Garden 2013 no 9

Garden 2013 no 9

The harvest is completely finished and I seem to have spent the last month or so re-painting my blue gates, fences, doors and garden edging. 

I’ve not done the outside painting for a couple of years and the blue was looking quite worn. I figured if I do it this year and give every thing a couple of coats, maybe it will last another two, or at a push, even three years.

I painted the fence my daughter made a couple of years ago and I painted the new gate that her partner made earlier this year. The old one blew away one stormy day. 

This one has gaps between the wood so the wind blows right through it instead of blowing it off its hinges. It also has a wide strip of rubber nailed to the bottom that touches the ground; this stops the rabbits from coming under the gate into my garden.

I still have all the white walls to paint and retouch, but I’m having a bit of a break from garden painting for a while, I’ll go back and repaint the white later. This hansom couple were loitering in the fence, I didn't see them at first. Glad I noticed them before painting them. They even posed or a photo before diving for cover.
 

I’ve been so busy since retirement I’ve realised I have to prioritise on my activities. The two things I really want to spend my time doing is travel and painting, and I don’t mean painting garden fences either, I mean painting canvases. Therefore the plan is to cut down on the gardening for the next year or so. I want to dig the little vegetable garden and turn the whole thing back into lawn. Actually I’m quite looking forward to it. My lawn never was the pristine golf course sort of lawn, it always was a bit lumpy and bumpy and then I dug up most of it and turned it into a vegetable plot.

So if I carefully dig and level the whole thing and seed it, sometime next summer I should have a pristine lawn that needs a gentle mow every couple of weeks. Or at least that’s the plan. I’ve even bought this little machine to help me.

Before starting the painting I cut back the Tayberries.

I read up on this and found out that you have to cut back in the autumn after the fruit has finished.  All old wood has to go and the strong new canes have to be tied up and trained ready for the fruit they will produce the following year. I know I’ve done mine a bit early but I’ve already had quite a lot of fruit from it. There was some fruit left but it had something wrong with it. The fruit that was left was small, green and hard, and instead of ripening it was going moldy and rotting on the cane. I’m not sure  why this happened, maybe because I didn’t cut it back as I was supposed to last year; but I hope by cutting it back and training it along the fence, the same thing will not happen again next year.  Anyway………..if I had left it until all those little green fruits had gone mouldy and fallen off, I wouldn’t have been able to paint that bit of the fence. I’ve also been dead heading the buddleia, I know this has to be pruned back in the spring not the autumn, but I hate all the old, dead, brown flowers so I cut them off as they appear. I think this actually makes the flowers last longer, as soon as I cut the dead ones off, new ones appear. But, I’m sure I’ve seen the last of them for this year. I’ve cut the bush back a little, just enough to get rid of all the dead flowers and next year, I’m going to prune it quite hard to make sure it doesn’t grow too big and get too out of control.

The other thing I’ve been doing is using the harvest in the kitchen.

I have made loads and loads of rhubarb chutney ( with added red wine),

more jars of pickled onions than I can possibly eat and a whole batch of carrot and coriander soup for the freezer.

I’ve also made more herb oil. The herbs, onions and garlic all came from my garden and the red chillies came from my daughters greenhouse. I can’t grow chillies because I don’t have a greenhouse.

I tried to grow them in the windows last year but even that didn’t work, they really need the warmth of a greenhouse to grow properly here. I have a freezer full of fruit and only half a pot of jam left which means the next big kitchen venture is going to be a mammoth jam making session.
So; that’s my garden almost ready for winter. I still have the white painting to do, and I would like to get the lawn sorted out before winter, but apart from that, the garden is definitely winding down for winter.

Garden 2012 no 22

Garden 2012 no 21

There’s still stuff to do in the garden before real winter sets in and the ground freezes. Last Sunday I carried out boring routine tasks, I cleared the paved area of weeds and grass and removed the deep rooted weeds from around the fence. I tidied up around the outside of the fence and cut back the over hanging plants. I pulled the last of the spinach and lettuce and threw them in the compost because they were too bitter to eat. 

I’ve collected all the compost and filled up the empty tubs ready for next year, I’ll just have to feed and fertilize before planting. I missed most of the Tay berries and black berries this year because the fruit came when I was recovering from the eye surgery. The branbles were taking over and beginning to wind themselves around the two gooseberry bushes. 

My solution was to replant the gooseberry bushes in pots ready for next year and train the blackberry and Tayberry brambles around the fence where the gooseberries were. I’m hoping for a bumper crop next year because I missed the crop this year. I dug up the carrots; they were the only crop left in the ground. These are the weirdest carrots I’ve ever seen, no idea why they grew like that but the smell when they were dug up and washed was delicious. 

They may look like monster carrots but I think they will taste good.  I’m going to make carrot and coriander soup, that way their poor misshapen bodies will make no difference, as long as they taste good the soup will be good. After digging and bottling the beetroot last week I made beetroot soup using the stock the beetroot were cooked in, some red beetroot stalks, some beetroot leaves, some of my garlic, some of my red onions and some vegetable stock.  It’s a deep red colour and has a satisfying earthy taste. I ate some with home made garlic bread and saved some in the freezer

Next Sunday, weather permitting, I hope to finish off tidying up and tying back the fruit canes, clear the vegetable patch and start digging ready for the winter.

