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11 nature blog posts for the year 2011

December 20, 2011 By 4 Comments
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As we come to the end of another year, I am sure this one went in a blink of an eye ;)

I thought I would do a roundup post looking at some of my nature blogs that I have posted at my other blogging home – Birds on the Blog.

 

This year some of the things we have looked at are -

All about my love of the snowdrop and where to see this beauty.

 

Well that was a heart wrenching time, when there was the heated debate about our precious woodland. With rumblings still going on in the background, it’s important for us to keep an eye on new policies being lined up for our forests.

 

I  had the privillege of seeing a carpet of thousands of crocuses at Forde Abbey and gardens – I will be definitely be going there again next spring!

 

Blessed by a sea of blue in a gorgeous woodland, enjoyed and treasured by many! Can’t wait to visit again next year!

 

The joys of the National Garden Scheme – the NGS

 

A bizarre plant that doesn’t flower often and smells horrible, but still ends up being a popular plant to see.

 

Getting out there in the summer and enjoying what nature has in store for us.

 

Along the theme of my love of flowers is the language of flowers. This post looks at some suggestions for wedding anniversary ideas!

 

Who knew that hydrangeas were so popular. So many joined in enthusing about their love for the hydrangea :)

 

We look at suggestions of what food we can give to our feathered friends, with a couple of recipes of seed cake and fat balls thrown into the mix.

 

A controversial one … looking at the many benefits of Ivy for wildlife.

 

I hope you will enjoy the posts :)

 

Let me know which posts you particularly enjoyed!

 

Anita :)

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Bluebells – Choosing a flower for a business

April 30, 2010 By 5 Comments
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It’s bluebell time!!!!

Can you tell I’m excited! Well I am, because I look forward to seeing this stunning flower every year!

In a mini series we looked at various businesses to see what flower would best describe them.

We looked at -  A flower for Arrow light Haulage

In order to choose an appropriate flower for a business we need to look at the business objectives.

Arrow Light Haulage -

  • Is a professional Essex Same Day Courier and Van Delivery company.
  • Their objective is to collect and deliver time critical goods and deliver them anywhere in the UK.
  • Their drivers are polite and well trained; they know that your reputation is in their hands.
  • They do the job right the first time, – a professional courier.

I have chosen the beautiful bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) to describe Arrow Light Haulage.

In the language of flowers the bluebell stands for 3 key aims and objectives for their business.

 

  • ConstancyA flower - the bluebell for Arrow Light Haulage
  • Reliability
  • Dependability


The bluebell is a favourite of mine, as soon as the New Year begins I look for snowdrops, then I count the days until bluebell season. I have a favourite wood near by that I simply must visit every year.

Bluebells grow and grow searching for any dappled sunlight, as the leaf coverage on trees are not at their full capacity. When the trees finally catch up, bluebells finally begin to drift off back to sleep to regain their strength for another year.

 

In Britain we have three types –

  • Native (which can also include the white bluebell)
  • Spanish
  • Hybrid ( a mix of the above 2)

Bluebells flower from April – June.

The English bluebell is a delight to see, but due to the spread of the Spanish bluebell, true English bluebells are becoming quite rare.

If you would like to learn how to identify a native bluebell, the Natural History museum has provided a description and drawings to help you – identifying bluebells.

For some recommended places to see this beauty –

Do you have a favourite place to see bluebells?

Please share with us so that our blog readers know the best places to visit.


I am sure there are many other wonderful gardens to see the magnificent bluebell, check the RHS or the National Trust to see some suggestions in your area.

The Good gifts catalogue has a great gift available for someone who loves bluebells. You can help protect a bluebell wood for £50 through the Tree council.

If you want to fill your garden with bluebells, the process from seed can take a couple of years to flower; here is a video by Gardener’s World on how to grow bluebells from seed. Bulbs are available through most garden centres. Please make sure that you buy native bluebells, and that they haven’t been taken from woodland as they are a protected species.

So plan a trip to your local bluebell woods and enjoy the stunning colour and smell of the gorgeous bluebell.

Enjoy!

Note: if you would like us to look at a flower for your business please contact us, we can provide a package of choosing a flower that best describes your business and a framed print of your flower that you can display in your office.

Please contact us for further information and we will let you know our package prices.

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The Flowering Cherry Tree

April 9, 2010 By 4 Comments
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The Flowering Cherry Blossom Tree  is also known as Sukura in Japan.

 

Today we will be looking at the flowering cherry tree blossom.

I have been enjoying the blossom slowly coming into flower, throughout Dorset. The roads always look so much nicer with cherry trees dotted around. I even notice pedestrians stopping and admiring their beauty, with a smile on their faces! Oh I love Spring, don’t you?

The cherry tree typically flowers in April-May.

Tree blossom is just stunning! I love  the beauty of cherry and apple tree blossom.

In the language of flowers the cherry blossom stands for

  • Spiritual beauty
  • Beauty
Cherry blossom best wishes © Nita Joy Designs

Cherry blossom © Nita Joy Designs

There are over 200 varieties of cherry trees growing in Asia, North America and Europe.

The cherry tree belongs to the rosaceae family.

If you need help in identifying a cherry tree, the Natural History Museum have a useful Cherry tree identification guide

In Japan the cherry tree blossom is associated with good fortune and a symbol of love. It is also the unofficial flower for Japan. They hold special cherry tree parties (Hanami) when they are in flower. They also have a special cherry tree festival with tea ceremonies and so on.

