Month: July 2013

My  Philadelphia Virginal tree is just blossoming now. It seems to do very well in the North Kerry heavy soil.  it’s even stuck in a corner by the wall where there’s a lot of concrete underneath.

I sowed this pack of mixed perennial seeds two weeks ago and they are sprouting away. There is no information on the pack as to what seeds are contained.

Has anyone else had results from a pack like this? And what kinds of plants did you grow?

its a wet morning here in the midlands but the forecast is for it to dry up later on. this would allow me get out to finish off the weeding.

so i’m pottering about instead.

reading the IG magazine i notice that rae mcintyre classes heathers as something passe..i’m disappointed to read this and think that shes not correct in saying this. heathers are far from passe. in fact if you go to any garden centre one of the first plants that meets you en masse on entering is the heather. pots of them. loads of pots. great variety of colours. colours for spring and colours for summer.

like any plant they do come into and out of fashion periodically. but to regard them as passe is inaccurate

just this spring i bought about 50 heathers to add to the 40 or so i planted last year.
i think they look great especially when they are in full bloom. and if they are helpful in attracting bees to the garden well thats a bonus

The left side of my garden is in shade mostly, as it is North/East facing.

Lonicera nitida ‘Baggesen’s Gold’ is planted next to the wall, with Flower Carpet Rose ‘Yellow’ in front, and Phygelius to the side. I think it brightens up an otherwise dull area quite well.

Here is a patch of campanulas which Mary has put together. There are several different ones there but I am especially happy with the one on the left, Campanula ‘Hidcote Amethyst’ which was left to barely survive under some trees and shrubs for many years but which was rescued last year and has simply romped back into flower again. 

Paddy

That caught my eye this evening

can anyone identify which campanula these two are.? Please  They look as if somebody has cut the flowers with scissors, (I didnt touch them …honestly)

 

Looking good at the moment

I was out doing a bit of weeding and generaly tidying around and just had to come in as I was eaten to bits by the dreaded Midgie…my face was worst and my arms ..I do have this problem when abroad but never as bad here …Greg said I have sweet blood …but I would rather have sour .

Before I came in I took a few photos if they go up as I have tried a few times .

in april i got the patio area dug up as it was very tatty and looked good for only a couple of weeks in late summer

 

so  then i bought 46 blue coloured rose plants-blue for you-and a few yellow kerresia including 2 standards. after getting the ground ready i planted the standards in the centre of the plot and 3 kerresia bushes around them. finally the rest of the area was all blue for you.

they are now well and truly in full bloom-kerresia has about a week to go before its in full bloom i’d imagine.

the scent of the blue for you is lovely. lemony. citrusy. old fashioned.

the scent of the kerresia is captivating and entices you to breathe deeply.

the sight of the yellow and blue together is what i hoped it would be-beautiful. it should be even nicer when both are in bloom together.

the area looks more welcoming and refined now. i am delighted with the outcome

i’ll post some more photos when the roses are in bloom together

 

This is another first flowering for me.

It is Wahlenbergia rivularis ‘Snowcap’ (great name, huh?),

So far so good.

Steve was working on Arklow Wind Farm all weekend so he didn’t manage to do much on the new Boiler House door. He was home at 6.00am this morning and I went off to work thinking he’d be heading for his bed for some much needed ‘shut-eye’. That didn’t happen though. Instead he got himself busy with refurbishing the old hinges, embellishing them. Won’t say much for now.

He was busy cutting out parts of the old door frame that were rotten, sanding down the replacements, and undercoating same. Tomorrow I hope to gloss them. Door looking great at the moment, and will be a piece of history in the garden.

Came home from work this evening to find “Fred” had  been reinstated in the vegetable patch to protect the strawberries from the Birds. I discovered it was Emma who had got stuck into this today – the fact that she loves home grown strawberries may have had something to do with it. I will have to bring her home a black marker tomorrow to outline those fine set of teeth a bit better lol

you all about the way i edged the circle around the square or the attack I made on the long border today but it all pales into significance at the big news. Shoosh is bag and full of talk about her holiday! Just as you described with your cats linda, she came acroos the field this evening miaowing to high heaven. She didnt seem to be hungry and had a slight tuft of fur missing from her crown but in good form and great voice and delighted apparently to be back after a week awayy. I expect she’ll tell cherub thestories and cherub will let me know-if they are suitable ,of course.

When some fellow .iers come up to you at the Christmas get together, and say ‘how well your looking’, ‘your doing great work in the garden’, ‘are you buying anything special’ and all the time beaming with silly grins, you know something is up, the alarm bell rings loudly.

Then when I ask, what do you want? the shocked looks confirmed my question.

Seeds of an idea were sown in my mind, as only master gardeners could.

Emails were flying around the country over the last few months.

The Mad Adventure, as it has been christened, is only a month away.

Krista, Rachel, Deborah et moi (fluent) are heading to England to do some visits.

