A Little Bedtime Reading

Bedtime reading in my house at the moment is Cuttings by Christopher Lloyd. A bit of an unfortunate obsession maybe, reading gardening books in bed, but this is the perfect pre-sleep browse. It is divided into a chapter for each month, which contain a selection of Christopher's columns written originally for the Guardian. Great to dip into and find eloquently written, expert advice as to what you should be thinking about and when in terms of plants.

Most of the book is focused on gardens with a little bit here and there about veg. However, I'm a great believer that allotments should look as good as well as being functional so any ideas about growing flowers and shrubs is much appreciated. One entry for May entitled "Young Foliage" was particularly resonant for me with its mention of the leaves of the Oriental Poppy which I had just been admiring on the plot. Of course the flowers are beautiful but they are really the second act to the leaves which act as such a point of interest when there isn't much else going on. As Christopher Lloyd puts it, their leaves are "pinnate, having deep indentations and a furry, dew-holding surface." Not showy and over stated like the blousey poppies, which are gone in the blink of an eye, but beautiful in their simplicity and functionality non the less.
 

Comments

[kim]

Hi,

I've tagged you on my blog - fancy coming up with six random things about you?

Hope you are enjoying the lovely weather!

[SquareFootHammer]

Thank goodness for that. There I was, thinking I was the only person mad enough to read gardening books in bed! The wife certainly finds it amusing.

But then, I do spend a lot of time going through seed catalogues, trying to plan what to grow 'next' year (and this one has only just started!). But there is just not enough time to do this during the day!