Archive for March, 2010

Moles and more moles

Friday, March 26th, 2010

Today I took delivery of a huge vibrating roller to help restore the grass to something like alawn rather than the surface of the moon. We occasionally have few moles – so do alot of you I’m sure. The hills were even popping up through 5″-6″ of snow. This however was nothing to the surprise we got when the snow melted. Thet had used the snow as the top of the tunnels so the lawn looked like ground on the underside of a stone where there is an ants nest – the difference being that this run of tunnels covers an area of approx. 15 x 20 M. We have now got vibrating pegs in the ground to deter new mole activity I also have a mole trap lent by the woodman but I haven’t got the heart (or probabally the skill) to use it. Putting deisel down the runns was another helpful suggestion offered to me but  doesn’t  seem right either.

Good news – my Bird of paradise plant purchased about 4 years ago has 2 huge flower spikes for the 1st time – I was expecting to wait for up to 10 years – photo will be posted if they open!

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Clearance Sale

Sunday, March 21st, 2010

I had a few minutes spare the other day so thought I would have, what I believed would be a quick look at the Gardening Direct’s website to find out what plants I should be receiving next.

Anyway my quick look took a bit longer that I thought as I stumbled across the sale section of the website. Although I have ordered plenty of plants for my garden already it is so tempting to buy ‘just a couple more’.

Having no garden ornaments in the garden I am very tempted with giving the Squirrel a new home.

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Inspiration

Monday, March 15th, 2010

I have had a girls weekend away this weekend which culminated in a trip to Barnsdale, the garden created by the legendary Geoff Hamilton for Gardeners World. While there was still little to see in the way of plants, the vegetable garden was full of activity and inspirational ideas. Lots of bits of soil, beautifully tilthed of course, were covered in fleece under which hid lettuces and broad beans amongst other things. There were some great ideas, including placing a small cold frame on top of bales of straw and compost, much like the pineapple pits at Heligan, to start off some early salad. The upshot of the visit is that I am off out to the polytunnel to sow some lettuce seeds that I have left over from my Gardening Direct orders of last year. I am expecting some lettuce plants in April, but thought I would try and get a head start so I can compare progress.
Now that things are beginning to get going in the garden, I am pleased that I have ordered lots of plugs for ease of planting. This year, as opposed to last, I am working four days a week and anything that saves me time will be very welcome. I can’t see how I could fit those hours of pricking out into my current schedule, so am delighted that someone else is doing that task and I am getting the plants in a more ‘oven ready’ state so to speak.
I am very excited today as I have managed, in between my gardening, to dry not one, but two loads of washing on the line, a pleasure denied me for at least five months. These simple pleasures make all the difference!
In terms of plant activity, the garden is a fabulous carpet of snowdrops and aconites, late for certain this year, but a delight to see. The snowdrops have shot up this week and now have stems long enough to pick, so I have dotted them around the house and am enjoying their delicate scent.
Off now to make the most of this Spring day – happy gardening!

Posted in Gardener In The North | 3 Comments »

Plantfest – the beginning!

Thursday, March 11th, 2010

I am very excited as ‘Plantfest’ has begun again, I am like a small child on my birthday waiting for the postman.

Today my postman delivered me 42 healthy Geranium St George which means tonight I need to make 42 of my eco newspaper pots for them to be replanted into. I am hoping that these newspaper pots will help speed up the whole repotting process and planting process and rid my garden of the numerous plastic pots that I am still finding scattered around hiding under bushes.

As the planting season starts to get underway Gardening Direct are supporting Thrive with donation of seeds for a BeanFest national competition. The bean seeds have been distributed to groups of people that Thrive work with including garden projects that work with disabled people and people affected by stroke or heart disease across the UK.

If you work with disabled people or are disabled yourself and would like to enter this competition, please call Thrive on 0118 988 5688 for your two free packets of bean seeds and the competition guidelines.

And finally….In response to a recent report on carrot and beetroot plug plants, Gardening Direct are giving all customers who ordered carrots and beetroot plug plants the plants for free and offering them free P&P on any top up orders from their March catalogue.

