Kedleston daffodils

Another gorgeous day and another walk amongst the daffodils

 

January

The year started with cold crisp weather; a bit too cold and potentially slippery underfoot for venturing outside so an excellent reason to stay indoors. We didn't get the heavy snow of other places but enough fell, just into the second week, to change the world to somewhere magical where wild beasts prowl the pavements, and, more prosaically, to  block our drive and make getting the car out impossible. 

Then it suddenly faded away over night leaving the est of the month dull and dreary. We've thankfully had no dramatic deluges of rain but I feel it's been one of the most relentlessly damp winters I've known.

To cheer things up, I'd set hyacinth bulbs in December and now they were beginning to flower plus I treated myself to a bunch cheap supermarket daffodils, both welcome precursors of Spring flowers in the garden. 

To occupy me, I started the first of my Christmas present craft kits, three trolls/gnomes off on an adventure. This was an excellent project for short winter days as it mainly involved a little crafting followed by a longer period waiting for glue to dry

Then, while the rain continued to fall, I completed another Christmas present - a jigsaw representing plants from around the world.

As the month wore on, I thought I ought to make an effort to get back to a normal rhythm and undertake something a little more practical, checking my 'to-do' list and turning frozen tomatoes into passata, and pickling the 15p red cabbage left over from Christmas.

Towards the end of the month, things suddenly became busier. We headed up to Manchester to join my younger daughter and her fiance at the Bengali Sri Sri Saraswati celebration, and the next day (fortunately dry) visited Dunham Massey's Winter Garden.

Back home, seizing another dry day, we went out to Kedleston Hall to see more snowdrops in flower, I went out for tea and gossip with a neighbour, and by the end of the month I spotted crocus on one of my late afternoon local walks.

Spring is coming! .Days are noticeably longer and, with luck, the rain will eventually stop.

 

Kedleston Snowdrops

Having visited the winter garden at Dunham Massey, I decided local snowdrops would be flowering too, so the first sunny day we headed to Kedleston Hall to see how things were advancing there.

The path snaking through trees from visitor reception to the Pleasure Grounds was lined with clumps of flowers, and walking across the lawns a bank covered in snowdrops came into view. 

Elsewhere we found a really early flowering rhododendron - now at its pea yet but with its first blooms opening. 

Round on the front parkland, sheep obligingly stood to have their photos taken with the bridge and lakes in the background..

 

Kedleston Hall

Compared to other festively-decorated stately homes, Kedleston was a little subdued. The decorations themselves feeling similar to those you might have at home. Perhaps though, when the surroundings are so ostentatious, ornaments don't need to be.

We skipped the outdoor Advent trail this year as the weather was cold and drizzly - not the best connditions in which to explore outdoors.


 

Kedleston

Continuing the search for bluebells took us in early May to Kedleston Hall. Here they're found along the Short Walk, but, although I'd considered going to find them there, we got distracted by the Pleasure Grounds.

Here the rhododendrons were in full flower and looking lovely.

And I even spotted some wisteria in flower. It wasn't as magical as that at Calke but it's still lovely to see.

We did eventually head up the Short Walk but not as far as the bluebells. The wild garlic was looking and smelling wonderful though.

 A complete carpet of white!