May wildflowers in the olive grove
All the wet weather we’ve been having has turned the olive grove into a jungle. With wildflowers growing waist-high, mowing (which we’ve just started) is an epic task, so there’s […]
Tag Archives: The Olive Grove in Spring
Fifty shades of green: changing olive trees
One of the (many) reasons that I love olive trees is their evergreen nature. In winter, when the neighbouring grapevines are reduced to knobbly stumps, and the naked chestnut trees […]
Tuscany in bloom: wild poppies in the olive grove
Poppies are synonymous with Tuscany, and May is poppy season. Orangey-red corn/field poppies (Papaver rhoeas) dot roadsides and carpet fields, providing spectacular splashes of colour in the currently verdant countryside. […]
Natural fertilisers for the olive grove: crimson peas and black medic
I have always had a soft spot for the winged flowers of the legume family, so I was delighted to discover that the tiny specks of pink dotting the olive […]
Food and flowers: Tassel Hyacinths (Lampascioni)
This alien-looking flower is a tassel hyacinth (Muscari comosum), a common wildflower in Italy. The plants grow to about 30cm tall and have striking tufts of upright violet flowers. Tassel […]
Spring wildflowers in the olive grove
Soon we will need to take a strimmer to the olive grove and cut the overgrown grass down to a respectable length. In the meantime the terraces are blooming and […]
Monsummano Terme in fiori – a spring flower festival
Every weekend in Tuscany brings another festival for something or other – an excuse for the community to congregate in a local piazza, browse local products and munch on brigidini […]
Notes from a Tuscan Olive Grove 