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2nd Try – back in the garden

Wednesday, March 10th, 2010

Hope you have not got 2 versions of this the 1st vanished off the screen.
Just got back from the alps whrer it was -12 (with wind chill -28) when we left. this made the -4 on sunday night seem warm here in the west.
Much progress in 10 days since I ventured into our garden. Minature daffs are out, even more crocusses and snowdrops appearing and the early heathers are now out with the winter ones.
The dry week has sorted out the boggy ground so I rotavated the veg plot getting lovely crumbly soil for some very happy robins to forrage for buggs.
My neighbour planted out his1st earlies in Feb – I am still holding back because of the hard frosts at least 6 days a week here. I will watch with interest the progress in our two plots.
My out of date broad bean seeds planted before christmas are all10” and many flowering (in an unheated greenhouse) too soon? or will I get a bumper early crop – we’ll see. As they are so old I didn’t even expect germination.

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Is there hope?

Monday, March 8th, 2010

Last weekend, I was just about ready to throw in the towel. I had a window of opportunity on Sunday afternoon and thought I would do some more mulching. After two barrowloads the snow started to come down thick and fast and the elements got the better of me. I retreated inside wondering of the weather would ever be warm enough to garden again. This week to cold has continued and every night bar one the temp has dropped below freezing. I know this not from any snazzy max and min thermometer, but from the state of the chickens water when I let them out in the morning. It is getting beyond a joke.
However, Saturday provided a much needed window of hope. The sun shone and by the afternoon the frost had melted, and it felt almost like Spring. I spent a happy hour in the garden tidying up dead perennials and making way for the emerging bulbs. The snowdrops are now in full bloom and the narcissi bulbs that I planted in the Autumn are just about poking up through the soil, a pleasant reward for all the hours spent on hands and knees in September. The garden was very quiet and had that air of peaceful expectancy that you only get on sunny Spring days. The other positive sign is that the dog mooches between the sunny spots in the house, only present now that the sun is a bit higher in the sky. All in all, just about enough to get me through the continuing cold in the assurance that one day it will be warm!

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Four days of sunshine

Thursday, March 4th, 2010

Four days of sunshine is such a nice thing to be able to say. Good things come to those who wait is certainly my motto at the moment. I really can’t wait for my vegetable and flower plug plants to begin arriving.

I am itching to get out in the garden and enjoy this lovely sunshine with the kids but I haven’t had a chance to child proof the garden yet after the winter. I need to spend a (blissful) solitary day out there making sure that it is safe for the kids to be outside too as the cats have had a field day in the borders and one of the pots has cracked from the frosts.

I am not sure what to do with the broken pot as the tulip buds have just started coming through and I daren’t move them. My creative brain is suggesting wrapping the entire pot with some thick cord and hoping this will last for the next few months or at least until my tulips can be cut and put into a vase to be admired.

My order of the small plot vegetable collection means that I should be receiving some Lettuce Little Gem shortly. I need to go shopping with my eldest and find a suitable trough to plant these in to and then hopefully he will be keen to take ownership of them (and encourage him to taste lettuce too). Last year both the kids looked after the strawberries extremely well, so well in fact that I got to taste only a mere handful.

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The joys of gardening with the children.

Monday, March 1st, 2010

Since my last blog, the potatoes have arrived and I am now following the easy guide provided by Gardening Direct on how to store the potatoes before starting the chitting process in a couple of weeks.

After my success with the vegetables and fruit last year my 5 year old son was very excited to see the potatoes and realised that the ‘gardening season’ for me and the children will be starting very soon. I have definitely found using plug plants so much easier in terms of fitting in with a very busy family life, work commitments and impatient toddlers wanting to see more than just a seed.

My small city garden unfortunately does not have enough space for me to plant endless amounts of vegetable seeds which is why I have found plug plants ideal.

For me gardening is all about spending time in the garden with the children and hopefully growing a thing or two. My children are as enthused as I am in the garden and I think that this is helped by the fact that we have had such a great success rate with all out plants – vegetables and flowers. There is such joy at watching them happily tuck into a meal using the vegetables and fruit that they have helped along the way.

The sun is shining today, and like my son, I am getting very excited about the thought of getting out more in the garden in a few weeks.

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