the blackberry garden

Skip to main content

the blackberry garden

A blog about my garden, my inspiration to garden and things about gardening that make me happy. UK No: 1 Garden Blog 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017 (Vuelio). Garden Media Guild Blog of the Year 2019

Search This Blog

Home
Introduction to the garden
Product reviews
Book Reviews
The Questions
Plant of the Month
My writing for other sites
Irritating Plant of the Month (IPotM)
The Blackberry Garden Plant Of The Year Award
Nice mentions

Posts

A chrysanthemum called Mavis

October 12, 2025

chrysanthemum Chrysanthemum Mavis Smith Norwell Nurseries

+

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

End of Month Review September 2025

October 02, 2025

autumn Autumn garden christmas potatoes End of month review End of month view gardening my garden rhododendron luteum

+

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Slowly but surely

September 28, 2025

agave agave americana variegata houseplants my garden

+

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Tree Following - September 2025

September 21, 2025

my garden quest for a quince quince count quincelets tree following

+

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

The Garden Museum Literary Festival 2026 at Iford Manor

September 18, 2025

book festival Garden Museum Garden Museum Literary Festival gardening books Iford Manor

+

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Book Review: The National Trust Gardener's Almanac 2026 by Greg Loades

September 14, 2025

Book Review books for christmas Gardner's Almanac Gifts for Christmas National Trust

+

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

A visit to Hidcote Gardens Sculpture Exhibition

September 10, 2025

Hidcote National Trust sculpture sculpture garden

+

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Garden Media Guild Blog of the Year 2019

Alison Levey: I have been writing about my garden on ‘The BlackberryGarden’ blog since 2011. I am an amateur and somewhat obsessed gardener and I am based in Leicester. I write about my own garden and what inspires me to garden: gardens I have visited, plant fairs and garden shows. I also review garden related books and products. The Blackberry Garden is not a ‘how to’ blog, the aim is to talk more about the enjoyment of gardening and it is read by people who garden and people who do not, all readers and followers are very welcome.

Join me on Substack

The Blackberry Garden Substack

Followers

Follow me on Twitter

Follow @papaver

Please use the Contact Form below to get in touch.

Media Pack available on request.

Contact Form

Name

Email *

Message *

Feedspot Top 100 UK Gardening Blogs

Vuelio 2020

Popular Posts

End of Month Review November 2025

and then December started knocking on the door. Winter is coming, it feels like it has already arrived though the weather has oscillated between mild and sunny to cold frosty and rainy. November has been an all weather month. All weather apart from snow so far I suppose. The garden is cold and wet and thinking about Spring. I look at the colours of the emerging cyclamen leaves and love the glitter of their silvery finery. Every year more and more pop up in the garden. From a few pots planted over a few years there are now so so many. It is a joy. I can wait for Spring but seeing these now gives me real hopes for it. A couple of limp, soggy looking snowdrops keep appearing. They don't look hugely happy which is a bit of surprise as snowdrops expect to be cold and a bit soggy. Maybe they are awake just a little too early and not prepared for Winter yet. I am not sure I am prepared for Winter either. The lawns also hav...

Gone over, but not forgotten

There are still buds on some of the roses, I doubt they will come to much, but there they are, clinging on for every moment that they can. Meanwhile in the lounge, the last cut of the roses are looking a little, erm, dry. I keep walking past them and thinking 'I must deal with them'. I keep walking past them and thinking 'for heavens sake chuck them on the compost and clean out the favourite vase ready for next year'. Does this happen? It does not. Instead I start to walk past, pause and step back and look at them and think that in this dried state they have beauty. Of course dried flowers have great beauty, this is not news, but these are accidental dried flowers and are the product of inactivity rather than deliberate choice. Y et now they have become a deliberate choice. Now I look and make sure I notice them and they make me smile. I am not casting them out as I see their new beauty. This is not the beauty of them forming from buds, this is not the beau...

