A spring contrast of the self-set and highly cultivated

It has been SO cold lately that I have been a real wimp about getting out and busy! Even on Saturday morning there was ice on the birdbaths. Happily the self-seeders seem to thrive on neglect in any weather. This year there is a profusion of bluebells, primroses and forget-me-nots.
But an unusually warm bank holiday (it only rained this afternoon!) has nudged me into action. There is much to do. The area behind the greenhouse and the greenhouse itself are in need of much attention and I've decided on a radical change-around. I shall do away with the white-currant that produces hardly any, tiny fruits, the overgrown strawberries I can't eat, plant some new raspberry canes (I mistakenly pruned out the wrong ones in my haste to get in from the cold a month or so back) and make some space for a few veg. It means moving a few gems like this clump of self-set English bluebells but they do seem to be thriving everywhere this year and transplant remarkably well. In the greenhouse the dahlias are coming up nicely in their pots. A greenhouse is useful but really warrants an every-day gardener. I am looking forward to some help in sorting out the leaking roof and broken pane and then will revise it's more practical use rather than a hot general storage/junk hole!
The grass is still suffering the plant-form of alopecia, nearly 2 boxes on although at last there are signs of life. I'm sure its' germination is being inhibited by the cold. But I have not given in yet. Other things are definitely being affected by the cold. Some of my Sarah Raven Ipomoea lanata seedlings caught the frost. Luckily I kept some in a sheltered spot and am now bringing them on in the kitchen. There are far fewer aquilegias this year and some are looking yellowy and weak. A few geraniums also seem very reticent in putting on growth as do several clematis. Good jobs tulips never disappoint.
Against a background of self-set forget-me-nots an assortment of Ballerina, Coleur Cardinal, Ronaldo (or Havran?) and Curly Sue with Prinses Irene emerging. Close-up are Ballerina and Coleur Cardinal in the rain!
NB. I had forgotten what I'd ordered and some seem to be very similar so the names might be a bit dodgy!!
Lastly, here is a rather pot-bound Hosta Francis Williams. Such energy in its emerging spikes, so far snail-free!

A robin at Easter

Not many things worth photographing just now but I am enjoying a little pot of primroses and polyanthus and some of their self-set hybrids!
Since the weather has chosen to throw us a mix of March and April excesses this weekend it's been a matter of making the most of the quiet patches. Friday's objective was successfully achieved with the joint-exercise of severe pruning my neighbours' huge shrub(?), although not without incident as one of them managed to fall, dramatically, off a step ladder - it going one way and him the other. Fortunately no harm was done! I now have much more light on my virtually "bald" grass patch (no, no photos!) and having sewn a third batch of expensive shade-tolerant grass seed I am really hoping for some more promising results (although I am beginning to suspect the whole process is more of a very expensive bird-feeding exercise!).
Before the rain began on Saturday I re-established two of my Diana Roles bird baths which were almost immediately put to good use and are now virtually filled with rainwater. There has been plenty of bird activity including the blackbirds which may or may not be planning on using a nest they've built near the house, a pair of goldfinches, plenty of blue tits and great tits and there have been regular visits from a coal tit, for the first time in ages. Most intriguingly a robin has been hovering and going in and out of the (unpopular!) ivy covering the boundary fence. At first he/she/they seemed to be visiting many different spots and I thought they might be after insects but today's activity has included transporting nesting material, including a large laurel leaf almost the size of the little bird which actually proved a bit too unmanageable! I hope they succeed with their attempts as it would be great to watch them so near my kitchen window.
Saturday's lull also enabled me to do a fair bit of tidying up dead plant-matter and pot up some lilies and dahlia tubers. Running short of other hole-blocking materials I made use of some large ivy leaves.

I am also experimenting with a new means of ID. It seems the pots will just fit inside the named bags the dahlias arrive in. With a bit of luck I might get my colour-balances right this year although with a unidentified few tubers which seem to have survived in the shed from last season it won't be all that predictable.

Dahlia tubers

I've just received a (birthday) box of J Parker's dahlia tubers - Wittemans Best, Apache and Dark Spirit. A great incentive to clear the greenhouse out and start potting up! I find it's definitely worth starting dahlias in pots - they come into flower much earlier and it's far easier to protect them from hungry (or just greedy) slugs.

Spring cleaning

I had my first serious gardening session of the year yesterday, making the most of the fine weather. The main objectives were to tidy the bay hedge and everything that's now growing through and over it (ideas which seem great but actually need a lot of control!), tidy the path and terrace and have a review of the overall situation. I'm trying to keep the hedge at a manageable height which will mean more trimmings but should involve less teetering at the top of the step ladder. So far so good. There is still some moss to clear from the terrace but it looks much better, especially removing unwanted seedlings from between the bricks.
I was accompanied in my scraping and sweeping by a robin - or robins, a pair were darting about the garden later. I also discovered a new blackbird nest in the bay nearest the house and they are busy back and forth as I write. I am always wary of clearing too much so early in the season as I like to leave nest-building materials so although I cut back quite a few dead stems of perennials I also left plenty and made a pile of mixed "materials" in a discreet spot behind the greenhouse. Dead hosta leaves seem popular and I would imagine lily of the valley too since they seem to decay back to soft wispy fibres.
My second sewing of grass has not taken. But I have arranged to cut back my neighbour's large overshadowing shrub at Easter! I also need to find someone to repair the greenhouse, fix a wobbly fence-post and need to treat the shed with wood-preserver. The list of (plant) gardening tasks is far too long to list here. Plenty to keep me busy!
Spring has definitely sprung with tulips breaking the ground, clematis and roses all shooting and a few bees buzzing around.... I'm looking forward to the early Easter.

