Reviewing The Joys And Uses Of Autumn/Fall Leaves

Autumn/Fall Leaves

I appreciate all the seasons and I love the time of year when the leaves start to change colour. Although the vibrant colours of the beautiful spring and summer flowers are now a fond memory, Autumn leaves are equally gorgeous. 

I love to see all the different colours and when you look more closely all the diverse shapes and textures of the leaves. Underfoot if it's dry they feel scrunchy and if it's wet they are all slippery.

When the wind blows you can hear the rustle of the dry leaves and some get caught up and fly higher into the sky like wild confetti! 

In the Fall/Autumn season we are treated to the stunning show of reds, golds, bronze and russets to lift our spirits as the days grow colder and shorter. I do have happy memories of Autumn that stay with me always.

There are many beautiful and lasting memories that can be made at this time of year between children and their parents or grandparents and I wanted to highlight some of the uses and joys to appreciate this season's beautiful falling leaves.

There is nothing quite like standing under a large tree when its leaves are changing color to golds and reds gazing up at the sky as the sun is streaming through, it is truly a magical experience.

Autumn/Fall With Children

 

This time of year always raises memories of my childhood. My parents always encouraged a love of the outdoors and Autumn always evokes memories as a child walking through deep rifts of crunchy leaves holding hands with my Mum and Dad kicking up the leaves, having fun!

We collected leaves of all shapes, colours and sizes to press, make into a picture and learn about. To succeed in this process on a basic level all you need is tissue paper and a very heavy book. Simply lay the leaf between 2 layers of tissue paper then place in the middle of a heavy book, close and leave. Before very long you will have beautifully preserved leaves. If you wish to learn more about leaf and flower pressing this book is a great starting point to learn how to create really lovely personalised art from simple leaves and flowers.

 

The Art of Pressed Flowers and Leaves

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The Art of Pressed Flowers and Leaves: Contemporary Techniques & Designs

 

For younger children dried leaves can be laid down on white paper, the outline drawn and then coloured or painted in whatever authentic or imagined colours they like!

Autumn leaves are so beautiful to paint and also to take photographs of. They have amazing colours and shapes and are always interesting for the artist. Such gorgeous rich colours and moods to capture. 

When older children are involved in looking at and experiencing nature in this way it is then very educational to teach children about the different leaves and which trees they come from. 

This gorgeous book is a wonderful resource, beautiful, visual and well organised to teach children about leaves, trees, seeds, flowers and so much more to encourage an interest in and appreciation of nature.

Trees, Leaves, Flowers and Seeds: A Visual Encyclopedia of the Plant Kingdom

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Trees, Leaves, Flowers and Seeds: A Visual Encyclopedia of the Plant Kingdom (DK Our World in Pictures)

Spring Woodland Walks For Wellbeing Reviewed

 

Woodland Walks

Nature and wildlife are a huge part of my life in so many ways. They are an integral part of my life, my soul even. They are essential to my wellbeing. 

I had not been able to go for a woodland walk in a long time due to the Covid lockdowns in our country and having to stay local for walks.

I really missed our woodland walks and the absence of them made me realise how much I need to be connected to nature for my wellbeing. 

I love gardening and have done a lot of that this year but I know I also need the wildness of a forest. So today I would like to take you with me on our woodland walks and to discuss why connecting with nature and especially woodlands is so important.

Bluebells In Spring Woodland Clearing

Walking In Woodland

The obvious benefit to walking in woodland is the exercise. If you are on a treadmill or exercise bike I tend to notice how long I have been exercising. However, in a woodland walk, I can roam for hours up and down hills across streams and I really do not notice that I have in fact been exercising for maybe 2 hours.

In addition, you receive fresh air enhanced by the gorgeous trees and shrubs all around you and the experience being outdoors in a different environment. 

Also, I always find woodland to be so calming. Studies have shown that exercising in woodland decreases stress and anxiety.

There is always something new to see in a woodland from frosty winter trees against a blue sky, haunting misty scenes, to new buds and spring flowers.

We share the woods with many animals and birds and so far we have seen rabbits, squirrels, mice and many species of birds. In fact, it has made me want to learn more about bird songs as I can often hear the birds singing but cannot see them. 

Most of all I always feel tired yet refreshed after a woodland walk. There is something about the energy of the tall trees, the green environment, renewal and being surrounded by wild nature that makes the heart sing and sets me up for the rest of the day. 

Winter Trees Against Blue Sky Canvas Print
by RaintreeDesigns

Our forest walking began in late winter, early spring when we need some motivation to go out walking on a cold rather misty day. I love the photo below as it shows the woodland as a rather enchanted, mystical place.

