…if winter comes, can Spring be far behind? 2014 beckons us...

[echt]

Okay, so the height of summer is yet to scorch the nethers of those in this wide brown land of Orstrylia, but welcome to the MNettie gardeners of the world. Prop up your sagging fences, evict the rats from your decking, and find a use for that poinsettia.

The dolls aren't being used much . Had no time to make a Monty yet but it's on my list!

That is beautiful.

There is a fab recipe for preserved quince in Susan Hill's Magic Apple Tree. One day I will be able to make it.

My quince may need several more years of recovery before I can make preserved quince too Humph. In the mean time I will continue to appreciate my single quince blossom.

Hello and welcome Peggy.

My ornamental quince is flowering too and making me happy below the kitchen window. We are planning to knock through to make the window into French windows though, poor quince.

The main road that runs along the front of the house was closed today due to a serious accident further out of the village. The dc were farmed out for the afternoon so I took advantage of this rare opportunity to get out there into the road and pull ivy out of the yew hedge - there's no pavement, and it's a busy but narrow road so attending to that side of the hedge is normally impossible without a death wish.

I usually get people in to cut the hedge so they can dice with death instead of me but they never cut it back hard enough, no matter how much I urge them to do it harder (ahem). The top of it leans out into the road, and lorries tend to bash into it as they go by, which really irritates me. So once I'd pulled out the ivy I couldn't resist grabbing the loppers and giving it a serious haircut while I had the chance. Fabulously satisfying.

But after three hours I'd only got a third of the way along, and it was time to collect the kids. Boo. I don't know how I'll do the rest of it. Maybe on London to Brighton bike ride day - the road closes then and it might be possible to get some done early in the morning before the bikes start coming through too thick and fast.

I've never eaten quince, it's very pretty.

funny shame about your fatalities.

Smirks at do it harder

I'm wondering how hard to prune some things in my front garden, and despite lots of googling I'm still not sure.

There are two neglected Forsythia shrubs that have turned into trees just in flower but other wise very unatractive. There is also a very old fuschia, just springing into life, looks lovely in flower but has lots of old wood. I think I'm meant to cut it right back now ?

I have resisted the urge to do more seeds, but did find that Dh had sneakily done some cactus from seeds circa before we even met. I'm hoping they won't germinate. Dc's , dogs and cacti - not a good combination ! I also discovered Gunnera seeds in the box, Dh bought them in Cornwall and I'm too scared to sow them, just about have room for the one plant, which I stii can't decide where to put.

bumbez lots has survived though. The quince (white)is flowering beautifully, little viola seeds sown outdoors in the autumn are flowering, anemones, cyclamen, primroses, daffodils, squills, fritillaries, hellebores all out there. One of the nice things about a north facing garden is that it tends to bloom after everyone else so that spring is longer. My cherry isn't out yet but round here there is a riot of densely flowering magnolias and cherry trees, and friends in central London say their flowering trees are already beginning to drop petals as they flowered so early. Bumble bees are feeding on the nectar.
The apple was pruned, which set it back, and it isn't flowering yet.
Sarah Raven sent replacement sweet pea seeds which is bothersome, not what I wanted.
I upturned the worms into the compost heap a couple of days ago. When I went back half an hour later, a field mouse jumped out. All the birds round here are looking very well fed: I suspect them of raiding the worms in the heap.
castlegough can I ask are you able to collect gentian seeds?

Have just realised you have possibly confused my garden casualty (sanguisorba) with maud (rose ,clematis, quince)

Pruning: my main thoughts about this today after seeing some extraordinary example of pruning into shapes and along walls at Great Dixter, is that one can be creative about this, and also that it probably takes a few seasons to get the ideal shape and structure.
Isnt the best time for forsythia to prune after flowering?

Oh dear it took me ages to get the 'do it harder' thing. I'm getting too old!

I had to google fritillaries - they are lovely remind me a bit of Nigella and Crocus. It was your Sanguisorba I was sorry for, I remember when you bought it.

Yes your right Forsythia are to prune after flowering its just the state of the shrub that is bemusing me, trunk as wide as a thigh (not mine though as mine is massive and how awfull it looks in Winter. I'll have to go to Great Dixter one day.

All the Alliums are up and thickening nicely, although I may have spaced them out too much.

I planted some fritillaries in the Autumn but have forgotten where . In fact I've forgotten wha half the stuff coming up actually is with the pay for postage only offers I got. The primroses are looking lovely and are starting to establish in the back now after I transplanted a fair few.

The chillis are germinating in the propagator but the ones that are up are looking leggy and need to come out really as they need more light. The greenhouse is too cold and I don't want to heat it after the electricity bill I had last year from that.

Had a read of the Chillis Galore forum. They have used various methods over the years and I spent ages yesterday evening reading through. This year they are using a Vitopod (which is doing its thing upstairs) to germinate then are sticking under a grow light. Decided to get that one as it was linked fom their site and I figured they know what they are doing plus can use I to stick other seedlings under if I ever get anything else sown. Hopefully it will be a lot cheaper than heating the greenhouse so with the idea of all the money I would potentially save, I might have possibly got a bit carried away and added slightly more Jiffy Pellets than intended, ahem 1000. Hoping the box won't be too big ...

