July 25, 2020July 25, 2020 Maretha at Fauna Park Tales

15 July 2020 – Spring and Summer Garden Glimpses – Wonderful Wednesday

I’ve decided to reblog – Wonderful Wednesday, 15th July – a series of articles based on our gardening experiences here in Lancashire. Until recently, I still thought that gardening in the UK seems easy (considering the beautiful gardens which are constantly on display), not realising how much work is involved every new season. After having been a gardener for as long as I remember, I’m finally getting it: I need to remove certain bulbs and tubers from the ground before winter comes! Roses and Clematis are on the menu. 🙂

Maretha Botha at Fauna Park Tales

Welcome to more WONDERFUL WEDNESDAY garden glimpses. This week I would like to showcase some of our remarkable roses which managed to bloom spectacularly, and I daresay miraculously, despite the torrents of rain we have had during the first two weeks of July. There are Climbers, Ramblers, Patio Climbers, Shrub Roses, Modern Shrub Roses – so many excellent choices depending where you live. Of course, roses are not always the friendliest of flowers; their thorns will quickly poke you whenever you overstep their boundaries.

Yet, when I see their glorious faces, scratches are soon forgotten. Here are a few rose glimpses in images and words – in English and Afrikaans.

Downwards the rose stoops
Regretting the sudden storm
Her petals shed tears.

‘n Roosknop buig laag,
Triestig in die lente reën
Huil haar blare sag. ___M.M. Botha

CLEMATIS – There are apparently 400 different varieties, ranging between tall and wide…

View original post 216 more words

Leave a comment Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Welcome to Day 5 of Breakfield and Burkey’s “INTRODUCING ENIGMA TRACER” Blog Tour! @EnigmaSeries @4WillsPub @4WP11 @RRBC_Org

GIVEAWAYS: (7) ebook copies of ENIGMA TRACER (7) audible codes for ENIGMA TRACER book (US or UK) Please leave the authors a comment below for your chance to win one of these awesome prizes! I am proud and honoured to introduce dynamic author duo, Charles Breakfield and Rox Barkey and their amazing ENIGMA SERIES. Today we focus on […]

#RRBC & #RWISA BOOKS OF THE MONTH! @RRBC_Org @RRBC_RWISA @Tweets4RWISA

Another Happy #Clubaversary to me – Number Seven! #RRBC

Here I am a seven years later and despite a few ups and downs, still a member of Rave Reviews Book Club! For this pleasure and privilege, our President, Nonnie Jules, deserves a BIG “Thank you!” from me. I’ve come to admire and respect her and her equally awesome support team. During year six of […]

Maretha at Fauna Park Tales

Maretha is a South African Italian, born in a small town called Montagu. She grew up in nearby Worcester in the Western Cape – a town reminiscent of living in Switzerland among the snow-capped mountains. Worcester had a small library. Young Maretha’s visits were limited to three times a week, because the librarian told her, “You spend too much time with your nose in a book and neglect your school work.” Nothing much has changed, because she's still a confirmed bookworm who constantly strives to raise more bookworms who enjoy reading, not just as a pleasant past-time, but as an excellent tool to be used when grown-up. Before immigrating to the UK to settle in Lancashire, Maretha worked as a librarian in a private school in Botswana, where one of her tasks was to encourage children to enjoy reading. That was a labour of love for this bookworm, providing valuable help in carving her own career as a children's author/illustrator. It brought her face to face with the literary industry’s toughest critics – children and preteens. She saw that many students also enjoyed reading about birds and animals, their care, habitats and general well-being, especially when a few added catchy rhymes here and there made reading sessions interesting and alive. In 2012 her job was localised and as things often happen, this unforeseen occurrence led to a new chapter in her life. To remain motivated, she wrote down everything she could remember about her family's pets – their little habits and characteristics. For example, the character of the working-dog hero in Fauna Park Tales is based on the different traits of every single dog her family ever owned. Researching habits, habitats and interesting titbits about martial eagles and eagle owls, as well as many smaller birds such as crimson-breasted shrikes and hoopoes,made it easier to illustrate them and tell a believable story. Her illustrations appear throughout Fauna Park Tales. Maretha Botha admits to being a chocoholic and unreformed coffee addict, a keen gardener and bird watcher, who likes to walk on the moors where the stiff breeze coming in from the sea, quickly clears her head, making way for more inspiration.

Personal Links

View Full Profile →

Welcome to Day 5 of Breakfield and Burkey’s “INTRODUCING ENIGMA TRACER” Blog Tour! @EnigmaSeries @4WillsPub @4WP11 @RRBC_Org

GIVEAWAYS: (7) ebook copies of ENIGMA TRACER (7) audible codes for ENIGMA TRACER book (US or UK) Please leave the authors a comment below for your chance to win one of these awesome prizes! I am proud and honoured to introduce dynamic author duo, Charles Breakfield and Rox Barkey and their amazing ENIGMA SERIES. Today we focus on […]

#RRBC & #RWISA BOOKS OF THE MONTH! @RRBC_Org @RRBC_RWISA @Tweets4RWISA

Another Happy #Clubaversary to me – Number Seven! #RRBC

Here I am a seven years later and despite a few ups and downs, still a member of Rave Reviews Book Club! For this pleasure and privilege, our President, Nonnie Jules, deserves a BIG “Thank you!” from me. I’ve come to admire and respect her and her equally awesome support team. During year six of […]

Another Happy #Clubaversary to me – Number six! #RRBC

GRATEFUL A BIG “THANK YOU!” to Nonnie Jules, President of the Rave Reviews Book Club and her equally awesome team, especially Paula who has always been willing to provide assistance. I’ve been a member of Rave Reviews Book Club for the past six years, and it has been a pleasure and a privilege. If you […]

Happy #Clubaversary to me! – FIVE Years’ Membership #RRBC

This is just to say a BIG “THANK YOU!” to Nonnie Jules, President of the Rave Reviews Book Club and her equally awesome team. I’ve been a member for the past five years and it has been a pleasure. If you want to be part of something special, and if you are looking for real […]