The trees are bare with branches reaching for the sky and all around seems asleep, except that we know the buds on the trees and the flowers underground are just waiting patiently to emerge.

I have never felt afraid in a forest, it is all rather comforting and familiar to me. I like to feel small against the huge trees that are protecting, rather than intimidating. 

A Misty Woodland Walk In Early Spring

Tree Bark In Woodland

I love to look out for beautiful bark patterns on the trees. The bark is never just brown, it has amazing patterns and colours, shallow and deep rivulets.

If you look closely you may see a tiny creature or two going about its day. An ancient tree has lived so many years, seen so much and overcome drought with heat and damaging storms.

An ancient tree can give us hope and peace that we too can overcome many things. While our lifespan is not so long as many trees, we can experience and overcome so much, flourish and grow. 

Beautiful Tree Bark

Fallen Trees In A Woodland

I love to see the fallen trees gradually becoming a habitat for new life. The natural life of a tree is usually a long one. Trees seed, grow into young saplings,  mature and live long productive lives.

Then if trees are managed well they are either allowed to fall when old or felled if they become in danger of falling to cause damage or injury.

Importantly if they are allowed to rest rather than cleared away, there is a further opportunity in death for them to still live on providing sustenance and homes for all manner of bugs, insects and mammals.

Their bark eventually decays and enriches the soil and from that springs more new life and so the cycle of nature goes on just as it should. 

Fallen Trees Giving New Life

Stunning Snowdrops  

As winter turns to Spring I eagerly look out for the stunning Snowdrop. I do not have a favourite flower rather I like to embrace each flower on its own merits and the snowdrop is a perfect example of a flower that has its moment in time.

Snowdrops look so delicate, so tiny yet they are strong and tough little flowers that survive and thrive  at one of the harshest times of the year

I adore the white purity of the flower against the shining green stems and am always amazed how such a tiny flower braves snow and ice, winds and wet and comes through it all defying the harsh conditions to bloom so brightly, so splendidly.

To me, they are a symbol of Hope that the winter is behind us and the warmer, sunnier lighter days are just around the corner. We also look forward to bluebells, crocus and the wonderful fungi that appear in the forest. 

Stunning Spring Snowdrops Postcard
by RaintreeDesigns

Woodland Birds

Birds fascinate me more than most animals in the woodland. I am mesmerized by their singing, the clever way they build their nests and care for their young and the beauty of their feathers.

I love to look out for blackbirds, sparrows, blue tits and woodpeckers. It is a lovely way to spend a morning to find a place to sit and listen to this sound which is as beautiful as the most accomplished orchestra.

In one of the forests we visit, the local Wildlife Trust has set up birdfeeder stations. If you are quiet and still and patient there is nothing better than watching the birds dart onto and off the feeders. Sometimes I take photos, other times I simply experience the moment, in a state of just being. 

I was so lucky we were in the right place at the right time and actually looking upwards to the tops of the trees, to get the opportunity to take this photograph of a cormorant perching high to dry his wing feathers after diving.

Cormorants are distinctive birds that often live in the woodland but nearby water and there is a large pond in the middle of this forest that is perfect for this bird to fish in. They have as you can see a long neck and an almost prehistoric appearance about them. After fishing, it needs to find a high perch in the open where it can hold its wings out so they can dry after each dive.  I feel so privileged to have observed this moment in nature.

Cormorant Drying Wings After Diving

Spring In The Woods, Nurturing The Soul

As we approach Spring, the clocks go forward, we have longer hours of daylight and suddenly the forest changes occur very quickly.

The tiny tight buds we saw in early spring now unfurl at a rapid pace and the previously brown bare branches almost overnight turn into bright fresh green foliage. This is my favorite time right now.

 Everything is fresh and new and bright, the days are longer and there is the promise of much more to come. Any worries we have seem more bearable in this beautiful magical environment. I feel a fresh resurgence of the desire to do things, to grow, to explore.

Early Spring In The Woods

It is far too easy these days to become caught up in the everyday noise of our lives, the television, the news, the traffic to see what is occurring right with us if we take time to really look and listen.

There is nothing quite like a forest to see that renewal to view the changes in nature, to feel the growth of new life, to smell the damp soil underfoot and to hear the beautiful birdsong. To experience the sheer joy of finding a new flower that was not there the day before. 

Beautiful Bluebells!

I love this poem by WH Davies which encourages us to "stand and stare" in nature for our own good.

What Is Life If Full Of Care...?

What is this life if, full of care,

We have no time to stand and stare.

No time to stand beneath the boughs

And stare as long as sheep or cows.

No time to see, when woods we pass,

Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.

