Fay Young

Trees in full leaf, bright green under a blue sky reflected in the pond: The Pond picture by Fay Young

One thing always leads to another

I’m a journalist. I’ve always been curious about people and places.

I started writing about other people’s gardens a long time ago and somehow I’ve ended up having a wild garden that’s open to the public.

This site is a collection of my writing on gardens, culture, wildlife, the environment and even a little politics.

The garden is open through Scotland’s Garden Scheme supporting Children’s Hospices Across Scotland.

We are open now for spring walks. Please don’t hesitate to let us know when you’d like to come. Just fill in the Contact form. Give us a call. Find out more about Pond Cottage Garden

  • Year of the Goat: lucky for some?

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    Welcome to the year of the Goat.  What will it bring? With Chinese New Year celebrations underway I find myself thinking of Alex Salmond and how a skilful politician can turn almost any date to good advantage.

  • Zen and the art of the Big Garden Bird Watch

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    Stay still sparrows, I’m trying to count you.  Cup of coffee on the table, notepad and pencil in hand and I’m set for a happy hour looking out the window.  Make it two hours.  Settling down for the RSPB Big Garden Bird Watch I wondered if it would be cheating to do the count over the whole…

  • Let’s get weaving

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    It feels good to be weaving again, even if only to mend the border of an old log basket. New green willow cut from the edge of a Scottish stream gives a rough and ready handmade look to a shop-bought basket so evenly woven it could have been made by machine.  But hands-on, head-down weaving…

  • Are Edinburgh’s Christmas lights sustainable?

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    It’s not much after four in the afternoon and the winter sun has set way to the west of Edinburgh castle. At the end of November the city is ready for a long dark night but birds are singing in East Princes Street Gardens as if dawn was breaking.  And no wonder. The sky is ablaze…

  • Time to end the social injustice of the council tax freeze

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    Perhaps I should be grateful to John Swinney. Since 2007 Scotland’s Finance Secretary has spent £500 million on freezing council taxes. “By the end of the current Parliamentary term, [Band D] households will have saved £1,200 since the freeze was introduced in 2007.” So says the SNP press release which conveniently skates over the cost…

  • Let Scotland flourish

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    After a momentous night, a new day.  In every street of every town and city in Scotland there is likely to be a mix of deeply conflicting emotions. Relief, anger, grief, disappointment, jubilation, maybe even despair as the reality of the referendum result sinks in.  It will take time to recover a sense of balance…

  • What sort of Scotland?

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    Should Scotland be an Independent Country?  If we were asked that question in a school or college exam and we gave only the positive case for creating a new nation we would surely not expect to pass.  Yet we are being asked to vote YES on the basis of only the most optimistic forecasts –…

  • Aye we can – but why?

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    “When Scotland is told you cannae dae that,  you know what our answer’s gonnae be.  We’re just, like, saying, ‘Aye we can.’” There was an almost touching naivety about that smiling young face to camera on the news last night.  Or it would be touching if it wasn’t such a chillingly simplistic rejection of all…

  • Cry the divided country

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    If you are visiting this blog post for the second time you will notice that I have changed the heading. If you have just arrived, I should explain that the original heading said In a state of hysteria Scotland risks making an irreversible decision based on the fever of the moment. I apologise for careless…

  • In memory of Kerry Napuk

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    I am very sad to report the death of a good friend, Kerry Napuk.  He was the inspiration for a community venture in Leith which survives as a testament to his vision, leadership and constant cajoling. This is one of those times when there is no clear dividing line between my private and public worlds…

  • Sometimes the facts get in the way of a good story

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    An odd story caught my eye yesterday. A photograph posted on Facebook claimed to prove that Jim Murphy, the Labour MP  for East Renfrewshire was ‘egged’ by his own ‘minder’. According to rumours flying round Facebook this was a set up intended to smear the Yes campaign whose tactics had forced him to abandon his…

  • What on Earthy is this?

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    Just for the record, I objected to ugly plans for a new development at Canonmills on the banks of Edinburgh’s Water of Leith. Midnight was the deadline but my email to the Planning Committee prompted an auto response…the planning department officer was now away for two weeks. So I posted it on the City Council…