My spirits are as gloomy as the weather. The garden looks as though a bomb has hit it - and it has - in the shape of a 7 month (now) yellow labrador whose mission in life is to chomp, chew and dig up every plant which is clearly there for his personal fun and frolic! He got up on my alpine trough and dug out every plant, bar one. (Husband was in loco parentis that day!) My son-in-law asked why we'd taken off the pebbles from the water feature!! That wasn't us actually! He made himself ill by diging up the fritilaria bulbs and eating them (be warned). The trellis we put up round the veg garden has been devoured - we do feed him, honestly! Our last lab (black - perhaps that's the difference) hardly went on the borders but our beloved yellow hooligan hasn't got the message yet. Maybe he'll be better when we get out into the cold and start gardening with him. Just as well we love him! What on earth can I do this year to cultivate a garden that is Bertie proof?
I'm really enjoying this weather - planting snowdrops in the green and trying to eradicate brambles when my back won't take any more bending. The conservatory floor is covered in broadbean, garlic, shallots and onion plants in pots waiting for me to plant out when the soil is warm enough. Bee - I would only cut down any bedraggled fronds on your fern. They can look so good at this time of year, the polysticums. Dryopteris can be tidied up now by cutting back the old fronds.
Relocated to the northern tip of the Netherlands last summer from the damp South Wales coast, and after almost two fully frozen months of snow and subzero temperatures I was beginning to think the spring would never come, but it arrived sometime last week with blackbird's song and robin's twitter. Turning over the muddy, bleak soil and saying hello to the snoozy ladybirds this afternoon has never filled me with so many smiles. I hope it warms up a few degrees more so I can get my magnolias in the ground and see my welsh daffs standing along side my our dutch tulips.
looking forward to seeing my alium taper idea works can see the shoots coming up got globetrotter centre then a slightly smaller variety circling round and then even smaller 1 again should resemble a wedding cake lol
I've had some time off this week... Monday went to the garden centre and now for the next few days am looking forward to tidying my borders and starting to prepare for a new veg patch at the top of the garden. Lots of plants to move to accomodate it but it will be worth it!
I agree with my fellow bloggers - how wonderful it is to be able to get out in the garden again. I too have made lists - so far have filled two pages of a shorthand notebook and only half way there. I have spent three days clearing and cutting down the dead leaves and stems of the perennials in my flower beds and have the acheing muscles to prove it. Also sown some veggie seeds. Now I want to move some of my established evergreen shrubs, would it be a good time to do this?
Thanks to this post, I spent a very happy lunchtime out pruning my climbing roses - thanks James for giving me the idea on such a lovely sunny day
Ked, don't try and change your garden if it was fine for your black lab - change your yellow one. I don't mean trade it in for a black one, just teach it how you want it to behave in the garden.
Life is all fun at that age and whilst you don't want to stop that, you do want to get some training in.
i love reading everyones bloggs as i'm fairly new to gardening i'm able to use all your good advice so i'm hopin you could help me, i'vebought persian buttercup bulbs and please don't laugh but which way up do you plant them?? i think it's spikey side up my hubby who is as daft as me said plant them on thier side!! please help they look lovely on the packet.
Ked,i have the same problem with a young rescue dog i got three weeks ago.he's a border collie cross[i suspect with a mule 'cos he's as stubborn as]so at the moment he only goes in the garden under supervision.i am still waiting for the ground to dry enough to walk on without causing too much damage,a couple more days like today should do it.the thing to make me smile today was seeing the crocus basking in the lovely sun.
I have two large beautiful phormiums which have suffered terribly with the prolonged cold weather. They are looking very sad with drooping outer leaves and very untidy now. Is it okay to trim off the drooping leaves around the outside, and would it harm the plants?
Posts
Ked, don't try and change your garden if it was fine for your black lab - change your yellow one. I don't mean trade it in for a black one, just teach it how you want it to behave in the garden.
Life is all fun at that age and whilst you don't want to stop that, you do want to get some training in.