By Kit Heathcock / Published on June 6th, 2008 / Travel
It’s springtime in Tuscany, early May. Arriving at Pisa airport the air smells different, dryer, lighter, brighter with the alluring waft of some flower scent, even amid the concrete hustle and [..]
By Dakota Caudilla / Published on March 31th, 2008 / Travel
Tuscany, the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance, with its architectural and artistic heritage, boasts dozens of museums, the most famous one being the Uffizi in Florence, medieval towns, and [..]
By R A E Mayhew / Published on November 2th, 2007 / Family
Jan 25th 2004 - Looking at the bleak colourless winter gardens here, and the memory of the garden in the summer, it is clear this garden needs work, but none more so than planting trees, and not [..]
By Rupert Mayhew / Published on November 2th, 2007 / Family
Feb 28th 2004 – The hopes of the Red Admiral, early wild flowers and the large bumble bee for a mild spring would have all taken a large blow today as snow fell this morning, and far from being [..]
By R A E Mayhew / Published on November 2th, 2007 / Family
The Mystery of the Birds Dropping
March 6th 2004 - Despite our best endeavours we are not doing well encouraging birdlife. Last week we put up a bird feeder but I am sad to say that not one [..]
By Rupert Mayhew / Published on November 1th, 2007 / Family
The Iris Season
March 13th 2004 – It seems that every wall, every verge and every garden in Tuscany grows Iris bulbs and they are now growing frantically, long green blades like tropical grass, [..]
By Rupert Mayhew / Published on November 1th, 2007 / Family
Blossoms and the Busy Season
March 27th 2004 –This is the start of the busy season in the garden centres as they are all stocking plants which means gardeners everywhere are breaking from their [..]
By Rupert Mayhew / Published on November 1th, 2007 / Family
The Journal of a Gardener in Tuscany – April 2004 part I
Early
March Winds and April Showers
April 10th 2004
I replanted two flowering trees at the request of my Father, he cannot remember [..]
By Rupert Mayhew / Published on August 21th, 2007 / Family
Lavender & Tourists Appear
April 24th 2004
This week we have made the garden ready for the busy tourist season, with just a few minor jobs, such as the new Lemon tree, left to go. La Doccia is [..]
By Rupert Mayhew / Published on August 21th, 2007 / Family
The Journal of a Gardener in Tuscany
May 13th 2004
With less than a month to go before our first wedding we are making sure every job that needs doing will be done in time. A month can go [..]
By Rupert Mayhew / Published on August 21th, 2007 / Family
The Journal of a Gardener in Tuscany
May 28th 2004
With only two hours of rain in the last two weeks our watering systems are working at full tilt. A new lawn sprayer has joined in the fun and [..]
By Rupert Mayhew / Published on July 8th, 2007 / Travel
Sept 14 2004 – As the good weather continued through early September the lawn grew steadily browner and browner. Yet the nights are already shorter and just when it seemed the last of the lawn [..]
By Rupert Mayhew / Published on July 1th, 2007 / Travel
October 14 2004 – We set up the greenhouses for the summer shrubs, sadly removing still flowering geraniums, the gardenia, several hostas and the bougainvillea into a greenhouse and leaving many [..]
By Norm Goldman / Published on April 5th, 2007 / Travel
Norm Goldman, Editor of www.sketchandtravel.com and www.bookpleasures.com interviews travel writer and author Rebecca Ford, expert on Tuscany, as well as Scotland and Britain.
Today, Norm [..]
By R A E Mayhew / Published on April 23th, 2008 / Leisure & Recreation
The Journal of a Gardener in TuscanyJune 23rd 2004The wild flowers are dying back already, just days after their fantastic display peaked. The grass is yellowing and in a week, maybe less, all [..]
By R A E Mayhew / Published on April 5th, 2007 / Home & Garden
The Journal of a Gardener in TuscanyJuly 27th 2004 The second half of summer, also known as the dog days of summer, are upon us and while parts of the garden flourish, others struggle. They are [..]
By Kirsten Hawkins / Published on June 15th, 2007 / Food
When an American conjures up an idea of "Italian cuisine," often what comes to mind is pasta, red sauce, and garlic bread. Pasta, no doubt, plays a large part in most traditional Italian regional [..]
By Terry Lowery / Published on October 3th, 2006 / Food
When an American conjures up an idea of “Italian cuisine,” often what comes to mind is pasta, red sauce, and garlic bread. Pasta, no doubt, plays a large part in most traditional Italian regional [..]