As the rose goes

Stripes. Borders. Feathers of tightly-folded leaf unfurling. Wonderfully alien-looking serrated scrolls presenting new stems. Colour so vivid I have to start with highlighter. Never mind the chill wind – the roses are going for it. It takes a lot of colour (and a lot of looking) to show this new growth. … Read More

Rebellious nature

It’s been a bruising week. But as I get my eye in to the hydrangea, I see that below the spent flower heads, dark and hunched, bright buds are popping open before my eyes. I add messy swirls of colour for some animation. The Forsythia has a flower out, leading … Read More

Here, good cheer

It’s wild garlic season. Wandering out to survey my small landscape, I spot the first flowers sparkling in the shade. It becomes a trio of Spring firsts… The aquilegia, drawn in leaf last week, is now in dainty green-purple flower. I notice nibbles in the leaves. There’s an orderly queue … Read More

Signs of life

This time of year, much of the garden is a palette of browns. Twigs. Bark. Seeds left out for the wildlife. But there’s more going on… The eucalyptus tree in the garden behind mine sheds its bark, wind blowing in curls of it, like chocolate shavings. I pick one up … Read More

Something old, something new

Pink. There’s a lot of it in the garden at the moment and it’s always more complicated than it looks. Perfect, then, for trying out some portable materials before a live sketching assignment at a wedding. I’d actually gone out into the garden to draw forage, starting with the new … Read More