Getting back into the swing of things

Whilst I was pottering about yesterday, Adrian was in full-scale demolition mode 😄  You've seen photos of the arbour seat many times over the years being utilised as a temporary shelter for plants, most recently for the dahlias as I didn't get round to taking the tubers out of the pots ~ I'm almost embarrassed to admit that I still haven't done so but I promise it is on my list 😉  It's never been used properly as a seat, even when we still lived in Hitchin, as the bench is just a little too high to be comfortable ~ plus I wasn't keen on sharing the space with the spiders that like to make their homes there!  I can't remember now if I ever mentioned that rather than get rid of it, we decided we were going to try to convert the structure into proper, designated, place for plants, and that's what Adrian made a start on yesterday.

It took him a few hours to dismantle the storage bench section because all the screws were rusted to buggery, and as he didn't want to damage the "shelter" part of the structure, he took went at it very carefully and slowly.  We're undecided at the moment as to whether to add shelves and doors ourselves, or see if we can find a readymade growhouse that will fit within the shelter.  I suspect that as our carpentry skills are rather basic, it will be the latter!   

I forgot to mention yesterday that Adrian did another little job for me on Wednesday: namely, numbering the kitchen garden raised beds.  I bought the numbers, which are on little slate plaques, some time back but we just never got round to fixing them to the beds before the winter arrived.

It all looks very efficient out there now, almost as if I actually know what I'm doing.....which we all know of course, isn't true in the slightest 😏

I spent most of the day in the back garden tidying up the beds in the utility area, although I didn't actually get round to this bed which is between the shed and log store.  To be fair, it shouldn't take long to do as there are only a handful of weeds in it at the moment.  I'd forgotten how many daffodils I'd moved into the bed from the front garden!  They look lovely, as do the catkins on the willow, although it was hard to take a decent photo as it was pretty windy.

I decided to get the other beds weeded before I move back out to work in the kitchen garden.  Again, these two beds weren't too bad and it didn't take long to get them tidy again.

I needed to tidy the fruit tree bed so that I could move the remaining strawberries from the kitchen garden.

I also wanted to do something with these bulbs that have been languishing in pots all winter, having been dug up from various parts of the garden.  Some of them haven't come up at all, so I suspect that the bulbs have rotted away, and some have just sent up leaves.  I'll probably plop the latter in the border with the bay tree to see if they flower next year.

As you can see though, the tulips (Orange Beauty) and narcissus (Sempre Avanti) are flowering, despite the less-than-optimal growing conditions!  The latter has a rather lovely, delicate, scent although you do have to put your nose very close to the plant to appreciate it 😊  

I dug out all the strawberries and planted just over a dozen in the fruit tree bed, along with the tulips and narcissus.  I'm just using the strawberries as ground cover, really, so if I manage to harvest any berries before the birds get them it will be an added bonus 😄  I've still got a fair few London Pride plants in the front garden that will need to be moved so I'll put a few along the back of this bed, again as ground cover.

I was amazed at just how many strawberry plants I dug up, and even after I'd planted up this bed I was still left with more than I needed.  As it happens Thursday is the day we usually have a home delivery from Tesco, and fortuitously the driver this week was a chap that has a large fruit and veggie garden, so he happily took the spare plants off my hands!  

Next to be tackled was the bay tree bed, which as you can see was a tad more weedy than the previous one. I'm not too sure what's happened to the bay tree, but I suspect Adrian got a little snip-happy when he cut back next door's shrubs that were overhanging our garden 😉  

Nevertheless, it didn't take too long to tidy it up and I now have a clear run for plopping in those other bulbs, along with some more of the London Pride.  I tidied up the bay tree although it's still a bit of a weird shape!  It seems to like it in this spot, though, so hopefully it will soon grow out to be a tad more symmetrical. 

Our neighbours  have lots of flowering currant shrubs in this part of their garden which are all in bloom now and their lovely scent, along with the sunshine, made this part of the back garden a rather super place to be working in. 

