Month: February 2010

Over the past week my daughters and I have sewn 20 varieties of seeds – I am so impatient when it comes to them all germinating – just well they don’t all germinate together – I will probably cursing them all in another few weeks!!

Cauliflowers – germinated

Parsnips

Cucumbers Telegraph Improved

Thyme

Lemon Basil

Cosmos – germinated

Lavatera Pastel Mixed – germinated

Poppy Pink Dawn – germinated

Diascia Fi Fi- germinating

Rhodochiton (thanks Liga)

Mimosa Pudica

Agapanthus

Impatiens tinctoria (thanks Deborah)

Gazania Sunshine Mixed

Verbascum phoeniceum mixed

Begonia Tomfoolery Mix

Penstemon Huskers Red

Ligularia Dentala

Snapdragons (germinating)

Nicotiana Eau de Cologne

I haven’t been able to get the heat inside me all day. I spent all day yesterday doing the indoor plants so I had no excuse to be inside today. The jobs I was doing didn’t call for too much physical exertion. I got really cold. And stayed that way all day. Brrr…

We are doing a good deal in work at the moment : 60litres Compost, 60litres Topsoil and 30litres of Farmyard manure for just €12.00. Dave, we still have plenty left. I was thinking of growing mushrooms. They say manure is best. I was trying to figure out where to put the container to give them the required temperature. It should be at least 12 degrees and in a fairly dark place (garage would be ideal for dark, but its too cold out there) I Dmenu_order contemplate putting the container in the spare bedroom. Ok if I was living here on my own, I certainly would. But I can’t really! So anyway, I got the manure, topsoil and multipurpose compost, and the Mushroom (Dry Spawn). I think they will end up being done under the staging in the greenhouse when/if summer ever comes.

I am sitting here, still in my work fleece, with my sock feet up on the radiator. I have never been so cold for such a long spell. There is a drip on the end of my nose. It is to get down to -2 tonight. And another cold one tomorrow.

Another day with that nip in the air.Noticable especially,with not even the slightest sighting of the sun appearing.Time will be spent this evening working on the ground area,outside the tunnel door [under lights] for another section of pipe work.I managed to move out some of the trays from the seed room down to the tunnel [from 4 pm] and gave the trays a covering of bubble wrap.This will be removed in the morning.I have taken note of them in the tunnel book and will add them to my journal another evening.Some more potatoes have been brought  in for chitting.All plans for tomorrow evening and the weekend will be to get another step closer to having light in the tunnel.The waterproof light fitting will be picked up tomorrow evening. 

today we got all but 1 bed filled with soil. we now have 2 x 40ft x 3ft beds. 5 x 6ft x 4ft beds and one more 6ft x 4ft bed to fill. hopefully we will get our hands on a load or two of good well roten manure to add to the bed but before we do that i would like to do up a crop rotation plan so as to avoid put manure where root veg is to grow.we hope to add 5 crop bars which will be 15ft long each

 Thanks to Rachel, I have received my Jerusalem Artichokes. gosh Rachel so many and its not complain. I was planning to plant them today, but the weather been so bad- did not have a chance to do so. But i had enough time to browse for good recipies for my future harvest. ..

enjoy

Jerusalem artichoke gratin

Vegetarian Recipe

Serves 4

Ingredients

25g/1 oz butter (plus extra for greasing)
2 onions, finely sliced
1 kg/2 ¼ lb. Jerusalem artichokes, peeled
1 tsp. freshly grated horse radish or ½ tsp. horse radish sauce
300ml/ ½ pt. Double cream
Black pepper and sea salt

Thought I would never get home from work today. It was  still bright out so made a dash to get my little greenhouse inside. Finally sowed some of my seeds, felt great to get my hands dirty :O)

Have  everything written down in my copy will list up later what I planted. I planted a  few of each of my sunflowers and some of my secret seed stash along with some kind donations from other members.

Have one question: is it too early to plant teasel seeds yet, I somehow ended up with two packets one says to plant in early Spring but the other  says April / May. Is it too early to plant them indoors or should I go ahead ?? 

It was a very busy day yesterday with little time for gardening.

But I did pick myself up a good lot of Dahlias, and a few other tubers, from Lidl.