Very late tulip planting

A shameful gap in my posting! In part I'm using the seemingly-endless wet weekends as an excuse. It is brilliant to have a sunny frosty Saturday morning at last, especially as it was only last weekend that I dodged the showers to plant the last of the tulips bulbs.
This year I've gone for Curly Sue, Coleur Cardinal, Havran, Grand Perfection, Ronaldo, Jimmy, Irene Parrot, Burgundy and Ballerina - all purchased from J Parker's along with Sarah Raven's Venetian Tulip collection of National Velvet, Havran and Prinses Irene. I have to say the Sarah Raven bulbs were substantially bigger and healthier-looking than Parker's.
Some of the Parker's bulbs were affected by mould which was a concern as I knew I wouldn't be able to plant them immediately so I took advice from the web. I washed affected bulbs in a very mild bleach solution, cutting off mouldy and rotted sections with sharp knife, then dried them all very carefully. Apparently a small amount of this mould is dispersed and neutralised once bulbs are planted by the natural bacterial actions in the soil (not a reliably technical explanation!).
With regard to planting, having managed to muddle up the parrot tulips with another pack I decided to put the whole lot in a box together and plant at random. It will be exciting to see what happens!
The latest on the grass front is a sad tale. In spite of Greensleeves' tender care, I now have weed and moss-free area which is quite bald in patches. Having researched grass alternatives I am going to have one last attempt at re-seeding with tough shade-tolerant grass seed throughout 2016 and see what else I can cut back to reduce shade. If that fails I think it will be a major re-design. We will see what 2016 brings!
Happy gardening to those of you who've been kind enough to keep reading - I will do my best to post some nice pictures this year!

Perfect growing weather (and earwigs!)

Hasn't it been? September with its rain and the recent Indian Summer have given me plenty to keep on top of this year - hence the dearth of posts. Since it's gone back to "normal" now, I'll try for a brief catch-up.
Firstly, this year has proved great for dahlias. Again the pot-grown tubers have outshone those I left in the ground to overwinter but they have almost all flowered with varying degrees of success although the verdict is definitely that in a small garden like mine where space is so restricted, it's worth starting everything in pots to make the most of it. Maybe I will give away this year's tubers to those with more space - or good dry overwinter storage! (Any takers?)
In spite of my initial misgiving, I had mixed varieties fairly well, the dominant hues being through deep crimson through to magenta-white and mid-pink with a few whites and an over-wintered yellow thrown in to shake things up a bit! Daniel's Favourite is a new one to me - almost the opposite of Hayley Jane. Great,strong plant - love it.

Another things that's been (more than) plentiful this year is earwigs. There seems to be at least one fall out of every bloom I cut for the house - hence much chasing them round. They seem to have a strong preference for white blooms, so much so that I have spent a lot of time picking them off as they seem to think that sticking their heads in under the petals hides their tails - a bit ostrich-like maybe! Like lily beetles they also seem a bit dim about camouflage!

In addition to eating the petals, they make a nasty mess with their detritus. However, I think I saw a hedgehog's droppings nearby the other day so maybe there is something positive to come from this!

Between August rains

I am not complaining about the weather. I have never seen the garden so lush at this time of year! Greensleeves applied their third treatment to the grass last week and I have to say I think their visits are worth every penny. Even though I have some very thin patches the overall effect is greener than it has ever been. I'm sure the inhibiting of any moss is a significant factor. Pity they can't do any treatment to prevent squirrels digging holes and burying peanuts. (No, removing the hazel tree hasn't made any difference!)
This year's weather has really suited dahlias. Here are the first to come into flower. In the background two phlox are providing the pink and white. They seem to love it here and have really flourished.
As usual the bit of planning I managed to put in to colour-balancing the dahlias has gone a bit awry and the success of over-wintered plants in conjunction with some of this years new tubers has resulted in some congested areas but it's all good fun. Some of the nicest surprises with dahlias are the freaks of nature - as in this pompon sporting two rogue red petals.

I between the dahlias the heads of alliums have dried out and are beginning to disintegrate. I find it hard to decide when to cut them down - sometimes they decide for me! Likewise the opium poppy heads. The plants go through a lovely transition from green-blue to brown but then the leaves are a bit grotty before they finally dry out. But here's one I'm glad I left as it's made a great background for this splendid shield bug. I read somewhere a recommendation to spend 20 minutes a day just looking at the insect-life in your garden. There's a lot to be said for that (with your glasses on that is!).