A garden is a lovesome thing, God wot!

[MaudantWit]

Join us for ongoing gardening chat in the MN potting shed. Blow the cobwebs off a deckchair, help yourself to a glass of elderberry champagne and tell us about your garden.

Oh yes, echt, that is gorgeous.

Bertha - would hardy Osteospermums work? I bought big plugs from T&M last year and have been pleased with them, although they've been slower to flower this year.

I think that photo was taken in the evening. The vibrancy of the colour is exactly that of jacaranda. Oddly, I've never seen any bees on it.

The tree is a coastal tea tree, looking more red in the evening. I'll find a pic that shows it in its twisty glory. The fence is a very dark grey, good for contrasty blooms, but meh otherwise.

Blackpudding There are some lovely dark coloured variegated pelargoniums about ATM, if the weather stays nice, you could try those (they're probably reducing them in the Garden Centres now).

crikey I go off line for a few days and there are pages of it I need to catch up on!
Haven't got much garden news really, popped into wilkos for some pegs and came out with a large electric propagator for the grand sum of.......£3.50 bargain as we saw the exact model in the garden centre later that day for £35.99!! A rose, a tray of herb plants and 3 pelargoniums jumped into my trolley in the garden centre, in my defence they were in the sale.
In other news we have found out im propagating a seed of an altogether different kind early days yet but

Oh, nightshade! That's lovely news. All digits crossed for you.

for nightshade.

I generally only out annuals in the pew planters as they get planted up with tulips for Spring. Funnily enough the only plants surviving in there at the moment are the variegated leaf pelargoniums that MIL gave me and I dumped in there as had nowhere else to put them. Piccy for you.

That picture makes it look much better than it actually is due to crafty use of angles masking all the crispy brown stuff

Lovely pics, echt and Bertha.

Congratulations Nightshade!

Congratulations Nightshade!!

I am looking forward to the w/e when I am planning to take horizontal root cuttings of my 1 Japanese anomene and 2 geranium sanguineum. I have never done it before, but carol Klein makes it look piss easy. Plus I am buoyed by the 1 Bowles mauve wallflower cutting that managed to root and 4 white bacopa cuttings which are thriving

Ps How cone nobody wanted to help me shop for a water feature? Do you all agree with DH that they are terribly naff and a waste of money? (See thread: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/gardening/2140975-Can-you-help-me-find-a-water-feature?

Have given my considered opinion on water features.

So you're a bit pelargoniumed out Blackpudding they do look lovely though.

nightshade

ref water features (I haven't read the link) forgive me if I repeat anything said in it There's fake ugly ones and nice natural ones but the wildlife doesn't care and I have a wildlife friendly garden so HAVE to have water. Luckily the last residents had filled 2 ancient stone pig troughs with earth and bulbs and weeds (at first I got all excited thinking they were ancient coffins or something ) I filled them with rain water and some nice different sized stones and voila!

I did empty them out first ! They've done the same with a well that has large shrub growing in it. I'm wondering about reconstructing it.

bertha what about Nasturtiums? Or black pansies to accompany orange tulips did your Pheasant berry survive? Mine is in flower now.

Lovely news nightshade

nann is your extension finished now? I don't have any thoughts about a water feature only that I'd like one too, but worried about it looking naff and the dog getting in it. I'm interested to hear what you decide.

Geoff - pheasant berry very much alive but still in a pot so relatively small and definitely not flowering. Foliage is a lovely colour today. Saw some today which were huge, they were fabulous.

I had my best ever work visits today (hence the pheasant berry viewing); cut flower nurseries! Two of them. One growing nothing but sweet peas, which were unfortunately finished but loads of interesting stuff about sweet pea growing taken on board....

The second one specialised in roses but basically grew everything that could be put in an arrangement. It was truly amazing. I could bore you all for ages about it but all I shall say is that my plants pale into insignificance compared to what they had there. It was like their plants were completely different species from my feeble attempts! I came home with armfuls of roses as they had too many, and the scent on them is incredible.

Ahhhh...sometimes I love my job.

Foliage is a lovely colour though. So excited about today I didn't proof read my post!

I am [green] at your job bertha are we allowed to know what it is

Photo is a poor attempt at flower arranging, excuse oversize Dalmatian bomb, but I love my Dahlias!

Gah

Bertha I am dying to know what you do too! What wonderful places you get to go to. I am seriously

Ohh nightshade!

sounds v interesting Bertha

Dahlias look lovely geoff.

Ok, you lot have convinced me. Next year I grow more slug food dahlias.

congrats nightshade

There was a whole poly tunnel of dahlias today. They had a little heater to keep them warm in cold snaps. They were very happy dahlias. Mine is a sad dahlia that is trying hard.

I'm a health & safety consultant and I specialise in agriculture and horticulture and any other rural industry and farming diversification. Not a very exciting job in itself but I do go to some fabulous places.

That sounds very interesting, Bertha. Will you get to do a risk assessment at Long Meadow?

Did you know that florists in London charge £10 for five sweet pea stems? I have about 30 in my kitchen today which will be replaced with 30 more tomorrow. Gardens are truly wonderful things.