Johnplotman's Journal

Late going to play cards yesterday evening.

Clearing greenhouse Tomatoes 2010.

Not much work got done as hoped for in the garden,yesterday evening.Took a fast walk around with the help of a lamp to throw an eye on beds in the vegetable garden.

Went to play cards later for an hour or so,before heading back to the tunnel to weed out one of the small beds on return last night.

Nice and bright here this morning,and if all goes to plan i might get to give the top lawn a badly needed trim,having had to be avoided with the busy Show weekend, gone by.Maybe get finish the other lawns later in the week.

Another evening of garden shed work.

Picture taken earlier this morning from the rose bed.

Thanks to rain,yesterday evening had to be spent doing some garden work in the shed.The place was given a much needed tidy up in the top area.With the final few Onions,they were tied up to the different areas.All covered Potatoes there were given their weekly check,to make sure no effected tubers were seen,to cause damage to others.The top half of the garden shed had the tables cleaned down,but the other side will have to wait another day.Finished up last night around 11 pm and retired to the seed room to spend a short while there,just checking on some plans for sowing later in the year there.

Back to gardening after a great show,yesterday.

Ciara me niece with her minature garden that captured second place.

It was a great day yesterday in the show.The weather was right for the job,with a splendid turnout.I read through the booklet and noticed entries from different counties of Ireland.Some splendid areas of flowers were to be seen in that section,with entries well up this year.Late on Saturday evening,i left down some of the veg trays,and even then flowers and veg were arriving to some of the tables.Horses,hounds,sheep,dog shows,chickens,the lot were out in the main field on Sunday.So overall a great day was had by all there.

This evening in the garden shed i started to tie up some of the onions.By just beyond 8 pm it was down to only 4 deg outside,so quite a nip in the air.I hope to spend an hour there early in the morning,and then to work in the veg garden on return tomorrow evening at some stage.

A splendid win in the local show today.

Best exhibit in the Potato section winner for 2010.

The last few days have been hectic in the garden.All time has been spent getting ready for the local show,washing every entry,preparing them etc,and to have them right for the show.In the Potato section i captured a first and a second prize.The Peas also came first and the Rhubarb second.Overall four cards won.

The underage gardeners gained a great two seconds and two thirds in there group.

We were all so happy in the hall.I will add pictures and a better journal tomorrow at some stage.This minute,its time to celebrate the win. 

In the centre of the main garden.

On the down hill slide.

Things are starting to look a little under the weather,around the garden.Leaves are falling off and winter feels near.Could be worse.No gardening will get done for the next few days,only just a quick visit in the mornings,and late in the evenings.If all goes well i will get back for the usual cards games later this evening.No further plans.The morning has brightened up well,after a serious amount of rain during the night.

The main flower is looking a little under the weather.

Thanks Fran.

Thanks Fran.

Many thanks Fran for the seeds,i received on the post a short while back.They have been placed in the storage area,and will be if full use come the next growing time.Thanks again.

On a rather dull morning.

Another rose from the main bed.

This morning i hope to get to spend a short while in the vegetable garden.Some more harvesting needs doing,and the place is looking a little under the weather.At least the rain has held off this morning.How long though,is another story.

With Turnips [Brassica napa] the roots are caused to split after a dry spell,and then sudden watering.Help again this next time round,by digging in plenty of humus to help the moisture,by mulching,and also by watering in dry weather.Cracked roots wont store and will cause more trouble to others.

The purple roses in the main bed along with the rest will soon need a complete tidy up here.

Sunday plans for this morning.

In the rose bed.

Some more light digging needs doing on some of the beds in row 2  of the vegetable garden.The weather has left things a lot harder,but we have to put up with it.I hope to have the final touches finished there,before starting autumn feeding of the heavy clay soil,to let the microbial group come into action. 

The picture is from the rose bed and some weeding is overdue there.Maybe on return this evening,or first thing in the morning for a short while.

Using beds for trench composting.

Trench composting plan for over winter..

The compost heaps are almost full up,and now it is time to call on the trench composting in other areas.Where the legumes will be placed in the coming year, have some of the beds there used for this type of composting.Just used as a handy alternative to the main heaps,for kitchen wastes,old stalks etc,during winter.Each time a layer is down,then some clay is to go on top,before the next layer of compost.When full then it will be left ready for new plants,

Finally its flowering,and looking for its name.

First flower this year.

Its been a long wait for this to flower.I walked past it over the last few years and only admired the small yellow flowers each time i went into the garden here.Plenty more flowers are ready to appear now,but this is the first one to show for the year.I have a tag ready to place on to the plant and would love its name.Thanks.

Bright and cheerful morning..

Earlier this morning.

Time to forget about the weather damage caused over the last few weeks,and think of the better side of gardening.I know it is hard to do.Walking through the garden on return home last night,left plenty to remember of damage caused,but it could be a lot worse.Flower pots met me at the gate,and also on the lawn.The place needs a good tidy up.Spent about an hour going round to get a decent look to the place.

This morning the sky has plenty of sunshine,so looks like a nice day.We all need it.

Swimming time approaches again.

Arthur Bell Rose shines,despite the weather.