Sorry for the "yellowness" of this photo but I had to close the curtains as the sun was shining through the windows so brightly!  Anyhoo, I thought I'd show you that Miss Schlumbergera is merrily in bloom again, after putting on a lovely display back in November 😍 

Being sensible

image from Freepik

Although it's not my natural state of being I have been pretty sensible following on from the very annoying leg mishap of last Saturday 😏 I had a hair appointment on Monday and although we caught the bus down, we actually walked home.  We had only just missed a bus so rather than hang around for an hour, I felt that I could walk home if I took it very slowly ~ which I did.  I suspect that this very slow walk actually helped, along with the Ibuprofen and periods of resting the leg over the last few days.  I've also been able to get out in the garden for a couple of hours or so at a time, albeit with me sitting down to work and Adrian doing the digging!

I mentioned previously that I was moving the strawberries.  Although I managed to get half the bed done fairly well, I managed to get myself into a right old pickle with the rest of it *sigh*  Luckily for me, Adrian came to the rescue and volunteered to do it for me ~ I think he could see how frustrated with my efforts I was becoming!  As you can see, I've only got half the strawberries actually moved into their new accommodation thus far but I'm hoping to finish the bed over the next few days.  It's a job that I can do sitting down so that's an added bonus at the moment 😉

Before "leg-gate", Adrian had finished the newly-extended raised bed in the new patio area.  We started to move the plants from the path border that ~ fingers crossed ~ we will be grassing over next year.  He dug them out for me and I then planted them in their new home.  The soil in this bed was still pretty wet which made it a not-very-pleasant exercise, to be honest.  Still, needs must, and at least we made a start on the job even if our gardening gloves and tools ended up covered with sticky mud in the process!

 

I've also made a start on bringing in my tender perennials.  These argyranthemum Grandaisy Pink Halo were planted in an old wheelbarrow which I had in the kitchen courtyard over the summer.  They grew very well and I'm hoping that they will survive the winter in the greenhouse, ready to be put back in the garden next year.  They are very pretty plants, and flower for months.  I think they are extremely good value for money.

Ta-daaa!  I actually remembered to take an up-to-date photo of Miss Schlumbergera ~ I hope you are duly impressed with my memory 😄  I would have liked to have knelt down to take a slightly better photo but decided not to risk having to get back up again, so just bent my knees as much as I dared!  You can still see how pretty she is looking, though, despite my lack of photographic skills 😊

A breath of fresh air

image from Clipart Library

Of course what I really mean is we've had a couple of rather windy days, albeit with blue skies and plenty of sunshine 😉  Nevertheless, it's been lovely to get out in the garden again even if the thought of all the work to be done is a tad disheartening!

You may recall that last year I moved the strawberries into a new bed.  I'm happy to report that they've come through the winter unscathed and are all starting to put out lovely new green leaves 😊  We didn't get any further with the bed then, but Adrian got the frame for the netting built last week, using leftover poles from frames that had been dismantled.  On Tuesday we got the plastic mesh ~ also salvaged from old dismantled frames ~ attached to the frames.  Never let it be said that we don't try to re-use what we already have LOL  

To be fair we haven't noticed any of the local feline population trying to use this bed as a new loo, but we weren't going to take any risks as the buggers do poop in the garden borders from time-to-time 😒  I'll add a finer mesh cover later in the year, when the strawberries start to ripen up, to keep the birds at bay. 

Another job that Adrian got done was to alter how the frames are attached to the beds.  Originally he'd used plumbing pipe clips which were okay to start with, but gradually they got misshapen with use.  We had a good think about it and finally thought of attaching short lengths of plastic pipe to the sides of the beds for the poles of the frames to slide into.  It's worked out very well, and I think it looks much neater too.

I mentioned last week that the rhubarb was starting to come through.  Goliath is really getting into its stride, and I may have to start picking some of the stalks soon!  Fulton's Strawberry Surprise (which I moved from the back garden last year), in the middle of the bed, is also coming through more strongly now.

