Month: December 2013
A very Happy Christmas to all of the garden.ie members!
A lovely Christmas was had by everyone here.
I thought I’d just put up a photo of the gardening things I got.
THE bOOPHANE HAD BEEN ON MY wISH lIST SINCE 2010.
Happy Bunny 🙂
It was very considerate of the orchids that at least one of them opened on Christmas Day.
This one is a cymbidium, which I’ve had for a few years but the flowers are always welcome.
I don’t know about the rest of you but it has been unbelievably stormy here. I don’t ever remember such scary winds! I was astonished to see the garden was still there this morning with no trees down!
After a shot stay in bed this morning I was up and out in the garden ASAP.
Planted a few things here and there, power washed the decking, cleaned up the last of the leaves (finally) and did some general tidying up around the borders here and there.
Then Maria woke me up asking if I wanted more mulled wine,
a perfect way to sit this storm out,
sleeping, garden dreaming, mulled wine and mince pies ;-))
The jobs above can wait for another day.
Maybe this will start people coming back on here …if you had a special garden you would like to share .
Just saw Clair E has Helen Dillons lovely garden up .Thank you Clair for the lovely photos….
My garden is going to be Charleville House Enniskerry.
I have been very much supported by all the kind expressions of sympathy from my lovely friends on this site.
Although Brendan had become very frail over the past year and the past six months were particularly difficult with him having to go to a nursing home because of the level of care he needed his passing came as a shock to me but I took great comfort in being able to take him home to wake in the home we built together.
Brendan was my inspiration in the garden, encouraging me in the whole project. When we discussed buying the site his reservation was in taking on such a large garden – declaring that he wasn’t going to start mowing lawns again! The challenge he set me was to design a garden that didn’t include lawns. So far I haven’t quite met that challenge but maybe some day!
Our garden will always be a reminder of Brendan and our happy few years together.
Ní bheidh a leithéid ann arís.
Well it will soon be time to raise a toast to the New Year but you’d better be careful what cup you pick up in my house!
Liga recently told be of a cure for scale on orchids, using vodka and a little washing up liquid. I decided to test out the Irish version, using whiskey instead of the vodka.
When I was finished treating the orchid I thought I wouldn’t throw out the mixture, just in case I have to use it again soon.
Hubby decided it wasn’t safe to leave it lying around like that so he gave it an appetising label 😉
Sláinte!
I have another slipper orchid just opening.
I’m looking forward to this one flowering again.
I think it’s time to get cracking on the arrangements for our get-together in just 2 weeks time!
Venue: Johnstown Garden Centre
Date: Sunday 12th January
Time: 1 pm – 5 pm.
Plant Swap: 11 am to 1 pm
The day includes some lunch, a Raffle, a Kris Kindle, and of course the chance to meet up and do what we do best – talk plants!
Raffle
The Raffle is free for everyone – and I’d like to ask anyone who wishes to donate a prize to let me know.
This year we have a really special prize for the Raffle – a short holiday break in a beautiful modern self-catering house in Co. Clare – more details later!
Kris Kindle
If you want to participate in the Kris Kindle please bring along a wrapped gift – (husbands and wives can bring two if they wish!). The gift should not cost more than €10 as we want to make sure everyone can participate. It is of course optional to take part, but it does add to the fun!
Plant Swap
This year we are trying a new idea for the Plant Swap – We plan to meet in the Left-hand car-park as before but BEFORE the lunch instead of after! We are suggesting 11 am as the earliest people should arrive – and by 1 pm I’ll be shepherding everyone in to the restaurant for the main event!
Fran suggested that if we had stuff not promised to anyone in particular they could be put together and people could help themselves.
So make sure if you are bringing plants along to label them – with your own name on so people will know who they came from!
Got some lovely garden related Christmas presents this year. 1st of all a subscription to The Irish Garden Magazine which i was thrilled with. I got Dermot O’Neill’s Clondeglass – Creating a Garden Paradise book which i think will be a good read. Then another book from Amateur Gardenin, basically a yearbook with month to month advice and tips and a voucher for johnstown garden centre so all in all very happy with these gardening gifts. Hope everyone had a lovely christmas. Not much happening here in the garden and the weather is terrible anyway. I did get a bit of wedding and tidying the other day but that’s about it. I will go through plants soon for the Get-Together and post up.
So, who still has their name badges from last years’ get-together? The more the merrier.
Today I chanced upon a gardening programme ‘Love your garden’. I thought it may have been a repeat and wasn’t going to watch it. But now I’m glad I did. Hadn’t seen that episode before.
Frankly, I wouldn’t take on this lad if he came looking for a job. He’s far too fond of extended lunch breaks and tea breaks, has a loo break every five minutes and he dozes off for long naps at the drop of a hat. But with the amount he eats I’m sure he’ll soon put on a bit of muscle and acquire his first spade!
Welcome to the Shoosmith Family Tree, Aaron Samuel Vernon. Born 17 December, 7lb 3oz.
Are Christmas cactus the new amaryllis on garden.ie?
I ask this because I’ve seen much more Christmas cactus journals this season than amaryllis/hippeastrum.
This is my second Christmas cactus. It was my mother’s and I can’t give it enough light because it is so big. It did well this year after a stint in the greenhouse and produced loads of buds. Unfortunately it has re-absorbed most of them due to insufficient light.
It’s the downside of too many house plants! But at least I’m getting a few flowers.
I love this photo of my daughter sniffing The King of Taiwan.
He is 15cm wide and has a lovely scent.
The photo isn’t mine, or the camers, but I am lad to have it.
My new year’s resolution is to spend more time on gardening web sites and blogs! I have missed seeing what all of the lovely gardeners of Garden.ie have been up to in the garden!
I was so happy to see this bloom on my orchid. It had been dormant for months!
Happy New Year to my fellow gardeners!
Dana Xx
After the miserable weather over the christmas i just thought i’d post a photo of my garden in the sweltering heat of last summer….i hope for a repeat in ’14!!!!
To day, the weather was suitable for the garden. It started off with rain but soon the sun came out. I planted the Magnolia stellata which was a present, in the back garden where it would be sheltered. The clothes also went out. The birds are back again. They had not been fed while i was away. I did a detour of the front garden to see if there was any damage done by the strong winds, apparently not. The grass has grown and on one shrub I noticed a ladybird, unusual at this time of year. The pruning of the roses was begun about 12. In the afternoon it got a bit cold so i retied.
Hello all, I would like to wish everyone associated with Garden.ie a very happy new year, in particular all who write journals which are a constant source of information,advice and pleasure for me.
Mise le meas
Seán
After the storm last night, it seemed to clear and give us a lovely day for the garden. It didnt turn out that way. We have somewhat broken weather to day. I went to Woodies to find that there was a sale. Among the various items I bought, was an orchid, like most, a Phal. Instead of being €6.95, there was €1.40 discount. Now the picture shows two orchids, one bought to day the other I showed early on . It came from Woodies. Can any one tell the real difference between them? Of course I haven’t over 300 orchids like Rachel. The tall one was bought to day.
Looking forward to waving 2013 goodbye as it hasn’t been great for me. But……forever the optimist, things WILL get better. And as I am a woman of few words (some will argue LOL) I want to wish all my friends here a very Happy New Year.
