Author: Fen

tinybloomingplaces was set up by Fen, designer of sustainable and naturalistic small outside spaces, to spark your imagination and inspire you to get stuck into the garden to create your very own piece of paradise giving you endless hours of therapy, pleasure and escapism from the pressures of modern life in a big city. The ongoing legacy of a beautifully designed garden will be yours to enjoy for a lifetime. Discover the healing power of nature. If you don't know where to start and just get in touch, I offer full design service and design your own garden workshops. The important thing is somehow to begin. Full design, plan and build service available.

The Kitchen Planter

Even if you only have the tiniest of outside spaces  a  balcony, terrace, window ledge or the front entrance to your home, window boxes and containers can open up the world of gardening to you,  any space is  enough to create the perfect kitchen garden.  Plant up  hardy herbs together,  they will last all year round and will help inspire your winter cooking.  Those non hardy herbs that prefer a warm sunny clime, will thrive throughout the summer and  lend themselves nicely to the quick and easy oriental style and mediterranean cooking (much needed when life is too short and the days are too long to be spending too much of it inside).

Winter window box for the kitchen (think winter casseroles and slow roasts)

Bay, Rosemary, sage, thyme and oregano

These hardy herbs will last all year round – don’t forget to keep them watered during dry winters!

Spring to Autumn Window box for the kitchen – Semi hardy herbs  (feeling like a lighter meal,  think potato salad, fatoush, pasta or fish with creamy, herby sauces)

chives,  parsley, tarragon, mint

(will die off in a frosty winter if kept outside but will grow back again the following spring)

Summer window box for the kitchen (think mediterranean,  marinades,  salads  and quick and easy chinese and thai inspired stirfries)

lemongrass, basil, dill, corriander, chillies, spring onion and garlic

Enjoy the fruits of your labour

Grow herbs in a window box whatever size to suit your space
It’s amazing the variety you can pack in, your very own organic mini supermarket
Plant some herbs in a big wooden barrel or terracotta pot on your terrace or pop it at your front door, I usually dry out the abundance of hardy herbs they always come in handy in the store cupboard
Basil likes to stay inside when it is cold outside but will thrive outdoors in your window box during the summer months

Have a look at this great site selling unique trough containers – They not only look picture pretty but are great  for a small outdoor space to  grow your all your kitchen requirements

http://www.harrodhorticultural.com/HarrodSite/pages/product/product.asp?prod=GPL-695

Growing Lavender

If you have only the tiniest of window ledge,  providing it is a sunny spot,  why not grow lavender in a window box.  When you open your window the summer flowers will make you feel like you are in your own little garden,  bringing the outside in. Lavender also has many culinary uses, infuse in your tea,  make lavender cupcakes, lavender sugar and lavender vinaigrette.  Use the dried flowers to make lavender pot- pourri to use around your home or put in little muslin bags to freshen up your wardrobe or mix with some sea salt and olive oil to make a luxurious foot scrub.  Trim the lavender plants back by about a third each year after the flowers have faded and they will bloom for many. Lavender is quite tolerant to dry conditions and loves to be in the sun.  You will know it is summer when your lavender is in bloom, touch it, smell it, you will definately love it!

Grow Lavender in your window boxes
Infuse your tea
Create your own tea infusions, this one has green tea, camomile, hisbiscus, lavender and lemon
Bake some lavender cupcakes
Make some home made pot pourri – I pulled the lavender flowers from their stalks after they had dried out and mixed with some dried rose buds collected throughout the summer – you can also package these in little bags and tie up with ribbon – they make a pretty gift
Dried lavender also makes a great wardrobe fresher – pack in pretty bags and hang in your wardrobe
Keeps my wardrobe smelling fresh
The smell of lavender will keep months at bay

Here is a great link I found to explore the many more uses of lavender http://frugalgranola.com/2012/02/culinary-uses-for-lavender/

Fen's avatarFen Ryan Plant|Design|Maintain

With a little thought about what you plant  in your outside space it will not only look beautiful but will yield some very useful and inspirational things prompting the unleashing of  the creative you.  Lemon trees  look great and you can grow them in a pot on your balcony or terrace (they will flourish in a sheltered area or you can take them inside  if the winter is very harsh).  The tree will give fruit all year round.  When the blooms appear before the fruit the air is scented like a heaven send – it doesn’t get much better than this.  Lemons get used lots in summer to help olive oil dress your salads or squeeze into a summer cocktail or fruit add to a fruit punch. In winter try making your own lemoncillo the perfect winter schnaps or a lemon loaf to help keep your cockles warm, entertain guests and make your kitchen smell…

