1st March

I had a bonfire today to burn all the spiky twigs we cut off last weekend. I had to retie the protective green netting at the back as the wind this week had pulled it off. It now has about 50 ties in it so hopefully will hold. It really does get very windy on that back bed.





I planted 30 lily of the valley from T&M and some that came free from a gardeners world offer. The ones from T&M had really long roots and i wasn't sure if they could go in sideways or whether they needed to go straight down. I also wasn't sure if the crowns were meant to still be under the soil or whether I should plant them poking up a bit. In the end most went totally under the soil. I also planted some snowdrops in the green by the Clementius pergola.





The first little blue wood anemone has come up and another snowdrop that was planted as a pip.

The ferns I ordered for the back bed came this week. I've got 3 Asplenium Scolopendrium (hearts tongue), 1 Athyrium filix-femina, 1 Dryopteris affins (Golden Male Fern) and 1 polystichum munitum. The last three should all grow to about 3ft. I don't know how long it will take them to do that though.

The ferns that I planted last October are 3 Buckler Ferns and 2 soft shield ferns. They should all grow to about half a meter high. They are also meant to grow half a meter wide which means I've planted them to close together. I guess I'll worry about that when they've grown a bit.

I've also got a clementis and a honeysuckle to grow up the back fence.

I put quite a lot of home made compost on the back bed but didn't get time to plant the ferns. I'll do that tomorrow. Lots of Daffs have come out now plus 10 tulips (Banja Luka) near the house.

More concrete removal

We've taken up the crazy paving concrete by the house and shed today. So that will give us another big bed. I was going to leave until until next year and make it in to a raised veg bed, but we're having the concrete removed in March - so we might as well have it all taken. Also I wanted to put the tomato grow bags on soil so thought they could go on there. For now I've just put some pots in the soil. I think I'll be able to fork it over and add manure and it will be OK though.

We also put up some green stuff at the end of the garden to protect the plants in the back bed from the wind that comes from the back field. I'm going to plant some ferns in that bed but i didn't order them for today as i thought it might still be frosty. I did plant some of the snowdrops, lily of the valley and the lily bulbs in the bed though as they have arrived over the last couple of weeks. I also put the dogwoods in. I put in 2 lily oriental stargazer and 3 Lily oriental Miss Lucy. The other 3 lily oriental stargazer went in a pot.

The light got to me before I finished planting the snowdrops and lily of the valley though - so I'll have to do those next week. I've left the hellebores in the plant pots for now as well. I don't know whether to keep them in pots or plant them out.

I also had some Alstroemeria tubers that came free with one of the orders. I don't really know what to do with them as I'm not sure what they will look like. So I've just put them into pots for now.

I'm having the landscaping done at the end of March. That is when the new flower beds will get laid out so i don't want to plant anything along the two sides until they've been done.

Everything was quite dry this morning. The soil was cracking it was so dry. So i gave it a water. Then it rained all afternoon!

Lots of daffs have come out in the garden now. But it got dark before i took any pictures today.

9th Feb - bulbs coming up

As expected the spring bulbs are starting to show.

A couple of the snowdrop pips have worked. I'll be getting some in the green at the weekend though.

Most surprising is the Tulip in the bed by the house!

More plants arrived by post this week - the dogwoods. So i need to start planning and planting the back bed.

The new flower beds are going to be made in March and i'll be having steping sones and a slate gravel patio put in then as well.

December - and I'm dreaming of how my garden will look next year (hopefully)

I've been mentioned in my dad's christmas letter and now feel the pressure to keep up the photos of the changing garden!

I recently planted three Christmas Roses (Helleborus Niger) at the back of the garden and they look very pretty. I had an offer in a magazine for 3 more which i might send off for soon. I also moved the nicotina plant further back - although I'm not entirely sure whether its a annual or perennial. I made a shelter for the two new laurel bushes to protect them a bit from the wind that comes across the back field.

