Blossom at Rowallane

On a sunny Tuesday, after a trip to the dentist, me and George along with my mum and her friend Lorna headed to Rowallane to have a walk round.  Mum, George and I had been there back in March to look around the Spring Ground there but when we were there then spring hadn't really sprung and there wasn't much out in bloom.  A month definitely makes a big difference!  The place was full of blossom this time!

Gorgeous apple trees.

I thought this was some sort of big snowdrop but it's actually called summer snowflake.

After watching Gardener's world feature on magnolias the other week I really fancy getting one for our garden, although I'd say it's take a good few years before it was this big!

The branches and blooms made a lovely pattern against the blue skies.

Masses of forget me nots.

Rowallane is well known for its masses of Rhododendrons.  I particularly liked this one, it looks quite like the one in our garden, although our one is no where near blooming yet. 

I think these are woodland anemones.

The courtyard was looking very nice in the sunshine...

So one of us stopped to have a bit of a picnic!

It was a lovely day out although be warned, at this time of the year the cafe isn't open on a Tuesday and for some reason they have closed the shop :-(

Day trip to Mount Stewart

One Saturday Mum, Dad, me & George took a trip to Mount Stewart.  It was a bit of a dull day but the gardens were still very busy.  We had a great walk around then finished it all off with a lovely lunch in the cafe (with good timing as it bucketed as we went in and then the sun came out when we'd finished!)

The house.

Mum, Dad and George.

Some yarn bombing.

Lots of ducks about.

I loved this faded blue hydrangea, it reminded me of a ladies hat from the 1960's!

Totally unimpressed with the scenery.

Swans.

Ducks.

Dad taking photos with his new tablet!

I have one of these plants in a pot by the front door but it looks so pathetic compared to this, think i might need to feed it or move it somewhere better!

I thought this clematis looked a bit like it was covered in lots of tiny Andy Warhol wigs!

The formal gardens are filled with lots of fancy planters, I really like them but I suspect they might look a bit silly in my ordinary garden!

There are lots of different bits of topiary around the place too, I like this boat the best.

There are stone creatures everywhere, it would make a great treasure hunt for kids.

George and mum admiring the lily pond.

These nasturtium put mine to shame, must try harder next year as they looked amazing here.

More stone shapes.

Lovely anemone.

Geraniums.

Rowallane Gardens

Last week George and I took a trip to Rowallane Gardens in Saintfield, County Down.  I had rung my mum to see if she wanted to come with us but it turned out she was already there with her friend Oonagh doing some painting in the walled garden! What are the chances?

Anyway it was a cloudy but pretty warm day so perfect for walking about all the different areas of the garden.  It's a National Trust property but the house isn't open for house tours, I think it's actually used by the trust for their headquarters.  However there is a lovely shop and a tasty cafe inside the house as well.  The main attraction here is definitely the amazing gardens....

A lovely bench in the walled garden, you can just imagine the ladies in their long dresses taking a stroll round here and stopping to sit for a bit, maybe watch some croquet on the lawn....

Amazing patch of clover underneath a tree.

This tree looked like it had been dusted with blusher.

A sea of ferns that looked like a 1950s tropical pattern.

The spring garden

Post and gate inspiration.

The outside of the courtyard.

Rather cute glass house.

I think I definitely need some arches in my garden!

Ornamental herb bed

I don't know what this plant is but it was swarming with bees.

I thought these little fellas had cute faces looking up at me.

The lavender smelled amazing.

Cat mint, I've just bought some of this for my garden from rosy bee.

These looked like they had been spray painted the most bright purpley blue!

This is the house, rather modest in comparison to other nearby National Trust places like Castle Ward and Mount Stewart

Another nice spot for a bench.  Benches are the most important thing in a garden if you ask me - you need somewhere to sit back with a glass of pimm's to admire your hard work!