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 throughout the year. 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
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Welcome to The (lily) Pond
It’s not possible (and I think not right) to avoid the wider world news of death and destruction. And yet it also feels more important than ever to celebrate what Nature brings us, the turning cycle of life. Renewal and recovery. People and plants. We need each other.
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For future generations: buried poetry
How will we remember this time? How will future generations see us? Will we survive the triple onslaught of pandemic, war and climate change?
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Ghosts of census past and present
Just for the hell of it, I hang Granny’s nighties and pretty petticoat by a range which has been here for 160 years, our smart new utility room still boasts the original Belfast sinks from the scullery where Elizabeth Leather would have laboured over dishes, pots and pans. How much of all this will be…
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One snort for hello?
At no risk to ourselves we can make our own surrounds much greener, safer – and a lot more pleasant.
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Keep people safe: keep gardens open
If we want our grandchildren to enjoy the thrill of a thriving woodland – a living landscape – we have a lot of work ahead.
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Welcome to The Pond
This is a new adventure for us but we are looking forward to welcoming visitors to our first autumn ‘season’.
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Swan watch: a parents’ guide to survival
After almost 20 years of sharing the pond with generations of swans we are gradually learning to expect the unexpected. But this year brought a humbling discovery for human parents.
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Why are we waiting?
During the 2020 July/August heatwave those of us in Room 11, Ward 106 of Edinburgh Royal Infirmary discovered just how hot a ward could be.
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Fine weather for flamingoes?
Nature is the boss. At best we manage to infiltrate here and there with splashes of colour and dashes of ideas. Some of them even work out well. Check the flamingoes…
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Origins, borders and vexed questions of identity
Political turmoil throws up uncomfortable questions of identity and belonging
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Winter into Spring
It’s a turning point. For so long it seems a teasing fantasy, a few brave buds on some hopeful trees and shrubs, a cheery blackbird outside the bedroom window greeting an earlier sunrise. Then suddenly there’s no doubt. Whatever the weather, Spring is here and this year it brings an unexpected new season to Pond…
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Deliverance is local: Covid benchmarks
Our disinfected doorbell rings. Outside a smiling young man delivers a box of essentials: fresh fruit, toilet rolls, paracetamol…and just a little booze.