Summer overflows

Writing a blog is a strange experience, I thought my next post would be about my wonderful time in Paris but instead I find myself irresistibly  tempted to share photographs of my roses with you!

My holiday was so filled with beautiful images and moments of enjoyment and fun that I need a little time to 'let things settle', otherwise you will be treated to an indigestible muddle of my enthusiastic anecdotes and a manic collection of deeply dull holiday snaps!
In just the few days I've been away, my roses have blossomed and my favourite seat is half hidden by a tide of flowers

 I have just spent the happiest of hours picking great bunches of roses, geranium and honeysuckle

I now have posies in my bedroom

and a beautiful jugful, glowing in the sunshine on my dining room table

Home-coming is sweet

A rose, good friends and wine...

Finally a Sunday dawned hot and sunny. With no work it seemed the perfect opportunity to have a little gathering....The wine was chilled, the heat and light started to fade and my friends began to arrive. It was soon decided that this party was to be in honour of my favourite rose and that we would choose a name for her.

There was much discussion, some serious, some silly and my lovely rose was sniffed, twirled and looked at from every angle!

 We  wanted to capture the idea of the multitude of frilly petals and our fondness for her.

So we drank some more wine, did a little research...

And finally came up with

We liked the idea of  Mille Fleur, my daughter's childhood name was Millie and perhaps after all the wine we were feeling a little sentimental. A fine name in the true tradition of English Rose Names we

decided proudly!

Altogether, it was a lovely mid-summer's evening and one to remember.

Down the garden path

My short walk through the garden to feed my hens is always a pleasure but at this time of year everything is just 'bursting out all over' ! Every day roses are coming into bloom and everything is shooting. As Manley Hopkins says in his poem Spring-

" when weeds, in wheels shoot long and lovely and lush"

 Some tidy people seem to feel an urge to chop back and tie up when seeing my lovely chaos but I ususally resist their logic.

Most days friends from our terrace lure each other into our gardens to see or smell a new flower that is ' just at its best'...