GETTING FRESH IN ITALY

On a recent trip to Italy, I ate my way around the incredible outdoor markets. The selection of locally grown, just-picked fruit and vegetables looked spectacular, and then there was the taste, oh the sun-ripened flavours!!! It gave a whole new meaning to the phrase "Getting Fresh in Italy".

Spring glory

Spring is so beautiful - few pics taken in our garden, looking in different directions from the side of the house through to the forest at the back, and then again from the side of the house, looking towards the front and the street. I love the woodland setting and the huge old trees, and use many shades of greens for color in the shade areas. What a treat to be able to get my hands dirty again, after the very long and cold winter.
A pink flowering Dogwood, taken in front of a townhouse in Annapolis.

A white flowering Dogwood, with a red Japanese Maple, taken in front of an old historic house in downtown Annapolis.

APRIL SHOWERS, APRIL FLOWERS

Various spring flowers in my garden, including Azaleas, Dogwoods and Tree Peonies.

PETERSHAM NURSERIES, RICHMOND, U.K.

Petersham Nurseries is not just a place to buy a magnificent selection of plants and containers for the home and garden, but also an experience not to be missed. If you are ever in or around London and have a day to spare, hop on a train to Richmond and spend some time wandering around Petersham Nurseries. They have a Cafe and Teahouse, serving the most delicious selection of food, $$$$, but well worth it. Should you decide to visit for lunch, I would suggest that you call ahead and make a reservation as they do book up weeks, if not months, in advance. They also have a shop, selling a great selection of garden tools, gifts and antiques - you can buy anything from books to antique French wire furniture, rustic tables with zinc tops, frames pictures and chandeliers. The cafe and shop are located in rustic conservatories with earth floors, that add to the ambience. The setting is breathtaking -out in the country, surrounded by fields and meadows. One of my favorite places to visit. You can go to their website and look through their magnificent gallery - http://www.petershamnurseries.com/

BUTTERFLIES

Beautiful butterflies in the Butterfly House at Brookside Gardens, a 50-acre public garden in Silver Spring, Maryland. Surrounding the Butterfly House are bright, colorful gardens planted up to attract the butterflies with nectar filled flowers, and host plants on which to lay their eggs. Once the eggs hatch, this plant then becomes food for the caterpillars. To attract butterflies to your garden, it is necessary to offer both nectar and host plants.

SPRING FLOWERS

Mid April and the daffodils are in full bloom here in Annapolis, Maryland. They pop up on the side of the road, in the woods where the squirrels drop the bulbs - they naturalize and the clumps get bigger and more beautiful each year. These are all flowering in my garden.

The violets are growing up like weeds in the lawn. I pick little bunches and put them into liquor glasses - miniature flower arrangements.

LOG CABIN TUCKED IN THE WOODS

A beautiful old rustic log cabin, tucked in the woods, at the Morris Arboretum, Philadelphia. I love the moss growing on the roof shingles, and the words carved into the old Adirondack chairs.

CONTAINERS AT THE CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW, LONDON

A few gorgeous containers, used in a garden setting, at the last Chelsea Flower Show in London.

CONTAINERS IN THE GARDEN

Various containers at Chanticleer Garden - a spectacular 30-acre garden near Philadelphia, in Wayne, Pennsylvania. Floating daffodils on a patio, a broken container planted up with succulents, an urn used as a focal point and a collection of containers filled with spring bulbs.

Day trip to Lewes, Delaware

A day trip to the town of Lewes, Delaware, in the summer, revealed beautiful historic homes, treasured scenes hidden behind rustic fences, vines growing through old wagon wheels, rusty metal objects and a profusion of color.