Our regular participants have been busy making some fabulous clay plant toppers. These will be used at Lindengate in the garden - see if you can spot any when you next visit. If making them at home, they would make wonderful gifts to family and friends. Some of these toppers were made to replicate natural items such as flowers or [...]
It is amazing how when we notice the scent of an object we can take such pleasure from it. Often, smells remind us of pleasurable events of the past or poignant moments in our lives. For example, a briny smell may bring back memories of a surf laden seaside holiday, roses of our granny’s garden, coffee of lazy mornings reading [...]
Here at Lindengate we have been trialling 3 different types of grain – wheat, rye and oats, this year, with the intention of making some harvest tokens and corn dollies with our participants. ‘Once given, it became a symbol of the budding romance. If the recipient wore the token to church, the giver would know their affection was returned. If [...]
Leafcutter bees (Megachilidae) are a solitary type of bee and there are a total of seven species in this family within the United Kingdom. If you have seen leaves with holes cut into them by little jaws, this is down to the female Leafcutter bees (Megachilidae) who use the pieces to build the cells in their nest. Find out more [...]
Bird’s-foot trefoil is a spreading, low-growing plant with lots of pretty yellow flowers from May to September. The name ‘bird’s-foot’ is from the seed pods that start to form in August, with three pods on a stalk, sticking out like bird’s feet. Bird’s-foot trefoil is also known colloquially as ‘eggs and bacon’, ‘butter and eggs’, and ‘hen and chickens’, as [...]
You might notice around the site or at home some trees that have had some of their leaves completely nibbled away. While there are lots of bugs and beasties that can be responsible for this, some of the main culprits are sawfly caterpillars. Sawflies, like many insects, start from eggs that hatch into caterpillars, and then spin cocoons before they [...]
Make our brilliant DIY birdhouse feeder and attract all sorts of birds to your garden! If you don't have a green space of your own to hang it, you could make it as a gift. How to Build a Bird Feeder
Often called common nettle, stinging nettle or nettle leaf, it is a familiar and common plant. This may not be a plant that you want in your garden but it is hugely beneficial to wildlife. A very common plant, the stinging nettle can be found growing in gardens, hedgerows, fields, woodlands and many other habitats. Its preference for damp, fertile and [...]
Tree spinach has eye-catching bright magenta leaves with almost sparkly growing tips. Plants can grow up to 2m tall, hence the name Tree spinach. This vigorous plant can be harvested as a cut and come again leaf from 25cm tall. Easy to grow, adds columns of height and colour to the veg garden. Yields are high and the plants aren’t [...]
Known as ‘the meadow maker’ or ‘nature’s lawnmower’, yellow rattle is the single most important plant you need to establish when creating a wildflower meadow. Yellow-rattle has yellow, tube-like flowers protruding from an inflated, green calyx, which appear May to September. It has ser rated leaves with heavy, dark veins, which sprout opposite each other all the way up the [...]