Think we're completing on Mum's house tomorrow and am really annoyed at myself that I didn't get round to taking rose cuttings. Ironically, the ones I have done from the plants here are doing well. Her garden looks lovely with al, the spring flowers out and I felt quite sad picking up the post for the final time today. The gardens are gorgeous where she is now but she won't have any of her garden things on her little patio.

Wynken sending you a hug, it must be quite emotional to sell your parents home and say goodbye to the beloved garden.

funny this is my 3rd Spring living here and I haven't seen the gentians yet. They grow a little higher up, and we bring the cattle down from the mountain before they appear. I keep forgetting to go up and see them in bloom, but I will for sure this year. And if it's possible to save a little seed I will, and I'll post you some .

Planted the climbing Iceberg rose on one side of the stable door yesterday, then returned to Lidl for another to plant on the other side, so they might eventually meet overhead.... It nearly broke my heart digging the hole yesterday. DH did point out that I was digging into the foundation of a house . Aiming to plant the other rose by the weekend, and have decided to stop holding onto the wisteria I bought last year and plant it up against the gable of another cottage/storage shed directly across from the climbing roses. And there is another stone wall at a right angle to these and I am going to dig a bed under it and put in the purple geraniums. I'm tired of waiting for the 'garden' and at least this is one area I can focus on now, and make pretty. Going to hunt out a little aubretia for the stone wall as well - a lilac and white theme. This area is next to the garden anyway, and the wisteria will be visible from the house.

Phew, sorry about the waffle. Just thinking it all out....

Lovely to hear about your garden castelough
wynken it must be a real wrench when mother's home finally gets sold, though a great achievement to complete such a financially logistically and emotionally difficult task. Sending strength and encouragment. Your Chilli growing plans sound quite technical I dont think I understood half the words in that paragraph! What is a vitopod?

funny check out www.irishwildflowers.ie (not sure how to link!)
They harvest and sell native wildflower seed, I would say they can supply the gentian seed (in case I fail miserably!)

And thanks I am tired of my own wittering tbh, wish I could silence my busy mind

Wynken any chance you could just try a few rose cuttings/hunks of rose bushes or other cuttings? You never know...

A Vitopod is a heated propagator . My lovely DH bought me one for Christmas as he had seen me staring longingly at the website. It will heat up to 30 degrees so good for things that need high temperatures to germinate. I don't like eating scorchingly hot chillis but got the bug for growing the super hot ones the other year when I grew a Dorset Naga. They can be hard to germinate then need decent heat and light levels to get going. I've been struggling a bit on the decent light levels hence my shopping.

Think I've been so focused on the getting the house sorted and sold that the implications of it going hadn't fully sunk in but suddenly did earlier. So am distracting myself with plants which worked a treat when things got hard last summer. She hadn't lived there for years and years which makes it a bit easier. Might take the secatuers tomorrow, take cuttings and see what happens.

That all sounds lovely Castlelough. I planted an Iceberg by the garage side door at the weekend, think I might have been a bit close really. Think once you've done what you've just outlined you'll feel good about it all as you'll be on the way if that makes sense.

castleough thanks for the link! It says on the website their seed harvest has been decimated by storms this year. I wonder if there are rules and regs about harvesting wildflower seeds?

hmm...found this in a newspaper archive
"Gentiana verna can still be found growing wild in western Ireland, and also on the calcium-rich grasslands of Upper Teesdale in County Durham. Its flowering in late spring and early summer is a great draw to wild-flower enthusiasts, although its very particular habitat and rarity mean that it is strictly protected by law."
and also found a wildflower site selling legit. seed
www.plant-world-seeds.com/
I may get some gentian verna seeds from them if I feel green fingered.

Here in the south-west after a few days of bright skies and warm rays it's turned chilly and we've had a lot of mist. So I stare at the garden from the window, planning, dreaming and imagining haow it could be. - just need the time & money now!

Good research funny!

It's a bit blowy here today. We did indeed complete earlier and I did a last minute rose cutting sweep round the garden. Won't get my hopes up that they will take but you never know.

Fingers crossed they take Wynken and it must have been quite stressfull for you.

I spent 4 hours clearing out ivy, dead wood and trepiditiosly (is that even a word) pruning the fuschia. I filled up a one ton bag of green waste and my hands are sore. Still more to do hopefully this weekend :)

The birds are shitting on my greenhouse Dh says its a great vantage point to raid the Rhaspberries!

Ooh, pruning the forsythia... I will need some hand-holding as there's a very old and leggy one in our hedge, it's just come out (yay!) but I'd like to train it over the kids new willow den for added prettiness. However I really don't want to kill it as the hedge is quite dense and getting a new one to take in there could be tricky as there's so much competition...

DH, on the other hand, has taken to rolling his eyes whenever he hears me announce I have "something for the garden".... I need to sit on my hands and stop obtaining stuff! (This latest one, I went to Homebase for paint and drill bits, and "accidentally" came home with two blueberry bushes for the patio...)

You and me both Aethelfleda. I am physically incapable of going to a nursery or garden centre without buying at least one plant.