Month: January 2013
Just a little update on the result of the Horticultural Channel Best Garden Product 2012 vote.
The Irish organic pest control product, Supernemos, has won.
A very big thank you to any of you who voted for it.
Lovely to discover this hiding in the glasshouse this morning.
I’ve never owned a hand tool for which I had to register a guarantee before, but when I went to the company website to do same, there was some really good advice for tool care: Keep a bucket of builder’s sand mixed with clean car oil, and after each use wipe the mud off and dip the tools in the bucket a few times. Can also be used for secateurs etc. No doubt all you guys are already doing this but now that I have a pukka potting shed I am instigating a sandy oil bucket toot sweet!
Some months ago I promised a member here a small Sumac that I had dug up. I have been really good about keeping notes this year but somehow this one slipped through the net and I don’t think it was on one of my own journals.
So if whoever it was sees this and is going to Johnstown please let me know :-))
”What’s he on about this time”, I hear you ask.
Well it is happening here in my garden and I only thought of the name for it the other day.
I’m talking about planting plants in hidden little spots.
Ferns planted in beneath logs and at the base of steps.
Sedums planted at the edges of paving slabs in the gravel area, these totally disappear but come back fully in the spring.
Daffs planted under the bark mulch path.
Small bulbs planted in a little compost under gravel.
These little plantings will add interest to any garden.
So where could you do some Secret Gardening in your garden?
Today was my last day of Christmas holidays, back to the office tomorrow! (not feeling too enthusiastic about the idea, especially because everybody else in the house will still be on holidays…)
I had a little list of things to do and managed to do most of them – my new year resolution is not do leave for tomorrow what I can do today 😀
I got my Kriskindle for Johnstown, just need to wrap it up now. Also bought a reduced Dendrobium orchid at my local Woodies.
And I managed to spend about 1 1/2 hour in the garden !! It was very windy here, but so mild that it didn’t matter. I mainly tidied up the flower beds in the back garden, removed some dead branches, leaves and general bits of plants, like agapanthus stalks, which looked good up to a point, but needed to be removed now. Also did some very light pruning on my few roses, which are still very small.
There are 2 more hellebores showing buds, earlier than last year, so that’s something to look forward to, and I see narcissi poking their green shoots out, as well as a few tulips, among other things. Also I planted some garlic at the end of October and was despairing to see it appear, but now it started to grow, so we should have a little crop next summer!
The days have stretched by more than 15 mns in the evening since Dec 21st, and it is great to see!
… I took the plunge and joined garden.ie club. And what a great year it has been, way beyond my expectations. Making new friends, meeting other gardeners on the site, visits to members’ gardens and friends visiting me, get-togethers for other garden visits, so much good advice, great chat, plant swapping, sharing and fun.
My first journal was titled “Keeping my new year resolution” and I can only say I’ve never kept a better one! Thank you all so much for a wonderful first year, Happy New Year to everyone and here’s to more of the same in 2013.
I had a look in the greenhouse this morning and have the following plants to bring to Johnstown. Let me know who wants them. As usual, first come first served…
Tetrapanax papyrifera ‘Rex’ X 2 (slightly tender plant that will get enormous)
Saxifraga stolonifera X 2 (running, climbing ground cover)
Sarracenia hybrids X 2 (carnivorous, requiring bog conditions and rain water only)
Dianthus ‘Flashing Lights’ (ground cover)
Physalis peruviana (large tender plant, bearing edible cape gooseberries)
Seeds – white tree lupin and Ligularia
Monstera deliciosa – an already large specimen, house plant
***
And already promised and bringing…
Bruno – Melanoselinum decipiens & Dianthus ‘Flashing Lights’
Elizabeth – Dianthus ‘Flashing Lights’
Joan G – Curious Gardener (for a lend)
Clara, Hosta & Fran – Pelargonium ‘RitaD’
Jemo – Abutilon vitifolium
Pwiseman – plastic cover for Aldi greenhouse
Damo – return of Piet Oudolf book
Scrubber, JoanG, Kate & Graham, Keego, Pwiseman, YellowRose, Moya, Hosta – calendar
***
To anyone that I promised seed, it has been a bad year so… sorry.
