Goodbye Ciara: Hello Dennis.

Please pass through quickly and without damaging our plants.

Clematis montanna  in the rear shady border – growing well.

The fuchsia in the front sunny border has new growth too.

Still waiting for my sprouts – they could be some time. The largest is about the size of . . . a small sprout!!!!

The first crocuses are looking good.

A rare glimpse of the front sunny border – there’s usually a car blocking the view. The rather scruffy concrete block wall was here before we were. I don’t want to paint it but it is looking a bit grim and depressing. Any suggestions?

With rain battering the windows and slates rattling on the roof, I’ll be spending most of the weekend checking out other Six-on Saturday’s. You can find them in the comments on The Propagator’s Blog.

We’re waiting for Storm Ciara to make an appearance, though I think we might be okay for a few hours yet. The sun is shining but the clouds are starting to gather overhead. Because of our mountainous (sort of) and rural location, we’ve taken a few precautions – mainly filling flasks with hot water and bringing logs for the wood burner nearer the back door and under cover.

These are the ‘before’ pictures – I really hope I don’t have to post any ‘after’.

My pots by the back door are doing well. By pure chance, the colour of the surprise primula matches the cyclamen). These should be safe as they are sheltered by the conservatory.

These rescued narcissi should be opening soon, if they’re not blown over first.

This little cyclamen doesn’t look like much, but it will have a few tiny flowers eventually. The corm is only slightly smaller than the diameter of its pot. I estimate it to be at least thirty-five years old, if not more. (We’ve been in this house for thirty-three years and it was empty for at least three years prior to that).

This fuchsia has lots of new growth coming through. It should be the perfect size to plant out in the front border towards the end of April.

No, this is not the work of a local North-Wales dung-beetle but the first shoots of my alliums – grown for the first time last year and left in the same pot. There should be five!

If you are currently experiencing or expecting ‘adverse weather conditions’, wherever you are this weekend, stay safe and keep checking The Propagator’s blogfor more garden posts from around the world.

You can track Storm Ciara – and other weather/wind conditions in your part of the world on this handy interactive map.

A grey day, thankfully dry and mild.  Hellebore Christmas Carol finally decided to flower, and very pretty is it too, brightening up the shady part of the front border.

In the mini greenhouse, the rosemary cuttings I took last year are (mostly) growing well. There have been some losses, which may be down to over-watering, but on the whole there will be enough there for me to use to divide my allotment bed into three sections.

Outside, the dwarf narcissi I rescued from the Very Shady Border (now Compost Corner) are growing well, with buds beginning to show. Once they’ve finished flowering, I’ll just decant them into the front border and leave the leaves on so I can see where they are when I come to plant new shrubs.

 

And in the front border, a few brave crocuses have managed to push their way through the layer of topsoil I put down in autumn.

 

And this bud/shoot bodes well for the clematis Montana in the shady border.

as does this honeysuckle bud.

Grab a coffee (or hot drink of choice) and take a few minutes to check out other garden offerings over at The Propagator’s blog. You might need to return several times throughout the weekend.

 

A Sunday walk had me peering into neighbours’ gardens to see what, if anything, was growing. I believe the above may be a variegated euonymus, though I don’t know if the pink tinge is its autumn coat or permanent. Continue reading “Six on Saturday: 18 January 2020” →

Good morning from a blustery North Wales. We are currently experiencing alternating sunshine and horizontal drizzle, so I’m staying put.

This white cyclamen has now come into its own. I’m hoping to be able to split these plants in the spring, ready for planting out next autumn.

I’ve tidied up the Shady Border by nipping off the ends of the clematis Montana back to a bud, and removing the dead stems and leaves from the Japanese anemones.

A general tidy of the shady patio and I decided to use the olive tree we dug out of the raised bed as a makeshift bird feeder. I’ve placed it opposite the kitchen window, giving me a good (and warm) view ready for the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch (25-27 January) – you don’t have to join RSPB to request a free pack. I’ve already had blue- and great-tits at the feeder and have moved the homemade suet block nearer the centre since I took this photo. This is to help ‘my’ robin, who can now reach it to feed.

I planted up these pots with rescued narcissi from the Very Shady Border (now Compost Corner), so it’s nice to see they’re staging a comeback. I must remember to label the pots this year as I want to plant these out in the Shady Front border along with the cyclamen and 2019’s hellebores.

Hopefully these Brussels Sprouts will continue to grow and not get eaten by anything. I am considering moving them into a larger pot with some fresh compost as they must have used up every nutrient in the current pot by now.

And finally, a couple of my leeks will soon be read for harvesting. I started these of from seed around eight months ago, so it’s been a long process, but at least we won’t have a glut and can take our time and savour each one.

Take a look at The Propagator’s blog for more magnificent gardens and lots of hints, tips and advice on anything and everything garden related.

Happy New Gardening Year

Already, things in the garden are showing a promise of things to come. The first bud on one of my clematis montana appeared before the end of the old year. Continue reading “Six on Saturday: 4 January 2020” →