Month: December 2009

Took a quick walk down the garden to check on the tunnel especially to make sure all is ok there.So far so good with no damage caused.The wind is still bad with sleet falling and between both the real bad cold is in the air.Impossible to plan anything for the garden tomorrow as yet,but if at all possible the tunnel will get a visit to check on things.Seeds for the new year will be given a look over in the garden shed also tomorrow at some stage.

I have just been outside to inspect the garden before I head off to work. The bird feeder was knocked onto the ground, together with my nyjer feeder for the finches, which seems to be broken. The lid won’t stay on. Hopefully Steve can work some magic on it when he gets home. My Jasminum nudiflorum has been blown to bits. So far, that’s the only damage I can find.

My camera is definitely on the blink. It wouldn’t switch on yesterday morning, but worked when I got home from work. Now it isn’t working again. It must be only 6months old and of course the guarantee is nowhere to be found. So this picture was taken with my old camera. This is on the blink too, god knows how long it will work for. I think I will be getting a new camera at the weekend, when I get my new alarm clock. Maybe Santa should pay just ONE more visit to me before the year is out!!!!!!!!!!!

A few lines from a little town called Sainte-Anne d’Auray in Brittany…

Time has flown since the Christmas get-together nearly 3 weeks ago! It was really really nice to meet so many of you and everybody was so kind and friendly! I have a few photos which I will put up when we are back. I hope everybody had a good Christmas, and is getting ready for the New Year! Needless to say I did not do any gardening in the last couple of weeks, but I am looking forward to getting back into the garden soon.

In the meantime, here we are getting ready for double celebrations, the New Year’s Eve "réveillon" tonight, which is a big thing in France, and Sophie’s 9th birthday tomorrow. She is a "’new year baby", and let me tell you, no matter how late we stay up on  31st December, since 2001 we have always been up early on January 1st, often hearing a little voice saying "It’s my birthday !!!" It is a lovely way to start the New Year!

So, I want to to wish all my friends on garden.ie a very Happy and Healthy New Year for 2010, may it bring you a lot of happiness, all the things you desire…and lots of fun and enjoyment in the garden!

 

What a difference a day makes. The sun is shining the gales are gone it’s still pretty cold a our pond is still frozen but it bodes well for the last day of the noughty’s in Monaghan. Hopefully not to much damage done going out to tidy up a bit and see what’s what. Looking at the day outside hopefully there’ll be a spectacular sunset to close the year and the weather forecast predicting the bad weather to continue won’t materialise.

Wishing Everyone a Happy New Year and 2010 to be a Good One.

Well it’s taken me a hour to get this journal entry done as my Broadband 3G service has died and I really dont know if I’ll be able to get it back!! (I’ve done this from my brother in laws slow mobile broadband)

But just  a quick note to all members who have shared the site with me over the year, here’s hoping 2010 is a good year even if it’s due to get off to a very Chilly start!

I’ll leave you with an appropriate quote from my Kris Kindle present:

"The Gardening season officially

begins on January 1st and ends

on December 31st"

Here’s hoping thatmy broadband comes back soon and I get back on the site and sorry I’ve missed all your over the Christmas postings. By the way Santy brought me a super 7 window propogator (still untested) and four Gardening books a lovely ‘Annuals, Bulbs and Perennials" by R.Bird & K.Brown many thanks Linda for that. Also "Inspirational Gardens" by Pamela Westland, "Landscaping with Tropical Plants" by M. Moran Brandies and "The New exotic Garden" by Will Giles (my wife heard me talking about it being on your wish list Rachel. So I did very well will try to post pics but I’m not hopeful (dont know when I’ll Get on again)

A windy night in Wexford. Luckily the only damage seems to be to some plastic membrane, which has been lifted. Hubby has volunteered to go out and sort that now. Temperatures are reasonable. It’s 7 degrees in the greenhouse at the minute so I have opened the louvre windows and lifted the lids off boxes. My new water butt is nicely full : )

Meanwhile indoors, I am delighted to see my Nepenthes cuttings making progress.

While I am strenuously resisting the urge to tug at the cuttings to check for rooting, I did notice this new growth on one cutting today. Looks like Wayne will be getting his first Nepenthes soon : )

So, as a final wish for 2009. I would like to wish you all a Happy New Year and, hopefully, we’ll have a bumper 2010!

Just looking back on the year and I have to say it was a good year, in fact every year from now on is a good year. So many good memories and high up there is my introduction to Garden.ie and the lovely people whom I met and got to know.  Weather wise it was not too good, but that is a challenge, maybe next year. I dream of rain at night and sun during the day, bar-b-q’s until 10 at night in shirt sleves. Flowers that last for at least two months and no slugs. Best wishes to all my friends and good gardening in 2010.

Just after lunch i managed to have a look in the garden shed to check on some seeds for 2010.Plans with the roots beds to use Spinach[Perpetual spinach] Carrots[James Scarlet] Turnip[Purple top Milan]Beetroot[Boltardy]Swede[to be decided]Parsnip[White Gem] Both turnips and sweds final placings to be checked.Either sown with the roots or the brassicas.That will be most of the roots planned for the new year including the potatoes,and they will be from Duke Of York,British Queens,and Roosters.