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Looking Lush

At the moment if feels like we are living in the times of Noah’s ark – it started to rain nearly two weeks ago and has hardly stopped since with no end currently in sight but nobody still seems to be sure whether or not the hose pipe ban has been lifted???? Not that we need to use them anyway given the current climate conditions.  Despite the predominant overcast skys spring is still blooming away everywhere you go and seems even more vigorous fuelled by the heavy downpours.  A recent lunchtime pop to the sandwich shop revealed different blooms with nearly every step.  The plants are so grateful for the rain but I am hoping it will move on soon – anybody know how to do the sundance? In the meantime keep on a singing in the rain.

Even the puddles are looking lush

Dancing petals
Beautiful blousey blooms
Spring romance is alive and kicking

It’s raining blossom

Some lilac had fallen from it’s bush so I took it back to brighten up my workspace
I’m singing in the rain

In The Name Of Progress

TUMBLED STONE AND RAIN SHOWERS

Well after major devestation to the house, garden and the grafters the hardscape is finally down phew! We can now  start clearing the debris from the bomb site and begin to realise the vision. Peace will reign once more on this shore.  An oasis of calm will be instated over the coming months.

Observing the stone after a rainfall and admiring how it enhances their beauty even more I certainly realise they were so well worth the cost –  never compromise on a good stone.   I got this one  from Adrian Hall garden centre where they have a vast array to choose from – check them out they have various locations around the capital.

The Vision (subject to change)
There’s no going back now – onwards and upwards!
The new pathways made from
lovely tumbled textured natural stone

Out with the old – with a little help from my friends
Timberrrrr The conifers come a tumbling down

Glossy Green Laurel Leaves will grow into a manageable mature hedge over time to give a little privacy to the small front garden

watch out for more updates and development of this space throughout the coming months

Say it with Pictures

How fortunate we have been here in the UK enjoying a very sunny and early Spring – recent pictures from the garden put it all into words

A little bit of urban wilderness

Pots amongst the forget me nots
Wonder where this path leads to……………….
More tea vicar
Ah go on now ya will ya will
Sweet Messages
One stick or two?

Where there is tea there is cake
white chocolate cup cakes
happy 13th birthday asheebee
Wish my lemon tree was producing these
Zesty soaps from Bronnley

Mish Mash

As most people will know good design doesn’t just happen by chance.  It is a carefully processed and perfectly executed melange.   And like with any good design careful consideration needs to be given before creating your perfect outside space,  from what plant where to which plant suits which pot.  It is always wise to remember size and colour matters whether planting your borders or containers.  Although tempting as it may be to “acquire” everytrhing that you LIKE a little bit of forethought, restraint and planning will result in a garden that you LOVE.  But before planting can commence it is good to have an overall vision in mind.  Visions can change and evolve as is nature’s way and they give you the focus to start creating something that will look great.  You can clash you can mix you can match just don’t mish mash!

For the enthusiasts amongst you who want to get some spring colour around your home now  below are some ideas, lots of  the spring bloomers shown come in a variety of colours so choose which colours  you would like for your spring window boxes,  patio planters or borders.  For me it’s purple and yellow mixes that hail the coming of spring!

“calming whites” white tulips and trailing ivy
“cute contrasts” white muscari and purple viola
“sunshine yellow” yellow tete a tete with red, purple and yellow primroses
“wonderland of whites” muscari, hyacinth, daffodills, tulips
“Walk on by” these boxes have been planted with daffs for spring when they finish flowering replace with lavender for the summer season ahead

 

Room With A View

As I lounge in the lounge gazing out at the rain on an overcast Mid  March day (it is after all  St Patrick’s Day and it is traditional that he sheds a tear for Ireland), the highs of the past few sunny spring days that raised my spirits to an ecstatic high a distant memory, I remember why it is I love to plant my window boxes from scratch rather than buy ready grown ones.  The sight of the partially emerged muscari amongst the narcissus pulled me right back to the reason why I love Spring, there is so much more to come and the rain……………..   well that’s the part that makes it all possible!  Window boxes are a great way of bringing nature into your home and are great for the smallest of outside spaces.

Spring in a window box
Watch them grow
Gaze from the window

All Hail Spring

 

I’m dreaming of a hot summer…….

