Month: April 2018
Found out yesterday that I have Ground Elder!!!! Noooooooo. Im so annoyed. I think it came in on Primula which I bought from Airfield a few weeks back. When I lifted them they are just rooted together and a main plant growing right beside them!!
So we spent that last couple of hours, between the showers🙈🙄, digging out plants and trying to get rid of those horrible pieces of Ground Elder. Oh my goodness I never realised how it can twist itself in around a plant. A little Geum I have was almost strangled!!
So did this piece and took out all these plants. They are soaking in water until tomorrow as the rain came again!! I will wash and pot these up. Then I’m going to sieve the area, well that’s the plan and wait and see what develops. Will do each area little by little. 🤞hopefully it’ll help🤷♀️Place is destroyed now 🙈
Managed to spend some quality time in the garden this weekend..weeding weeding weeding! But got 1 full bed finished and mulshed.. the beds always look so well with a top dressing.. like a lot of you I am enjoying the spring colour of daffodils, hellebores,pulmonaria, primroses,etc and fresh new growth of others to come!
pulmonaries putting on a good show at the edge of the woodland garden.
GLENARM CASTLE WALLED GARDEN
One of Ireland’s oldest estates, and home to the Earls of Antrim, Glenarm Castle is a ‘must see’ destination and one of N.Ireland’s top tourist attractions. Whilst here, visitors can enjoy beautiful scenery and enchanted walks in our historic Walled Garden.
The Walled Garden is one of Ireland’s oldest walled gardens. Originally created to supply the Castle with its fruit and vegetables, The Walled Garden is now filled with exciting flowers and specimen plants to interest the keenest garden enthusiast. Beautiful and filled with colour throughout the seasons, the garden is open from Easter, when you can see the fabulous displays of spring bulbs along with the apple and pear blossom, right up until the end of September when the garden is still in bloom with rich displays of herbaceous plants.
Hi All,
Please see Gardens I have visited in 2017. I decided to share my photos & video clips.
Ladybird See the Video HERE
The first seen in 2018,had nil last year.
That was the plan this morning, to move the Astilbe that I had moved to the back garden during the upheaval, back to where it had been in the front. Went to prepare the space for it and discovered I needed to cut back more of the Jasmine nudiflorum—I’d done quite a lot of it the other day. Anyway when I had done a good bit of cutting back, what did I see but Astilbe! I obviously hadn’t got it all up. So I decided to wait and see how it would do, did more work on the Jasmine, shredded it and cut the grass.
Trying another journal with photos
Another damp, drizzmal day here … oh how I ache for sunshine! But at least when it’s misty and dull the flowers stay still to be photographed and are not blown away by wind (I’m desperately seeking small mercies here). Between the weather and other things to tend to, I’ve done very little gardening; the flowers though late this year come nonetheless and it’s a joy to see them. Seed sowing, potting up, repotting, top dressing, grass cutting etc still await, but I did get out in poor light this afternoon with the camera. Front garden tulips have started to flower now; those in the back are well behind.
Last spring Myrtle gave me this pot of Pleiones and I was thrilled to see them flower, they are so pretty. I did read up online about caring for them, no doubt made a mental note to do what was advised, then other things took over and I have to admit I completely forgot about them. They were never unpotted, separated, stored correctly, or repotted, and they have been outside all winter in their original pot, yes, under the snow and all the rain. But look, they are flowering again today … I am reprieved! So, thank you Myrtle, and I promise to look after them properly this time around so that they will multiply for me next year.
Im having some lovely days in the scrub lately.Rather nervously i decided to transplant an acer.I dug it up with a big rootball.then i shifted another shrub and hit a rock. It went at the side of rough stone steps.I went out today and reshifted!i was pleased with the new position of the acer.but i did a little arc of box near the steps. I think its a bit pretty but perhaps when it grows and greens it may be fine. Photos later.
As all my trying to grow these beauties in garden,ends up with non flowering plants,I decided to give try growing them in pots.Planted 2 different ones last autumn. Fritellaria imperialis is in flower first one 😊
P.s.i have one gorgeous variegated one ,in pot since 2016,it decided to split bulbs and grow new ones,so no flowers,but foliage is beautiful.
Slowly ! is the word in cleaning up the garden.Well I have helpers also,these two pigeons picking up the twigs and using them to build their nest.
2015 Video @ https://youtu.be/4JUTDYtCTe4
Red Poll Survives crash into my Window.
