Suddenly I have that feeling that I won’t get it all done in time. But roses have been fed. Seeds have finally been sown: Tithonia and nasturtium, carrots and leeks this week. More annuals will be sown next week and those potatoes will be planted. Here’s what’s in my garden today.
One
A border was extended in November and I dug up a batch of bulbs to make way for the roses that will be the star attraction. Impatiently I threw all in the bulbs in a corner of the border and forgot about them. Of course with no care to the planting they have emerged as a perfect clump of colour.
Two
Continuing the yellow theme, the cowslips planted in a damp corner last year have spread themselves out and look very settled.
Three
More spring colour on a subtler note comes from these Thalia narcissi. I love the multi-stem format. I’m mentally planning for next year and more of these are on the list. I also want to plant some Paperwhite and White Lady narcissi together with a couple of clumps of Leucojum – now that I’ve perfected the planting in clumps technique.
Four
I thought that I had lost these fritillaries when all the work on the path was done. But the new path is slightly narrower and these were just outside the trample zone. The slightly wider border is going to allow me to plant more of these too.
Five
The garden is full of birds and bird song at the moment. I was planning to cut back the Verbena bonariensis but a charm of goldfinches were breakfasting on the seed heads this morning so I have been persuaded to leave that for another time. Sadly the free version of wordpress doesn’t allow video content so I can’t share the bird song, including the resident woodpecker, with you. I’ll see if I can post to twitter (lol).
Six
Back down to earth: the inside of my shed! The blackcurrants and gooseberries are all in leaf and I need to start thinking about how I protect them from those wonderful birds. My favourite netting is the twisted coil of soft net but my local nursery has stopped stocking this one. Last year I bought lengths of semi rigid plastic net which was easy to cut and fix to bamboo canes to make something resembling a fruit cage. What do you use? Do you have a favourite?
It is so amazing that so many are sharing their garden news under the Six on Saturday meme. Go along to The Propagator and feast your eyes. And keep gardening!
So this is the path looking shockingly new but I will soon get that sorted out with a few trips up and down with the wheelbarrow!
The clematis pruned before the last batch of cold weather has survived and is surging onward. It will soon be covering the trellis again.
A sure sign that everything is growing. This is most likely an ash tree seedling. Neighbouring gardens are well forested and every year I have to be super vigilant to pull up all the seedlings that come my way. Ash and sycamore are the most common and then the odd oak courtesy of the squirrels.
The tulips are coming through. This beautiful pink edged leaf could be from China Girl or Angelique. These two were planted along with Spring Green in a mixed clump in November. They should be in flower come April/May.
Right plant, right place I think. I planted half a dozen cowslips in a very wet border last year and this year there is a great crop of seedlings. I shall gently separate them and spread them around this border and elsewhere. Lovely free plants!
Don’t they look tempting. The first lush shoots of the delphiniums. I can just hear the slugs smacking their lips. More vigilance required.
My old path was broken, uneven and collected water. The new path will be well drained, carefully sloped and smooth. But I am already missing the patina and idiosyncrasies of the old path’s age. The builders are taking great care to keep the new path clean but I will be out there soon rubbing in the mud and possibly some yoghurt!
The laying of the paths sadly means that some things in the garden get trampled on or have been dug up to allow for the base to be laid. I don’t think I will see any fritillaries this year and I know that one or two tulips have been snapped off. As I always say ‘you can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs’. And of course I will have the chance to add something new to omelette! On the upside I will lose the ugly concrete edges and gain a precious couple of inches of border.
I managed to get out the greenhouse this morning and was very pleased to see that the rocket seed sown on 16 February has germinated. The sweet peas sown at the same time are only just breaking the surface but they too are on their way.
My daffodils are still in bud, the pheasant eye narcissus are coming along but the pulmonaria is definitely in flower. The clump was planted last year from divisions given to me by a friend. I think I’m going to divide this up again this year and use it to soften the edges of that new path.
And here’s a couple of new ingredients for that omelette. Some nerines – bowdenii Ostara, and dahlias. The dahlias are a combination of greeny whites and are destined for pots. The path should be finished by Wednesday, whereupon I will become a gardener again.
This is the top end of the border. Sweet pea, cosmos purity and nicotiana lime green were sown from seed. The lambs ears in the foreground looked bedraggled in last week’s six. Will they survive after the freezing weather of this week? This path is staying. It’s not very attractive and if I had a magic wand it would be transformed into a lovely brick cottage garden path. I have also planted alchemella mollis and geranium brookside, both of which tumble onto the path edges.
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