Trip to Botanica plant centre

I've been up the road to The Nest and to the adjacent Botanica, formerly the Newent Plant Centre. This is an independent plant centre, run by very knowledgeable people.

I love looking around there, at the way they display their plants, as if it were a real garden with plants in beds, rather than all on staging grouped by plant variety.

Lots of plants in the huge polytunnels there,

 herbs and all sorts of more tender plants, just waiting to go outside in a day or two.              

The plants are very good there, and I bought 3 bags of peat free growing medium and English lavenders to replace the two on the patio that got so woody they were beyond saving, so Compostman dug them out last autumn.

But I miss the scent and the bees on them, so have got two more to replace them. Plus a couple of smaller ones to go in patio pots

Then we went to Ledbury Aldi and we got a few bits and bobs of shopping. Lots of empty shelf spaces though , and prices seem to be rising every time we go shopping, anywhere.

Finally, the front garden with the Celendines in bloom, and some of the Fritillary bed.

However, our resident front garden Cock pheasant keeps annoyingly nipping off the blooms, and has now shown his wives how to do it, so buds appear but never get to open. I have *no* idea why he does it, as he doesn't eat them. He does it to the yellow crocus blooms as well, in the same bed.

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