03/01/2007
Seeds and stuff
Spent a few hours on Sunday tidying up the patio area while Jamie & his friend were on the trampoline. Even an afternoon wasn't enough to sweep up the mess, pull out all the weeds, prune the climbing rose on the house, sort out the fig tree etc. The saponaria is particularly vexing - left to its own devices I think it will in a few years destroy the patio from below... Took a nice photo of a clump of violets in flower. About 10 barrowloads of stuff to the compost heap. A lot of green figs in there. I find they compost quite slowly unless you cut them open (or in half).
Started chitting potatoes, in the greenhouse. Can't remember which varieties. Only two this year - a salad first early and a maincrop, 10 of each.
Made a start on the seeds, too. First up is 8ft high perennial, Eremurus robustus, which I really liked at Hyde Hall.
http://www.rhs.org.uk/WhatsOn/gardens/hydehall/archive/hy...
These will probably need to go in the fridge for a few weeks at some point.
Also sowed Spring Onion (White Lisbon) and Leek (Musselburgh) in trays, in the greenhouse. Tomatoes (gartenperle and black russian) in the house, along with Palmarosa, (Cymbopogon martinii var. motia) a rose-scented lemongrass relative from Nepal. Calabrese in modules in the greenhouse and some sweet peas in deep pots. Broad beans and lettuce are next on the list.
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02/23/2007
Weekend update
Not too much happening in the garden at the moment, with my chief helper stuck inside with a broken leg. Although he did come out for a spell in the wheelchair and managed to spot a squirrel (not common visitors to us, in spite of all the nut trees). Had a good tidy of the front garden last weekend. Swept up all the fallen leaves, brushed paths, removed moss & squished crab apples on driveway etc.
Did some pruning of the shrubs & trees - cut back the pyracantha (ouch), buddleia, lilac, crab apple & holly. Had a bit of a go at the Beech hedge, but there are already nesting birds (in mid-Feb?) so that will have to wait for the autumn.
Weeded the various flower beds and underneath the shrubs. Lots of holly & cotoneaster seedlings, not so many annual weeds. Cut back the ferns and removed all the dead stuff from perennials and generally tidied up.
Plenty of things in flower in the front garden- crocuses, hellebores & snowdrops making a nice display by the front door. Hyacinths & muscari will be out soon with the first of the daffs & tulips not far behind.
Did my seed order this week; doing much less than last couple of years. A few things I couldn't resist from Chiltern Seeds.
http://www.chilternseeds.co.uk/
but all of the veg order came from Alan Romans, who seems to be busy visiting potato days round the country at the moment
Took quite a few photos - will post some of them up here sometime.
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01/27/2007
Digging Daphne - sounds like scooby doo?
Nice sunny day, not too cold, managed to get a couple of hours in the garden. Dug out the two dead Daphnes; a fairly easy job as there wasn't much of a root system left. Main difficulty was not disturbing the cyclamen growing round them too much. Not sure what the replacments will be.
Also had a go in the fruit cage - pulled up plenty of weeds and hacked back the brambles coming from next door. Also pruned the redcurrant, whitecurrant, blackcurrant and jostaberry and cut back most of the raspberries (didn't quite finish before it was time to go in and cook tea). Not ideal timing for pruning this fruit, but glad it's done. Also added some compost to some of the veg beds.
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