👸🏻 Dreaming about Gardens whilst nature sleeps this Winter 🏰

Whilst Winter cloaks nature into its seasonal sleep, I dream of plans for next years little gardening projects and I also let myself dream of the ultimate garden. One attached to a castle.

Thinking on the adage that if one’s home is one's Castle, what is the garden? An extension of sanctuary, identity and escape? Or, perhaps your garden is a midden, a forgotten no-mans land mass of brambles and weeds. (If so? You sound like an ideal candidate to lend your garden by the way. Let someone else love it if you can’t!)

Sleeping Beauty’s castle boundary comes to mind.

Brambles and Boundaries. Image courtesy of Pain Creative

Things might be more blustery and brrr in the garden now, rather than when it was blousey and blooming in the Summer, but Winter is still a beautiful time to visit places like enchanted castle gardens, especially if you don’t have your own garden, Tenders.

Check out https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/inspire-me/historic-gardens/9-winter-gardens/ for some inspo.

Fortunately, there’s a festive touch to this connection. In a famous and much quoted decision from 1604 Sir Edward Coke, a judge and jurist

he declared that

“the house of every one is to him as his Castle and Fortress as well for defence against injury and violence, as for his repose” which has become known as the phrase “a man's home is his castle”.

Coke (pronounced Cook, also went on to moralise about how to deal with a murder when at the market, but we’ll skip that to keep this Christmassy) but, and he continues in Latin to make it official: “because domus sua cuique est tutissimum refugium. [Translating to everyone’s house is his safest refuge] which is where we get “Every man’s home is his castle.” Sir Edward Coke brought to mind the Coca Cola Christmas ads, where Santa enjoyed a cold drink. Remember those commercials? Sadly, this post isn't sponsored by PepsiCo, but you can find other refreshing beverages at nearby shops. Apologies for the tangent.

A great Christmas watch would be the film called The Castle, based on this saying. I was recently introduced to it by my extended Antipodean family. Then you’ll soon want to put all your good Christmas Cards in the ‘Pool Room’. (If you know you know!)

Ok, so now you’re probably wondering why I’m going on about Pool Rooms and a 17th Century phrase and not talking to you about gardens. Well as I sit here in my 1-bed house, the floor is strewn with toys, washing hangs on the airer in front of me, pots are soaking in the sink, and whilst I am cosy and warm I think of the earth outside as it takes to a deep sleep under cover of a glittering ground frost. I also sit here with cocoa dreaming about what it’d be like to live in a house, somewhere with a bit more space, hmmm somewhere like a castle.

Somewhere not just with just a bit more room inside, but perhaps sprawling lawns for the dog and the baby to play (the four legged member of our family being the only one to currently have their own room, a cozy dog crate).

So I’m talking somewhere with a walled garden which would capture the warmth of sunny afternoons to ripen espaliered fruits, secret garden rooms, a moat naturally, would an orangery be too much to ask for, aaand a sweeping circle drive for my carriage? (Even for a dream it seems a bit much to ask for a carriage as well, but stay with me).

Basically my dreams are about gardens, and as it’s Christmas, it’s ok to dream isn’t it? So, I thought I’d share my dream with you as perhaps there are those of you out there like me who only dream of having your own garden, or sharing one at least.

Well, and a quick google search suggests that there I’m not the only one dreaming about castles, if not gardens too and in fact shared this article only yesterday. https://www.zoopla.co.uk/discover/featured-homes/the-best-castle-homes-for-sale/

So, if you’re reading this and you have a castle or you’re about to buy one of these, would you mind signing up to Lend and Tend to share some of your garden grounds, inso that someone wishing the same wish for a garden somewhere could pretend they’re in Bridgerton and grow some cucumbers and perambulate about the grounds perhaps.

Whilst we’re on the subject of dreams, I’ve been banging the garden sharing drum as a one-girl band for some time now (since 2013 at least) so for 2024, I’d love to also create the garden-sharing dream team or dream teams even. I’d really love to hear your feedback of how your garden-shares are going! I’d also love to team up with people to help with growing Lend and Tend’s reach and helping a lot more people get garden-sharing than ever before.

For now though, I wish you all a very restful season of festivities and a healthy and peaceful 2024 ahead.