Inside jobs have been on the cards so far this morning after the washout.Plenty of rain fell during the night.The tunnel needs more weeding and the greenhouse similar.Mulch in places is more like muck,and diseases in the vegetable garden thanks to rain,call fast.Hard to make weekend plans for the garden.Play it by ear.At least the rain has stopped,and that is one good thing.

The Rose at the bottom of the garden shines no matter the weather,and that is a great boost.

That time of year again.

Cleaning time.

All the cleaning up is getting done,and between that and the rain quite, messy.During this month with the harvesting,it is expected.Not all the time though.Hopefully it wont be here for to long more.Plenty of digging and cleaning,but all in gardening.

Later this evening in the garden.

A little on the dull side this morning,but not to bad.

If all goes to plan i hope to get to spend a few hours in the vegetable garden later this evening.After all the rain,the place is in a mess.That is gone now we hope for a while,and one good thing about the weather is being,that it is not cold.Just the type of weather though,for certain diseases in the veg,garden.Some of the vegetable beds are due an autumn manuring.This will be done to an area of the raised beds.Today is a little on the bright side.Still plenty of dark clouds in places to be seen,so all we can be done is hope for the best.

Around the garden this wet morning..

Heather in full bloom.

I took an early walk around the area here to see all the rain damage caused.More of the vegetables need harvesting at a fast rate or winter weather will damage them.The slugs have been in top gear with the rain and only to happy to call.Not much we can do about the weather only hope for the best to come soon.With the weather readings though,it is not looking like that.Leaves are falling at a fast rate,but despite the weather,still going strong.

The picture was taken just a few days back,of the heather in the main flower bed.

Rain,rain,and more rain.

Earlier in the week.Despite weather,holding well.

Plans for this morning changed a little.Some areas in the garden badly need attention,but they will have to wait another while.Rain spoils play again.Took a quick walk down the garden just after 7am and it was like the middle of winter.Later this evening on return home,maybe the weather will have improved and allow time with the garden jobs.For just about another hour or so,i will spend time in the garden shed.The shelves need a tidy up there.So much for to keep rain off and leave the sunshine.If we only could.

Back to garden studies,but not today.

Watching out for sunshine,my four legged friend.

Most of the weekend so far has been spent,looking up charts etc that belong to earlier in the year.The weather effected plans for outdoor work especially yesterday,but a big change for today.Despite being cloudy,the sun is out again and that is on the good side.I will spend some more time grading the Onion  areas and maybe some time in the tunnel.Afternoon the garden will get a miss,but maybe this evening on return some more jobs will get done there.If not,then for an hour in the tunnel later tonight at some stage.

On the damp side this morning.

So much for sunshine.

The rain has called back,but this time it is needed.Watering will be helped on well now for this time.Indoor watering still needs doing this morning.

I had planned to get the grass cut today but a full stop there.Warm damp weather brings many diseases,mainly the likes of Blight,Leaf Spot etc.A large section of the Potatoes areas have been harvested and stored,but the 3 onion areas will now need supports under them to keep them drying out well.

So much for rain,good in one way and trouble in another.No complaints this time though as it is needed,apart from setbacks with it.Notes need checking on for results of vegetable outcome,throughout the year,so it looks like that will be on the cards today.Best not complain,and be thankful for the rain.

The picture is from my neighbours garden earlier in the week.

My small Sunflower.

Tiny Sunflower at the front of the shed.

Yesterday at lunchtime,while passing by the garden shed in a hurry,i really noticed this small Sunflower.Normally it was not much,but is in full bloom now.Happens to be in a slight shade.This has to be one of the smallest in the garden here,which i have not paid much heed to,in a while.The sunshine is a winner with them.Having been in the legumes beds,and some have already been removed,but not this one.This Sunflower will fly the flag of summer sunshine here as long as possible from that harvested area.

Fuchsia finally has shown.

At long last.

I took a fast look around the garden this evening just before having something to eat,and i threw my eye on the Fuchsia at the side of the top lawn,close to the bird house.At long last i have noticed some leaves and flowers showing well there.Starting to despair for that,one as the Fuchsia in the front bed is out a while now and doing great.I have also put this one down to the title Mrs Popple,which i was given,when looking for that in an earlier journal.[Thanks].It is good to have the title for it.

In about 2 hrs im off to play cards as i did not get there last week,apart from just a fast hello.Before that i want to spend time in the outer garden to check on what vegetables need harvesting.The sun shines and we are in for a lovely evening.

Nights getting longer.

Almost lighting up time.

As the nights get longer and colder at that,we must prepare for an avalanche of cold weather.The coldframes and cloches need sorting out.Dead vegetables left on beds after harvesting the crop will act as areas for infections,so take care and remove them.Winter lettuce will be started but in cold areas will need protection with fleece etc in late October.I will be using seed by the name Winter Desity to suit the lettuce.Time will be spent in the garden shed,greenhouse,and tunnel for  the long winter evenings when they arrive.

A final Onion harvest in September.

Harvest time from this area started for 2010.

This month sees the end of the Onions,for this time of year with some strange weather,and a few of them late in ripening.If tops have not been turned to expose the bulbs to the sunshine,that will be done now.The remainder of the crop will be up during this month without fail.