My garden makes me so happy

[HumphreyCobbler]

I wanted a garden all my adult life, and for the last three years I have had one.

To begin with I was worried it wouldn't be as much fun as I thought it would be, but I soon discovered it was even better.

It was an overgrown, tangled mess when we moved in and slowly we have transformed it. I am still a beginner, but I already know so much more than I did.

Today I came home to find a massive pile of well rotted horseshit waiting for me. It was brilliant.

I don't really know what the point of this post is, I just wanted to share

My bulb order stands at £186. So far.

300 or so tulips (spring green, princess Irene, sylvestris, 400 iris bulbs (purple sensation), various alliums. The main worry is how much my back is going to hurt after they are planted.

Laid out canes for the new double row of crab apples that are going in, also laid the hose in the shape of the new beds at the side/back of the house so I could see what DH meant. I am crap at visualising spacial things, I have to see it. It is going to cut the garden in half, as we are also adding a purple beech hedge to make a more enclosed space with much less lawn. The aim is to get rid of the massive expanse of grass that dominates the garden atm. I can't wait.

Have also started planning what I am going to do with the enclosed square at the front of the house, which is a total mess now. It is a small space but has no repeat planting at all, just inappropriate shrubs and random mismatched planting. Definitely want to use oriental poppies here as I think they will look good from the road. I do want to avoid a cottage border look. Suggestions welcome, I am after stuff that is quite low growing. In a few years we will try to put box hedging all round here as we look out at it from our bedroom window and it would look great in winter. It will take a long time to do this as DH only started doing the cuttings last year. We have 120 plants surviving so far and hope to do more this year.

Have you all been enjoying the fine weather? Do hope so.

I've been busy collecting bulb catalogues. Then I am forcing DH to sit with me to decide what to order. In this way I hope he won't faint when he sees the overall cost! Hopefully won't be anywhere near yours though Humphrey but I do want a shed load of aliums for the long bed and we're planning on getting some bluebells out the front in a bit of the garden that we generally just ignore as it's between the shed and the gate. Bluebells will look perfect there though.

Well what an amazing stormy afternoon! Hailstones here at about 5pm. Hope nothing got too battered.

I've done nearly nothing in the garden for two weekends - feels very strange. Last Sunday I held a birthday party for my 2 year old in the garden and it was thoroughly trampled on (but enjoyed!) by all.

I've just been enjoying looking out on it. It's very green and lush. I planted some seeds of carrots, beetroot, cavolo nero and radish which are emerging, and I'm doing some late potatoes (bit of an experiment). Thinking about getting the specialist seed potatoes for Christmas cropping, but I'm not sure it's the best use of space - they're not exactly attractive plants.

Wondering about cutting down /removing some of the nicotiana that didn't really recover from the move. I've been very lax about deadheading calendulas in the front garden border to my path, but those that I have done, I've scattered in the grass so perhaps it will all come up next year.

We are perilously close to needing to start a follow-on thread... title suggestions?
"My garden still makes me smile even after I've eaten courgettes every night for a week" - ??

Lovely garden article in yesterday's Saturday Times magazine - Kate Atkinson (of the Jackson Brodie books) has a lovely courtyard garden packed full of scent and floweryness.

Love the new thread title, although I HAVEN'T eaten courgettes for a week . Runner beans are going to be my next staple by the look of things.

I didn't get a times on Saturday, how annoying. The words courtyard garden are enough to make me happy.

The wind has picked up after a two blissful wind-free months.

on reflection that title is only really relevant this month and as it took us five of the most active gardening months to get through this one, even if everyone did want to reconvene in thread 2 it should serve us through the winter, which gives me an idea.......

Here you go!

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/gardening/1275641-Humphs-Happy-Horti-cult-harvesting-preserving-mulching-leaf-gathering-bulb-dibbing-seed-catalogue-surfing-and-hunkering-down-for-winter