Garden 2012 no18.

Garden 2012 no 18

Oh my poor garden. Hospital says I can now ‘resume normal activities’ (while taking care) and the eye is healing nicely. Therefore; this weekend is going to be a gardening weekend. I’m still getting fresh spinach leaves every couple of days and they are good either steamed as part of a hot meal or fresh as part of a salad.

 My lettuce is almost gone, I’ve another two or three and then that’s it. I am still picking spinach leaves, the last of the nasturtium leaves and the last of the spring onions to make up a bowl of salad every couple of days and I have the last of the shallots drying out ready to be spiced and pickled.
I’m a bit upset about the lavender and the tansy. I usually make up bowls of potpourri for the house with these. Unfortunately this year they flowered and died of in the couple of weeks I’ve been unable to get out there. I’m quite cross with myself for leaving them, they were ready to be cut a few days before I went into hospital but I decided to leave them until that weekend. Now I wish I had harvested them when I had the chance. But at least these will flower again next year and there is no real harm done. The more lasting damage is likely to be around the edge of the garden in amongst the wild flowers and hedgerow. I’ve always been very careful about removing deep rooting invasive weeds as they appeared. Particularly the thistles, dandelions, and those big tall dock leaves, they all have roots that quickly go deep and are a real problem to get out. I’ve taken a walk around the edge of the garden and there they all are, happily growing, spreading and depriving my plants of space and nutrition. This weekend it will be a war on those weeds. Its not even that I have any particular grudge against these plants, they are all part of the natural habitat and, in their own way are quite attractive, its just that left unchecked the garden would be full of these and little else. 

Another regret is the way my herb collection has gone to seed and is past its best for harvesting. But I still have quite a lot of frozen herbs collected last year and if I cut the herbs back now they should all grow again next year and I’ll be able to collect them then. I bought Mace for the first time this year and didn't even get to save a little. It smelt wondefull, harvesting my first Mace will be something to look forward to next year.

The dainty little purple flower growing in the midst of chaos is…….actually I don’t know what it is. I think it was part of the mixed wild flower seeds I sprinkled there. As you can see.....the wind was getting up and the little flowers were waving wildly in the wind.

This yellow flower is another attractive but unknown addition to the garden. It has grown tall and flowered in the couple of weeks I’ve been away from the garden, and now I’m busy looking up pictures of yellow flowers and trying to identify it. 

This is something I am pleased with. I brought back a whole load of Mullen seeds from my last visit to my sister and this is where I sprinkled them. At this point I’m not sure if these new plants are self seeded Digitalis (foxglove) or, if some of the Mullen seeds have started to grow.  To my non-expert eye, Mullen and Foxglove look too similar to decide, but which ever it is, I’m happy with it.

June 23 2012, Garden no 11

GARDEN 2012 N0 11

It’s Saturday 23 June, and still raining. Woke up this morning and the news said; ‘serious flooding throughout the country’, guess I’m lucky to be free from the floods but we have had serious rain over the last three days. The news went on to say, ‘this could be the worse summer on record’,  ‘COULD BE’?? I feel that’s a little optimistic, as far as I’m concerned it already IS the worse summer on record.

ABOVE, PRIMROSES MID MAY

But it’s not all bad, we have had the odd day or two, even the occasional week, where the weather has been lovely and I’ve been out in the garden.
The first photos were taken mid may, we had some bright sunny days, the skies were blue, the garden was warm and the flowers were in bloom. The primroses and bluebells covered more ground and flowered for longer than usual, the pond looked especially good last month; I had more blooms in the pond than I have ever had before and the London pride was better brighter and more prolific than last year.
And then a bit of a setback, some local kids were playing in the street and jumping over fences. What ever game it was they were playing involved jumping over fences, climbing on shed roofs and running in and out of gardens. They trampled a corner of my garden and some of my plants were ruined.
I was really upset but when I went out to see what I could salvage, the damage wasn’t as bad as I thought.  We had weeks of rain and I thought I would never get out in the garden again, but when I did eventually get there, I found the rain had stimulated growth and the garden looked like a jungle. I lost a lot of seedlings and small plants, they were washed away but those that were strong enough to withstand the wind and the rain actually benefited and had a growth spurt. I’m now picking a couple of strawberries every day to eat with my cereal in the mornings, the beans and onions are looking great and  I’m eating fresh lettuce, radish, nasturtium leaf and assorted herbs every evening.  

I’m also getting a regular supply of rhubarb every couple of days. The spinach took a long time to establish, I thought I had lost it several times but now its looking good. 

