Humph's Happy Horti-cult: harvesting, preserving, mulching, leaf-gathering, bulb-dibbing, seed catalogue-surfing and hunkering down for winter

[Lexilicious]

Following on from the original March to August thread. For all - whether still gardening through the winter or planning to sweep the shed, hibernate, sharpen the tools and get started again in the spring.

Happy gardening again!

Be grateful I missed out most of the interesting bits

What? You mean there's more?

Meanwhile, I am thinking of what to spend some garden centre vouchers on. Plants, but which ones?

anyone have any tulip recommendations? And daffodil? I'm going through the catalogues and trying not to spend too much money...

Humphrey - in awe of your meat production (and slightly glad our covenant says we can't have pigs!) Having own air dried ham sounds wonderful.

Also dug up pink fir potatoes at weekend. They were gorgeous although slightly smaller than I hope but some evil thing was eating the leaves so I think that was the reason. Even DS professed to liking them and he is not a potato fan generally.

Also picked up more cheap seeds - 75% off Unwins seeds in my local tesco. So got Cerinthe, Verbena Bonariensis (apologies for bad spelling) and lobelia. All for about 50 a packet.

That reminds me that I must harvest some cerinthe seeds as soon as the plants are dry.

::sobs at rain::

My favourite tulips are Princes Irene and Ballerina and I'm also trying Couleur Cardinal and Caravelle this year. I've gone off narcissus now that I've got tulipmania, but I always grow lots of Thalia, February Gold and Pipit.

Hi all - started new job so have been away for a few days. Came back to find all the plants lying down; must have been very windy! I'm hoping the leeks pop back upright again as they're a bit bendy now.

Celeriac are very healthy thanks Lex - also went out and stripped some leaves off at the weekend. What would we do without GW?

Also envious of the pig butchery - though I still have plans for those pesky squirrels....

Hmm. I have plans involving a shotgun for the local cats.

at the thought of Maud wielding a shotgun :o

at hapless cats :o

Hit "post" too soon

Oh, there are plenty of other situations in which I would like to wield a shotgun, Jacksmania, but don't, because I am a wimp law-abiding citizen.

What's new in your garden? Did you invest in some obelisks?

I have come to officially retract the nasty things I said about sedums. I bought Purple Emperor yesterday and am converted, although I still think I may hack off the flowers and grow it for the foliage. ::grin::

Just popping in quickly to say Wyevale have their seeds for 50p a laconic you sign up for their gardening club (free). Also 100 overwintering onion sets were £3 which seemed reasonable and there's garlic.

I'm still loving my sedum Maud. They are just flowering now and are a stunning colour and the bees love them.

Went to Wisley yesterday for a nosey around their flower show. DH scuppered my buying plans by informing me halfway round that he hadn't emptied his car boot and therefore there was no room for plants! Nice afternoon though even in the rain...

Went out this morning for the last pick of blackberries and apples. Ran out of time to tackle the crab apple again so I'll keep that on the agenda for next weekend.

Also, very proud that I have managed to keep a clematis alive long enough for it actually to get a flower. It's very pretty. Only the one flower mind but I have hope that this one may not succumb like all previous versions. Still in a pot at the moment though; I'm building up the nerve to plant it somewhere.

We've also finally managed to pick and eat some ripe tomatoes. Have stripped off the remaining foliage as instructed by Monty so I am hopeful that the rest may yet get to an edible stage.

Oh, what was the show like, Pkam? We decided not to go because I was afraid it would be as crowded as the last one we went to, where we had to go away for a couple of hours just to have a chance of getting into the overflow carpark for the overflow carpark.

My most recently planted clematis disappeared while we were on holiday - I suspect it had been slugged to death. With luck it'll come back in the spring. If they all survive, I'll have about fifteen.

It was busy but not horrendous - I think the weather trimmed the crowds down. I wanted to see a few more good displays though - there were some good ones but often the displays didn't look any different from the sales areas behind! So we spent more time around the rest of the gardens where the kids could run around a bit more - especially as I had a buying ban anyhow....

Anyone else fearing for their garden in the wind? I went out earlier and cut down all the sweet peas I had growing up the baby willow poles trees as they were pulling them over.

Did two pigs yesterday - made about 22kg of sausages (not all for us), got some hams in brine, roasting joints, casseroling meat and lots of chops. Ate tenderloin with last year's black pudding, apple and onion sauce tonight.

::squirm:: at black pudding.

::southern softie emoticon::

The benefit of being farther south (and having a small and enclosed garden) is that, although it is windy, it is not abnormally so. I'm going to pick all my sweet peas tomorrow, as they're just getting better and better. And, after a severe prune when I got back from holiday, my windowbox is looking fabulous again.

::simple pleasures::

I love black pudding! Don't have it much at home as DH can't stand it. One of my favourite comfort foods is a black pudding and tomato sauce sandwich. Mmmmm.

Happened to be passing Wisley today whilst out for work so popped in and spent my garden centre vouchers. Bought some verbena bonariensis (?), some grasses that DD1 and I took a liking to at the flower show, and some dwarf asters for the front of the bed which are just coming into flower now.

Forgot to say I managed to find 14 walnuts at the weekend that the squirrels had missed underneath the walnut tree. Does 14 count as a walnut 'harvest'?

That sounds fab, Pkam. My garden centre vouchers are still burning a hole in my pocket.

Gets in there before Humphrey. Slightly disappointed the name wasn't already taken....

Planted out new plants today. The grasses were catching the sun beautifully this evening.

I am too slow.

All I did today was dive into the mini greenhouse and pick tomatoes. I have had a good crop, I think that two thirds well rotted cow shit and one third compost was a good way to plant. I have never had any luck with tomatoes before and even now I only have room for a few plants. Picking them requires contortioning my body in very peculiar ways.

I want a polytunnel. Or a green house.

No GW tonight

Even more that my Friday night highlight is GW. How did that happen? Must get out more....

Am very jealous of anyone who has tomatoes, mine all got blight. Has been s very hectic week and DS's birthday party today so no chance to get to allotment .

I have sorted out the carport and greenhouse though with some old paving slabs that were in carport chucked in front of the greenhouse. My Dahlia is flowering and the hibiscus cuttings are starting to grow roots.

I feel the same, Bertha. Alan on ITV loving his garden just isn't good enough - all he seems to do is bung a few plants in pots srather than nurturing or propagating them.

My tomatoes are all still green. Harrumph.

I think I may try to do some fuchsia cuttings. THis is rather garish but looks very good in a terracotta pot.