Christmas Glow

From Thursday 3 December until Sunday 3 January RHS Wisley added to the enjoyment of the festive season with the Jigantics light installations in the shape of magical, giant lit-up flowers.

Of course you have to wait until dusk before the show really begins.

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Snowdrops at the entrance

snowdrops

snowdrops

Tulips along the canal and loggia

Lotus flowers changing colour

Lilies near the food hall

Gerberas on the lawn

and more lovely lights in the garden

If you enjoy a walk, long or short, then have a look at Jo’s site where you are welcome to join in.

And I guess this could also be a post for my January challenge: Winter Gardens!

garden photography: orange peel

For those of you who have popped in to see the usual Sunday bench challenge, I’m sorry to say it has finished. I know I could have continued for longer, but it is a new year so how about a new challenge? This year I am running a challenge on my Garden / Flower blog but it is not just for the gardeners amongst you as the monthly themes are quite broad. It has more to do with focusing on what is around you and maybe seeing things in a different way. I hope you will join in – as with the benches I will post every Sunday and the theme will change every month. So get those cameras out and start clicking!

ta-da!

Some benches didn’t make the ‘Director’s Cut‘ so here are the ones that were short-listed. Will any of you ever walk past a bench again without thinking “Oh, look, a bench for Jude!”

January: In the Garden

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RHS Wisley – under the magnolia

February: Benches processed in Black and White

ram in canberra
Ram in Canberra, Australia

March: Wooden Benches

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Natural wooden seats

April: Benches with a View

Keswick
Castlehead summit overlooking Derwentwater, nr Keswick, Lake District

May: At the Beach

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Couple admiring Lyme Bay, overlooking Chesil Beach, Dorset

June: Art Effects (some post-processing to any bench – use your imagination!)

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Benches in the terraces at Powis Castle, Wales

July: Unusual details

Animal arm
Original wrought-iron bench

August: Colourful Benches

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Blue benches at Manly Point with Sydney in the distance

September: Metal Benches

Gazebos
Bench in the Gazebo at Hidcote Garden, Cotswolds

October: People/things on Benches

Kiftsgate
Looking over the Black Pool, Kiftsgate Garden, Cotswolds

November: Messages / Plaques OR  Autumn

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RHS Wisley

December: anything you like!!

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Snowy Haslemere benches, Surrey

And if you are up for another challenge then pop over to my Garden Blog where something different is happening in 2016.

Monthly Photo Challenge: A year in Ludlow

(The header shows what it should look like at this time of year)

lime tree collage
A year of the lime (linden) trees

Here is a slideshow of images taken throughout the year and if you want to view each month then please follow the links at the end.

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One of the most beautiful things about Britain is the changing season. From the fresh greens and soft rains in spring, the bountiful colours and long light-filled evenings of summer, the turning colours and misty mornings of autumn to the frosty clear days of winter. There is nothing quite like it and I treasure the constant shift. And thanks to this challenge I have enjoyed recording this year around my home town and sharing its beauty with you. I hope you have enjoyed it too. I have also enjoyed looking around localities at different times of the year all over the world.

The Cardinal  ran a photo project going throughout 2015 – a blogging event, a monthly photo challenge. The idea was to find a location near your home, take somewhere between 5-20 photos and post them in a gallery in your blog and to continue to do so every month. The idea was to capture all the changes: the seasons, the weather, different times of the day, some night photography perhaps? And news is that he is going to run the challenge for another year. So maybe you will join in?

january
february
march
april
may
june
july
august
september
october
november
december