Well, spring has definitely sprung since our last spring watch update, with one of the driest and sunniest Aprils we can remember – the sunglasses and flip flops have already made an appearance! In fact we’ve sprung so far we’re almost in summer.

No longer is spring hiding its modesty behind early morning frosts and hazy showers, now it is out in all its splendor; our gardens and their visitors are testament to that.  We have an abundance of colour from poeticus daffodils proudly and fragrantly showing us their wares to the blossom in its final farewell for the year, leaving in its wake a confetti-like trail of petals.

Our “Turtle Towers” visitors are still setting up camp around our feeders. We have desperately been trying to snap a few shots of our resident yellow hammer but he seems to be a little camera shy! The Jackdaws in all their foreboding menace are however strutting around the feeders like Mike Jagger at his finest and have been since about the beginning of the month. Also spotted: finches, sparrows and tits. No return however of the woodpecker.

Of course, how could we forget April also means spiders – whether you love them or loathe them you’ll find them basking on some sunny wall. When dealing with our eight-legged friends we tend to follow the old English rhyme:

“If you wish to live and thrive, let a spider run alive.”

We’ve been propagating like crazy– white Black Eyed Susan (Thunbergia alata Alba) for which we are having mixed success with only 50% germinating, the ubiquitous sweet peas, Cosmos and other annuals; as well as veg a plenty.

Finally, there’s some rain forecast for this weekend (typically just in time for the bank holiday!) so if you plan to be out in the garden come rain or shine like us, then don’t forget your Turtle Mat at the back door for those muddy wellies!

You may have guessed by now that here at “Turtle Towers” we are animal and wildlife lovers (just not fans of the mud they bring in on their paws!)

In fact, as I write this Molly and Lucy our loveable but curious “Turtle” dog double act are bounding around our garden. Lucy (Jack Russell) is certainly lively and Molly (black Lab) is the perfect foil to this, being quiet, thoughtful and tolerant (well she has to be with Lucy around).

We also know how much some of our customers love their pets, as we often receive photos of cats and dogs lounging on Turtle Mats. It’s great to receive these so please keep them coming and you can also now add them as fan photos on Facebook too.

With all this talk of our “furry friends” we’d like to tell you about the great work animal welfare charity The Blue Cross do, as they are a charity not only close to our hearts but also close to our home here in the Cotswolds.

We have visited their Burford facility a number of times and seen first hand how they make a real difference. As a pet charity they provide support and information for pet and horse owners – The Blue Cross has a fascinating history of helping work horses in London during the early 1900s as well as horses from the trenches of World War 1.

They provide practical care for pets whose owners cannot afford private vet bills, work to re-home abandoned and unwanted pets as well as educate people on the responsibilities that come with owning a pet.

We were lucky enough to have around 300 spare Turtle Mat – Pet Mats and were pleased to pass these on to The Blue Cross who were able to make use of them to raise much needed funds to support their ongoing work.

If you would also like to show your support for the Blue Cross, find out more about the great work they do or volunteer please visit http://www.bluecross.org.uk

The threat of frost is not quite over, our Turtle Mats are still adorning our windscreens, tufty-side down to keep them ice free (thanks for the tip Susan), but there is definitely more of a spring in our step.

The Turtle Mat garden, although quietly coming to life, is seeing some impressive bird activity already. Amongst our usual winter visitors – finches, robins and blue tits, we have spotted yellow hammers and a great spotted woodpecker, so twitching here is almost a full time job!

We’ll try to keep you up-to-date on our visitors in future posts, with a few snaps if they’ll stay put long enough.

We missed the opportunity to plant bulbs in autumn so the garden isn’t as colourful as it could be – we’re reliant on several different coloured Cornus for a bit of zing.

We’re thinking daffies for next year so if any of you have any favourite varieties you could recommend – please let us know by commenting on this post. (more…)

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Whether after flower blossoms, fruit and vegetables, herbs, or a combination of these, the spoils of a summer garden are well worth their labor. Invest some time sketching to scale what the garden should look like in full bloom.

Colors of flowers and leaves, height of mature plants, sun needs of plants, and the shape of the garden being planned should all be considered. Now that there is a goal in mind, it would be time to remove debris, pull out grass and weeds by their roots, but leaves may stay, as partially decomposed leaves are good fertilizer to till into the soil. (more…)