Late last evening, it was considered time to cut the hair of the little Grass Baby from Clara. Here is "Baba" after his new hair cut.

Took this in a neighbours garden reminds me of summer

I’m going to St Petersburg tomorrow, can’t wait to see the best city in the world!! I’ll be there till next Friday.

If you have never been in St Petersburg – just find a time to go there for couple of weeks, and you will fall in love with his unbelievable charm!

I got another nine privet plants down this morning. Maybe nine is my limit as this seems to be the number I put down each day. More like that nine is the number that fits in my car.

Hubby dug the extra holes for the recesses, where benches will go, in the hedge. There was a fair bit of cursing with the first recess as the ground was like a rock. Thankfully the second one went easier. And more thankfully still – the digger dug a trench for the vast majority of the hedge! We wouldn’t have been able to dig it ourselves at all. This is because the hedge is along the edge of a rocky cliff, with the emphasis on rocky!

The soil is really sticky out there and, before long, my gardening clogs were twice their normal weight with all the extra mud I was walking round. Very glad to be indoors again. I’m all our of ordinary compost and chicken pellets.

So, once in, I decided to take the good advice I gave Bill on planting his Gloriosa superba root asap. Last year my Glory Lily took 68 days from planting until the first shoot appeared. After that it was more than two months to flowering so… best get it done now.

I took a trip to the greenhouse to check on last year’s root which had been over-wintered out there, wrapped in fleece. The news was not good. It was completely rotten. Five minutes irrational upset and I was back on form. This year I have bought 3 Gloriosa superba roots which I am planting in a large 12" pot. That is done now and I even found a suitable place for the pot in the house. So onwards and upwards.

Choices, choices and more choices.  Where do I start.  Got fed up doing the shower and anyway the tiler can’t come till next Friday,  so I can buy a bit of time.

Took out the seed box to see what I had left over from last season and yes I have some tomato seeds.  Two half packs of Hybrid  "Harzfeuer"  and "Hildares"  plus half a pack of Hybrid Cherrytomato Mixture,  all from Lidl last year.  Here Goes……

More pics in Choices Choices 2010 photos.  Might just sow some of those leeks too.

Watch this space….

Hello to all my full time gardening friends!! There is a sniff of Spring here in Cavan today and a bit of a stretch in the evenings so I might be able shortly to get back to my garden again after a long Winter. During the Winter I go to work in the dark and come home in the dark and get no time to spend in the Garden at all. I love Spring with the daffodils and tulips pushing through and the expectation of the seasons ahead. I have been dipping in and out of the site and trying to keep up with all of your activities and nice to see some new members as well as the hardy annuals!!. Whilst I have been housebound over the Winter My husband has been when ever he gets a chance working on our ongoing projects and we have made some progress – we have had a polytunnell put in which I am both excited and nervous about. I want to ensure that we make the optimum use of it to supply fruit and Veg for the house but am concerned through lack of time that we will not achieve this. We have also been pushing ahead with the "ponds" (ongoing saga!) project which came to a complete stop over the Winter but has moved on over the past few weeks. The five ponds are now all built with shelves in four, the next step is to line with Carpet before we put on the liner which is ongoing. I Also started a home course in gardening just for fun but as work has been so hectic not made much progress with this but very enjoyable when I do get time

I am looking forward to catchig up with all your journals to see what is going on and what plans are been made for the year ahead 

As always happy gardening

 

  

I weakened today and sent hubby to buy another set of Aldi shelving – 4 tier this time. The two sets in my kitchen are full. If I turned all 3 sideways I reckon I could fit them beside the patio doors!

In anticipation I sowed 3 more trays of seeds…

Zinnia elegans Envy Double (pictured)

Impatiens tinctoria

Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum’

I would like to say that since collecting the Pennisetum seed, I have since read some interesting discussion on various gardening internet sites.  There is some suspicion that this plant may actually be sterile. However, the seeds are for sale on some sites and another report claimed that they could grow from self-seeding. So, for anyone to whom I gave Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum’ seeds, you may want to wait and see how I do, before bothering to sow yours.

Went to Lidl yesterday and got my plastic green house but was in a rush so didnt get a chance to look at plants, so managed to nip in today and got 2 roses, a Bishop of Llandaff, and 25 Gladiolen all for €8.