Some of what we hope see are Great Dixter, Sissinghurst, Wisley, Kew and Beth Chattoes.

It will be a packed few days, but the excitement is building now as the countdown has begun.

As I’m the driver, I had set basic rules for the car, which I learnt very quickly will not be obeyed or even considered………. Slightly outnumbered.

So does anyone know where I could get ear protectors that could be linked in with the satnav, so I can follow the directions to these wonderful gardens, above the, ohhs and ahhs, and wonder could I do that?

30 days and counting ;-))

Don’t know which one this is, maybe ‘scabra’. But it is a beautiful shrub. I have it a few years and it’s in a pot still, but off tomorrow. So you never know what might happen in the garden. 🙂

1st of July time to check out the spuds!!!

they may look small but they did not disappoint , lovely flavor and flowery just as they should be you can’t beat the queens . The carrots, turnip and peas were lovely too.

here’s to many more veg all summer long

The Alstroemeria from Krista has just started to flower and I just love it. I didn’t know what colour it was going to be but it fits in really well with the Feverfew, from Hosta and the Cephalaria from Keego. Thanks all!

Well the days of saying in 12, 9, 6 etc  weeks is my Open day are gone and now I can only say ,,,,,,,Next Sunday !

Am I scared?  Not as much as earlier on, it has dulled to apprehension.

A little consolation too as I have really done my best to have it looking good.

Must head to a garden centre tomorrow to get a few filler inners for where the poppies were.

But most importantly any iers who could make it would be so very welcome.  I know some are coming and that means a lot to me.

 

well the job is mine and offically starts on the 15th of july, really delighted at last things are looking up.  the garden isnt getting the attention it used get, i do it when i can and the weeds are growing by the minute it will get done when i can.

with been so busy with the job the offical open day wont be happening but anyone that wants to come and see the garden at anytime is more than welcome, espeailly next weekend as some of you will be at the garden show just let me know in advance.  one thing i will say is there are going to be weeds and loads of them so please ignore them.

nearly all the plants are planted now thankfully just some dahlias to plant once i have the area weeded and some shatsa daisy and asters and calendulas to be done in the same area. 

wont be growing as much next year, stuff i will be sowing are primulas of different types these will be started and left in the coldframe over winter, my beds and moms beds are fairly full now so dont need as much and wont have the time anyway

I’m off out to do some gardening in this part of the garden now.

It is looking its best and the scent is fabulous.

This months magazine, as every month,  has a section on what is looking good now.

The have listed Eremurus as one that is looking good. I think that this is wrong, lies, untruths, or whatever your preference.

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I was taking photos to upload to June Album and had a few Eremurus

 

It is looking great – good doesn’t even get a look-in

I am not good with roses so I choose carefully and disgard ones that give me trouble.

But they ar eso beautiful…

June has been a pretty good month here in the gardens. We have had plenty of sun, and actually had to start watering a lot of our newly planted areas. Growth rates increased significantly over the last few weeks and our herbaceous borders are now starting to look impressive.

In the glasshouses our peaches have ripened and the nectarines, apricots and grapes are all coming along nicely. Pretty good crops all round. The strawberries did well this year and by planting a batch indoors we extended our fruiting season. We used old guttering hung from the roof supports of our poly tunnel. It used very little space and provided a perfect growing environment. There will be plenty of jam made this year!

We have just completed the rebuilding of the banks at the Himalayan walk. This had previously been excavated and used as a dump and storage area. It was a bit of an eye sore and a large mature yew tree was suffering as a result of exposed roots. We needed to bring in 200 tonnes of soil to bring the levels back up to match the rest of the area. Now all that remains is the planting up. We will be putting native trees at the back of the bank, and rhododendrons along the front.

Jobs for July will include pinching out tomatoes and cucumbers side shoots, thinning growth on our grape vines and also thinning the fruit to improve the overall crop. Ongoing watering and feeding is very important. We feed every second week with phostrogen for the ornamentals and seaweed for the vegetables. In this dry weather you should make sure the plant has been watered prior to feeding it so that it does not take up too much too quick. Hedge clipping will be a big job here over the next few weeks. It’s always nice to get the fluff back off and tidy things up a bit. We will also be summer pruning in the orchard later this month.

Now is a good time for taking cuttings in the garden. Many shrubs will root readily and it’s a good way of increasing your plants without the expense. I always encourage plant swapping and if you have a few spares then it gives you something to bargain with. We will be taking cuttings from a lot of our rarer trees and shrubs over the summer and autumn. Not only will it give us material for swapping with other gardens, but it will also act as a back-up stock should one of the mother plants die.

Blarney in Bloom is on Saturday 13^th July from 10am – 5pm and promises to be a great event. There’s a huge amount going on around the estate including specialist plant nurseries, garden equipment and a farmers market, family orienteering, birds of prey, garden talks, arts and crafts demonstrations and children’s entertainment. It will be a great value family day out and of course all will benefit a very worthy charity, Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind.

I look forward to seeing you in the gardens. Adam