Once the start of January comes then Spring will be in the air in a short while and the bad weather will eventually move off [we hope].Good luck to all the gardeners have a great New Year..

 

Today has just been fantastic, sun shining although mighty cold. Spent the morning in the kitchen but after lunch escaped out into the winter air. The ground is quite frozen but I spent a while digging over one of my raised beds in the kitchen garden, went thinking maybe I would be able to extract carrots but to no avail frozen solid. Lifted 2 leeks for soup and picked some purple  sprouting brocolli as well but it’s sort of at an end. Planted up the remainder of the bag of daffodils in pots of compost which luckily was covered and therefore not frozen. Also planted up more Anenome The Bride and some alliums that I discovered in the cupboard with my gardening tool bag will keep my fingers crossed that they will grow but if not at least I tried – Nothing Ventured Nothing Gained. Tidied up the Lavender in the trough on top of the wall no sign of any bulbs peeping up hoping that they haven’t disappeared. Cut back the withered Clematis stems  on the arch as they have taken quite a battering, lots of crocus bulbs peeping up hopefully tomorrow will be another good day and I’ll be able to get out again and do a bit more.

Kate arrived with late Christmas presents for the kids as she was eventually able to get her car out. She forgot to bring my present which she had put away of 4 David Austin bare root rosesin pinky shades. I actually was going to get the book out to order some but will wait to see which ones are waiting for me.

The sun was sinking behind the trees and then I noticed to the North the moon rising. It’s getting decidedly cold here and having just seem the weather forecast there is every possibilty that we’ll be back to white again. Temperatures to drop tp minus 10 so it looks like no respite from this wintery weather.

Wishing all Garden.ie members a Happy New Year and having just seen the weather on the news I hope everyone is safe take care if your out and about.

 

In between watching Madagascar on the TV and playing with new games, I grabbed my youngest two for a little gardening task.

Josh (9) and Sam (7) have had a set of tiny cactuses in their bedroom for a long time. I am ashamed to say that they have not been treated well. This summer when Alison came to visit, she brought Sammy another cactus. I was delighted with this new one because it reminded me of one I had known as a child – you can pull off pieces and stick them in the ground and they re-grow. I remembered being totally fascinated with this cactus as a child and had completely forgotten about it until Alison’s gift (by the way, does anyone know the name of this cactus? – Better photo in the House Plants Album).

Anyway, today the boys, with my help and the help of my new cactus book from Linda, re-planted their little cactuses in one bowl. I also gave them a little Echeveria for contrast. We are quite pleased with the result and hope to take better care of the arrangement in future.

Happy New Year!

This morning I noticed that my Guzmania wasn’t looking too healthy. The leaves are turning brown. I brought it downstairs for closer inspection. The flower was rotten and came off in my hand when I touched it. It wall all gooey and slimey. I thought that the bathroom would be the ideal place for this. Obviously I was wrong. Yeuch. It was disgusting. I only have it since the beginning of September. However, I cut off the flower down quite low. I really don’t know what else to do with it. All advice would be most welcome.

Got out in the garden and did a few bits of tidying up out in the back, pulling up the nasturtiums that had collapsed in the frost etc. Then I went out for a look in the front and discovered that my little tree had come down in the gales last night–it was a small prunus of some sort, maybe an ornamental peach, I’ve forgotten as it is almost 30 years there. There’s a small bit left so I think I’ll leave it and see how it gets on. Not sure if I should paint the wound with something? 

Happy New Year everybody!

What better way to say goodbye to 2009, than a pure white, fresh fall of snow. Pure white way of saying farewell to a less than good year, a clean start to 2010, it has really been great getting to know you all, and looking forword to getting to know you all better in 2010, upwards and onwards to much better things, in all ways.

 ENJOY, AND MAKE THE BEST OF WHAT IT BRINGS TO US ALL.

We have just been out for a lovely walk round the block in the snow! I love that first clean white layer! Mind you my poor hubby has to be up at dawn and out in it so I dont know how much he will like it if it freezes. But I am putting up a couple of photos.

I expect the flower count on this New Year’s day will be well down on previous years as a result of this cold snap. There will still be a few brave souls peeping out to herald in the new year and I will take a headcount as usual. While I was looking around the garden today we had a skift of snow, I can’t remember when we last had such a prolonged cold spell and it is bound to take its toal.

I just photographed the first snow shower we have had in Raheny this Winter just in case it vanishes overnight. It looks beautiful, a bit like wonderland.

Happy New Year!!

A New Years toast to love and laughter
and happily ever after

A health to you, a wealth to you,
And the best that life can give to you.

Dance as if no one were watching, sing as if no one were listening
and live every day as if it were your last.

We’ve Holidays and happy days,
and memory days galore
And when we’ve toasted every one,
I offer just one more
So let us lift our glasses high,
and drink a silent toast
To the day, deep buried in each heart
that each one loves the most

Here’s wishing you more happiness
Than all my words can tell,
Not just alone for New Years Eve
But for all the year as well.

Here’s to the days of good will,
cold weather, and warm hearts.