Garden Ramblings
Monday, May 24th, 2010
The badger has visited the garden again. First he circumnavigated the garden and came in at the back breaking a fence panel to get into our garden. We replaced the fence panel, repaired the damage to the grass and had one night without damage. Last night he must have spent the whole night breaking through the wire fence at the front of the garden again but we did not have any damage to the grass. perhaps he had used up all his strength. We have dug two garden forks into the ground where the damage is and hope that he doesn’t break through again. Tomorrow we will repair the fence with some stout wire and I think that we will have to invest in an electric fence. The second thing that we have a problem with in this garden is bindweed. No sooner have I weeded an area and untangled and dug up the bindweed than it has grown again. It is a very difficult weed to deal with and I think patience is needed. If my borders weren’t so full of plants I could use a Glyphosate weed killer but I have too many plants squashed together for that so hand weeding it is. It is always much easier with a glass of wine to hand!
the new badger damage
Tags: Garden, Gardening
Posted in Garden Ramblings | No Comments »
Thursday, May 20th, 2010
Badger damage
I opened the curtains to another beautiful day. As I gazed over the garden I suddenly noticed that during the night we had had a visit from the badger. He or she or maybe there was a party of badgers but anyway they had dug up the whole lawn. I think they were looking for earth worms and I can only assume they had found lots judging by the huge mess they had made. There are holes and bits of grass everywhere which will take me along time to repair. I have found the hole where they are getting in and intend to repair it today as well although I think I might be onto a losing battle. On a happier note as I sit here writing this blog there is a pair of swallows swooping and diving around my head. They seem to be eyeing up my wood shed as a potential nest site, I do hope they stay I will let you know in future posts.
Tags: Garden, Gardening
Posted in Garden Ramblings | No Comments »
Monday, May 17th, 2010
As I opened the curtains this morning I was delighted to see the first rose in my garden flowering away. It is a very mature Rosa banksiae Lutea which is a brilliant yellow. It covers the whole side of my house and is aabsolutely stunning. Because it is using so much energy at the moment I have given it a feed of Ecocharlie Rose plant food to give it extra nutirents and keep it flowering for longer.
My beautiful rose
Tags: Garden, Gardening
Posted in Garden Ramblings | No Comments »
Monday, April 26th, 2010
It seems that each time I wander into the garden notice that there is another new flower or plant that has come into life. I think that the little shower that we had yesterday helped. I was excited to see the broad beans that I sowed about 3 weeks ago have started to push through the ground, which means that I should sow some more now. In fact the vegetable patch is being to show all sorts of green shoots from spinach, lettuce, beetroot, celery,leeks, spring onions to name but a fer. The only seed that hasn’t popped through yet is the parsley, its always a slow seed to germinate. I was brought a seed card the other day again with parsley impregnated into it so I have planted the card in a more sunny place
New vegetable patch
so hopefully I will have lots of parsley in the near future. We have also finished the path so that it is easier to walk up and down for watering and weeding. Now all I have to do nurture the plot until I can start picking the produce.
Tags: Garden, Gardening, water
Posted in Garden Ramblings | No Comments »
Tuesday, April 20th, 2010
Sunbathing Pheasant
I was working away today and suddenly thought that someone was looking at me. As I looked towards the window I saw a female pheasant. She was sitting on top of the Rosemary bush that is just under the window. At least she had found a safe warm place to sit. It encouraged me outside to have a break with a cup of tea. I was sitting on the bench in the enjoying the warm sun only to be disturbed by a strange noise. It was a low grunting sound,
the happy couple
it turned out to be my sneaky eater an extremely handsome male pheasant and his unusual coloured lady. It all happens in this garden.
Tags: Garden
Posted in Garden Ramblings, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Saturday, April 17th, 2010
Great excitement the other day as we opened the curtains. There in the field opposite were lots of baby lambs and their Mums. It definitely feels like Spring now.
Friendly little lamb
Tags: Gardening
Posted in Garden Ramblings | No Comments »
Friday, April 9th, 2010
I popped outside this morning to empty the bin and couldn’t resist a quick look around the garden. Being in the garden first thing in the morning is so relaxing the sun was shinning and birds singing and I wandered around, cup of ginger tea in hand dead heading this fiddling with that. I ended up grabbing my secateurs and sniped the dead wood from my thyme and sage bushes. Then I gathered a bunch of Hellabours to put in a vase indoors. If you are going to use Hellabours for cut flowers always sear the stalk bottoms in boiling water then add to a vase of clean cold water. This helps to stop them from going droopy.
Sunny morning in the garden
Tags: Garden, Gardening
Posted in Garden Ramblings | No Comments »
Wednesday, March 31st, 2010
What a grey dismal day today. Before it started to rain really heavily I managed to have a good look around the garden ( putting the bin out). At least the flowers were blooming brightly and all the trees and shrubs were springing into growth with acid green leaves which made me smile. I had a quick look in the potting shed to check on the plants in there and also potted on some little grasses that I noticed growing in the gravel. Then it was back inside to have a warm drink and my breakfast.
Dicentra
Tags: Garden, Gardening
Posted in Garden Ramblings | No Comments »
Thursday, March 25th, 2010
That’s the exciting thing about owning a new garden you never know what is going to pop up next. Yesterday I was looking at the borders and noticed these early tulips in full flower.
Early tulips
A little further on these pretty little daffodils tete a tete I think have all opened and are flowering their socks off.
Little dafs
I can’t wait to see what else is growing. With the warmer dry weather and now the rain to water everything all sorts of plants are springing into life. I think I have already spotted the leaves of blue bells, grape hyacinth, ordinary hyacinth and some very grass like leaves that I don’t recognise. So watch this space for more spring flowers.
Tags: Garden, Gardening, water
Posted in Garden Ramblings | No Comments »
Sunday, March 21st, 2010
Ground Elder
I decided that it was such a lovely day today, after an energizing walk on the beach I decided to tackle another batch of ground elder. The soil conditions were perfect after all the rain we have had and it was easier to dig and pull out the roots making sure not to drop any little bits. I like to have a trug close by to put the roots and leaves in so that I can keep then separate, then I burn them. I know that I will have to weed this border again but each time I get out some of the ground elder I weaken the plant and hopefully it will slowly die off.
Tags: Garden, gardenin supplies
Posted in Garden Ramblings | No Comments »
