Tuesday 2 April 2013

Easter at Belvoir Castle


At last Spring has arrived - The day after Easter!


It was lovely to see so many visitors walking round the grounds, and how brave they were - it was freezing!    



These snowdrops are about the last ones still in flower but sadly the daffodils are still in tight bud waiting for some much needed warmth, so visitors didn't see us at our best!  Unfortunately with the temperatures dropping below freezing we still have the statue's protective covers on too.  














At this time of year the woodland walk should be full of camelia's in bloom; I managed to find this one gusty flower!

Our great team of volunteers have spent nearly two full days clearing up the remains of the autumn leaf fall.  All the stone steps have to be cleaned and brushed to stop the algae building up - as Belvoir is built on a steep slope this is no mean feat! 



Here is the beautiful red bark of the Acer Palmatum sango kaku which shows up so well against the blue sky.  In the background is a Betula utilis jacqumontii - a great combination for winter colour.

We should be cutting back the hydrangea's but I am going to leave it another few weeks, rather than risk any damage from the cold.

You may remember we planted over 3,000 bulbs in the autumn - all I can say is there are now some very fat squirrels at Belvoir.......  If anyone has some suggestions please let me know!


Blue sky at last!

2 comments:

  1. I just planted two sango kakus in my yard and they are gorgeous. Your tree is much more coral than mine are.

    Did the squirrels dig up the bulbs? That is crazy. I would try out bird netting over your bulbs until the flowers are up and growing out of the ground. It might not be practical with 3000 bulbs though. I hope you can sort it out.

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    Replies
    1. Hi Stacy,

      Great idea - but logistically impossible for us. We shall try planting some holly leaves with them next year - I am told this deters them! I'll keep you posted.

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