Month: October 2016

to share the bird pics,just hope you enjoy.

Needless to say there it still no sign of the new septic tank or the contractor, both of which should have been on-site last week. But when it does all happen, the prairie bed is raring to go on the percolation area. I got a deal at work on end-of-year perennials, and have been splitting various grasses and other plants to go in it. I’m excited over embracing change in the garden, but I just wish thwere was a change to embrace! It’s always a bit terrifying when you have people in with big machinery, so we’ll be very glad when it’s all over. 

Walking the fields today with the dogs we came across a wild damson laden with fruit and all ripe . Brought me right back to the days when Mum would make pots of Damson jam. We ate our fill then I filled my coat pockets to make some jam . 

Lovely weather all 

He came home from hospital today. He should be now termed Felix Suileabhain but Ill not go into that. He was blind in that eye anyway and he is now fine and happy and up for mischief.

By some strange happening I found four juniper skyrockets needing a home and having got them home there was much toing and froing and placing and replacing. They nearly ended up under the walnut circle pointing the square. Then on the lawn edge overlooking the scrub. Then the lower lawn border, Then as i carried them down further into the scrub Cherub Lute whispered-‘its behind you’ Where? ‘There’ The TERRACE? ‘try it!’ so I did and do you know what it was a great suggestion and one I hadnt imagined because now as you look over that low wall there are four lovely columns almost in space. I dont know why it works but it does.

Now if Chreub Lute would suggest a place for a greyish Lawson Cypress fastigiate habit which grows to about 20 feet or more!!!! It also needed a home! The junipers grow to 2 m.

So I will be planting tomorrow and also my good friend Jim is going to lop off a HUGE branch in the bottoms that fell across the squelchy path and I hope to keep it in one piece and use it as a very rustic seat at the edge of the bottoms. I think its curve will follow the lie of the land beneath the big ash.

If I dont get the pictures of my Ozakazuki up you can look at Elizabeths in her lovely journal. I went out today and honestly it just took my breath away. It was so beautiful I nearly felt like taking my shoes off for I felt the ground I was on was holy, blessed by such beauty. And if you say Scrubber is losing it I am quite happy to do so because the way it made me feel was very close to awe and wonder and worship,Ill print this and add the pics later.

Today my attention was drawn to two of the most common garden plants – Asplenium scolopendrium, and Oxalis with raindrops.

Have a lovely Bank Holiday Weekend, folks.

A little late putting up a journal for September, but on Thursday last our first grandson Ben was born. He was a little late in putting in an appearance, but arrived safe and well. 

The change in the weather in September has been welcomed by many plants in The Lane and even the grass has greened up with the few days of rain. The buds on the rhododendrons and camellias have also started to swell with the rain, a good sign for the coming spring. On windy days there is a flurry of leaves from the trees and colour is coming into many of the Acers as the nights get a little chillier. The cyclamen coum are well up and it is a treat to seen the beautiful marked foliage at this time of year and a promise of the delicate flowers which will appear in spring.

Hydranges are still flowering and one of my favourite is Hydrangea quercifolia which will turn a rich red as the autumn continues. Many ferns are planted on both sides of The Lane and most are evergreen types, which help hide, the not so attractive, legs of some shrubs.

Gathering leaves will be the biggest job to be done over the coming months. This is not a pleasant job, but so well worth doing and will keep us warm as the weather get colder.

Six years ago I planted some trees to celebrate our family holiday. It took a long time but glad to see both Charlie and his Sycamore are doing great.   

Sally’s Salix is looking good too. And finally my own Horse Chestnut is doing grand.

Lots of fruit ripening and flowers still opening, what else could you ask for? A little flavour to the juicy fruit would be the icing on the cake.

This is where my garden gets its first rays of sunshine as it’s west-facing. Gorgeous view from upstairs this morning, looking out on the field ‘over the wall’. Thick fog, but the sun is searing through the fog to disperse it. It’s going to be a great day when that burns off.

A few nice grasses in my garden, and the only Pampas grass I have is flowering well. But being more observant yesterday I spotted my Arundo donax with its fluffy tufts. They looked lovely against the blue, blue sky.

About 3 or 4 weeks ago I posted a journal about how I dug up and divided my Primula ‘Pink Ice’ into a nice amount of plants…Well here they are yesterday all coming into flower already, obviously they were very happy with the division and cut back. A really gorgeous flower and they hold up very good to the rain.

Last year on 12th October I spotted two of my Hamamelis in full flower, after being in flower in January also. I had thought that the freaky weather we had was responsible for them flowering out of season.

But they’re at it again this year.

Verbena bonariensis seeded itself in this container and I had it at the other side of the garden where it actually wasn’t very visible, then I had to move it as it was interfering with the washing! and realised it was looking good. The Hesperantha has been flowering away for a few weeks, I don’t remember one doing so well any other year.

Within days of Helen Dillon closing her garden for the last time, I was delighted to see a few flower buds on a small Fuchsia Arborescens that I was given by the great lady herself just over a year ago.

Hope I can mind this plant for many years to come.