Cherry trees flower at different times from January – March in Japan. Nago for example has some 20,000 flowering cherry trees in their park! Here is a guide to cherry tree viewing.

This is on my list of special things Iwould love to see. I would absolutely love to see the cherry tree parties and tea ceremonies, enjoying the thousands of cherry trees in blossom!

In America, Washing DC, they have a national cherry tree festival.

This is to celebrate spring and to honour the cherry tree gifts that were given to them from Japan in 1912.

I have hade the privilege of visiting Batsford Arboretum in Gloucestershire, which holds the national collection of cherry trees.

If you have a small garden, there are smaller varieties of the flowering cherry trees, growing to around 2 meters in height.

The Prunus Triloba a double flowering almond cherry tree has beautiful flowers

I also love the Prunus Shizuka – fragrant cloud Japanese flowering cherry tree

Not only are the flowers beautiful, but some varieties have wonderful autumn colour.

To choose a suitable place to plant your flowering cherry tree, consider an area that receives a lot of sunshine, fairly protected and that has well drained, deep soil. It’s advisable not to plant a tree, where there was previously a tree with a disease. Take into account the expected height of growth of your tree, before you plant it. Some cherry trees require a pollinator, so check the details before you buy one.

The RHS have a guide to show you how to prune your trees.

The Cherry tree is susceptible to black fly, here’s some advice from the RHS.

The RHS have a Cherry Tree Fund as part of their ‘remember a loved one’ fund

Suggestions of where to buy cherry trees

The Ornamental Tree Nursery has some nice small trees

Trees online has some lovely varieties

Mail Order Trees

Gardens to see Cherry tree blossom

Exbury Gardens in Hampshire

Hiller Gardens in Hampshire

Hergest Croft Garden in Herefordshire has a wonderful collection

Lost Gardens of Heligan in Cornwall

Dudmaston Estate in Shropshire

The blossom trail at the Vale of Evesham has some 40 miles ablaze with cherry, apple and plum blossom from mid March- mid May

Many woodland gardens will have this pretty tree in their collection and can often be found growing in church yards.

So get out there and enjoy the lovely blossom!

Update: The National History Museum are running a Cherry Tree survey, if you would like to add the details of where you have seen these beautiful trees, please visit -

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The emotional benefits of flowers

December 20, 2009 By 8 Comments
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Sending flowers to someone who is in hospital for example, has always been a nice gift to give, as they can help cheer you up when you are not feeling at your best.

waterlily hope you feel better soonDue to standards of cleanliness in hospitals being under the microscope over the last few years, gradually flowers have been discouraged or completely banned.

A few years ago I worked as a physiotherapy and occupational therapy assistant within a head injury ward and saw the joy that flowers can bring, even to those who didn’t usually buy them.

It was thought that the soil in the plant pots and water in vases contained high levels of bad bacteria.

I thought it was hugely disappointing when flowers were discouraged. Visitors like to send a gift to their friend or family member, and patients enjoyed the scent and look of the bouquets.

A study was done in 2005 on the emotional benefits of flowers. The findings showed that flowers helped people feel happy. It showed that those who had received flowers felt less depressed and led them to feeling better about themselves.  To read more about this interesting study by Rutgers please see their published findings – Evolutionary Psychology

The care of the patient is vital! If flowers do cause harm, then of course the patients care comes first, but many specialist microbiologists say there is no evidence, for example -  *Hugh Pennington (a microbiologist) said that there was no risk, expressing his concern that he felt it was unnecessary to ban flowers from hospitals.

The *Telegraph 17th December 2009 has written an article about this debate showing that new research reveals that flowers do not cause harm. A survey was carried at two hospitals – the Royal Brompton Hospital and the Chelsea & Westminster Hospital. Their research showed that there was hardly any evidence to support the belief that flowers cause harm to patient care. The Telegraph article goes on to show findings from the Imperial College of London that recorded that having flowers in hospitals actually helped improve the health of the patients. (Please visit the article for further information.)

I find these articles and research very interesting, and it goes to prove the power of the flower! My business aims is to provide cards that help brighten someone’s day. I chose to specialise in personalised flower cards, because I know how much joy you can have from beautiful flowers!

I am not ashamed to say that I need flowers and the beauty of our countryside. Spending quality time in the timeless elegance of an English country garden brings me such peace and pure joy! To be surrounded by snowdrops, bluebells, a field of wildflowers is something I hold very dear! I physically and emotionally relax in God’s wonderful creation.

I think it should be prescribed! :)

I am passionate about flowers (if you haven’t already noticed), if you are having a tough time, exhausted from work and family life, just take a few moments to notice the beauty of the majestic flower, examine the detail of the petal, stem, leaves, the colour and how it grows. Nature is amazing!

If you have a friend or family member in hospital it’s best to check their policy before sending flowers, to avoid disappointment.

One company that I think does very well for hospital policies is the wonderful Flower card company based in Guernsey. They specialise in a card with real flower mini bouquets added to oasis in the front. Their bouquets are delivered in special boxes complete with a straw to allow for watering as required. Have a look at their collection.

If flowers are not allowed at all or you would like a card to complete a gift, how about choosing a special flower card, where we can personalise it with your message and send directly if required.

Send a card, brighten someone’s day

Information from -

*Statement from expert microbiologist  Hugh Pennington from – ‘Hospital flowers nipped in the bud by NHS hygiene police’ written by Marc Horne 11th January 2009 in News.Scotman.com

* The Telegraph article on - ‘Hospital flowers do not cause harm, report claims’ 17th December 2009

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