I was always into growing my own. Although I would sow seeds without even thinking about what I really want. And I usually sowed way too many for my use. Since joining this site, I have learnt so much. And most importantly, I have finally learnt that I cannot possibly eat all of resulting crops if I sow more than I need. So far this year, I have sown just very small amounts of plenty of things. ie Chilipeppers, peppers, tomatoes, cabbage, different types of Lettuce, gherkins, onions, garlic, potatoes (4 types) I have to be patient now. Have lots of flower seeds on the go too.

Most of the seeds are sprouting up everywhere. Next, I will have to decide where to put them once they are potted on. And then the problem/challenge of trying to keep them in good health until weather permits planting outside or in the greenhouse. I think everything is going to be jostling for space, and they will end up rubbing shoulders with their neighbours for survival.

I sowed some Alicante tomatoes Christmas week. They germinated. I potted them on, gave a few away and kept just 2 for myself. OMG they are DEAD. I discovered them yesterday behind the curtain in the sitting room  as dry as a bone. I am a murderer. However, lesson learned. I sowed them too early anyway. There is still plenty of time to sow more.

Today I bought myself another pressie. I have been meaning to get an electric propagator for years. You will all probably think i was robbed. It cost €59.99. I think it was worth it. At this stage, money doesn’t even come into it. I wanted it, and that was that. I couldn’t be bothered shopping around for something like that. They came in today. And I snapped one up. Now I can sow some Arisaema seeds. I will be off all next week.

Tonight I will not be doing anything garden-related. I have that Friday Feeling. Sitting in front of the fire, with a drink, in pj’s and computer on my lap. I will probably be awake at the crack of dawn anyway, planning and plotting. I have some seeds that I need to send people, so that will receive top priority.

We have sown lots of seeds , already the propergater is full . John has spread the organic matter over the garden  ready to plough in. We have been taking down a old tin shed we used to keep the turkeys in. nothing will be wasted the tin is going on a shed that used to have a wood roof and the wood which is pine logs will become firewood for the woodburner. looking around the garden  there is quite alot of damage done.  The Ceoanochus repens have been burnt with the cold I don`t think they will flower this year but hopefuly they will recover.

Just back in from home, my dad had a very productive day today. Mam said he was drilling and boring all day. He was making some bird boxes for his garden and of course a few for me. There not finished yet but there lovely and every bit as nice as the ones I bought and they will mean more because he made them. 

I think this is where I get all my little projects and ideas from. Still working on my "project" have to locate paint from the shed before I can share with you all ……………… 

Maggie was up in aldi last week and came across these Hobby boxes as they were described! she picked 2 up, i think that they make ideal seed holding containers! with the individual compartments they are ideal for us and fit neatly on the bottom shelf of the fridge! i think they cost €6.99 each! don’t know if they have any left but if they do get your hands on one! ideal and compact for keeping all your seeds in order! and handy for the fridge!!! 

Two of my favourite activities are gardening and eating. I also love to cook. When selecting plants it is great to have plants that are dual purpose, edible and ornamental.

One of my favourite plants is sea buckthorn,  Hippophae rhamnoides. It is a deciduous shrub armed with long pointed spines. The spines are hidden under silvered willowy foliage throughout the summer, a plant of elegant appearance. In common with holly, there are separate male and female plants, and it is the females which provide the real beauty.

Where a male is grown in close proximity to one or a group of female sea buckthorn, masses of orange berries are produced on the female plants. In winter these remain after leaves have been shed, creating a striking appearance. The berries are edible and delicious, they make the best juice, and jam from sea buckthorn is luxurious. One little sea buckthorn berry can contain as much vitamin C as six big oranges!*

Sometimes having choices is just pure dangerous. What seeds am I going to sow this morning. Where will I sow them. Into what will I sow them. Where will I put them when I sow them. I have just gone through all my seeds. Some of them I bought when I worked in Homebase, so I have thrown out quite a lot. They were things that I just had to have at the time and never got round to sowing. Out! Gone! I suppose one could say I have spent the morning ‘weeding’. Ha ha Good start to the day.

This is what I am left with. All bought relatively recently. Plus I have lots more seeds that I got last year, and from friends here. Dilemmas, dilemmas!!!!!!!!!!!