Raffle – I will be bringing one large (and probably flowering) Hedychium greenei for Hazel’s raffle. It is a tender ginger so if you win and don’t have a greenhouse, please choose something else!
The title phrase came into my head today as I strolled around the garden, obviously a throwback to my secondary school days and Irish essays. Everywhere is so wet and damp, but I like to think of myself as a positive person so I got to thinking of the advantages to the garden of a climate like ours and the standout one for me is that it suits the growing of Rhodos so well. Oh I know there is the problem of mildews etc, but that would be succumbing to the negative so thats a no-no. In one of the photos, there is the species R.aberconwayi ‘his lordship’ which has stiff, upright leaves (and really lovely flowers to boot in the spring). Also shown is the species R.niveum, which has lovely indumented foliage as can be seen and in front of it is the lovely dwarf hybrid R.wren which is very easily available and is well worth having. The last photo is of Drimys aromatica which I have since 2006 and was really badly affected by the bad winters, but survived. I was wondering has anyone had better success with it than me, maybe those of you on the favoured east coast.
What a day? It was so mild. I got at the rose beds again and would have finished the pruning but for the darkness. Still there is an stretch in the evenings. I really enjoyed the contributions to garden.ie especially the entry by Elizabeth, hope Johnstown will be more peaceful. No photos to day, too busy trying to finish the work in the garden but I believe we will havemore good and enjoyable days. Here’s to more gardening in 2013.
Happy New Year to everyone !
Hope a New year will be better with much less rain .. And we all enjoy gardening and of course we could share our experience and stories ..
Happy Gardening my Friends !
To the person who gave me this Sedum last year.
I am not 100% sure of the person, but have two names in mind. But will stay quite for fear of been mistaken LOL
It is doing great and even at this early stage, there are new buds forming on the stems so all is well. It has a great shape and I really like it, many thanks ;-))
For Johnstown I have some rooted cuttings of the beautiful Pelargonium pictured.
I don’t have a name for it but this one is from a plant originally owned by garden.ie member RitaD, who sadly passed away.
I think it would be nice for people to grow it and remember her.
I think I have five cuttings but will need to check tomorrow. Please let me know if you want one.
You can see I am not getting into the garden much at the moment!
My first amaryllis flowers have opened, it is a mix of white and pink, I’m happy with it!
Good start of 2013, with a mostly sunny and dry day here. Tomorrow is my last day of holiday before heading back to work, so if I can, I will get out a little. The ground is very very soggy at the moment so not much can be done in the garden, but a few things are looking very sorry at the moment and so a little tidy up could be done. Let’s see what the weather is like tomorrow.
A Very Happy New Year to everyone in the club…………………. Even though I am not putting up journals, I still visit almost every day to keep up with what all the best gardners are doing!! ………. not a lot happening in our garden right now,did manage to plant a few sweet peas in the greenhouse over Christmas..
Still busy working in the graveyard, clearing ivy from the walls and the tree trunks… I am also getting the borders into some kind of shape for planting in the spring ….because nobody has done anything with them for years it will take a lot of work to get them looking good, hopefully this is what I will be able to achieve in the next few months…..there are a few daffodils coming up here but that is about it. I am adding a few photos of the graveyard as it is now….
I only heard this story tonight. There are lots of references and videos out there but this is one of the best. Enjoy.
Santa brought me a couple of new lenses for my camera and even though today wasn’t the best weatherwise I spent a bit of time messing about with them.
Great to see the Hellebores doing their thing and although they are not fully open yet they are looking promising. The forecast is for mild days in the coming week so that might help them along.
The lenses are another kettle of fish altogether …… me nerves :-))
My clump of Cyclamen plants are just getting better and better all the time. Still lots of buds coming day by day.
This is the main colour so far. No sign of the Red or White flowers, and I’m beginning to think they did not survive from last year.
Either way I’m well peased with these plants and hope they will just go from strength to strength.
Spent a few hours in the garden this morning. I have no idea what I did, it was one of those days when you find yourself doing bits of this, that and the other but at the same time not relly been able to say you finished any single thing.
