Been busy this morning, finished pruning the climbing roses and fed all the roses. Cut back a very ancient honeysuckle. Just had a look back at last years diary and I'm a bit late cutting the lawns this year, did it at beginning of March last year, but as hubby pointed out I'd have needed a snow plough this year.
I’m now officially on top of everything. Waiting for the late planted bulbs to show themselves properly so I can get some roses and summer bulbs in and do some hoeing. Plus need to get some more old (free) manure to go round the trees - made a late discovery, if I put a thin layer of shop bought topsoil on top of it then the dogs don’t try and eat it.
Done a fair few things since I last posted: general allotment and veg patch stuff, widened a border, collected all the rocks and bricks I have dug out over the last year and put them in one pile, put ferns in on one of the short dry stone walls, planted three really cool variegated roses. Mostly I’ve been propagating stuff, got my test/sacrificial cauliflower in the patch, if they get frosted then that’s no bother because I started the real stuff this week. Dalia also in grow House - I’ll bring them in at night if it looks like frost. Phew.
Nipped in to my fav nursery on its first weekend of opening for 2018. Bought a thylictrum and umphomedies (I bet I have spelt both very wrong)!!! There was a table of free plants that looked very sad but just need some TLC. I got 5 and have tidied them up and they look brill! Chuffed! Then onto a garden centre that's closing (in advance of moving to new massive premises) with 50% off everything. Got a lovely hanging basket, seeds galore, some pots and a spruce. All in all, a bargain of a weekend!
We have been very busy during the past couple of weeks, all the usual stuff like seed sowing, preparing the veg. patch, the raised wild flower area, planting two new trees - a larch and a silver birch, discussing whether to turn the grassy/weedy field into a wild flower meadow, and general starting to clean up the decaying plants to make way for new growth. Tiring but enjoyable too.
Got OH to dig heated propagator out of the garage and set it up in the greenhouse. Was going to start sowing later this week,but l see the forecast is for (possibly) colder weather . Tided up round the flowerbeds and left some bits for the blackbird who is nest building in the shrubs. She took a shine to my hedgehog planter that's made from a kind of brushwood and was pulling it to bits, so l had to rescue it and put it in the greenhouse!
On Saturday and Sunday we have made a new rectangular bed under a struggling magnolia tree we inherited. It's been dug out, weeds cleared, forked over, had 6 bags or ericaceous compost and a whole bag of horse poo raked over it and I oiled the new wooden surround. I have now planted it with bulbs I had in pots - iris reticulata, assorted daffs and tulips, hyacinths, crocuses. Last ones went in this PM and all remaining bulbs have been moved to tubs and pots with fresh compost. Next job is toput up the edging and then, when all the bulbs are done, fill with chipped bark to retain moisture and keep down weeds. No other plants as it's a spring bed.
Have weeded a couple of dozen pots of roses, clems, hosta etc and top dressed with fresh compost, re-potted some ginger mint, planted out some hardy cyclamen under the wisteria, watered all pots and binned the frozen pelargoniums and helped OH sort out his kiwi that was tying itself in knots.
Found my proper bluebells have survived and are growing so next job is to weed their intended bed and get them in along with some hellebores and a dicentra and so on but that can wait till tomorrow. Feeling wonderfully grubby now and just a bit weary.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
At last I've done some proper gardening! Nearly finished the end bed. It was full of grass under the dead stems from last years perennials. Dug up some tiarella which had weeds in it, split it and replanted it, added some compost to the rather heavy soil first. There is a huge climbing Cecile Brunner in the end corner which I realised last summer had a big sucker growing through the middle of it. I've sawn it out but there is some left in the upper branches, I'll need to get out a ladder to finish it, but the lawn is very wet. There is now a big pile of prunings on the lawn and another 2 barrow loads of weeds and dead stuff on the tip.
There is loads more to do, weeding, clearing, pruning etc. The garden is over an acre and I haven't touched it since autumn. I think this has been the wettest winter in Dordogne since records began and on the few days it wasn't raining it was freezing, been down to -11°.
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
One hell of a day today ; cut down and reshaped some massive (40+ year old ) Pyracantha 'trees' , plus tamed and cut a huge hedge consisting of holly and brutal hawthorn shrubs . The Stihl KM-130 performed well today . Even wearing leather welding gloves , I'll bear the scars for a few days now .
I had a parcel of Roscoea arrive from Paul Christian Rare plants, potted them up in nice gritty compost, and put in greenhouse. Hardy in the soil, but they don't like being frozen in pots, so I hope beast from the east mark 2 behaves itself. The greenhouse is already looking quite full,(loads of dahlias potted up) and I've not really started yet.
I went on my own personal strike yesterday (work issues due to overwhelming sexism that's practically Neolithic) and spent a couple of hours in the greenhouse sewing seeds and potting on baby lupins. Took my mind of it no end. Currently counting sheep as stress causing the return of my insomnia. Wish my greenhouse had a light in it as I'd pop down there right now if I could!
Posts
Done a fair few things since I last posted: general allotment and veg patch stuff, widened a border, collected all the rocks and bricks I have dug out over the last year and put them in one pile, put ferns in on one of the short dry stone walls, planted three really cool variegated roses. Mostly I’ve been propagating stuff, got my test/sacrificial cauliflower in the patch, if they get frosted then that’s no bother because I started the real stuff this week. Dalia also in grow House - I’ll bring them in at night if it looks like frost. Phew.
Have weeded a couple of dozen pots of roses, clems, hosta etc and top dressed with fresh compost, re-potted some ginger mint, planted out some hardy cyclamen under the wisteria, watered all pots and binned the frozen pelargoniums and helped OH sort out his kiwi that was tying itself in knots.
Found my proper bluebells have survived and are growing so next job is to weed their intended bed and get them in along with some hellebores and a dicentra and so on but that can wait till tomorrow. Feeling wonderfully grubby now and just a bit weary.
At last I've done some proper gardening! Nearly finished the end bed. It was full of grass under the dead stems from last years perennials. Dug up some tiarella which had weeds in it, split it and replanted it, added some compost to the rather heavy soil first. There is a huge climbing Cecile Brunner in the end corner which I realised last summer had a big sucker growing through the middle of it. I've sawn it out but there is some left in the upper branches, I'll need to get out a ladder to finish it, but the lawn is very wet. There is now a big pile of prunings on the lawn and another 2 barrow loads of weeds and dead stuff on the tip.
There is loads more to do, weeding, clearing, pruning etc. The garden is over an acre and I haven't touched it since autumn. I think this has been the wettest winter in Dordogne since records began and on the few days it wasn't raining it was freezing, been down to -11°.
Even wearing leather welding gloves , I'll bear the scars for a few days now .
Currently counting sheep as stress causing the return of my insomnia. Wish my greenhouse had a light in it as I'd pop down there right now if I could!