My Love of Trees

 We are properly into summer now. The garden is full of flowers and very long grasses (we don't mow our lawn very often, we prefer to let it grow into a sort of meadow). Starlings and sparrows seem to be in the garden most of the time and we get occasional visits from a couple of goldfinches. I did see a few butterflies over the weekend. I think one was a Red Admiral, but I couldn't say for definite, they all flutter around quite quickly.

When we moved into this house, the garden was mostly lawn. Over the last two years, we have put in several raised beds for vegetables and quite a lot of trees. Planting a tree is one of my favourite things to do, especially if I'm feeling a bit miserable or stressed about anything! They are good for the environment and will eventually provide some shade in our garden. I know a lot of people don't want shady gardens, but I think it's good to have some shade, especially during heatwaves (which seem to be getting more frequent). So far, we have two rowan trees, a hawthorn, a spindle, two plum trees (one was already here when we moved in), a hazelnut, a pear and a cherry tree. We also planted a couple of holly bushes and a friend gave me a tiny oak tree he'd dug up from his garden (which I have planted, but I'm not sure it will survive, I think the roots were damaged when he dug it up). I'd like to get an apple tree at some point soon, not quite sure where we'd put it yet though.

All of the trees are still fairly small, but a few of them look like they may produce fruit and berries this year. Tiny berries have started to form on one of the rowan trees and a few cherries and plums have started to appear. I'm stupidly happy about this! Autumn is one of my favourite seasons (the other is winter), and I love seeing all the berries and fruit on trees. Plus, it provides food for all the wildlife.