I was a little concerned about the non-appearance of Timperley Early but ~ ta daa! ~ it's finally put in an appearance 😄 

I've been a little disappointed with the seasonal bedding plants I put in last autumn as I lost a lot of plants over winter.  Still, this little pot of pansies (Matrix Mix Coastal Sunrise) has managed to cope with the weather and is starting to look very pretty.  As you can see, the compost seems to have dropped somewhat in this pot, so perhaps the fact that the little plants are lower in the pot has helped to protect them as there isn't much shelter from the wind in the kitchen garden!  I have some in the planter on the kitchen windowsill which have also come through the winter unscathed, although it's much more sheltered in the kitchen courtyard area which has probably helped.   

 As you can see, the bulbs I planted for cutting are coming through very nicely.  The only trouble is I keep forgetting to actually get out there and cut them for the house whilst they are still in bud!  Oh well, I know the idea works so I'll try again next year 😉

And finally, despite that chilly breeze yesterday afternoon, the temperature in the greenhouse got up to 30℃ ~  very cosy 😊

It's another lovely sunny day today, so I'm going to make the most of it and get back outside again ~ there's certainly no lack of stuff to get done! 

Busy, busy, busy...

image from Clipart Library

The rhythm of the garden has finally reached me and I've been out there most days these last few weeks or so 👏 I've certainly been sleeping well, going to bed much earlier than I usually do.....consequently, of course, I've also been getting up much earlier too, although some of that is probably because dawn is arriving so early now 😉 

 

All the beds and borders are in dire need of tidying up but I thought it prudent to start with the kitchen garden veggie beds.....not least because all the remaining plug plants from my Marshalls order will be winging their way to me very soon, and I will need to get them planted out asap 😏

This was the worst bed out of the four but even so it didn't really take me too long once I got stuck in, and the strawberry and asparagus beds were very quick and easy to tidy up.  Sometimes thinking about doing something is worse than actually getting on with the flippin job 😕

These three low beds had soft fruit in them: blackberries Tiny Black in the square bed on the right, with raspberries (Summer Lovers Patio Red and Patio Gold) and Funberries in pots on the other two beds.  Adrian was never happy with the net cages he made for these beds, so was highly delighted when I told him I was thinking of moving the fruit so I could use the beds as part of my veggie crops rotation!  I tell ya, that was a proper red letter day 'cos usually when I utter those immortal words "I've been thinking..." all he does is groan 😄

Anyhoo, although the photo above doesn't show it, all the beds have now been weeded and three of the four large beds have been restrung ready for this year's plantings in my favourite square foot method.  I didn't bother stringing the strawberry bed this year as the plants are now nicely established in their own spaces.  I've also now got potatoes planted in half of the bed to the left of the strawberries.  Still lots to be done but I think I've made a pretty good start 😊

A stroll around the "grounds" ~ part two

Sadly the osteospermum and argyranthemum haven't made it, but I'm thrilled to see how well all the fuchsia and geranium plants are doing.  I shall have to start popping them outside during the day to harden them off now, as I will soon need the greenhouse for other things 😉

Although the photo doesn't show it too well, I was delighted to see blossom on two of the fruit trees: Summer Sun (cherry) on the right, and Scrumptious (a dessert apple) on the left.  No blossom yet on the plum, Victoria, which is further to the right and out of shot but I'm just really happy that all three have come through being uprooted from the front garden!

Both of the two little redcurrant bushes, Jonkheer van Tets, look like they may well produce fruit although the one in this photo is further ahead than the other one in the bed.  The strawberries are looking good, too 😊

The primroses that I moved last month are finally filling out and showing signs of blooms.

The mint seem to be enjoying their new living accommodation!  I still can't remember the name of the one on the right but its leaves have a lovely spearmint scent.

