I've sown flower seeds, French marigolds, dahlias, nicotianas, and some asters ,not had those for a while, also repotted some lilies mainly to check for vine weevils, hate the things! Hoping to get some more done today.
Hello Love to garden, welcome back, good to see you here again. I will always associate you with the lovely rose "Compassion". What is the one on your new avatar picture?
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
I've been busy shredding all the hedge branches I cut yesterday - had the fright of my life though, "my" blackbird and a robin were perched within 2ft of me in a narrow space by the side of 6ft hedge when a sparrow hawk swooped down on the blackbird and tried to carry him off. It wasn't a bit frightened of me and although I grabbed a broom and screamed at him, and chased it round the garden, it just did not want to let go of the blackbird who was screeching its head off. Eventually I cornered them both down by the garage but had to actually jab the hawk with the broom before he dropped the blackbird and flew off. I think the blackbird survived, it hopped into another hedge and had disappeared when I went back to check a few hours later. Haven't seen it today however.
A similar thing happened to me not too long ago Lizzie, I was watching the pigeons eating some food I put out through the window, then all of a sudden a all the pigeons shattered one flow into the window I was stood at. Looked down there a sparrow hawk hold of a pigeon trying to carry it off. the pigeon managed to get free shortly after with the hawk in hot pursuit.
Moved a young Witch Hazel (Diane) which I decided was planted in the wrong place and replaced it with a Daphne (Eternal Fragrance) near the front door. Dug out a rather too rampant Jasmine (stephanense) which hardly ever flowered from a large planter and replaced it with a fig (if something is going to make me keep hacking it back, it needs to earn it's keep!) Raised one of my veg beds by about 5 inches (width of a decking plank) so the spent compost from the greenhouse borders would be contained and moved that from one side of the GH to the bed. Pruned a few roses while catching my breath and weeded a couple of bucketfuls of creeping buttercup from various places while being followed by a Robin and a couple of dunnocks. Took a few more breaths admiring all the different types of crocus I planted a couple of years ago and watched the bluetits, goldfinches, greenfinches, coaltits and sparrows attacking the feeders while I had a deserved cup of tea. Wonderful day!
Seed sowing in the pottng shed tomorrow, while my back recovers!
A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
Used long stick and then fingers to get some blanketweed out of the pond. Then I tackled the long-planned digging to enlarge the Little Wilderness - which is now called The Wilderness Ouch my legs and back! but I made a robin very happy - he had lots of grubs and insects for lunch and then had a lovely splash in the birdbath
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Great gardening day. Working through the cutting off of last year's top growth. Found an elder growing into the Cornus mas, trunk must have been 3 inches across and I hadn't noticed. Cut back but I doubt I can get it out. Removed some of the mini forest of ash, field maple and other volunteers though.
There are some aches, I've been working on a slope
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I've sown flower seeds, French marigolds, dahlias, nicotianas, and some asters ,not had those for a while, also repotted some lilies mainly to check for vine weevils, hate the things! Hoping to get some more done today.
Hello Love to garden, welcome back, good to see you here again. I will always associate you with the lovely rose "Compassion". What is the one on your new avatar picture?
Divided and replanted crocus in the front garden.
I've been busy shredding all the hedge branches I cut yesterday - had the fright of my life though, "my" blackbird and a robin were perched within 2ft of me in a narrow space by the side of 6ft hedge when a sparrow hawk swooped down on the blackbird and tried to carry him off. It wasn't a bit frightened of me and although I grabbed a broom and screamed at him, and chased it round the garden, it just did not want to let go of the blackbird who was screeching its head off. Eventually I cornered them both down by the garage but had to actually jab the hawk with the broom before he dropped the blackbird and flew off. I think the blackbird survived, it hopped into another hedge and had disappeared when I went back to check a few hours later. Haven't seen it today however.
First time I've seen a sparrowhawk that close!
A similar thing happened to me not too long ago Lizzie, I was watching the pigeons eating some food I put out through the window, then all of a sudden a all the pigeons shattered one flow into the window I was stood at. Looked down there a sparrow hawk hold of a pigeon trying to carry it off. the pigeon managed to get free shortly after with the hawk in hot pursuit.
Moved a young Witch Hazel (Diane) which I decided was planted in the wrong place and replaced it with a Daphne (Eternal Fragrance) near the front door. Dug out a rather too rampant Jasmine (stephanense) which hardly ever flowered from a large planter and replaced it with a fig (if something is going to make me keep hacking it back, it needs to earn it's keep!) Raised one of my veg beds by about 5 inches (width of a decking plank) so the spent compost from the greenhouse borders would be contained and moved that from one side of the GH to the bed. Pruned a few roses while catching my breath and weeded a couple of bucketfuls of creeping buttercup from various places while being followed by a Robin and a couple of dunnocks. Took a few more breaths admiring all the different types of crocus I planted a couple of years ago and watched the bluetits, goldfinches, greenfinches, coaltits and sparrows attacking the feeders while I had a deserved cup of tea. Wonderful day!
Seed sowing in the pottng shed tomorrow, while my back recovers!
Used long stick and then fingers to get some blanketweed out of the pond. Then I tackled the long-planned digging to enlarge the Little Wilderness - which is now called The Wilderness
Ouch my legs and back! 
but I made a robin very happy - he had lots of grubs and insects for lunch and then had a lovely splash in the birdbath 
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Hope to finish off tidying the soft fruit area this week. I'm sure my pair of robin 'bodyguards' will be joining me and doing a bit of karaoke.
Great gardening day. Working through the cutting off of last year's top growth. Found an elder growing into the Cornus mas, trunk must have been 3 inches across and I hadn't noticed. Cut back but I doubt I can get it out. Removed some of the mini forest of ash, field maple and other volunteers though.
There are some aches, I've been working on a slope
In the sticks near Peterborough