Harlow Carr colour inspiration

Spent a lovely morning at Harlow Carr, the RHS garden in Harrogate, yesterday.  This wonderful garden defies anyone who thinks that there's no colour in the garden in January.  It was a crisp and frosty morning when we visited and the garden was looking glorious in its winter mantle.  

View across the garden as you enter

The joyous dogwood walk

Bee sculpture lurking on top of the show hive,
where the bees are hibernating at the moment

I was spoilt for choice as to where to point my camera. Loads of berries, gorgeous tree bark patterns and even a few flowers like witch hazel, the plant of the month,  in bloom, all glistening under a touch of frost. 

Frosted berries

Witch hazel

Plane tree bark

Prunus serrula bark

The grasses looked fabulous, winter fireworks upstanding even though chilled to the marrow - a great advertisement for prairie planting.  The sculptures are spectacular in the landscape,  punctuating the garden and helping keep the interest going.

Frosted grasses

Steel sculpture

Hazel hurdles & green willow trellis

   

Frost graffiti

There are plenty of interesting places to sit, though we didn't do too much of that as we had to keep on the move to ward off the cold.  Met with a giant snow shovel in the woodland area.

Philip sitting among upstanding grasses

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Giant snow shovel

Just as we were making our way back to Bettys, we noticed this poem inscribed on a fine piece of limestone

Brookside poetry

Bettys leaf mould teapot

Inside Bettys Cafe

Our table by the window

Got waylaid in the bookshop next where  as well as a fabulous selection of gardening books, there are lots of lovely knitting books, plus the bonus of plump sofas to sit and read them on.  We eventually did get to Bettys and a  steaming cup of coffee set  us up beautifully for the short journey back to York.  Looking forward to coming back here with our visitors on our Lakes & York knitters' tour - if not before.

BLOG TOUR IN FULL SWING NOW!

Tues 3 Jan  Wendy Knits Wendy Johnson  

 Wed 4 Jan  Knitgrrl Shannon Okey

Thurs 5 Jan  Yarnagogo Rachael Herron

 Fri 6 Jan  The Knitter Rosee Woodland

Sat 7 Jan  Rhythm of the Needles  Joanne Conklin

Sun 8 Jan  Knit Purl Gurl  Karrie Steinmetz

                Mon 9 Jan  Craft Sanity  Jennifer Ackerman-Haywood
Tues 10 Jan  Planet Purl Beth Moriarty

 Wed 11 Jan  Sunset Cat  Stephannie Tallent
Thurs 12 Jan  A Really Good Yarn  Julie Schilthuis

Fri 13 Jan  Knit 1 Chicago  Lynn Coe

Sat 14 Jan  Go Knit in your Hat Carol Sulcoski

Sun 15 Jan Redshirt Knitting  Erika Barcott

Mon 16 Jan   In The Loop  Cheryl & Ellen

➤Tues 17 Jan  WEBS  Kathy Elkins

Wed 18 Jan  Zeneedle  Margene Smith

Thurs 19 Jan   Knitspot  Anne Hanson

Fri 20 Jan   Urban Yarns  Alexa Ludeman

Sat 21 Jan  A Friend to knit with  Leslie Friend

Mon 23 Jan  Tentenknits  Margaux Hufnagel

Tues 24 Jan  Fancy Tiger Crafts  Amber Corcoran

Wed 25 Jan  Chic Knits  Bonne Marie Burns

Thurs 26 Jan  The Panopticon  Franklin Habit