The potatoes will be ready to pull soon; I hope to get these ‘earlies’ up in time to put another lot of ‘lates’ in. I’ve replaced quite a few of my herbs this year, I bought new ones but I also cut back the old ones and took fresh cuttings. I have an established patch of Tansy and Curry Plant; they are doing very well this year, they look quite similar but are very different.
And I have flowers, in no particular order and not highly cultivated but flowers they are.
School finishes next week and (weather allowing) I’ll be out there more often and hopefully get the last little bit dug over ready for another small veg plot next year. I’ve already salvaged a whole load of bulbs from the last tiny area I dug over and I expect to get at least as many again. Oh...........and I decided I liked this so much, I bought another
But for today……………the weather is awful and even if it wasn’t I’m booked for babysitting. I’ve packed my bag, packed my paints and I’m going to try to get some serious painting done over the weekend. My granddaughter is 11 now and I'm hoping she will amuse herself while I get on with the serious business of painting.

Tags: garden, garden 2012, plants, herbs, pond, vegetables

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delete reply nemo4sun wrote on Jun 24 forgetmenot525 said The tadpoles are just fine Nemo, they are getting bigger but they are not developing legs yet. I think maybe that's because the weather has been too cold for them to develop. I'm hoping they will start to grow their legs soon and leave the pond. i remember following their progress in the local ponds as a kid i can not remember how long the cycle took they should help with bug control when they are grown :)

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jun 24 brendainmad said Your cloud looks like the Loch Ness Monster with its tail chopped off! LOl.............thanks ..I took that photo because I thought it looked like a galloping horse with its legs tucked up underneath its body.

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jun 24 nemo4sun said what happened to the tadpoles? The tadpoles are just fine Nemo, they are getting bigger but they are not developing legs yet. I think maybe that's because the weather has been too cold for them to develop. I'm hoping they will start to grow their legs soon and leave the pond.

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jun 24 esoterika713 said Your veg garden is awesome. I could learn a lot from you. Perhaps, you could let me know your veg plan so I could make better use of the space. My sister made some really cool bean structures and we got some interesting new plants like a blueberry bush for instance. I'd love to be of help if I can but I'm not an expert. I've had this garden for over 10 years now and its only in the last couple of years that I've really started thinking about growing crops and making the most of the space that I Ihave. I used to have my daughters and grandchildren here for family BBQ's but now they are all settled and if we have family time it tends to be in their gardens not mine. This used to be a family garden with grass for the children and space for their toys and a little pool. They have outgrown that now, they tend to go to the park or the beach if they are here and as I get nearer to retirement I've decided to 'reclaim' my garden for my own use. Thinking about space is very important. Maybe I'll draw out a little plan and show you how I cram so much in and what my ultimate plans are for the space.

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jun 24 veryfrank said Heuchera is a wonderful addition to a garden, dependable, survive winters and are easy to care for, mine are now 20 years old. I'm not much of a fan of the flowers but the foliage is lovely. Everything looks just great. The strawberries and radishes are loving that rain. Thanks Frank, when I wrote this I couldn't remember the exact mane of the plant, but yes, I really like them too. I love the colours of the foliage and I think it deepens and becomes richer with age. I may even get a few more if I can find space for them

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jun 24 kathyinozarks said your garden looks great even with all the poor weather-we are the opposite-extreme heat and no rain Hi Kathy, I would happily send you some rain if I could, and I would love some of your sunshine, if only it were that simple :-)

delete reply esoterika713 wrote on Jun 24 Your veg garden is awesome. I could learn a lot from you. Perhaps, you could let me know your veg plan so I could make better use of the space. My sister made some really cool bean structures and we got some interesting new plants like a blueberry bush for instance. I bought a bunch of stuff but space is always an issue. Too bad about the kids but I'm glad to hear it wasn't as bad. We haven't had that much rain so I've had to water but tomorrow it's supposed to rain. I hope a good gardeners rain. :)

delete reply brendainmad wrote on Jun 23 Your garden is lovely and I'm glad the kids didn't do too much damage. Your cloud looks like the Loch Ness Monster with its tail chopped off!

delete reply nemo4sun wrote on Jun 23 what happened to the tadpoles? everything looks very good all things considered the strawberry and rhubarb look delicious :)

delete reply veryfrank wrote on Jun 23 Heuchera is a wonderful addition to a garden, dependable, survive winters and are easy to care for, mine are now 20 years old. I'm not much of a fan of the flowers but the foliage is lovely. Everything looks just great. The strawberries and radishes are loving that rain.

delete reply mitchylr wrote on Jun 23 The garden is looking splendid!! The vegetables and herbs seem to be enjoying all the extra water!! The strawberries are doing nicely too :-))

delete reply kathyinozarks wrote on Jun 23 your garden looks great even with all the poor weather-we are the opposite-extreme heat and no rain

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jun 23 aaranaardvark said The garden is looking fabulous. I hear that this year is the wettest drought on record. You're doing a grand job Loretta with great results, nice one! Thanks Aaron................one of the things I really look forward to in retirement is spending more time in the garden. And congrats on winning your own battle with the authorities.:-)

delete reply aaranaardvark wrote on Jun 23 The garden is looking fabulous. I hear that this year is the wettest drought on record. You're doing a grand job Loretta with great results, nice one!