Month: February 2011

Squeezing in at the eleventh hour with photographs taken over the last few days and added to our "February Album" – giving a rather large album, I’m afraid, so looking at the photographs might take a few minutes. The bright weather of the last few days has brought some flowers on quickly. There are plenty of crocus, hellebores and the first of the daffodils in flower here at present. Snowdrops are coming to an end with the later ones holding the fort at present. 

Link to journal here:  https://www.garden.ie/album.aspx?idalbum=13642

Paddy 

The bud which was visible yesterday has grown such that it can be seen better now.

Having completed the new raised veg beds about 6 weeks ago, today we made a start on filling the new flower and fruit beds! this morning we had 4 ton of soil, a 1/2 ton of manure and 1 cubic meter of mulch delivered, we filled up 2 and a 1/2 of the beds using 2 ton of soil and the half ton of manure leaving 2 ton of soil and the mulch for the remaining 1 and 1/2 beds! that will wait till tomorrow need a soak and a beer now!!! will put up a few photos of the start of work today!

Very frustrating not knowing what’s what at this time of year. But one thing I AM certain of is that this is Aconitum, which has a lovely blue flower.

Went in to work this morning earlier than normal. Very cold night. But any frost cleared pretty quickly in the sun. And you could really feel a bit of heat there too. And as I started early today, I clocked off early. Got the best part of the day in the garden. I have 3 tiny Acers that I got last year €7.99 each reduced down to just 20c. Today I bought 3 identical pots and potted them up finally. They are just coming into leaf. They are Acer palmatum ‘Orange Dream’, ‘Sango-Kaku’ and ‘Little Princess’. Looking forward to these vibrant colours in full leaf.

Then I went in and watered all my houseplants.

Last Sunday on a family walk we visited Dean’s Grange cemetery near where we live. I was surprised to see there Augustine Henry’s grave, as he is Ireland’s greatest plant collector, have send 15000 dry specimens and 500 plant samples to Kew from China. He became a professor in the College of Science which merged with UCD.

In my garden I have Davidia involucrata, Itea ilicifolia and Rhododendron augustinii which are associated with him.

Sheila Pim wrote an interesting biography of him and in Avondale there is a plot containing plants he introduced.

Hello All.

Its great to see what busy bees everyone has been! Spring has definitely sprung. I’ve been busy studying for my horticulture exams at the start of april but have also been trying to plan for my new allotment which I finally have access to. I was thinking of planting some Honeyberries and was wondering if anyone has any experience of them. They sound and look very interesting – I’m very tempted! 

Ps. Isn’t the March Irish Garden just fab? Congrats to all involved!

Over a while now this Daffodil always calles back to visit,Has been here a good many years now,close to raised bed,number one.

That bed is raked and ready for take off now.When the weather suits,in the new visitors will go.

Oooh! I am getting so excited at the thoughts of eating my own peaches again. Flowers are showing already. It will be time for pollination with the paintbrush very soon.

Liga, How’s your one doing?

galavanting across the country. Tomorrow night I will be talking to the folks in the Fermoy Flower & Garden club. If any garden.iers are there be sure to say "hi". I am delighted to be able to offer the two new Irish Primroses for sale. The one here in this pic is Inisfree. They are just beginning to open. Very exciting 🙂

Some people like this vegetable and some do not.The seeds will keep quite well and with a little luck,they should last up on 3 to 4 years.They germinate in app 12-14 days.Seeds will be started in module trays.Can be chanced and moved on[pricked out],but they prefer to be in a single section each.Not to fussy about having to get the roots disturbed.They will go down through successional sowing,every 3-4 weeks.

I have added a photo album of my Clivia miniata… the speed of growth is unreal and it won’t be long till the fabulous flowers bloom! Can’t wait 🙂

If you are not going to the get together on Saturday, you might be interested in this. The last plant sale here was in 2009 and it was brilliant !

 By the way the photo is of the other Irish Primula ‘Drumcliff’

Bellefield Plant Fair

5th March 2011.

Spring is coming, elections will be over so let’s forget the 
    current ‘doom and gloom’  and enjoy a few stress-free hours among plants and gardeners on the first Saturday in March.

The fair will be held in the grounds of  Bellefield House, Shinrone, Co. Offaly. 

Buy interesting plants and art in the Stable Courtyard, listen to talks by plant experts in the Coach-house, enjoy homemade coffee and cakes in the Victorian glasshouse and stroll around the Walled Garden where over 100 varieties of snowdrops, narcissus and other spring bulbs will be in bloom.

Plants on sale will include:
 unusual clematis and  climbers,
hellebores and other spring flowering plants,
 herbaceous perennials, roses, rhododendron, camellia, magnolia, 

 rare decorative and fruit trees and shrubs
snowdrops and heritage bulbs

A day to forget your worries and enjoy!!

Saturday 5th March
11am to 4.30pm

Entrance: €5. free car-parking
Details and map below or email angelajupe@gmail.com

Looking over some of the lower tubs,the Rhubarb is coming on well with them.Still quite young compared to the upper tubs.The Rhubarbs will be given one of its favourites throughout the summer [some liquid manure] every two weeks.

