CASTLE ASHBY GARDENS

What beautiful gardens TT. love those Heucharas around the arches such a gorgeous colour. Your lovely Conker deserves 'applaws' (as it says on the packet!) well done you, wondered where you all have been hiding!) :~)

Lovely blog..and the adorable Conker! Well done! :)

Biscuits to share and a lovely day out what more could a dog want!

It sseems a long time since you blogged TT..What a smashing blog and a lovely place, no wonder you want to go back. A first for his nibs is no suprise at all, if they made Lassie the "Minie" series he would get the part, Star quality.

Thanks Grandmage ..
... and for the "applaws" Lol.
The gardens are vast.
Lots of walking and places to see !

Hi Pixi ... Thank you :o)

Hello Pam ... Conker and Truffle had a good day :o)

Yes, Pim ... a while since my last blog ...
Lol. Conker likes the idea of mini-Lassie !
The crowds very much enjoyed his trick routine performance ..
Truffle enjoyed the biscuits... ;o)

Hi Terratoonie hope your keeping well! What a lovely place and well done to conker :-) x

Now I am cross TT, that is only 3 miles from me and I would have loved to have come along and met you, Conker and Truffle xxx

Hi Popedot ... Thanks. We were so lucky with the weather ! x

Hello Annie ...
Didn't realise this was so close to you. xxx

I used to love to walk the dogs around the lakes on a warm evening.....and annoy the fishermen Lol!

Hello TT ... It's lovely to hear from you again and read one of your blogs :o))
Congratulations to Conker on winning his prizes !
That looks a wonderful place to visit. I think I would have spent a lot of time in the fuchsia house.

What a lovely place to visit TT shame it's so far away, lovely blog and well done to conker and Truffles.......

Lol. Annella ... lots of good walking there !
It was a last-minute decision to choose that show .. there were several charity dog shows on yesterday.

Hello Hywel ..
Thank you. I thought of you when I saw the Fuchsia House.
You would have enjoyed that.
Today Conker and Truffle are tired but happy. :o)))

Hi Stripes ..
Conker and Truffle say thanks.
It is a lovely venue... lots to see and lovely short grass everywhere.

lovely blog Terra and beautifull gardens to, so glad conker won a prize for first, he is a talented boy and well deserved, nice he shared his treats with truffle though he probably didnt have much choice haha, brilliant :o)) xx

Hi Sandra ...
Thanks. Conker is very generous with his goodies winnings ;o) ha ha. :o) xxx

Lovely to see you again,Terra..and what a beautiful place..all the better for Conker posing in the photo's ! Nice both he and Truffle did so well at the dog show..well deserved..:o) x I really enjoyed the walk around the gardens ..

What beautiful gadens and lawns Terra , lovely pictures of Conker posing looks loke you almost had them to yourselves too. A big hug for Conker for winning 1st prize and one for Truffle for helping Conker eat the biscuits lol

Thanks Carole and Sandra ...
Conker and Truffle send hugs :o) x

hugs back for the boys Terra xxx

Lovely gardens. And what a beautiful custom to let people park for free, lol. If it was closer, I would join both of you. Most of all I like Conker, as he was on each of your photos sitting modestly in a distance and waiting for you. What a lovely and wise dog!
What a pitty, you did not make photos of other competitors, lol. Maybe you said it, but I do not understand, what was Conker´s winning trick? :)))))

Hi Katarina.
Parking was free, but it was a very LONG walk to the dog show !
Conker did his Supernanny tricks routines.
You can see some of these on this blog ...
http://www.growsonyou.com/terratoonie/blog/8290-conker-at-charity-dog-shows

What a lovely place to visit, shame its so far away.

Congratulations to Conker on his well deserved award. Such a good boy sharing his goodies with Truffle :)

Hello Sam.
Thank you. It was great to have a dry day ...
that made the gardens look even better after all the recent rain !
Yes, generous of Conker to share his prizes :o)

Congratulations and well done Conker , what a lovely place to visit , you must go back when you have more time to enjoy it TT :o))

I'll be the gardens are amazing when the sun's shining, and you have a really nice summers day. Still you really lucked out with the weather, its done little more than rain by me. Sick of it now, want the sun back. Do you think it will come back if I say pretty please? lol

Lol. Sam... Rained all day today here ..
So lucky it stayed dry yesterday !