I wasnt too keen on going to Ikea earlier. But my sister, who is up from Tralee for the weekend, expressed a wish to go, so I obliged. Unbelievable, and I thought at this stage that the crowds would have died down. The girl at the check-out said that it was actually quiet today.

I must say though I was impressed with their indoor plants. Trollies and trollies containing large and small Bonsai trees. Cacti, succulents (unusual ones too), loads of Phalaenopsis priced at just €7.95, and lots of aquatic plants. I got myself a lovely big Beaucarnea (Elephants Foot Plant, Ponytail Palm) for just €19.99, which could normally cost about €40 to €50 elsewhere, and an earthenware pot for it at just €7.50. Also bought 2 bunches of tulips because I am too impatient for my own ones to flower. Ahhhh! Beautiful.

I was delighted to see something different among the Lidl summer bulbs.

I found a Lycoris ‘Aurea’ bulb and, of course, had to buy it although I had never heard of it before.

Once I got home I looked up my faithful reference books – Anna Pavord’s ‘Bulb’ and Anne Swithinbank’s ‘The Greenhouse Gardener’ but found no entry for Lycoris. I did find it, however, in my RHS Encyclopaedia.

Of course, I did a few googles too and learned a little about this Asian bulb, sometimes known as the spider or hurricane lily. It is often grown at the edges of paddy fields in Japan, for colour, and in China it is associated with graveyards where it flowers around the autumnal equinox. In Chinese mythology Lycoris is supposed to guide the dead to the next reincarnation.

In terms of practical information, I discovered that Lycoris are seldom hardy in this part of the world and need a lot of sun to bloom. They also prefer a slightly acid soil.

Today I potted up my Lycoris in a 5.5" pot, using Brown Gold and a couple of handfuls of grit. Lets see what comes of it.

Up and at it early this morning, it was cold early, but turned into a lovely spring day. First was the wooden fence to close off the area around the ash tree, I had the frame in since last week, so this did not take long.

Leveled up the area with sand and gravel  mix. Colin was surprised that both the ton of grave and pebble was been moved today, not impressed, but fair dues, he did stick at it.

The pebble area was easiest to finish, I had planned to have a step up to the work area behind the shed, had a frame made of the slabs to sit on, placed the slabs in place and it just looked all wrong, so out it came again. The effect of the pebble running all the way into the fence just make the whole area so much bigger.

Use a weed barrier under the slabs. Have 3/4 of the slabs laid, it is not 100% percent perfect, but as a work area for potting and storing pots and planters etc. it will be fine. If the bones allow, it should be finished tomorrow. Came straight in to watch the ruby, went to stand up just now, boy, am I feeling it.

This area gets fairly good sun, so am planning to use it for bringing on pots and planters till the are ready to put on show. Planning to have a small work bench for planting and potting on. If at all possible I love to be outside as much as possible.

There was a definate hint of spring in the air this morning,took this picture on a walk around the garden.

On the 14th February I sowed up various flowers and I am amazes at the difference in germinating. I sowed 2 trays of Unwins Gro-sure seeds 48 seeds each tray they were Begonia Volumia and Begonia Eureka Bi Colour I followed the sowing instructions and the trays sat on top of the propagator in the utility room which is around 17C all the time so I thought I was bound to get a result quite quickly. Seeds in the propagator were Cosmos Comonaut and Agetatum Tycoon Blue which both had germinated and out onto the window sill in a couple of days. I thought to help the Begonias along I would put them into the propagator but really I am amazed that nearly 14 days later I have 1 seedling and not another one in site. I decided yesterday to remove the cell tray as this seedling was becoming quite tall so the question is what did I do wrong as I thought being sure grow seeds I’d be guaranteed a reasonable result. I sowed more Cosmos Red Seashells on the 22nd put them in the propagator on the 24th and they were out on the 26th nearly all 24 cells germinated and I’m sure the remainder will pop up yet as the tray is sitting on top of the unit so benefitting from heat. Other seeds not germinated are White foxgloves sowed 29th January and the poppies look a bit weedy but if it ever warms up I will sow more of them outside. Any advice on what might be the problem for the Begonias. Should I go back to the garden centre where I bought them and look for a refund or replacement or just put it down to experience and move on.