Video@ https://youtu.be/e87y8M5fK2Q
Why do they crash into Windows ? Birds see the world reflected in windows clouds, branches, leaves, sky — and fly toward it. Did not become a Lesser ! and flew away , 10 mins.
Twitter @ @SeanTippRyan
I have posted some journals to the new site, not user friendly at all, but I’m willing to be patient. But after 45 minutes of trying to add photos, I’ve had enough. If this doesn’t work it’s a goodbye from me.
After 16 months away from the garden, I’m finally finding my interest and get up and go. Stating in the back garden I’m finally seeing results.
Delighted to see some results for the effort, totally knackered but buzzing at the same time.
Flame Creeper, a favourite plant(weed) of mine, red flowers followed by blue berries.
Any advice on how to control its spread. The first time I saw it was in Jim Reynolds garden in Trim (closed now) growing up a conifer and I had to have it.Lots of people said it was hard to grow and needed acid soil so I created a planting hole of acid soil and for good measure I planted 2. First year nothing much but 10 years later I had a hedge of 60 mtrs covered in it from 2 plants.The roots went through my heavy soil as if it was compost.
I want it back in my new garden but I want to be able to control its spread into garden,any advice would be greatly appreciated.(do not plant is not acceptable advice) By the way I have pots of it from my old garden ready to plant once the garden is prepared, my aim is to cover my established hedge in it and the neighbours will be so jealous,no pain no gain I say.
Michael
Finally got round to having a look at the new site. Also first time I’ve been on it on a smartphone and it’s surprisingly easy. So I’m cautiously pleased. Meanwhile in the garden Alan has been clearing a bed which just didn’t work preparatory to sowing grass. I’ve come back from holliers with a streaming cold so have been pottering in the propagation shed, sowing, pricking out and potting on. But I did a bit of cutting back wind and cold damaged plants too so happy with my efforts. Sad that the tree lupin and lovely prunus kojo-no-mai didn’t survive the cold. But it’s an opportunity to plant something else.
I hope these Pelargoniums behave and do what they are supposed to do. I also bought a few new roses this year: Bengal Beauty, Louis XIV, Irene Watts.
This is the list of Pelargoniums
Ardens
Lord Bute
Schottii
Black Prince
Choun Cho
April Hamilton
The old bit of heat we had the other day is gone at this stage and more’s the pity. Despite that there is great colour in the garden, particularly from the many Camellias, and of course the Magnolias are coming into flower now as well.
Another wonderful spring flowering shrub, and i have two of them in the garden is the flowering currant Ribes sanguineum. It is easy to take these for granted but that would be wrong. I have one of them down near the front wall and the other one is up the back and it is a treat to look out on a bad day and see the lovely colour.
The first photo is of Camellia Pope John XXIII, i have this Camellia a good few years at this stage and i had to relocate it three or so years ago as it was going downhill. Thankfully it is now fully recovered and quite beautiful. The second shot is of my Magnolia stellata, everyone always raves about how good the stellatas are and i concur completely. The final shot is of one of the aforementioned Ribes sanguineums.
I may have mentioned once or twice that I love Helebores. I also love Anemone Blanda. These two flowers along with Snowdrops are my harbingers of Spring. The sun makes the anemones in particular absolutely beam at me as I come in my drive!
It’s funny how the excitement grows at this time of year.
I have managed to get hold of a few plants that I have wanted for a good while and am looking forward to seeing them in flower. I thought that I’d make a few changes this year but progress is slow.
Today’s delivery was of Pelargoniums. I haven’t ever grown them before but fancy giving them a try. Any advice from members would be appreciated.
I thought that this last weekend was going to be the beginning of our gardening in earnest. Sadly, the Weather Gods are changing their minds constantly. Didn’t get much time at all in the garden today, except for a bit of a ramble.
Caltha palustris is starting to flower away in the Lower Pond which is in semi-shade. I also have Caltha palustris ‘flore pleno’ (which is a double) in the Greenhouse Pond. This one is in full sun, when we get it. It’s a bit behind the one in the Lower Pond.
It’s funny how the one in shade is always first to flower.
These roots were found in a plant i got from Helen Dillon two years ago. I had foliage last year but no flowers. This year flowers are showing prior to foliage. Love the flowers and stems. I made the right decision on saving the roots as i gussed i wouldn’t be disappointed and I’m not.
All that’s needed now is a name.
Many thanks.
Hope the photo will post ok.
I read in Monty Don’s article in the Mail at the weekend to cut down their foliage in March, so did that today. I had spotted one flower coming through but was delighted to find lots more buds. I suppose it’s like with Hellebores, you cut down the foliage to let more light in.