Rhubarb does not have much pest or disease problems,though at times can get a touch of Leaf Spot [Ramularia rhei] and Crown rot [Erwinia rhapontici].The Rhubarb is known as a member of the night shade family.

I grow peaches in my greenhouse. They are a dwarf variety ‘Bonanza’ and are growing in pots. They stand at roughly 4ft from the ground. The flowers are just beginning to open now. Because of limited activity by bees at this time of year, I pollinate them myself with my little artists brush. I will pollinate them every day for about a week to ensure lots of fruit. During their growth, I find it necessary to cover the fruits with netting as slugs and snails like to get their gnashers into them before I do. The netting definitely works. I feed them every two weeks when they set fruit, with a Tree and Shrub Fertilizer. When the peaches are roughly the same size as a marble, I thin them out to get bigger fruits. Each year the crop gets better. Last year I got about 8 decent-sized peaches from one tree. Well worth growing if you can spare the space. And very low maintenance – so long as you can control slugs and snails.

Dave, for a photo of the actual peaches, go to my album ‘fruit and veg’ . It’s the 7th album from the top. 

For a few hours over the weekend,i decided to spend more time in the greenhouse.The area for the Tomatoes is almost complete,with the centre canes there needing to be tied up and finished there.

A form of a mini well supply is in place,and into these the water supply will go.Similar with the centre containers only smaller there again.The shelves have been given a final fast washing down,and here will be used as a form of hardening off area for the next while.

The coldframe outside the greenhouse is next on the list,to leave it ready when called upon.[will do that later in the week].

Going away earlier this morning the weather reading was back to -2 and quite nippy.That changed in a few hours with bright and sunny weather,a touch of summer.

The Giant Alliums, are shooting for the sky. they have grown about six inches in the last week. It really pays to watch and learn how fast plants grow. I was amazed last year how quickly the leaves faded, prior to them flowering. I find it really is great to watch and learn all the time. 

MY dead and decaying Escalonia hedge finally found it’s way to the wood chipper. I replaced it with Green Beech which (so far at least) grows fairly well in my garden.

This is the Agapanthus that Clara gave me last year. I was really worried about is as the leaves turned to mush with the really cold weather. Clara had told me it never lost it’s leaves, but then this plant never had weather like what we got recently. I was not looking foreword to telling Clare her plant was no more.

I was so trilled to see, the first signs of green shoots some time ago. I do think there was some loss of bulbs, as the growth is way down on last year. This is another plant for the shed next Winter, not worth risking it.

As you are all probably aware, we are having our garden.ie spring get-together in Johnstown Garden Centre on Saturday 5th March at 1pm. It will be brilliant and it looks like we will have a bumper turn-out.

We will meet in the restaurant at 1pm, where there should be enough seats reserved for us if we give Johnstown the correct numbers. Below is the list of attendees to date, numbering 40, so if there are any changes to this, please let me know asap. Now is also the time for anyone with ? next to their name on the list to let me know if they are coming.

We are hoping that as many people as possible will take part in our kris kindle. This involves buying a gift for one other (unknown) garden.ieer. Gifts should not cost more than €10. In the photo my son is holding the pressie I have bought and will bring on Saturday. We will put all pressies in a big pile and everyone who has contributed, may take one out at random.

When you get to Johnstown, it might be an idea to park to your left as you enter. This area is apparently usually free and it would make sense for us to all be parked in roughly the same area if people are bringing plants to swap with others.

I’m looking forward to a brilliant day : )

1 March 2011

Oh, and please wear an name tag with your site name on it!

AitAlainn	1
Bruno	1
Clara	1
Dick	1
Drumanagh	1
Fintan?	1
Fran	1
Gismo	1
Gracedieu Lass	2
HeadGardener	1
Hoeys	1
Hosta	1
Ingrida	1
Jacinta	2
Jools?	1
Kate & Graham	1
Keego	1
Krista	1
Ladygardener	1
Liga	1
LindaB	1
Maureen?	1
Myrtle	2
Orchid	1
Periwinkle	1
Rachel	1
Rhody	2
SeamusC?	1
TheH	2
Unagrant	1
Violeta	1
Yellow Rose	1
Wellie	3
	40

Thanks everyone for such a warm welcome !! Well I spent most of the weekend in the greenhouse planting. I think that I’ll be able to feed the whole parish by the end of the year with the amount of seeds I planted. I’m sure it’ll be trial and error but my goodness I didn’t realise how much I loved pottering out there !! Looking forward to picking all your brains over the coming months … I’ve a lot to live up to as all of yours look fantastic ! Daisyboo xx

…and tell me you dont love me!

Another one!

another!

 I took some close-ups of some of my Helleborus at the weekend, they have done so well this year, I really love them with the great detail in each flower. How wonderful creation is!  This is one of two bought in Lidl recently. The other doesnt have any flowers yet.