Ups and downs of a week away
On the plus side, everything is greener and bigger than when I left on Monday. I'm so glad I did a big weeding job over the weekend or they'd be greener and bigger too.
On the downside, a lot of the cuttings I took have succumbed to heat stroke from being in the conservatory and untended. No big deal.
A two day gardening fest
Scratched forearms, warm shoulders from six hours spring sunshine and a thoroughly sated gardening-thirst.
Spent today in the front garden - for such a tiny space it always takes so much time, mainly because I only tackle it twice a year, by which time it's desperate. Picture a Victorian double fronted brick house, higher than street level with a central stone path, steps to the front door and a raised garden either side, held back from the path by a stone wall topped with plain wrought iron railings. My aim for the front garden is a structed, low maintence(!), striking and exuberant look which is chock full all year round. This means that when I do get into it I'm pushing between and under permanent plants to get at weeds and excess self-seedings. I've removed three barrow loads of weeds and surplus plant material from the two 6ft x 12ft planted areas and they still look full!
What's left on each side:
- a big clump of acanthus mollis - it usually gets knocked back in winter but we didn't get a really cold spell.
- two big phormium tenax which flowered last year with 10ft spikes
- a line of lavender either side of the path
a 3ft x 3ft clump of dark pink valerian (centranthus rubra) which is bombproof, and flowers all summer but does self-seed a bit excessively really
- a group of allium christophii which got completely overwhelmed by the valerian and won't flower this year. Hopefully I've recovered them in time for next year.
- two shrubby white flowering potentilla which are getting a bit woody
- a stretch of white saxifrage along the front
- Lavatera 'Barnsley' which I cut back to nothing in the winter behind the Phormiums but which will tower above them by August.
- a clump of the winter flowering Corsican Hellebore which is still stunning, even though it's past it's flowering peak.
- Cotoneaster horizontalis - vertically flat against the house wall under the windows.
The saxifrage and the valerian fall through the railings a bit which I'd planned so I'm pleased that it works. What doesn't quite work is that the potentilla and saxifrage are both white. Now that the potentilla is ageing, I might go for a pink or pale yellow instead which will give it a bit more contrast. I also put in some 'Queen of the Night' black tulips a few years ago, but they've been swamped by the phormiums. I'll move them next to the hellebores, I think they'll look great against the lime green flowers.
A picture update..
I still think the spring border needs re-arranging a bit to clump things together more - looks a bit bitty. But it's much better than last year. And everyone should grow erythroniums - so easy and so gorgeous.
Richard, see below for the Trilliums. What do you think?
Spring border
Erythroniums under Corylus 'Contorta'. Possibly my favourite right now.
An identity question for Richard...
more cuttings
I've taken cuttings of anything and everything. Not because I need lots of plants, but mainly because my failure rate is so high. Today's experiments are:
- spirea japonica 'Limelight'
- Choisya 'Aztec Pearl'
- Acer palmatum atropurpureum (not optimistic about this)
- Clematis montana (can't remember which one - it's not flowering yet
- two types of lavender
- Photinia 'Red Robin'
- a variegated low growing Euonymous
- Fatsia Japonica (again)
Too wet and cold out to do anything else. it dropped to -0.6 last night and today we've had 5mm of rain.
Went to J & P's and measured up. We have a plan...
Cold, so a polytunnel day
Well, not cold by arctic standards, but below normal plant growth temp. Just reached 10C for a few mins. 13mm of rain overnight - nearly 10% of this year's total rain.
Moved all the cuttings, young plants and new purchases (bought loads of baby herb plants today) into the polytunnel to get them mvoed on a bit. Bought some shading material - when the sun's out it's too strong for young plants in there. Potted up some strawberry plants and moved them in as well - shiould fruit earlier than the outdoor ones. Dug up a paeony (unknown variety but claret colour) and hemerocallis (ditto - sort of mustardy/toffee colour flower) and split them for J&P. They wno't like being split and probably won't flower this year, but next year is the goal.
I really want to do a proper design job for J & P, even if they don't do it all. It's fun to have a whole garden with nothing in it except grass to go at. So I've bought some A2 paper and drawing stuff to have a go. If I can scan the drawings in in I'll put them up on the J&P blog.
Gardening in tandem
We got out in the garden in late afternoon and worked together on the herb patch. DB dug out the mint which had escaped its pot and was heading for next door. Gave everything a good weed and a haircut. The ants and winter have finished off the variegated oregano which is a shame. But there's room for some new ones which means yet another trip to the garden centre. Shame.
Potted up the tomato plants, did a bit of layering (fig, clematis macropetala, viburnum burkwoodii, viburnum davidii, pieris and a couple of others that I've forgotten, but will no doubt remember when I accidentally dig up the pegs. Took cuttings from the photinia, fig and fatsia japonica for J and P, but it'll be ages before they are a decent size.
May have finally thwarted the squirrel - have hung the seed feeder from a longer wire and smeared the wire and the branch it hangs from with vaseline. if it can still hang upside down to get the seeds I'll be very impressed.
More like January
A cold wind and heavy rain meant no gardening. It didn't get above 7C all day. But once spring is under way there's no stopping it. Only the beech is still showing no sign of breaking bud. In flower today:
white quince
forsythia
magnolia
daphne
amelanchia lamarkii (storming plant - everyone should have it)
viburnum tinus
pink and white camelia
blue and white anemone blanda
plumonaria 'Sissinghurst White'
a carmine pink azalea
clumps of erythronium (possibly my favourite)
red tulips
dicentra - pink and white
primroses
several narcissus
blackthorn
the damson tree.
more new birds
Spent most of today on J and P's garden {see other blog} but bought a new bird feeder on the way home. Within half an hour of putting it up there was a goldfinch on it. First time I've seen one this year. Also saw a chaffinch yesterday.
We have the usual April turf war between warring pairs of blackbirds. Between sparring with each other and squawking at the cats it's amazing that they ever find time to breed.
one happy gardener
Took out the last of the misfit shrubs and planted up the new arrivals. If the Himalyan poppies don't thrive, well, I give up. They're in a sheltered border, in dappled shade, in loamy acid soil with their roots in 2 feet of leaf mould, manure and compost. Grow, babies, grow. I've left the Trilliums in their pots and buried them in situ as suggested by the grower.
Moved the big phormium - took half a dozen rooted segments off it and potted them up. Could easily have got 20 good sized plants out of it. Planted out the onion sets, Red Baron, and bagged up the spare strawberry plants to give away.
I'm using these new 'safe' slug pellets but have to admit to being sceptical. They look too blue to be environmentally friendly. But I bought them from Chase Organics so I'm keeping faith for now.
Record high for the year at 21.3C. Warm and mostly sunny all day. Bliss. Oh, and we saw a Peacock butterfly. One more for the phenology record.
Friday night welcome
Came home and mooched around the garden to the sound of a distant car alarm and a song thrush. I've heard it for the last few evenings but couldn't see it. Finally saw it about three gardens away. Definitely a song thrush this time. I played the song thrush and mistle thrush audios on the RSPB web site to confirm it. I'm even more convinced that the winter bird was a mistle thrush - bigger and a different sort of song.
Have arranged the new plants in the border, still in their pots/bags. Don't want to move them once they're in so I'll have a mull for a day or two before planting them permanently. Still got some more shrubs to come out that are just plain wrong.
