Retiring to collections Our Garden: Year Two by Alan R. Massen NEUF

Alans two passions are watercolour painting and gardening. Following Alans retirement in 2008, his wife suggested that he kept a gardening diary to record his experiences in the garden. In 2014 he published his first book, Retiring to the Garden - Year One. He then went on to capture the changing seasons, animals, birds and the successes and failures of being a gardener in his Norfolk garden for another year, hence this book. This book, Retiring to Our Garden - Year Two, is full of interesting and informative information supported by numerous colour illustrations to give the reader an insight into how the gardening seasons influence the development of a garden.

Alan was born in the city of Norwich in the county of Norfolk, England in November 1949. When Alan was still a teenager he started painting whilst attending art classes in Norwich. In his mid-teens he had two paintings accepted for a National Art Exhibition held in London and other major UK cities. Alan spent most of his working life as a professional Health and Safety Advisor and rarely picked up a paint brush until Alan, his wife Susie and daughter Ginny (his other daughter Mandy is married and lives with her husband Adrian in Sheffield) moved out of the city of Norwich into the countryside in 1993. They moved to a little village called East Lexham in the heart of Norfolk. The village was very peaceful and pretty. This helped inspire Alan to take up watercolour painting once again. In 2004 they moved to another small West Norfolk village near Downham Market where they still live today. In 2008 Alan had to retire due to ill health (bad knees) and whilst he still painted regularly he began to spend more and more time gardening. In 2013 his wife Susie suggested that he kept a gardening diary to record his adventures in the garden and capture the changing seasons, animals, birds and the successes and failures of being a gardener he encountered. By the following year Susie suggested that he should write a book from his diary and include illustrations of both the garden and his artwork. In 2014 Alans first book was published by Creative Gateway called "Retiring to the Garden - Year One". This proved such a success that Alan decided to follow this up with his second book called "Retiring into a Rainbow" featuring his watercolour paintings. He then in 2015 published "Retiring to Our Garden - Year Two" published this time by Rainbow Publications UK. He then re-issued his first two books this time in a "Second Edition". Also published by Rainbow Publications UK. In 2016 he published: "Skiathos a Greek Island Paradise", "Norfolk the County of my Birth", "Art Inspired by a Rainbow", "Ibiza Island of Dreams", "Majorca Island in the Sun", "Flip-flops and Shades on Thassos" and finally "Mardle and a Troshin in Norfolk". He has recently started on the following new books which will be entitled: "England the Country of my Birth", "Mousehole the Cornish Jewel", "Sunshine and Shades on Kefalonia", "Shades and Flip-flops on Zakynthos", "Crete and the Island of Santorini", "Cyprus the Pyramids and the Holy Land", "Corfu and Mainland Greece" ", "Trips into my Minds Eye" and finally "Flip-flops and Shades on many Greek Islands". When completed they will also be published by Rainbow Publications UK.