There is an old saying in Finland that Rowan berry trees can't carry two, which means that if there is a good rowanberry year the ..read more

As May turned into June I found myself living in the slow lane, easing into summer at a snails pace. I am not a patient person by nature, but these last years have taught me a lot about accepting the present as it is and not as I would wish it to be, and with that I have learned to sit still while waiting for things to change. It is interesting to observe myself conciously expanding my skillset in practicing patience, as there is a real struggle in wanting to do something to fastforward a situation, and accepting that it is simply not possible to do so. I spend a lot of time observing nature ..read more

After a very, very long winter spring finally begins to emerge. All throughout April the weather has played tricks on us, and each time the sun surprises us with its presence it swiftly goes back into hiding when a new set of snow clouds fill the sky, and large white, wet snowflakes once again cover the ground. The multitude of birds announcing their comeback to our cold climate latitude have no choice in the matter, with loudmouthed cranes and swans descending in the bay and the distinct sound of the male Eurasian bitterns (Botaurus stellaris) booming out mating calls from amongst the reeds ..read more

I think Dylan Lewis sculpture garden in South Africa is one of my favourite gardens in the whole world. This is saying a lot, considering I have visited an extraordinary number of gardens all over! Those who follow my blog for a while know that whenever I travel, all roads lead to a garden somewhere along the way. It really is a must see if you happen to be near Cape Town as it is less than an hours drive from there. The success of this garden lies not just in Dylan Lewis amazing larger than life sculptures, but also in how he marries them with the landscape and landscapes the gardens around ..read more

This time last year I was lucky enough to get away to West Dean College, UK, for a weekend to re-charge my batteries and enjoy the early spring that the milder English winters provide. It turned out to be a bad-weather-weekend, with low grey skies and a chill wind that cuts through the bones. I didn't mind. Back at home in Finland the snow still covers the ground at this time of year, and there are few signs that spring will ever come around again. In stark contrast to my home, spring had absolutely arrived at the gardens of West Dean. The lawns underneath the orchard in the old kitchen gard ..read more

One of my favourite botanical gardens in the whole world - Kirstenbosch - lies nestled in the foothills of Table Mountain, Cape Town, South Africa. Not only is the flora and fauna absolutely spectacular, but it is also beautifully laid out and preserved in the wild kind of way that I have come to love. It is for good reasons considered one of the five most important botanical gardens of the world, acting as a champion of building biodiversity knowledge. The area spans an impressive total of 528 hectares of which only 36 hectares are cultivated, leaving the rest as a conservation area for indi ..read more

In the last days of November the ground froze deep, and soon after it began snowing. It is not so common to get a deep layer of snow so early in the year, and it delighted me greatly! Waking up to the soft blue light and taking the first walk of the day as seamist coveres the lake is one of the greatest joys I know. The sky heralds more snow with the old adage "Pink skies in the morning, sailors warning. Pink skies in the evening, sailors dreaming." and I wonder just how much snow we will have before Christmas? The village society Hembygdens Vänner i Snappertuna organised a course in bi ..read more

Living in the country I often think about the nature of light. In a town there is so much artificial light that it becomes a question of wether the sun is shining or not, wheras in the country I notice the variations in the light even on sunny days. In autumn this becomes all the more pronounced, because light takes on a completely different quality as the sun begins to hang lower in the sky. The first thing I notice around the end of September is how much warmer the light is in the mornings and evenings, and then that as autumn progresses the brightness of the light at midday stands in even ..read more

August has crept up on me quietly like the nights that keep getting darker and longer. Unlike spring that tends to arrive with a dramatic increase in light and the fanfare of returning birds, autumn arrives by stealth. Towards the end of the month the birds begin emigrating south again, and there is a rush of noise when they call out to their flock to fall in line and form ploughs, but for most of the month there is a silent lushness softly hugging me as I tend the gardens. The first half of the summer was intensely dry with hardly any rain, and then towards the middle of July when the rains ..read more

As I always seek perfection it is rare that I feel satisfied with my garden, and yet there are so many parts of it that are absolutely gorgeous at the moment. Amongst these is the giant catnip, Nepeta Six Hills Giant, which this year have put on a beautiful show. It is such a great perennial, surviving weeks of dry weather even in the poorest soil. This year my climbers too have - finally! - put on a great show. Perhaps their roots have grown deep enough for them to reward my many years of patience with a good show of flowers? The climbers in the pictures above are deep red honeysuckle Lonic ..read more