I saw some dogwood in a magazine which i think would go well at the back of that bed. My uncle thinks i should stick to the bamboo plan. I think I'll do both at the different sides. All still fits in with the "forest" theme. ish. Also now that back bed is just going to be blue and white flowers. And then the greens etc from the evergreen bushes. Plus the red from the dogwood when i plant it, which hopefully I'll do over Christmas - or maybe i should wait until February. Not sure. I'll also plant some snowdrops "in the green" in that back bed in Feb. Mum is going to take me to a special place to buy some! I did buy the trillium and Paris bulbs - so they're in that back bed near the ferns. Let's hope they work at it was probably a bit late in the year to be planting them.

The themes for my two new flower beds are going to be "jewels" and "pink". I want to put two climbing supports in the pink bed for Clematis and/or roses. I never used to like roses but I've been eyeing them up recently. I'll get a late flowering one for next year to provide colour at the end of the year.

Anyway - here is a rather misty pic of the garden taken on the 9th December.

Bulbs

I'm shattered today. I planted 170 odd bulbs over the weekend. Roll on spring.

It was mainly Narcissi , snowdrops and bluebells at the end of the garden. I really want to turn that into a much more overgrown "forest". The soil quality is pretty poor so I've been feeding it manure and trying to turn it over. I think the main reason not much grows is because of the big trees in the park. I want it to be far more overgrown so i was looking in the garden center for shade loving plants with dense foliage that don't need much water.. umm..

I've also planted tulips and Anemone nearer the house. I hope those beds get enough sun on the soil.

They should be really rained in today. It's been miserable.

Plans for next year

The weather has been a lot drier in August compared with July. My gladioli and sweetpea are coming out now - as seen in the pictures


I've been trying to plan what i want to do next year. I'd like something else amongst the grasses. I did put some seeds for wild flowers in there, but i think i put them in too late as the grasses had already grown quite a bit. I'll definitely put some spring bulbs in but it would be nice if it was a bit more interesting throughout the summer as well. it would look good with some taller flowers like poppies (papaver orientale (red) or meconopsis grandis (blue) is like what I mean. Also Helenium a red flower that flowers in Autumn would be good). In Gardeners' world this month there is a scheme with grasses and some bulbs - purple sensation. Maybe i could try introducing those when i plant the spring bulbs plus add some new grasses next spring. Actually i could put gladioli there. Or (from book):
watsonia borbonica (summer flowering pink 1 - 1.5 m)
Allium Stipitatum (summer purple-pink 1 - 1.5m)
(or any other allium)


As for the back of the garden i really need to fill that out. I could add a couple more shrubs but what I'd really like are lots and lots of wild looking flowers - like foxgloves, penstemons delphiniums and phlox

looking in my book these might be nice as well:

• symphytum x uplandicum - flower late spring / early summer pink/blue/purple
• sidalcea 'oberon' - summer pink flowers
• veronica gentianoides - small summer white flower

I also like all the flowers that look like big daisies. None of the ones I've planted before ever work though. The heads fall off about a week after i buy them and then no new flowers grow. I really do need to test my soil and get things that work well. Also work out if it is well drained or not. I'm not sure what I've previously bought and there are so many different types in my plant book that all look pretty much the same to me.

I have ordered some bulbs today. I'm going to put snowdrops and bluebells at the back and lots of daffs/narcissus in the other beds, including in the grasses and along the edge of the lawn

I def need to manure and stuff this winter and make all the beds and plants happy. The other thing I'm not sure of is what to leave in the ground and what I'll have to take out. the fast growing tobacco plant for eg - is that a perennial or an annual - there is one in each section of my book.


I've had loads of slugs and snails this year. Next year i need to get copper rings. the other things I'd like to do are:
- grow herbs
- grow tomoatos
- make a private bit of the garden
- get a proper hammock
- have a water feature
- make some cuttings from the hidden fushia
- get a mini greenhouse and grow some seedlings and cuttings that way