In bloom - Kandy Shepherd

It's spring Down Under and this month I'm sharing some recent snaps from my farm garden.

I wish I could share the glorious fragrance of the climbing rose Zepherine Drouhin that grows near our vegetable garden

My dear husband put in a lot of work over the winter (I was too busy writing to share much of the burden!) and our cottage-style garden is looking its best.

Our flowering cherry - sadly no fruit!

We have a cool winter and a hot summer and fruit, iris, roses and spring-flowering bulbs thrive.

I love columbines

In the last weeks the iris have been superb and the roses have just started.

Our climate is perfect for iris

We had the threat of bushfire last week but thankfully all we could smell was the fragrance of roses.

I love the bold shape of artichoke, here with clematis and sage in flower at the front

We grow vegetables too though it can be a hit or miss affair as to when we actually get them planted!

Lots of lettuce!

The cats are constant companions in the garden and tend to photo bomb any opportunity they can.

Rhubarb, too - those are its flowers that I cut off so all the growth goes into the edible stems

The horses, little bulls and chickens all contribute to the garden with fertilizer. 

Cindy is always nearby

My husband often lets the horses into the garden but not so much at the moment as the lettuce is a huge attraction. They nibble on the camellias too which makes me rather cranky!

Ivy helps too

At the moment I’m writing a story that features a rather grand garden. Mine is not on such a scale but it is lovely to be able to walk outside and feel inspired.

My husband worked all his winter weekends to put in this new path

Are you of the green-thumbed or brown-thumbed type of gardener? Do you have a favorite flower? Do you enjoy growing vegetables or herbs? I’d love to know!

Make a comment to be in the draw for a signed copy of my Christmas book for Harlequin Romance Diamond In Her Stocking. Please include your email address in your comment if you want to be included in the draw.

Kandy’s third Dolphin Bay story for Harlequin Romance, A Diamond in Her Stocking, goes on sale on December 1, 2014 and is available for pre-order now

Kandy Shepherd is an award-winning author of contemporary romance and women’s fiction. She lives on a small farm in the Blue Mountains near Sydney, Australia, with her family and a menagerie of four-legged friends.

Visit Kandy at her website

www.kandyshepherd.com

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Spring my way—Kandy Shepherd

We’ve had a record-breaking warm winter in my part of Down Under and are basking in summer-like spring conditions.

We usually don't see this flowering plum quite so early

The plants in my farm garden are totally confused—they’re blooming a full two weeks before they’re meant to.

This gnarled plum tree is more than 60 years old and produces the most delicious plums

The pictures I’m sharing here were taken three weeks ago, when the daffodils were still meant to be in bud and the fruit tree blossoms just pale swellings on the branches. 

This iris is blooming weeks earlier than it did last year

Usually there isn’t a tulip in sight at this time of year but they’re about to open and there are rosebuds on the just-pruned rose bushes. (While many parts of Australia don’t have a very cold winter, our little farm is in the mountains and we get heavy frosts and the occasional flurry of snow—not this year, though.)

Our daffodils are early this year--I love the way they just keep flowering year after year

 The vegetables, too, are starting to thrive. Last summer I left a few lettuces to go to seed. Lots of tiny green seedlings resulted and now they’re growing into lush lettuces so fast I’ve actually harvested my first (small) salad.

These lettuces are from a plant I left to self-seed--how nice to get free seedlings!

The snow peas (mangetout) I planted in autumn are now climbing up their supports—fingers crossed for the treat of fresh snow peas come late spring.

It won't be long until we'll be enjoying cabbages

Spring is my favorite season in my garden, though I’ve tried to plant carefully so we have flowers all year round.

Nature provides these lovely wattle blossoms in the bushland part of my farm garden

I particularly love daffodils as when I was pregnant with my daughter I planted lots of daffodils. As I buried those nondescript brown bulbs, I wondered what my baby would be like and counted the months until I would meet her (or him!) knowing by the time the daffodils were in bloom she would be born. The joyous day we brought her home, she was greeted by a garden bed of yellow daffodils.

Jonquils have been blooming for weeks and filling the garden with their glorious scent

The whole upside-down thing of the hemispheres can be confusing to humans, too. Last week I left my spring garden behind and am currently enjoying autumn as I visit England. Sometimes I have to catch myself and re-orientate myself to the season!

I found this little violet vase in a market--perfect for delicate violets

 I’m in England on a quick visit to catch up with friends and family. It’s the first time I’ve been here in 10 years and I’m so glad to be back. (My mother was Australian and my father English and I’ve always been torn between the two countries.)

When I get home it will be time for more planting!

I’d planned the trip before I sold my first book to Harlequin Mills & Boon UK. So now I have the added excitement of meeting my editor face-to-face for the first time and visiting “romance headquarters” at Richmond. I’ll also be meeting some of the Mills & Boons authors I know only online or through reading their wonderful romances. I’m so thrilled to be joining their ranks!

My first story for Harlequin Romance is titled The Summer They Never Forgot. It’s an emotional reunion story and will be out in January 2014. I’m eagerly awaiting the first glimpse of my cover…

Spring, summer, fall or winter—do you have a favorite season in your garden? Or a flower that holds special significance for you? Do you hate gardening but enjoy buying flowers—or being given them! Please leave a comment—I’d love to hear about it!

 Kandy Shepherd writes fun, feel-good fiction.

Her new contemporary women's fiction e-book, Reinventing Rose, is available now at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple, Kobo, Smashwords, and other e-book retailers. 

Kandy’s romances include the Amazon bestseller The Castaway Bride, Something About Joe, and the award-winners Love is a Four-Legged Word and Home Is Where the Bark Is.

Watch out for her The Summer They Never Forgot, her first release from Harlequin Romance in 2014.

Visit Kandy at her website

www.kandyshepherd.com