Fruit, Veg, Flowers and Slugs

Firstly, as we were rain free in my neck of the woods at the weekend, the  Lillum Casa Blanca  bulbs are in. I have placed one in front of the two bulbs that were already in-situ forming a nice little triangle of lilies with two new bulbs planted either side around a foot apart which will hopefully produce a lovely backdrop to the border come summer.  As mentioned in the original post a few days age I have been thinking of other plants to add and have ordered six C hrysanthemum Silver Princess bare roots which are  clump-forming herbaceous perennials that have single daisy like flowers that should bloom from early summer through autumn. I have also ordered a packet of  Chrysanthemum Polar Star seeds, completely new to me, they are an annual with  tricolour daisy flowers described as a  white bloom with an intriguing inner yellow halo surrounding a central darker cushion. The picture I have seen they look great and will sort the White Border perfectly.  As it was a nice sunny if chilly

I took full advantage of the Bank Holiday and surprisingly mild weather to get out and do a bit on the plot on the Bank Holiday Monday following New Year.  The Autumn Fruiting Raspberry canes from last year were cut right down to ground level, actually later than I'd normally do this but still fine to be done in early January, and the canes added to the wood pile ready to be burnt in the Chimenea in the near future. I tidied up the bed and added Soil Improver Manure, which is mainly mushroom compost, and Chicken Manure pellets to the bed to give it a good feed. The Strawberry plants were all tidied up as well, any dead foliage removed, the beds weeded and again Soil Improver Manure and Chicken Manure pellets were added to the beds; luckily the British weather was kind and rained most of Tuesday morning helping it bed down and wash those nutrients into the soil.  I also chopped down the Green Manure on the main Veg Patch and will leave the leaves to wilt down for a few days before t

It may surprise anyone new to gardening but November can be a very busy month in the garden and it's not just all about raking up leaves; that said, you will be raking up leaves! November is a great time to be planting Tulip bulbs ready for a display next year. I have usually have Tulips in pots allowing me to change displays each year and in truth very few of them come back year after year and those that do often disappoint coming back smaller and not flowering as well. You can get away with it, and I have had bulbs in borders for two or three years in the past but generally you're better off planting new bulbs this time of year in pots for late spring, early summer next year. I often sow Sweet Peas at this time of year in pots, keep them indoors until germinated and then over winter in the greenhouse. This way you get a head start on spring sown seeds and get your first flowers earlier in the season. As yet I haven't actually done either of these jobs, I may not, but prob

The vegetable patch is beginning to look a little sorry for itself now in November. The Green Manure mix sowed a few weeks ago has really shot up, I possibly sowed a little to thickly, but it will do no harm and does at least add some foliage to the plot at this time year and is of course doing a very important job. I mentioned in a previous post how Green manures stop weeds spreading and prevent nutrients leaching from the soil over winter. With the amount of rainfall we have had at times in October I am very pleased I sowed the mix! The plants will be cut down and lightly dug into the soil come spring.  The Runner Bean plants are pretty much done for with the last having been picked at the weekend. They have been brilliant this year, I have bags and bags of them frozen to get me through the winter. I will leave the plants for a week or two as they die down to let the leaves fall off; makes it much easier unravelling them from their supports. All the remains will naturally be composte

I have sown a packet of Mr Fothergills Green Manure Autumn/Winter mix on the part of the main veg bed that is now empty the French Beans having finished and the leeks thrown onto the compost heap having bolted.  I mentioned in a previous post what handy things Green Manures are. They stop weeds spreading as they grow so quickly, the seeds I sowed had germinated in just three of four days, and prevent nutrients leaching from the soil over winter. Clovers fixes nitrogen in the soil whilst Rye Grass and Mustard improve soil structure - these are all in this particular mix. Green Manures are also beneficial to a number of insects when few if any plants and flowers are around in late autumn and early spring.  The plants will be cut down and lightly dug into the soil come spring prior to the sowing of seeds next March/April.  If you have never used a green Manure seed mix I would highly recommend them.  On the rest of the plot it is all about harvesting and storing at the moment. The Runner

 The Leeks have bolted!  A mini disaster has beset the veg patch with the Leeks all bolting/going to seed. I have had to accept the inevitable and dug the lot up! Each and every one had gone, all forming bulbs rather than nice long slender stems.  Some will say I planted out the seedlings too early, I put them out over the Easter Weekend in early April, but I have done this many times before and all has been fine. I think it is a simple case of the weird and wonderful weather we have had this year with it so unsettled - hot when it would normally be chilly, wet when you'd expect it dry and cold when it should be time to slap on the sun cream!  With the French Beans also basically done I have cleared half the big bed in total, dug in some Chicken Manure Pellets and sown a Green Manure mix over the bare soil.  Poultry manure is a useful source of nitrogen and I also scattered a fair helping around the Strawberry plants as I do every autumn. I will naturally add other fertilisers such