Thanks, Amy ... so much more to see ..
It might need several more visits ! :o)

Well done Conker :-)
Lovely place for a show TT.

Thanks, Willinilli ...
L-o-n-g, l-o-n-g walk from the car park, but a lovely venue !

So beautiful and immaculately kept!...and the gardens are nice too!

Joking aside though...what about those wonderful glass houses? wow!!

Hi Karen ... Thanks... The old buildings, including the glasshouses are very impressive :o)

TT, your blog reminded me. I would like to 'train' Molly to hold something in her mouth the way Conker and Truffle do. Can you p.m me please with some tips ....we had a few chewed rose stems the other night and absolutely no success....just a very confused little dog!

Lovely blog, TT! Conker looks almost forlorn in some of the distant photos! The gardens look fabulous & I'd like to visit them some day!

I found the information on the butterflies very interesting! Reminded me of my Cambridge Botanical Garden blogs where I took photos of the information boards & put them in my blog.

I'm with Hywel, I'd really have loved to be able to visit the Fuchsia house!

Well done to Conker for winning First Prize in the dog show once again!

Hello Balcony ..
Conker enjoyed the tour of the gardens... loves posing for pictures :o)
It wasn't easy to photograph the butterfly information ... lots of reflections ! I wish I'd had time to tour the fuchsia house.

Conker was pleased to win another first prize rosette ... and goodies for his friend Truffle ;o)

What a super blog of a beautiful venue, all the better for Conker gracing the views then going on to win first prize he is such a loveable star to share his goodie bag prize with Truffle...aw x So pleased you had a lovely day out and shared it with Goyers :o)

Well done Conker....hope both you and Truffle enjoyed your treats :)
TT...was only thinking yesterday that you hadn't posted for a while :). Gorgeous gardens and grounds. Thanks for sharing with us :))

Thinks it's all been said, but let me echo all of the above!

Beautiful gardens Terra....Congrats to Conker...deserves 1st place...:>)

I don't know, but did you notice there was a dog in all those photos? lol
What a place to visit, I would have been in my element, lovely photographs, and no rain......so lucky, not stopped here, fed up with it now, not only wet but cold!!
And well done the dog in the photo!! such a star.

It looks a lovely place to explore, is it open to the public at other times Terra, some of the scenes in your photo`s seem familiar and I was wondering if we may have visited in the past.
Conker has done you proud again and Tuffle looks ready to enjoy the rewards as well, mind you one cannot blame him, lol.
Lovely photo`s Terra, pleased you are ok and that both you and Conker are still enjoying the shows..

Great blog..interesting place and lovely gardens..

What a natural in front of the camera conker is..almost like a dog photoshoot, perhaps for Dogue..

Hi Karen ... I'll p.m. you about Molly's training.

Thanks Neena, Scottish, Lil, Moti ...
I'm having a busy 2012 but trying to enjoy some charity dog shows between the showers ! My dogs so love competing in those !

Hello Dotty ...
We were so lucky to have a dry day. It had been raining non-stop on previous days and has been pouring down ever since. It's fun fitting Conker into every photo. Both dogs get very excited when they see me pick up my camera !

Hi Sue ...
Maybe you've visited Castle Ashby in the past ...
... or in a past life ? Lol.
Yes, thanks we are all okay ... just very busy, and, as with so many, waiting to do lots of garden tasks, once the weather allows !

Thank you, Skips ...
Where next for Conker ? The catwalk ? Lol. ;o)

What a beautiful place to visit, lovely companion as well and well done Truffle on your 1st place in the doggy competition. Well done Terra for training your beautiful dog, lovely blog thank you.

Great blog TT stunning pictures.Well done Conker.Glad to see Truffle helping though you got to share lol.Hope you are all well:)))))

Thank you, Olive.
The gardens are wonderful.
We enjoyed our day.

Hello Mark, J and J ... Thanks.
Hoping you are high and dry now ! ;o)
Yes, lots of sharing going on here.
We're all well thanks. Just extra busy this year !