As I begin to get those summer bulbs in starting with a humongous pot of white gladoli my thoughts turn to dreams of long,  hot loungey summer days in the garden and whilst recently enjoying a sunday morning at the columbia road flower market, I happened upon two gorgeous babes – perfect to accompany me on these days.  I originally spotted this style of deckchair in an Alan Titchmarsh gardening book years ago, looking aged and comfortable in a pretty garden,  and dreamt of having similar ones ever since but could never find them anywhere for sale in the UK until now.  THE CRUISER CHAIR (folding deck chairs) not only look amazing but are really comfy to lounge in (pop in a few cushions on the VERY lazy days)  and they will also weather beautifully  over time.  Check out WAWA on line or go down to the market for a leisurely browse of their products.

                                                                        Beautifully aged and perfect for lounging

Gladioli white prosperity

Hommage to Keith Floyd

Over  four days of hard labour from morning to late evening (10pm in most cases) the only way I could contribute to the hard landscaping being put in place for my envisaged urban oasis was by making a hearty meal on my day off  for the grafters.  I picked up my trusty old “Floyd on Africa” book and sourced the ingredients listed therein to make a lamb and green pea breedie (remember this one Rosco) with a green apple sambal – it certainly went down a treat after a hard days work.  This has been an old favourite of mine and Frex’s  for over ten years since we first discovered it and has proved a strong favourite with friends we’ve cooked it for and the people who’ve borrowed the recipe to cook  for themselves.  Whilst browsing through the amazing colourful photography from Africa that is in the book I happened upon a recipe for “preserved lemons” ah ha another great use for the abundance of lemons yielded from the little lemon tree and how fabulous would these taste in with a middle eastern style chicken roast!    It was a great loss to the world when Keith Floyd died in 2009 but his legacy lives on – he was one of the greats who truly understood taste and food combinations.  If you are lucky enough to get hold of a copy of this book (it is worth it for the photography alone – never mind the endless tasty, easy to cook recipes inside) hold on to it, if you’re not here are details of how to cook lamb and green pea breedie and how the make lemon preserve from your home grown tree (there also a chance to use some of those herbs as well!).  Try them – it will be time well spent! Bottoms Up!

Preserved lemons

The many uses of lemons

Layer the thinly sliced lemons with olives and thyme in a jar with a seal, fill with groundnut or olive oil  and leave in the fridge for at least one month to the flavour to develop

cut lemons into quarters and layer with rock salt and thyme in a steralized jar.  Heat some lemon juice in a pan and pour over (enough to cover the lemons) seal the jar and leave for a month for the full flavour to develop

Lamb and green pea bredie

To the original masterchef Floyd

method: heat oil and brown off lamb, add onions and cook for a few minutes, add star anise, red masala, chilli, garlic and thyme. Pour on stock, cover and cook for 20 minutes, add potatoes cook for 20 mins, add peas and cook for 10 mins, season to taste and serve with rice and green apple sambal (juice 2 lemons, 4 hard green apples peeled, 2 garlic cloves crushed, half to one chilli finely chopped, grate apple into lemon juice, toss from time to time add rest ingredients and mix well – it compliments the dish so well – don’t  be tempted to leave it out!)1kg lamb shank, 3 onions finely chopped, 1 tsp star anise, 1 tspn red masala curry paste, 2 green chillies (the recipe says 5 but I find that too hot!), 5 garlic cloves, some sprigs of fresh thyme, 1 litre lamb stock, 1lb new pots or large ones diced, 1lb peas, salt and pepper to taste

Frankie and the Lankan

What you might ask has Frankie and The Lankan got to do with gardening. Well these are the two people who are helping to make my vision become a reality. We have lived with a small front garden for many years where I have dreamed of making an urban oasis for all to enjoy and now it is finally becoming a reality. Envisaging, planting and putting the final pretty touches is definately my bag but when it comes to the hard landscaping you gotta bring in the grafters. Removing tonnes of old ’70’s concrete pathways (didn’t they learn anything from the edwardians?), digging  the site and  mixing and pouring a solid cement foundation upon which to lay the lovely  tumbled natural stone is no easy feat.  Frankie dug for England whilst the lankan pottered about and opened a tinnie.  Does Frankie have any Aussie blood amongst that Armenian and Welsh coz he dug so deep I thought he was making his way down under although he assures me it was because he was a mole in his previous life (Adrian mole aged 11 and 3/4 maybe).

Some daffs, muscari and bluebells did get damaged in the making of this space (sob sob, lament) But they all remain beneath the soil and will  raise their  beautiful heads in next years new improved spring garden. Cheers to change things can only get better.

Let the building commence! (the site gets prepared)
All I managed to salvage from the site
Present them prettily
Daffs on a cake stand from Hintonshomes.com