Thursday, June 20, 2013

Rain-drenched flowers and a quiet churchyard

It was very warm in the car yesterday afternoon on our way back from Chesterfield so, as Bakewell was quite busy and crowded,  we stopped at Monyash for a break.  We parked in front of the church and the churchyard looked cool and inviting under the trees so we had a wander around.

St Leonard's Church is in the centre of the village and was built c1200 with  the tower, south and north transepts being added in the 14th century.  The whole church was restored towards the end of the 19th century. 

We walked to the top of the churchyard to look at the views of the fields over the stone wall

This squeeze stile was the entrance to the churchyard from the east side not far from where the mere, the  only one remaining of the four that were in the village, is situated.
We could see the water, known locally as the mere, from the lane we were in but couldn't walk any further as the lane down to it was overgrown with cow parsley and nettles.

 What a wonderful season it has been for cow parsley it is just everywhere at the moment and so gorgeous!

I was intrigued by the name of the lane though!

Our drive home through Hartington was spectacular with not only the cow parsley on the verges but also field after field of buttercups too.

Meanwhile back home after a downpour of rain this morning the garden was looking lush and green again and the flowers looked refreshed.  The garden is rather pink at the moment with the sweet peas,

lupins and valerian all in flower and attracting the bees.


32 comments:

  1. Looks like a lovely spot. I love it when I find a pretty place that I wasn't expecting.

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    1. We always drive through on our way to Bakewell or Chesterfield. It was nice to actually stop and look:)

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  2. Your garden looks lovely Rosie. I like a quiet wander around an English country churchyard too.
    we haven't been across to Derbyshire yet this year., but it's somewhere we come back to again and again.
    Kathy x

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    1. Thanks Kathy, I'm pleased the slugs haven't got to the lupins yet! The churchyard was very peaceful and cool:)

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  3. How I would love to wander down icky picky lane! Your pink flowers are very pretty. Thank you for sharing your lupins with us, mine were devoured by slugs and snails before they even made it an inch in height!!! x

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    1. We've always kept the lupins in a pot and tried various places in the garden - this year they are down underneath the kitchen window and are checked everyday for slugs and snails; so far they are ok:)

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  4. The flowers are beautiful and I love all the pink. Have just been out on a slug hunt after the rains, try and save my poor plants.

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    1. Last year the slugs and snails ate all the lupins and I chopped them off and they came back again late in the year. This year they have been lovely as we keep them in a pot near the house and check them everyday:)

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  5. The churchyard does look cool and quiet. I love the name of lane, I wonder where it comes from, too. And I wish I'd planted Sweet Peas for this year, but I didn't get round to it in the end.

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    1. The sweet peas were from some old seed and we set them quite early and started them in the greenhouse - they are all coming out now. I'd love to find out the origin of the name of Icky Picky Lane:)

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  6. Icky Picky Lane! Wonder how that came about? Love your pink flowers. We have lots of Valerian - pink and red - but can't seem to grow lupins here - they grow so high, then get devoured! Your sweet peas are much further on than mine - lovely - can't wait for them. x

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    1. It's a great name isn't it? We can't grow lupins in the garden so only have the lupins in a pot and keep them on slabs and check everyday for slugs and snails, it has worked so far. We did set the sweetpea seeds quite early so they are flowering early:)

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  7. I love finding odd street names and love Icky Picky Lane. The flowers in your garden are gorgeous and as you say so much better for a downpour of rain to green everything up again.
    Patricia x

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    1. We are certainly having a downpour today! The flowers are benefitting from it all I hope. I love the name Icky Picky Lane too:)

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  8. The countryside is looking lovely at the moment. I love Icky Picky Lane! I've tried to find out about the name in the past but without success.

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    1. Isn't everywhere looking extra special at the moment, I wish I could bottle it for the winter days ahead but then I suppose we do in taking photos to look back on. I couldn't find anything about Icky Picky Lane either:)

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  9. Your photos are just gorgeous. Icky Picky Lane, what a gorgeous name. Thanks for sharing.
    Anne xx

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    1. Thanks Anne, glad you enjoyed the photos. How wonderful to live on Icky Picky Lane spparently there did use to be small cottages on there:)

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  10. The countryside is looking wonderful just now. Thanks for sharing your visit to Monyash with us. When I looked at a map of the area the name jumped out at me and I wondered what it was like. Very pretty and peaceful. Now I know what the narrow stone entrance to a church or path is - a squeeze stile. I saw some on Wednesday during our day out. Your sweet peas are gorgeous. Lovely post, Rosie.

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    1. Thanks, Linda. I've always known them as squeeze stiles but that may be colloquial rather than their proper name:)

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  11. Monyash - that's a funny name in itself never mind about Icky Picky Lane. It looks a charming village. Sweet peas already!
    One of my favourite flowers - mine are nowhere near ready. I wish I could grow lupins but they get 'slugged' as soon as they appear so they are a no-no for my garden.

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    1. It is an unusual name isn't it? We set the sweet peas early and kept them in the greenhouse for ages so they have flowered early, the lupins are in a huge pot near the back door so we can check for slugs and snails - last year they were all eaten away:)

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  12. I love Monyash - lots of great walks around there. I missed your last post as I have been away - I hope that you are OK xxxx

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    1. I'm fine Diane, thanks! Just ready for a break I think. We always drive through Monyash on the way to other places so it was nice to stop for a while:)

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  13. Yes great year for Cow Parsley. I am impressed that you have flowers on your sweetpeas, mine are nowhere near flowering. Would love to live in Icky Picky Lane.

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    1. Wouldn't it be great to live on Icky Picky Lane? I think the cow parsley has been wonderful this year and the buttercups too. The sweet peas were planted early from seed so have flowered early too:)

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  14. Your flowers are looking lovely! Icky Picky Lane is a fab name, I hear a country and western song in my mind! x

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    1. Icky Picky Lane sounds a bit like 'achy, breaky heart' or whaterver the song is called. The flowers are getting blown around in the wind and rain today I hope some of them survive:)

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  15. What a lovely post about a lovely place- Beautiful flowers and Icky Picky Lane made me smile- Hope you're feeling a little more settled now:)

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    1. Thanks, Amanda I am - just ready for a break I think. Glad you enjoyed the flowers:)

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  16. What a pretty place. I'm still waiting for my sweet peas to grow and flower. The season is very behind here after a wet spring and start to summer.

    Marie x

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    1. the seasons do seem rather in a tizzy this year with some things flowering early and others later. I was happy to see the sweet pea flowers as I was concerned they had been affected by the weather:)

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