been spending time planting seeds and adding plants to my garden.

When these seeds grow I will put the plants in the allotment and hopefully get a harvest from them later in the year.

Towards the end of last year I was given some plants but I didn’t get round to putting them in. I am happy that I have these new additions for my garden now as trips to garden centres and plant sales can’t happen.

I planted many of them in an area that we cleared due to cutting down a honeysuckle that had very bad mildew and had grown too big for the space. I used my own home made compost to enrich the soil.

I am also planting sunflower seeds that I hope will grow into beautiful bright flowers that I’ll put in my front garden as part of the 36000 Humans project that I am involved with. You can find out about this project here.

My garden sleeps through the winter months and I am always amazed and delighted how at this time of year the plants grow apace.

Our pets enjoy being in the garden too.

And I look for further inspiration in some of my favourite books including Derek Jarman’s Garden.