Kids enjoying the garden

Done a bit of work this Spring (2007)

Lots of the bulbs I planted have come up and 2 out of the 4 fruit trees are in leaf.

We covered the so called lawn in weed surpressing membrane and bark chippings and this has made a better surface for the children.

Garth RIP ... and the garden is a mess

Our cat, garth passed away a couple of weeks ago. Very sad, but he was 13. Mark buried him in the garden and as he was all white we planted some snowdrops on his grave. We buried him at the edge of the lawn rather than in the border so he wont be disturbed.

Ive planted a few more things ...

In the front garden I created a balcony box on the railings. I also planted some mossy saxifrage and primulas around the edges of the front so called lawn.

In the back I have planted forget me nots, snowdrops, mossy saxifrage, sweet william. Ive also planted up a couple of planters with primulas and pansies to cheer things up.

As you can see from the Photos Raph had fun in the snow

The lawn looks a complete dog though. Not sure what to do.

New Year - New Perennials

I have planted lots of hostas and lily of the valley down the right hand side border. They are all in the shade of the fence and some are beneath trees, so I think this is a suitable position for all of them. The soil is very moist, I suspect its clay, but its quite dark too, and slightly more crumbly than I thought, so it looks like decent stuff. I added some silver sand and grit to the bottom of the planting hole when I put the lily of the valley in, hopefully to improve drainage around the roots. I am not sure about the lily of the valley. I put 20 down the right hand side and 10 in the kitchen window bed. Last time I planted these (in another garden) they didnt come up. I dressed them with a bit of sand and peat and sprinked some growmore and slug pellets. Ive never grown hostas before but I know they like damp shade so they have that.

I also planted some elephants ears in the bed in front of the outhouse. These were donated very kindly by my friend Ethel, and dug up by her son Keith. Hope they get on OK in our garden, as their garden is very different, all sandy and stony, but everything grows well.

The bird feeder I installed before Christmas is doing OK. We get tits and a Robin visiting. I had to clean out the seed feeder as it got all wet inside, the seeds sprouted and went mouldy.
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I have also planted up a strawberry tub with Ostara (bottom) and Elsanta (top). I bought the strawberries and the hostas from Wilkinsons. As they are the bare root plastic bag type plants Im a bit nervous. One hosta is undulata mediovariegata (varigated) and the other is Halcyon (plain). Hope these bulk up.

I have a bag of other stuff I got from B&Q including gladioli, Iris, bleeding heart, crocosmia lucifer all of which I will plant later.

The apple tree which got its leaves early seems to be still OK, but the leaves look slightly withered. They are still green though.

What has puzzled me most though are the fuchsias. The ones that defoliated a little when I transplanted them have got new leaves. Another is still in flower. I should cut them back in March, but as they have new leaves I dont know if I should be doing it now.

The Lawn is a disgrace!

Will we be able to renovate this lawn or shall we have to start again from scratch?

It is full of couch grass. It was cut about a week ago but it made it look worse.

Ive asked my friends on Sheffield forum to help.

What do you think?

Plant a tree in '73 plant some more in 2006

Doesnt quite scan so well does it? Plant a tree in 2006. Anyone else remember the slogan 'Plant a Tree in '73'?

Well I bought some trees from Netto. A bargain at £3.99 each. Listed below:

Helderfinger Cherry - a good choice for garden use and a good pollinator for other cherries. Good Flavour with juicy flesh, or so the blurb says.
The label says its a self pollinator. I googled it and couldnt find Helderfinger but found Hedelfingen which I presume is the same, but many sites say it needs a pollinator, so if you know about this tree let me know please!!! Picking time late July. Never had a real cherry tree before so we will see.

Bramley Apple - Needs pollinator: Elstar, Granny Smith or Cox's Orange (nearly typed Cox's orgasm for some reason).

Elstar Apple - Pollinator G. Smith or Cox's (couldnt find either of these)

Golden Delicious Apple - Pollinator Elstar, Granny Smith or Cox's Orange

On the back of the apple label it gives pruning info which I will reproduce here because Im bound to lose the label:

• Regular pruning of apple trees is necessary to promote more fruit bearing growths, and therefore more fruit. In early summer prune the current years growth back approximately 6 or 7 buds from the main stem. This will encourage more fruiting spur growths to form. In winter simply prune out any overcrowded branches and remove any diseased branches and any crossing branches. The aim of this is to open up the centre of the tree. With apple trees it is important to remember when shaping your tree, that horizontal branches bear more fruit than vertical branches do.
• Use a good general fertiliser which as a large potash content in early spring.
• Use a good multi purpose spray for mildew and aphid.

Malus Crab Apple John Downie - bears white flowers in spring succeeded by large red-flushed, orange crab apples in autumn.

Sorbus Aucuparia - Ornamental tree. White flowers in spring followed by red berries.

I planted these today. Worked in a bit of compost with them all. All the fruit trees are in the back garden around the fence, hope they get enough sun in summer. The Rowan is in the back, too in the sunny spot for some reason. Mr P wouldnt let me change my mind as he was labouring today. The crab has gone into the front.
Photos to follow (hopefully).

We also planted some more bulbs.

Bought some more stuff from Netto like heathers, box, skimmia, red hot poker, helenium. Havent planted these yet.

Moving in - a blank canvas - September 2006

We moved into our new home on 23rd September 2006. I am the gardener of the family - and answer to Peaches. Mr Peaches is a mere labourer. We have two little peaches too which aid and abet my attempts at gardening.



What struck me at first was that the previous occupants were definitely not gardeners. All we had were two unkempt lawns, which were too wet to cut.



14th October 2006

This weekend I started to do a bit of work. I bought some shrubs from Morrisons and commenced planting. I dug over the bed at the side of the patio, under the kitchen window. Despite being heavily shaded the soil seems to be in quite good nick. I plant a couple of pyracanthas against the fence, a couple of fuchsias which I brought from my old house, a couple of last year's lavender cuttings from old house a pair of Christmas Roses, several bulbs and a few primula.

I then dug over the bed just past the outhouse which was covered in almost grass (dont know what its called but its that shallow rooted stuff which sends out runners). I plant two more pyracanthas against the fence, and think I probably need two more! Then the young lad helps me plant several mixed daffodil bulbs, a Viburnum Tinus and a heuchera. I remove quite a few slugs and snails and decide I need some pellets or something.

The slabs on the path are quite uneven and I make a mental note to tell Mr P to attend to them.

I get out the strimmer and attempt the so called lawn. It is so long and doesnt strim well. The strimmer keeps dying. I try the flymo with a bit more success, but Mr P comes along with the rotary mower and cuts it after a fashion. It looks a mess. Its lumpy and bumpy and the grass is barely grass. Vile. I decide it needs to be redone but I darent tell Mr P yet as he is struggling with laminate flooring.

A couple of days later I add an Acuba as its good in shade. The garden has lots of that! Also I plant an old fuchsia from my previous garden and a sedum from the same place, a few more bulbs and I also have a go at some Irishmens cuttings or hardwood cuttings. These are from the old garden and are basically foot long lengths of forsythia, ribes, mock orange and euonymous cut from the old garden and stuck into a sheltered patch near the patio door.