End of Month Review - December 2025

No sooner did the year start and then it seemed to have ended. I know that as you get older years seem to pass by faster, but 2025 disappeared in a blink of an eye. and whilst the year is ending cold and frosty and with snow threatened, the snowdrops are pushing their way up. Some have been flowering for some weeks now, but most are still considering their options and biding their time. The front side lawn has pronounced fox track leading to the gap in the fence where they can get through. The cats also use this path constantly. Of course the cats might have created the path and the foxes also use it. I think the cats would probably claim ownership. There are nigella seedlings starting to push through. There are annual weed seedlings too, but let's focus on the nigella for now. The Daphne Jaqueline Postill in the back garden (one of two) is flowering away and scenting the entrance to the garden. It is a delight. We have had some deep frost...

Copyright

©Alison Levey and Blackberry Garden, 2 February 2011 to 31 December 2026. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Alison Levey and Blackberry Garden with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Pageviews last month

Archive

2026 48

2025 62
- December 3
- November 6
- October 7
- September 5
- August 9
- July 5
- June 7
- May 5
- April 3
- March 4
- February 3
- January 5
2024 91
- December 5
- November 4
- October 6
- September 8
- August 9
- July 8
- June 8
- May 9
- April 8
- March 9
- February 9
- January 8
2023 103
- December 9
- November 9
- October 9
- September 7
- August 9
- July 9
- June 8
- May 9
- April 9
- March 9
- February 8
- January 8
2022 102
- December 8
- November 9
- October 9
- September 9
- August 8
- July 9
- June 9
- May 9
- April 7
- March 9
- February 7
- January 9
2021 135
- December 9
- November 10
- October 9
- September 11
- August 14
- July 11
- June 14
- May 16
- April 12
- March 11
- February 9
- January 9
2020 129
- December 11
- November 12
- October 10
- September 11
- August 10
- July 10
- June 12
- May 10
- April 13
- March 11
- February 10
- January 9
2019 129
- December 9
- November 11
- October 11
- September 11
- August 12
- July 11
- June 11
- May 13
- April 9
- March 12
- February 10
- January 9
2018 130
- December 12
- November 12
- October 12
- September 9
- August 11
- July 8
- June 10
- May 13
- April 14
- March 10
- February 10
- January 9
2017 145
- December 11
- November 11
- October 13
- September 10
- August 13
- July 13
- June 10
- May 14
- April 13
- March 14
- February 11
- January 12
2016 181
- December 14
- November 14
- October 12
- September 14
- August 18
- July 16
- June 22
- May 17
- April 15
- March 14
- February 13
- January 12
2015 180
- December 15
- November 16
- October 16
- September 16
- August 17
- July 17
- June 15
- May 15
- April 14
- March 15
- February 13
- January 11
2014 159
- December 13
- November 12
- October 13
- September 13
- August 13
- July 15
- June 12
- May 13
- April 16
- March 14
- February 11
- January 14
2013 153
- December 14
- November 12
- October 15
- September 11
- August 12
- July 14
- June 12
- May 14
- April 14
- March 11
- February 11
- January 13
2012 148
- December 11
- November 12
- October 13
- September 13
- August 12
- July 11
- June 13
- May 12
- April 13
- March 12
- February 13
- January 13
2011 111
- December 13
- November 13
- October 11
- September 11
- August 11
- July 12
- June 10
- May 8
- April 9
- March 7
- February 6

Show more Show less

Privacy Notice

The Blackberry Garden does not collect, process or store your data. Your data will not be processed or used by The Blackberry Garden and therefore will not be shared with anyone else by The Blackberry Garden.

Data about webpage traffic is collected by Blogger, but it does not identify individual users toThe Blackberry Garden and The Blackberry Garden does not store or use any individualised data relating to traffic.

Netgalley

Ace Media

Lazy Susan Furniture

Top 25 Gardening Blogs

iVisa Global Blogger Award

Vuelio 2019

Vuelio 2018

vuelio 2017

AVS Fencing Top 10 Most Influential UK Garden Bloggers

https://www.avsfencing.co.uk/news/the-10-most-influential-garden-bloggers-in-the-uk/

Top 13 Gardening Blogs

WhatShed Top 13 Gardening Blogs

Fennel and Fern

tree following

Wayfair

Back To My Garden

Guest spot on BTMG Podcast

Paperblog

Posts

Posts

All Comments

All Comments

Report Abuse

Powered by Blogger

©Alison Levey and Blackberry Garden I confirm the subscription of this blog