The standard redcurrant (also Jonkheer van Tets) must be feeling happy too, judging by all the potential currants forming on it!

Buds are starting to appear on the chives, but sadly I think I've pushed the thyme (out of shot in this photo) to its death with my over-enthusiastic pruning 😯  I have a rosemary to replace it, though, which I got from Tesco with the shopping this week from their "growing herbs" section.  I have my doubts as to whether it will survive here but I do like to give things a go 😉

The pansies (Matrix Mix Coastal Sunrise) are looking a little better than they were last month.....

but are being totally outshone by their brethren on the kitchen windowsill 😆

The raised beds are filling out.....

and amazingly those little fuchsias do indeed appear to have survived the winter!

I'm really pleased with how good the water bowl bed is looking.  I've just got to remember to fix the poor hare's front legs this year 😳

When I last showed you the tulips (Apricot Beauty) they were still in bud, but look at them now ~ aren't they pretty!  I'm so glad I didn't miss them flowering whilst we were away 😊

Sidetracked...

image from Magnific.com

In my last garden post, we had come to a bit of a standstill with re-making the wildlife area whilst Adrian was constructing the raised bed(s).  I couldn't really do anything to help him, so I drew a deep breath and veered off to make a start on tackling all the other weedy areas in the front garden 😳 

As you know, we've decided to considerably scale back the kitchen garden and over the coming months all the beds in the front will be dismantled ~ more on that in future posts 😉

One thing we do still want to grow is at least some potatoes, as homegrown ones are just so much tastier than shop-bought ones!  I was very late in planting out my chitted seed potatoes this year, and confess that I did wonder if they would actually grow once I'd got them in the ground.  I'm pleased to report that every single one has sent up a fine head of leaves so hopefully we'll have another good crop of potatoes again later this year 😊  I'm trying a different variety this time: Caledonian Rose.  Since this photo was taken, I have plonked a good layer of soil over the plants ~ as usual, I'm pretty behind with photo-sharing 😏

I'm only growing potatoes this year as we've got such a lot of work to get done in the garden, so the raised beds have come in useful as holding beds for the plants I've kept for re-planting in due course.  This bed had potatoes in it last year and I obviously didn't get all the teeny-tiny spuds removed, hence them sprouting away quite happily!

If the bed had been empty I would probably have left them to grown on, but I had already moved in some of the plants which had been in the beds where the new patio now is.  The potatoes were starting to smother the poor little buggers, so out they had to come I'm afraid. 

I was particularly pleased to see these dahlias coming through, as I thought the winter would probably kill them off.  I had them in pots last year and was just too lazy to store them "properly" over winter, so into the raised bed they went 😄  I suspect the fact that they were planted in a raised bed probably helped with drainage, and thus stopped their tubers getting too wet and rotting away.

This was the view I had through to the Hoy Hills whilst I was working 😍

These plants were what I decided to keep from the old pond area.  Some of the tiger lilies are currently flowering, so this part of the garden smells lovely ~ perhaps that's why next-door's cat seems to like it over here so much 😄

You may recall that this bed had large pots of strawberries in it.  Luckily it was a pretty straightforward task to tidy up the plants, disposing of the handful that had died, and move the pots round to the back garden.  They are in a temporary area at the moment until we work our way round to re-jigging the back garden at some point 😱  This will be the first of the kitchen garden beds to be re-purposed as part of the new pond area ~ all will become clear as the work out there continues, I promise 😏

I couldn't summon up the energy to tackle the garden borders, so compromised by tidying this bed over on the other side of the garden instead.  It looked worse than it actually was, to be fair, and didn't really take too long.  You'll have to take my word for it, though, as I forgot to take a photo when I'd finished 😄

I fairly often come across frogs on this side of the garden.  I didn't notice this one until I almost grabbed hold of it along with the debris I was clearing out!  It sat there with its back to me for quite a few minutes before moving off.  I'm hoping that once we get the new pond area set up we'll find more froggy visitors/residents in the garden 😊