Gentle Gardening

I am getting so frustrated, I wandered down the garden yesterday and ended up in the greenhouse! Where I managed to sew a few seeds. Not wanting to over do it I stopped.

This morning we had  the thickest fog I have seen for ages, but it soon cleared up to be a beautiful sunny but cold day.

So off I toddled down the garden to the greenhouse but before I got there I had to untangle a frog from the netting that protects the pond from the heron. Not a pleasant job they are horribly slimy. But it swam away after its ordeal.

So off to the greenhouse for a little more seed sewing and as you can see they are all tucked up in the propagator.

I love being in the greenhouse, warm and a damp smell of earth. My new succulent cuttings. Plus some baby Maureli all on a heat mat.

Aeoniums, more Maureli and an Alocasia amongst all my other plants.

My shelves are full already heaven alone knows where I will put all my seedlings.

My bananas, looking very dead, but they are not, I hope to get them started off this weekend.

I can then have a jig round of everything and then hopefully make some more room.

Open Garden ....... Hitch!!

Sadly we have cancelled having the village Open Gardens this year.  We only had 4 gardens and we have had to pull out due to water problems!
At the beginning of April the mains water pipe that feeds Cottages 1, 2 and 3 burst under number 4's lounge! Unbeknown to us a previous neighbour built an extension over our mains pipe but moved his own!!! We didn't even know it was there, we thought it was at the end of our drive!! So now we have overland pipes, round the side of number 4over the back fence to us and Nos 1 & 2.
This is as you can see a major trip hazard and No 4 have said under no circumstances will they allow access if the pipes are still down.
This involves 3 separate insurance companies (exterior work), 3 separate plumbers (interior work) and Wessex Water, who all have to co-ordinate and agree who pays for what! So far this has taken since the beginning of April with no end in site!!!!
Below are the water pipes, snaking across my patio.

I am disappointed as the mild winter has really helped. Yesterday was our last day for getting the adverts into various places and we (the group) decided to leave it for this year.

So I can now show all, the TRex has at long last started putting out some decent leaves

a little visitor, we have had loads of dragonflies already

The Trachy flower growing at a phenomenal rate

This veg bed is going, now probably, sooner rather than later!

I love this bedit is really coming on nicely now.

The Passion Flower I got from a friend a couple of years ago has come through the winter well and is already covered in buds. I have another on the top patio that was not as good, fortunately I took lots of cuttings which have rooted well and so has been replanted.

The pond area is really looking good now. I keep it netted because of the heron. I don't like the net that much but it does help keep the rubbish out!

The bananas in the greenhouse, really looking great, just have to decide where they will be going this year!

some of my elephants ears

I have replanted my tree fern bed, should look good in a little while.

6 days later!

I haven't been outside for awhile, I have been ill........ again!!!! I have the lowest immune system going, something the doc, will look into.

Anyway I pootled down the garden this morning, camera in hand and look......

hasn't it grown quickly, there are another four this side of the Trachy and two the other, going to be an exciting year. If the flowers grow upward its a girl if they droop its a boy there are also colour differences as well but it can still be difficult to tell. Tee hee.

Meanwhile the tree fern is about to burst forth.

The beautiful Podophyllum 'Spotty Dotty' is also flowering, I am not holding the leaf it has turned itself to reveal the flower.

I have a new Podophyllum as well but you will have to wait to see it at the Open Garden. I think they are my current favourites at the moment.
T-Rex is not as far on as I had hoped, I think we have been having air frosts, poor thing looks half dead!

Down by the pond the Rheum is doing loads better than the Gunnera

Just look at the size of the leaves compared to my hand.

In the greenhouse at long last the bananas are on the move, phew, I was getting worried.

Just a few more pics of things growing

Back soon.

The Last Day of March.

