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

Borage now on herb plant shopping list along with the camomile. I've always just put plain old mint in my pimms but branching out sounds appealing. Looking forward to the first drunken refined 'pimms in the garden' afternoon.

We moved into our house under a year ago and have put so much into our garden. I am so looking forward to seeing how it compares this year to last. It feels like everything is about to explode with the arrival of spring, I am so excited.

This weekend we are planting a wildflower meadow and tidying up our hazel copse. I am in love with my garden, from the smell of the soil right through to the blackthorn blossom that imposes upon us in our top field.

FlopemOut, how are you? I have a funny feeling I might know you..

HC I believe you do. Not sure what the correct etiquette is in this circumstance (quickly consults Debretts).
I think I also love my rotavator I've hired for the weekend. I can now see the attraction in ploughing and why people enter ploughing matches.

Have you been on the tractor yet?

How funny that I recognised your hazel copse

I should introduce you to the thread as the woman who got me interested in Monty. I'll fight you for him.

I have been looking at all the different types of rosemary, I want all of them.

Different kinds of Rosemary you say?

Yes, white, blue, pink, creeping.

There are loads. Although on clay soil I may be indulging in some wishful thinking.

here they are

a hedge made of all the tall ones in different colours might be nice

Or it might be vulgar. All the same colour might be better

Thanks! :)

Ah, we have clay soil too.. Hmm
I'm off to the garden centre (again ) this weekend, so shall have a look!

I've got some lovely rosemarys (don't kno their names tho') they are various shades of blue.
I'm tempted to add white to the mix this year.

::Leans over fence in manner of gnarled old son of the soil, with piece of straw between the teeth::

Rosemary Does Not Prosper On Clay Soil. It's the cold wet winters wot does it, but if you don't mind replacing every couple of years, it'll be OK.

What's all this talk of fields and tractors? Are we getting agricultural here? And what did we think of Monty tonight, rolling on the ground looking at his hellebores and tempting (?) us with thoughts of his bare botty?

I tried not to think about his bare botty. It made me realise that my love for him is of the mind only.

I think I will have to leave the rosemary hedge for now, it is so windy at that spot in the summer, we get a fab view but pay for it with a strange weather phenomenon where the wind sweeps across from the mountains until the temperature drops. We know now why the previous occupants planted a row of leylandii right across the view.

Will lavender survive windy conditions?

I looked longingly at Monty's braces though. I actually comtemplated buying some elasticated waist trousers the other day. Don't grass me up to style and beauty.

Dh has just come up with a plan for a new bed outside the back door where we will have to entirely replace the soil, thus enabling me to put in a nice rosemary suitable sandy mix.

No, quite. I was rather disappointed in Monty when he gave that lascivious smile as he said he wouldn't be baring his botty on camera. For me it's all about the gardening.

I would love some braces on my gardening jeans, but feel they are incompatible with vast norkage. ::Fellow refugee from S&B::

You are fortunate indeed to have a husband who will plan flower beds. Lavender won't be happy on clay - it's the cold wet roots over winter wot do it, as they do for rosemary - but I don't think that wind is so much of an issue. Perhaps it could go in the new bed by the back door.

Ah, unless the wind is so fierce it rips the plants out of their moorings.

Had my dd's baptism party in the garden today. I was really proud of it, all the damson blossom looked lovely, the star magnolia was out, the cherry trees were blossoming.

Have you all had a nice weekend in your gardens?

The wind is quite strong but not that bad - but we do get wind burn on the odd thing.

Yes, thank you. I planted some violas and did some vague pottering. Tomorrow, I sow seeds.

Your party sounds delightful. My mother thought I was going to call dd Flora. (I didn't, by the way).

I want to call my mythical future dd Rosamund.

If I don't get work tomorrow I am going to weed the veg patch and put the peas in.

Rosamund is indeed a lovely name.

What think you to direct sowing of sweet peas? I usually start mine in root-trainers but as I still haven't sown them thought I might just bung 'em in the soil.

Humphrey - party sounds lovely. Had a busy weekend in the garden. New corner bed in and planted - DH disappeared at crucial moment and left me to pickaxe the solid ground to break it up. Now have sore shoulder.

Also planted up zinc planters (Lidl) for back of pew - pew sanded and oiled and looks fantastic with mixture of herbs peeking over the top. Can't wait for them to grow. Have borage for that pimms

Oh, and the DDs planted some sunflowers seeds and I sowed the leeks.

Was planning a nice mother's day at Wisley but DH been poorly all day so pottered about instead.

I bet the sweet peas would be fine - they seem to come up no matter what, don't they? All mine in pots fell off the shelf in my cheapy greenhouse thingy the other day, I had to fish around for the seeds and replant them. I shoved a few more in. What kind do you grow? I tend to go for the old fashioned kind because of the scent, but have got some lovely white ones to try this year.

New corner bed sounds lovely Pkam. Hope your DH is better soon and your shoulder recovers. I could just drink a pimms right now.

I have shoved my sweetpeas straight in the soil before now Maud but I usually wait until May (in case of frost) so I've done mine in root trainers this year (also because then DS could 'help' more easily). I've got the standard old fashioned ones - I love to have little jugs of them on my desk. My favourite scent ever I think.

We are going to start the great sunflower competition one day this week which we have every year. We each plant a seed and see whose grows tallest. He usually wins for some reason - I probably fuss over mine too much :o

The baptism sounds great Humprey - baptising the garden as well as your DD :)

Humprey? Humphrey even!

Maud, last year I sowed half my sweetpeas inside (in toilet roll tubes - not organised enough to buy root trainers) and half directly into the soil.
The only difference was the ones grown inside started to flower about 2 weeks earlier. By the middle of the summer you couldn't see any difference