Can’t believe this Dahlia is still looking so good. 1st year here with it and can’t believe I have not had it before this as I love it and works so well in the border here.Two more aswell doing great is Mr. Optimist and Mambo.

On another note tho: Sad to say tho that in the next week or so they will be choppped to the ground and dug up as I won’t have that much time with the evenings getting dark again. I have a small list of dahlias to keep for people so if anyone else would like anything just say and I will put some aside if i have spare that is haha

I have two lovely helpers with me at the moment. Only 3 days into their stay and already the vegetable beds are cleared and mulched, compost heap area is looking better, and new front “doors” for the compost bays are under construction!Tthe major overhaul of the Birch Border is complete including planting about 300 bulbs in that bed alone! And as if that wasn’t enough, Elizabeth came down and she planted another load of bulbs in the newly arranged Rock Garden!

Haven’t had time to Journal we’ve been so busy!

Gidday all,

              trust all,s well in your gardens.Been awhile (again) since I visited the site,I have to admit that I,ve got alittle bit hooked on FB but fads move on.

I totally agree with Jacinta,s post a good wake up call at least for me.I guess what I,m trying to say is if your a gardener there,s no better place than I.E. to have a yak about your garden,maybe help with probs & also get some good advice.

Our Spring has been a real wet one best for a long time,there,s still a frost risk so no planting yet 2 more weeks & all should be safe.

Okay my good people have a good week-end.

                                                          regards roofy.

So let’s see if we can post some journals with photos again. 

Here are a few from the garden in early October. I’m surprised at how much colour is still in my garden. And lots of buds still waiting to open. My Cosmos are stunning at the moment. They just keep on giving. 

The Dahlias are still going strong and putting on a great show  deadheading when I can and this is really paying off  

I’m also really surprised at the amount of flower coming back at this time of year. Geums are returning as if it’s the start of Summer and not Autumn  that’s how mild our weather has been, which is great. I don’t like October nor November generally but when I see flowers blooming away it makes the days feel so much less dreary and its great to get out there when you can  

Ps yes looks like all is good again. 

Good to see photos are back, thanks Craig.

As Jackie said earlier, Cosmos are great plants to keep the show going into autumn. This is Cosmos ‘Daydream’ which I will certainly sow again next year as it has done so well. The white hydrangea in a pot is also giving good value with a few more buds coming.

Others still in good flower are Anthemis ‘E C Buxton’, Rudbeckia ‘Goldsturm’, sedums of course, fuchsias, and another flower has opened on Canna ‘Tropicana’.  And there’s the autumn leaf colour also to enjoy; I must try and take a few foliage photos tomorrow. 

When my girls were small I used to walk them down to school. I’d be trying to teach them the names, Latin names also, of plants in gardens that we’d pass by. Anything to make the long trek less of an ordeal for them. The eldest, Kim, was more into horses. 🙂  One day Zoe told Kim that a particular plant in a garden was called Fatsia japonica, and she was only 6yrs old. Kim, who’s 4yrs older looked at her as if she was from a different planet. LOL. Zoe called up today to collect David from his sleepover here. And got stuck in to cutting back my Spirea yet again, and pulling out loads of weeds in the front. David was getting a bit giddy and asked me if he could cut my Nicania down (my treasured self-seeded Nicotiana). Well, I nearly had a seizure. But it’s good to see that he’s beginning to remember names of plants like his Mammy did. Ok, not quite accurate, but he’s surprised me with plenty of other names of plants. I must be doing something right.

These shrubs are looking well at the moment – Caryopteris x clandonensis, Ceratostigma willmottianum and Hebe.

I’m just back from walking the Portugese coastal section of the camino from Baiona to Santiago de Compostela.

The plants along the way were stunning and I will definitely be going back to this area for a holiday in the future.

Autumn is well and truly here and there is still so much  to enjoy in the garden.

As I cannot up,aod an album from my Apple devices, I will post several journals, staarting with a reminder of Summer. 

The Tiger lilies (pic.1) have to move over to the far right, as I cleared theatea behind to position my new Hydrangea villosa Hot Chocolate. 

Pic.2 – aren’t those leaves just so wonderful.  It is of course sell-seeded plant and I will regret leaving it there, but just now it looks so cosy! 

Pic.3 – is a real reminder of Summer.  

Nerines add so much to the Autumn garden. They absolutely indispensable.  However, for many years, no matter what the label said, they all turned to be the same bowdenii pink. 

So, I had forgotten all about this bright star.  I looked up my book.  I bought it Spring 2015. Nerine Ostara. 

Next 2 pictures are of Rudbeckias and asters.  The lower one is Rudbeckia fulgida Goldstrum and the taller further back is Rudbeckia fulgida deamii. 

the foreground planting in the 1st picture, is what I call the Hall Door bed, and we look across the top of the lawn. Aster Little Carlow and Aster frikartii Mönch are in the distance. 

picture 2 shows the beautiful Jennifer.  I just love this girl.

picture 3: here she is again and that is the actual slope of the lawn at that point!