What lovely photos.Conker and Truffle are gorgeous dogs, I bet they had a smashing day. Bit jealous, think I saw some sunshine in a couple of the shots. LOL. Jx

Hi Jane ...
The Sunday morning started off sunny and became more cloudy, but at least it stayed dry, which helped us enjoy the day even more.
Only started raining again when I returned home !
Conker and Truffle send hugs :o) x

Well done Conker! And back in the blogs with a bang, Terra!! :)))

How beautiful it all is...but, I think I need an orangerie like that, now...
Probably for the best that it's unattainable...lol

You might have to open a dog training school, Terra...I've got an out of control Pyrenean Shepherd arriving home on Saturday!

Hello Karen ...
I guess lots of window-cleaning in Castle Ashby ;o)

Good luck with your canine control ..
I hope your doggie arrives home safely ... :o)))

Yup, you're right...and I have enough trouble getting around to the windows I've got...

It's another Lagos to Paris, via Nairobi trip...let's hope the flight actually takes off this time...Sadie isn't good natured like Satchmo... :(

Can't believe i missed this and its only a short drive away !! We shall make it a priority to visit this summer Terra ....and congratulations to Conker :-)))

Hi Susie ..
The show didn't seem especially well advertised. The gardens are vast, so plenty to see !

Conker enjoyed performing his tricks. The crowd around the show-ring really appreciated his routines ! ... and Truffle is appreciating the goodies won. Lol. :o)))

I had no idea the gardens were so extensive ! I'm really looking forward to a pop here on the next sunny weekend :-)

The arboretum seems to occupy a large area, with a lake and boat house.
There's a walled garden too. I didn't have time to see any of those !

Lovely to hear from you, hope all's well at home, but what a lovely place you went and so pleased Conker won 1st prize, i went to Holker Hall on Sunday not had time to put photos on, abit busy with looking after my friends 2cats who lives 2 doors from me, as they have gone away, and i always stay with them both for a while when i feed them, plus looking after her garden, but first time i get chance i will put them on.

Hi Carol...
All's well thanks. Just having a busy 2012 !
Glad you enjoyed Holker Hall. I hope Jack and Tilly don't mind your looking after two cats along the road. Lol.

Pleased all is well at home for you, to be honest dont know where 2012 is going can't believe we are half way through the year, Tilly and Jack are fine me feeding the other 2 cats as all four of them visit each other homes :o)))

:o)))

Wow what a lovely place to visit,another one for the list. lovely pics and well done Conker xx

Thanks Jewells ... Conker sends xxx

what a wonderful place, great blog Terra and congratulations to Conker yet again. I bet the other competitors think they may as well go home when they see Conker lol:-)

I really enjoyed reading your blog Toonie, immaculate gardens and grounds...... Very Jane Eyre.... And well done to you and Conker, your dogs are both lovely and Conker is immaculately groomed. Hats off to you x

I have only just found this.

How beautifully kept the gardens are and the lawns look wonderful. Your dogs are always so well behaved and always add to the photographs! I am glad that they had a prize to share - well deserved you two!

Thanks Borna, Magna and Wildrose ...
Lovely to be able to walk on so many immaculate lawns !
My dogs enjoyed themselves :o) x

Hi Terra, that was a lovely tour, glad Conker got first place, it looks a lovely place to go, looking forward to the next time you go now :-)

Hi Surreylad ..
Thanks. Conker was pleased with his first place :o)
I was impressed by how spacious the gardens are.
With so many acres, plenty of room for everyone !

Hi TT lovely blog, beautiful lawns and planting. Well done for your dog training skills. Our Retriever only retrieves what she wants and soon gets bored and treats dont work well either!

Thank you Crv.
They are lovely gardens to visit.

Super blog with lots of information and lovely pictures to look at. Well done Conker on winning a prize and sharing it with Truffles.

Hi Linda.
I'm pleased you like this blog.
Not easy to get a clear photograph of the butterfly info.
My dogs very much enjoy the charity shows. Lots of fun. :o)

And a lovely day out was had by all. Well done Conker. I think he must be like my cat minnie as she always appears when I get the camera out! Lovely pictures and a lovely blog, Terra.

Fabulous blog and well done Conker x

Hi Rose. Thank you. Some pets really do seem to love the camera, don't they ! I can imagine Minnie appearing.. Lol.

Thanks Val. Conker enjoyed his day :o) x

Lovely blog TT (as usual) ;-))