Am I alone in having days like this in the garden?
I put down the first of the tomatoes this evening. They are Moneymaker. I will have to look around for some more seeds and containers. I normally sow antirrhinums at this time. They are sown.
Hope everyone had a great Christmas. We spent the holidays with our son David and his family in Limerick. The weather has been very mild so far this winter and snowdrops and early flowering shubs are showing a lovely display just now. The scent from the daphnes will start filling the air soon and should encourage us all to get out into the gardens again. On my wish list for plants this year are Anamonella thalictroides ‘Green Hurricane’ and Adonis amurensis ‘ Flora Pleno’which I came across in a book recently by David Culp titled ‘The Layered Garden’.
Will not be able to go to Johnstown this year as the course at Kilmacurragh is on the day before and I am off on Thursday 10th to the herberium department in Trinity College for a visit with the Irish Garden Plants Society. I am sure you will all have a great time. Best wishes for the new gardening year and I am positive we are going to get a sunny, warm and dry summer for 2013. Mary
A nice scented start to the new year. The first of my two witch hazels to flower,Hamamelis pallida is in all its glory at the minute as are the two Sarcococcas. Two great plants to have in the garden and worth their weight in gold at this time of the year.
Right on time, this is Rhodo ‘Christmas Cheer’ flowering happily today in spite of the cold, wind and rain.
For these who don’t know our native tongue, a good start is half of the work. I had some roses pruned yesterday but while it was mild, the rain and then the darkness came when I got the first of my roses pruned. To day, I had planned to start and get a lot more done but the concert from Vienna, which I watch on TV every year came on and that was over about 12.45 p.m. Then after a phone call, it was lunch time and about 2 p.m. I got at the roses again. The felco was ideal for most of the work but the loppers had to be introduced for the thick branches. By 3 p.m. I decided to abandon the pruning as the front faces the North. About 30 roses have been pruned but while I would have liked to do double that work, I was pleased with what I have done. Shoots have opened up to the top and rather have the energy go into these and wait a month or two, I have gone by Gerry’s advise and get better and earlier blooms. As the proverb in Irish goes, Tosach maith, leath na noibre. While it was cold outside, I feel warm now after the work.
Sitting here with the sun streaming in the window I’m thinking of all the reasons why we make our way to Johnstown Garden Centre in chilly January each year.
My Number One reason is to meet face-to-face and have some fun with my virtual friends who have shared my highs and lows during the gardening year. Members who post or comment regularly are the life of this club and I’m sure I am not alone in receiving really sound advice and encouragement over the year.
Johnstown Garden Centre have made us very welcome for the past few years, reserving a special area for us where we can enjoy a nice meal or snack in the company of our friends. The laughter and teasing at the tables is a real sign of friendships being celebrated. It is often surprising to meet someone face to face that you have been meeting online for ages!
I love the Kris Kindle too – it feels like when I was a child going to see Santa! I hope that all of you who come will participate as it is really good fun.
It is not a coincidence that we hold this gathering during the January Sale in Johnstown Garden Centre. I have heard through the grapevine that Johnstown welcome members ordering stuff beforehand for collection that day. I might even be lucky enough to win one of the vouchers that Johnstown kindly donates to us each year.
And finally it is the opportunity to hand over promised plants to friends.
I hope that if you have been chatting away online this year that you will do your best to join us for our annual bash!
p.s. Don’t forget to let me know if you are coming so we can be sure there is room for you at the table 🙂
These are the plants I know people would like.
Myrtus for , Rachel, Jemmo, fraoch, Kate and Graham, Fran, Jacinta.
Crocosmia for Bruno, Hosta and Anne ,Peter and Kitty.
Lupin tree for Peter, Kitty, Hosta. But the rats ate them, sorry!!
Pink Brushes for, Jacinta and Linda. May only have one.
Darmera for Hazel but the seedlings have shed their leaves so I will keep them and give them to you later in the year.
Ferns, will bring pot of them and anybody is welcome.
Crocosmia, have a very nice one name unknown and can bring corms for anyone who wants them.
Geranium for Rachel.
Please anybody who thinks I may have a plant they like just ask and if possible I will bring it.