No time to see, in broad daylight,

Streams full of stars, like skies at night.

No time to turn at Beauty's glance,

And watch her feet, how they can dance.

No time to wait till her mouth can

Enrich that smile her eyes began.

A poor life this if, full of care,

We have no time to stand and stare.

by W.H. Davies

Woodland Walking And Wellbeing

I gave some thought to what word I feel when walking in the woods and I have concluded that the word is "Serenity".

Pink Blossoms And Serenity Verse
by RaintreeDesigns

That is the feeling and that is perhaps why so many studies are now showing that it is vital for us all to spend more time in a natural environment.

Even if that is only one walk a week it gives us benefits but if we can make it thirty minutes a day it is beneficial to our overall health and certainly to our mental and emotional wellbeing.  

Life can be quite challenging at times and we all have things we need to deal with, perhaps more so these days, so we need a place to go to ground ourselves, to find peace, to find that serenity. 

If you, like me love to connect with nature and the countryside and have a love for trees and woodlands and have enjoyed this glimpse into my woodland walks, you may enjoy reading this book Wildwood by the late Roger Deakin. He was a British nature writer and takes us on a journey through the mysteries of woods, trees and nature in several countries around the world. His writing is quite beautiful and uplifting when looking into the spirituality of nature and people's connection with the natural world.  

  

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Wildwood: A Journey Through Trees

So for me walking in woodland is not only an enjoyable activity I always look forward to whatever the weather and a way to connect with nature, but it is also an essential part of ensuring my health and wellbeing. I hope you have enjoyed this walk through the woods with me. 

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Advantages and Disadvantages Of Moving House With Plants Reviewed

I know that within the next few years we will likely move house. We have put a lot into our garden which will be the hardest aspect of our home to leave. For our house move we are hoping to find a smaller house and a bigger garden! 

When you move house of course you take all your belongings with you. However, we do not usually take items considered integral to your house such as doors, fitted kitchen and integrated appliances. So when it comes to the garden I have been considering are all the plants also integral to the sale, do we leave everything or are there plants we want to take with us? Is it acceptable to remove plants from the garden and how do we do that? 

 

We have some very treasured plants with special memories.  

Many of our plants were given to us as gifts or donated by our family in the early days of living here. Others are gifts we have given each other or have particular memories. So we are reluctant to leave these plants. 

However, I do not know what type of garden we will be moving to the aspect, or even exactly the soil type. This does not bother me too much though as I know most will be adaptable or live happily in large pots or containers. So I know that the plants I want to take that thrive here will be perfectly fine in a new home. 

However, if you are moving to an area with a very different soil type and do not want to look after container plants you may need to think carefully about which plants you take with you.

 

Removing Plants From Your Garden When Selling

 First, though I had to consider the ethical question of is it right to remove loved plants from a garden you are selling?

 Buyers will view our house and garden as it is and understandably expect it to come with all the plants they see upon viewing. 

Someone once told me that to know what you can take and what you can leave you should imagine your garden turned upside down. anything that drops off you can take, otherwise it should stay! So really anything rooted in the ground stays but containers and cuttings and seeds can be removed. 

 My opinion is that it is acceptable to remove plants and take cuttings as long as you are upfront with the buyers about which plants you are totally removing. I think it is unacceptable to buy a house and then find upon arrival that half of the plants you thought you were also buying have been dug out changing the look and feel of the garden.

I have learned that it is important to check as inground plantings are often considered part of the property or a fixture. So if you are planning to remove a significant proportion of plantings or obvious plant from your garden it is best to indicate those exclusions in the listing process. If it is decided later than this to remove planting, an amendment should be made with the buyers agreement. It is always best to fully disclose exactly what you are planning to take from the garden. Do always check the law/rules in your country/state exactly the situation when selling. 

Five Options To Move House With Your Garden Plants. 

An increasing number of sellers are taking special plants with them when they move house.

So if you want to take your treasured plants and sell the house and garden honestly, what can we do? Here are five possible solutions. 

 1. Dig Up Plants And Move Into Containers Before Selling. 

 At least a year or so before you plan to move if possible, make a plan to dig up and move any treasured plants you must take with you into pots. Before the sale begins put these pots to one side or outside the garden. Make it clear in the selling instructions or listing that anything in a container is an exclusion, not part of the house sale.

This may work for plants that are not too big. For me, this includes several treasured roses, a small Camellia and a few small evergreens. Small herbs are coming with me, two of our strawberry plants and a couple of our many Heucheras. 

Our garden is so packed full of shrubs, perennials, bulbs and other plants that these will not be noticed from the overall plan. However, you need to plan ahead for this as certain plants can only be moved with the least disruption to the plant at specific times of the year. 

