Archives: journal

The weather improoved and we both had lovely evening walk.

I’ve been busy planting out young plants and seedlings like Nicotiana (lovely evening scent), Cosmos, Penstemons (from seed), Zinnias, etc.  this last few days. Until today’s rain, my  clay soil has been dry and an unwelcoming place for tender seedlings. The recent cold nights haven’t helped matters either – hailstones two days ago and nightime temps. of  4C and 5C! Growth has slowed but should recover with a rise in temperature. My roses are full of buds which should soon develop and give a great show. A few are flowering already. Irises and oriental poppies are lovely now and a Cornus controversa  of some species has a great crop of beautiful  star-like white flowers. I saw a Cornus with similar, but much larger, white flowers at the RHS stand at Bloom – they didn’t know what variety it was but it was spectacular! Local gardening club visiting my garden Monday evening – I’m new to this and so busy trying to get things looking good and hoping the rain stays away! Will try to post photo of Cornus etc soon.                                        Caption to photo should read ‘ Acer, yellow and blue iris’.

This is the view of garden I saw, going to bus station last evening. This garden was under the fence but I make picture from the gates. On this picture white lilacs can’t be seen.

There are several white lilacs along the fence, and they make wonderful contrast with the same violet allium. Love this colours!

Hi all.  It’s been a while since I’ve written an update.  I’ve been off traveling and spending my free time planting, so life has been busy.  Good busy.

The garden is in fantastic bloom right now.  The lupines and clemetis are looking particularly nice, but the bowles wall flower is not far behind.  I’ve posted several photos in three albums if you’re interested – Evolution of My Garden, Veggies (2009) and Flowers (2009). 

I know it’s odd and I should spend most of my time being wowed by my flowers, but I’m most excited about my corn crop.  The corn is out of the greenhouse and into the garen as of yesterday.  I moved my pumpkins, corn and sunflowers so the veggie plot is in full force.  I love it.

I’ve not done much work in the garden this weekend. Spending most of it just loving the space, taking photos and sitting out taking in the sun.  Hope your garden is as rewarding – I’m sure it is 🙂

My yucca has sat in the middle of the side bed for years – grew well and I have always been fond of it. However about 10 days ago it sent up a flower spike – the first ever. I have been like a kid with a new toy ever since – checking on it and watching it. I now know I have a Yucca Nobilis. All my books said white flowers and I am -eah right, but the Nobilis has red back on the flowers so true what they say-Learn something new every day.Know everyone else wont find this so exciting but I do. Funny what makes people happy!!!!

I did a spot of potting on in the greenhouse this afternoon.

I noticed flowers on my edible physalis (cape gooseberry) and sweet peppers. One sweet pepper plant has even set a small fruit.

The Beef Tomatoes are the first to set fruit. That’s them in the photo. Can’t wait to get my teeth into that! Did a bit of spraying the tomato flowers with a mist of water to assist in fertilisation. Still manually fertilising courgettes on a daily basis.

Can’t seem to get rid of the greenfly. They love the courgette flowers and it is very hard to spray all around them without breaking something. I’ve sprayed three times now and was disgusted today to find a greenfly on my aubergine plants, on the other side of the greenhouse.

There is obviously something about my personality that attracts greenfly. They are the bane of my gardening life! They are even on my Rosa Rugosa this year and I thought the extra cold winter would have helped to knock them for six!

Disaster.

The chiminea, that I recently got my husband to put in the border, has fallen over.

It broke several alliums and part of a large hosta. I don’t think it can have fallen as a result of the wind as it is a very heavy thing. It must have just been placed badly.

I guess worse things happen at sea. But probably not to a hosta!

Spent most of the afternoon weeding. When I filled the raised beds, I think I must have disturbed fifty years worth of bindweed roots. I don’t remember them being in this area before, but ever since we rotovated last year, we have had loads of weeds coming up, so I think we must have chopped the roots up and they got active once disturbed. Maybe rotovating wasn’t such a clever idea.

Anyway, I am plugging away at them, on the theory that the roots will get weakened if I persevere. Hope I’m right!

 

Well today was a great day for work as it dryed up nicely and was’nt too warm, we had a big project to plant all our plant booty from the Rare and Special Plant fair and Bloom so my better half managed to plant 21 herbatious perennials, I just managed to plant a mere 14 myself (lazy git!). I also hoed all the veg beds, sowed more carrots, strimmed all the long grass (except at the back that another days work) and mowed the lawn.

So were feeling pretty chuffed with myself especially as I think the forecast is not good for Monday/Tuesday. Of course I got no time to actually sit down and enjoy the fruits of my labour and there still 101 other  jobs but it feels pretty good.

I always enjoy company in the garden although we kind of work doing seperate jobs it feels good when it’s a joint effort.

Looking forward to possibly having a few members over on Thursday for a garden visit will have to do a bit of a tidy up beforehand!!

The gardening day started off badly.

I put all the bark mulch I had on my ‘rose garden’ and then realised I didn’t have nearly enough to complete the job.

I moved on to Rapunzel’s Forest and started removing dug weeds (the digger had been let loose on it recently) and then levelling the whole area. I know of course that the weed problem has not been solved in Rapunzel’s Forest so I will need to spray or cover it or both. The thought was very depressing.

I then looked over at the large newly dug bed, which will hold my Liquidambar. I had not gotten around to raking it. I noted that the ‘long border’ behind it is in need of weeding again. I then thought of other unweeded beds and jobs waiting to be done. These thoughts were utterly depressing.

The wheelbarrow fell over for the second time, spilling weeds over the lawn. I stormed inside in protest and found… aphids on one of the plants in the kitchen!!!

It took my teenage son to jolt me back to reality. He commented that the aphids were only trying to live. It almost raised a smile. I then realised what was wrong with me. I’d gone marching out into the garden and embarked on hard physical work without any breakfast in me.

I had breakfast, had several cups of tea and then some biscuits.

I got the husband to phone and order a lorry load of bark mulch. I then went out and raked the new border over. The bark mulch arrived and will go down tomorrow, hopefully, so then I should be getting back on track. Must remember not to do that again.

Earlier on this evening i finished preparing the final area for some cement.Then it was on to the usual spell of watering.In the greenhouse the main check apart from watering was to clean the floor and remove any used pots and trays.In the polytunnell the cabbage,lettuce and potatoes,marigolds and some dwarf beans are doing well. 

I weeded a few beds and dug up some plants. Then because it still hasnt rained I had to water again. I have now used all the collected water by the nursery and this hasn’t happened in years. Then the midges came out later on and there is no way you can stay out when they are around! Some people say midges are a sign that rain is on the way……….What about the bright colours of this Turks Cap.!

There are still plenty of pots to plant out.  I’ve dotted most of the pots around the borders where they are to be planted and I’m hoping to get a helping hand over the next couple of days.

My tomatoes are tiny compared with some others I’ve seen in person and on this site.  I wonder if I’ll get any tomatoes at all this year.  I’m pleased enough with the weeding.  It’s not all done but it’s achievable.  The front garden is still a complete mess, but the oxe-eye daisies, centaurea montana, euphorbia and Lady’s mantle are in bloom and so seem to take the eye away from the couch grass, which is persisting.

I went for a walk down in the bottom of the garden and came across an apple tree fighting against the tall grass, a hazel tree with plenty of nuts on it and a massive willow tree that will have to be chopped down.  There are about 100 raspberry canes so I will have to remember to go down again and get picking.

There is an acre of mountain ash planted between the house and this garden so it is not frequently visited.  I’m always surprised to see it.  There are also 2 mature oak trees down there that need a tree swing each.  A couple of stiles and mown paths will make access much easier.