I cannot remember in fifty years of gardening here ever having been able to do so much gardening in January before. Yet again today the sky is blue, the air is mild , it is dry so are the picnic tables. It is the lull before the storm forecast for tomorrow but so delightful. I made a mental note of jobs piling up. like splitting lots of big clumps of snowdrops and daffodils.pruning to be done on the various summer flowering spireas. I may cut down and unravel the Clematis montana that has taken over the garage roof. i remember Carol Klein doing hers that was engulfing a tree in February. The birds think it is spring. They have been chirping non stop all morning. A cheeky squirrel is gorging himself from his larder in the spinney. It is a day for singing "Oh, what a beautiful morning".
Hey up Happymarion Greetings & Prosperity in your anniversary year.I like you am gerrin on in years.74 next October still keep me allottment up to scratch.Love it havent bought a vegetable for years.Very impressed with your garden pictures looks smashing lass and its a credit to you.Best wishes Brian.
Marion pleased that you are having good weather and sounding shall I say ' happy'.
Weather here in S.Yorks is poor, no way near as bad as some have had, and are still having.
Best I've managed today is cutting some sprouting broccoli and digging some leeks for tomorrow's meal. Did have the GH's open for 1/2 hour for some ventilation but now all closed and plants snuggled up.
Thank you, Brian and KEF. I saw a picture of a 94 year old lady gardener in GW Feb. issue wheeling home a bargain compost bin in her wheelchair! So I may still have another ten years of active gardening left in me. I do hope so as I enjoy it so much. Yes, Brian, the best food is the food you have grown yourself. I have been driven indoors by a fierce wind that has descended on Bristol though it is still sunny and blue sky mostly. Storm is on the way methinks.
It went dark as night and the heavens opened and peppered Bristol with hailstones so now have grey skies, wet picnic tables, duckpond on the patio and everything that can hold water overflowing again. What a comedown after such a glorious morning. Still, I did get a lot of work done and feel very invigorated.
At last it has stopped raining in Bristol , still windy but that is drying up the puddles so I should soon be able to don my boots and waterproof coat and open up the cold frame.I like to ventilate it at least for a few hours each day as i have two kinds of sweet peas and five perennials overwintering in there for Mr. Fothergills Nation of Gardeners project. The forecast is for much colder weather to hit us here by Thursday so I want to get fleece and bubble wrap out of the garage too to keep handy in the kitchen. In my raised beds in the potager there are broad beans three feet high, strawberry plants showing flowerbuds and garlic 8inches high, all needing some protection from the cold. This mild weather up till now with plentiful rain has meant everything thinks it is April or March at least!
It did stop raining for half an hour and I donned my wellies to get through the temporary duckpond on the patio at the same time as the mother squirrel decided this was a good time for Sunday lunch and squeezed under the side gate which I had not opened yet. Not that it matters to her. Being a squirrel of little brain she flattens her tummy anyway even when the gate is wide open. She would have bounded away in front of me up the garden but did not have wellies so carefully edged round the water through the cyclamen plants and took longer than I did. I think that was a Squirrel glare iigot as she shot past. Squirrels at this time of year are amusing. The ones at the Botanic garden who used to use the fleece from round the tender plants to line their nests would pass me in the garden with turbans of it wound round their heads. i still giggle when I think of those big-headed squirrels. Head gardener was very annoyed at expensive fleece being stolen, of course.
Last day of January and steady rain since 11am. No chance of taking photos in the garden today outside but things are happening in the conservatory and the spare room has Charlotte potatoes sprouting. I treated the garden to a new electric propagator and it has peppers, antirfhinums and basil sown in it now.
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Marion you live up to your forum name. Lovely pictures, keeping us cheery.
I cannot remember in fifty years of gardening here ever having been able to do so much gardening in January before. Yet again today the sky is blue, the air is mild , it is dry so are the picnic tables. It is the lull before the storm forecast for tomorrow but so delightful. I made a mental note of jobs piling up. like splitting lots of big clumps of snowdrops and daffodils.pruning to be done on the various summer flowering spireas. I may cut down and unravel the Clematis montana that has taken over the garage roof. i remember Carol Klein doing hers that was engulfing a tree in February. The birds think it is spring. They have been chirping non stop all morning. A cheeky squirrel is gorging himself from his larder in the spinney. It is a day for singing "Oh, what a beautiful morning".
Hey up Happymarion Greetings & Prosperity in your anniversary year.I like you am gerrin on in years.74 next October still keep me allottment up to scratch.Love it havent bought a vegetable for years.Very impressed with your garden pictures looks smashing lass and its a credit to you.Best wishes Brian.
Marion pleased that you are having good weather and sounding shall I say ' happy'.
Weather here in S.Yorks is poor, no way near as bad as some have had, and are still having.
Best I've managed today is cutting some sprouting broccoli and digging some leeks for tomorrow's meal. Did have the GH's open for 1/2 hour for some ventilation but now all closed and plants snuggled up.
Hope you have another good day tomorrow.
Enjoying your thread
Thank you, Brian and KEF. I saw a picture of a 94 year old lady gardener in GW Feb. issue wheeling home a bargain compost bin in her wheelchair! So I may still have another ten years of active gardening left in me. I do hope so as I enjoy it so much. Yes, Brian, the best food is the food you have grown yourself. I have been driven indoors by a fierce wind that has descended on Bristol though it is still sunny and blue sky mostly. Storm is on the way methinks.
It went dark as night and the heavens opened and peppered Bristol with hailstones so now have grey skies, wet picnic tables, duckpond on the patio and everything that can hold water overflowing again. What a comedown after such a glorious morning. Still, I did get a lot of work done and feel very invigorated.
At last it has stopped raining in Bristol , still windy but that is drying up the puddles so I should soon be able to don my boots and waterproof coat and open up the cold frame.I like to ventilate it at least for a few hours each day as i have two kinds of sweet peas and five perennials overwintering in there for Mr. Fothergills Nation of Gardeners project. The forecast is for much colder weather to hit us here by Thursday so I want to get fleece and bubble wrap out of the garage too to keep handy in the kitchen. In my raised beds in the potager there are broad beans three feet high, strawberry plants showing flowerbuds and garlic 8inches high, all needing some protection from the cold. This mild weather up till now with plentiful rain has meant everything thinks it is April or March at least!
It did stop raining for half an hour and I donned my wellies to get through the temporary duckpond on the patio at the same time as the mother squirrel decided this was a good time for Sunday lunch and squeezed under the side gate which I had not opened yet. Not that it matters to her. Being a squirrel of little brain she flattens her tummy anyway even when the gate is wide open. She would have bounded away in front of me up the garden but did not have wellies so carefully edged round the water through the cyclamen plants and took longer than I did. I think that was a Squirrel glare iigot as she shot past. Squirrels at this time of year are amusing. The ones at the Botanic garden who used to use the fleece from round the tender plants to line their nests would pass me in the garden with turbans of it wound round their heads. i still giggle when I think of those big-headed squirrels. Head gardener was very annoyed at expensive fleece being stolen, of course.
Last day of January and steady rain since 11am. No chance of taking photos in the garden today outside but things are happening in the conservatory and the spare room has Charlotte potatoes sprouting. I treated the garden to a new electric propagator and it has peppers, antirfhinums and basil sown in it now.