Welcome to The Garden Notebook — a journal of thoughts, tips, and seasonal musings from life among the borders.
Here you’ll find a growing collection of reflections from my own gardening journey — practical advice, stories from the soil, and inspiration drawn from the ever-changing rhythm of the year. Whether you’re battling clay, coaxing colour into shade, or simply enjoying a quiet moment among the plants, I hope these posts offer encouragement and useful ideas to carry back into your own patch of earth.
Settle in, have a read, and feel free to share your own garden stories along the way.
Where Have All the Butterflies Gone? And What We Can Do About It—Right Now This afternoon I was out mowing—not a grand job, just tidying what’s left of the lawn,
When the Ladybirds Come Too Late: Gardening with Nature’s Clock, Not Ours There’s something deeply frustrating about watching a plant you’ve cared for—watered, fed, maybe even planted for the insects—get
Where Are the Ladybirds? Why Beneficial Insects Might Be Missing—and How to Invite Them Back Step into any thriving garden and you’ll find more than just plants at work. Look
Letting the Lawn Grow: What Comes After No Mow May? Why the end of No Mow May isn’t the end of the story—and what to do with your wild patch
Pests, Predators, and the Balance in Between Why squashing everything isn’t always the answer At this time of year, when the garden bursts into growth, the pests often arrive just
Mycorrhizal Fungi: The Hidden Network That Feeds Your Garden You can’t see it, but it’s there—an ancient, living web just beneath the surface of your garden. A network so vital,
Why Every Garden Needs a Pond (Even a Small One) There’s a moment, late in the day, when the sun catches the surface of the water just right—and suddenly, your