Easter weekend, both girls away, we had planned to 'do' in the garden, which started off on Friday quite well then deteriorated, as sadly hubby had the stomach pain attack, that doctors and hospitals can find nothing. So work has slowed as I was unable to do anything yesterday, but had a lovely 3 hours outside today.
Firstly we turned the compost heap

I have never been a good compost maker, so we will see how it goes.

We then had to fit chicken wire to our left hand fence, which is falling to pieces. Our neighbour refuses to replace or repair. Unfortunately Darcy keeps escaping through it and the law does state that it is our responsibility to keep the dog in. Well until we can find out who the fence belongs too.

Most people own their right hand boundary, but since we have been here both sides have replaced the fences. Once on the left and twice on the right. As you can see a part of the fence on the right has also broken and is currently being propped up. Our neighbours on the right are far more friendly.

Meanwhile the greenhouse is still wrapped up and I should really start the banana's off on the 1st April but the tree ferns are still in there so it will have to wait a little bit longer.

I have the small daffodils growing in my garden, I much prefer them to the bigger ones.

The lovely crocus, I really must plant some more, they are so cheerful.

Today I have been tidying up, weeding and cutting back and generally getting the veg beds ready. So they are now fleeced to try and warm them up a bit.

I had to make a big decision and withdrawn from the Village Open Gardens alot of my Alocasia and Colocasia have gone dormant due to the awful weather, and the seeds are fine till I bring them out of the propagator. Then they freeze in the Greenhouse, even though it is heated, so I thought enough was enough.

Hopefully I will add some more in a while.

September Bar-B-Que

I can't believe how long it is since I posted on here!!! Apologies, I'm not sure where the time has gone.

The Open Garden went well and we raised £100, which considering the weather we had on the day was very good. The days either side where glorious grrrrr!

As the weather this weekend is so good we decided to have a bar b que last night.

So lit the chimnea and just had a thoroughly good time.

I love doing this. My garden is sooooo private at this time of year.

When it went dark we are fortunate to live in the country and the stars last night where totally amazing.

We may have to do it all over again tonight!

Propagator & GroLight plus.

You will remember my lovely huge propagater and beautiful growing light,

well, I have had problems with the plugs, they are quite odd shaped and did not like my sockets,

so I have done something all electricians will be telling me I shouldn't, I have plugged them into an extension!

I can assure everyone that I wish to be alive on the opening of my garden and that these cables are well out of the way of any water!

As you can see I have also put a time switch on the light plug. This has made switching on and off alot easier as I didn't have to remember when to do it. Initially I did wonder how long I should put the light on for. On the box it said 18 hours a day. But which 18 hours do you use? I plumped for 4pm to 10am, why? I have no idea it just seemed a good idea at the time. My daughter made me laugh when she said, don't the plants need to sleep? My answer 'I have no idea' lol! Do they?

Well it has worked I planted a load of Coleus seed and Nicotiana on 8th and they are all through.

Top 2 Nicotiana 'Only the Lonely' and 'Variegatum'

Kong varieties

Bog standard Bedding Coleus. I shall use this to fill gaps.

Basjoo, still upright and still firm. Not frozen firm if you see what I mean. Fingers crossed.

Fatsia, been hit by the frost, always looks bad but usually springs back quite quickly.

Inside the house I have one or two plants (wish I had a conservatory)

Lots on the trolley, 2 Bird of Paradise in front, one sending out a new leaf! I am sure they should be bigger?

My Cycas Revoluta I won off Ebay and some baby Alocasia's.

My big Alocasia, which flowered late last year and a couple of weeks ago was looking decidedly ill. So I moved it to where it is now, right by the radiator and it is looking so much greener and healthier.

an assortment of plants, including on the left another Strelitzia.

My Bougainvillea, is flowering, quite how I got it to do this I have no idea, neglect and watering, it really should be potted up.

Orchids, my daughter and I have a few of these. We each grow some and there is a bit of a challenge going on between us as to how many we can get to flower. She currently is better at it than me grrrrr!