 2. Take Cuttings Of Your Plants And Gather Seeds Before Selling Your Home

 However, some plants are simply too big to move in this way and would leave massive gaps in the garden if I took them with me which would not be fair. For example, our beautiful Camellia and our gorgeous climbing rose.  It would take an enormous effort to dig them up, may, in fact, kill the plant and would leave a gap in planting that would look very wrong in the garden. In addition, they are used every year for birds to nest. I do not want to take this valuable resource away from the wildlife.

 I do not know if the new buyers will want them and I really hope they will keep them. I would be devastated if they felled them, but they are not practical to move. So what I have done is to take cuttings of the camellia and the rose. This way I can take a little of the plant and grow it on to become just as gorgeous as its parent.

No one will notice cuttings taken and it will not change the look of the garden or any current benefit to wildlife. I am also  taking cuttings of our laurels, some of the roses, fuchsias, forsythia, rosemary our large wegelia and bridal bouquet.

 It is important to start this process as soon as you think about moving. For many plants, there is an optimum time to take cuttings. If they do not take one year you will want to have another year to take them so ideally start as early as you know you are moving. 

Taking cuttings will save us a huge amount of money and leave the garden still beautiful for the buyers and available for the wildlife.

3. Negotiate With Buyers About The Plants.

This is an option if you would like to take certain plants with you and have not had time to pot them up before viewings.

When you have a firm offer check with the buyers if they would mind if you took the plant. Some won't mind at all, others may refuse, so this is riskier but still worth asking. 

 Seek advice from your Realtor or Estate agent before taking this course of action. This may need to be negociated and added as an exclusion in the sale agreement.

 4. Ask Buyers If You Can take Unwanted Plants.

 Ask the buyers if they plan to or later decide to get rid of any plants to let you know and you will collect them. It is probably better if the new buyers who are now the homeowners actually dig up the plants and you just collect them otherwise there could be misunderstandings. 

This only works if you remain local and if the buyers actually remember to contact you. I feel this is the least likely strategy to work and could incur issues that may not be worth it.

5. Take Photographs Of Your Garden And Plants

If there are treasured plants that you cannot take with you for whatever reason then take a photograph. We can then carry the memory of the plant with us. 

We can even get the photographs made into posters, greeting cards, or canvas prints such as the one below. 

Stunning Snowdrops Canvas
by RaintreeDesigns

Tools For Taking Plant Cuttings And Moving Plants

All you need in order to take cuttings is a strong pair of secateurs such as these Wolf ByPass Secateurs.

You will also need some good quality compost for full grown plants and cuttings and however many pots of different sizes you think you will require. 

Labels are also a good idea so you can tell what all the cuttings are.

I like to have a variety of sized pots. I reuse every pot that comes into our garden so none ever go into landfill. 

For the purpose of moving larger treasured plants I have bought a few larger planters in different sizes for the plants I am taking with us. I would recommend ones with handles so that they are easier to move. Once they are served their purpose they will be reused for vegetable growing forever. 

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VIVOSUN 5-Pack 5 Gallon Grow Bags Heavy Duty 300G Thickened Nonwoven Plant Fabric Pots with Handles

 Advantages To Taking Your Existing Plants

 1. You take treasured plants, especially those with special significance and memories with you. These are valued things you may not be able to bear to leave behind. 

2. You save significant amounts of money on replacing favorite plants. Plants are so expensive now so if you can take cuttings and seeds, especially it will save you a lot of money. 

 3. You have continuity to settle in a new place. Familiar plants may help you to settle more easily.

 4. You can easily stock an empty garden for very little financial outlay. Gardens take time to develop so if you have some plants ready you are ahead. 

 Disadvantages To Taking Your Plants

 1. Your new garden may be very different from your existing one and your plants may not suit or fit the place and the soil type and aspect may be different. For example from heavy clay to chalk. Or South to North facing. 

 2. You may want a totally new start with fresh, maybe very different plants or garden theme. For example a change from cottage garden to modern minimalist. 

 3. You may be moving to a garden that is already well-stocked with plants you love.

 4. You may be moving to a place with a balcony or courtyard your existing plants will not fit into or be happy living there. 

So as an avid gardener who loves her plants I am seeking a happy medium. We are taking some treasured plants and taking cuttings and seeds of others we want. I aim to pot up all those we are taking before the house goes on the market and be upfront with buyers that anything in a container will not be staying.

We have put such a lot into this garden from an empty patch to a vibrant, full and wildlife-friendly paradise. It will be a wrench to leave, but that won't be for quite a while yet and when the time comes I know I will look forward to taking some of the treasured memories with me and creating a new garden.  

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