Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May: Alternative potting shed thread

[funnyperson]

On the grounds that potting sheds should admit those of all cultures here is an alternative potting shed thread. Probably makeshift and not as posh as the other one. Definitely subversive and open to gardeners of all capabilities.

6am tomorrow, Ppeat. Urgh. That's one of the reasons I couldn't stay till the sell off at Chelsea, I had to get back to finish packing and potting up and getting everything ready for the cat sitter. I didn't get the grass cut. It will be like a field when we get back. Nor did I get all the wholesale plants planted. Damn. My cat sitter has a lot of watering to do.

I was chatting with funnyperson about us doing a Mumsnet chelsea garden, funnily enough! A collaborative effort, women working together blah blah child friendly inspirational space like here, a table with gin and naice ham on it. We could be sponsored by Waitrose and Boden.

I want to see a photo of Bearleigh's offending yellow irises in her purples border!

Yes the Japanese garden was really wonderful, even better than last years gsrden by the same designer!
I had a very long day with a friend at Chelsea and even then we didn't feel we did it justice there was so much that was wonderful to see and take in. We came away with some Cedric Morris irises, among other treasures.
It was very nice to see Rhubarb who looked lovely as ever!
I feel so silly not having been all these years but the truth is if you have young children, half term week is not the best time for mothers to take a day off to visit a garden show! Like most mums I know, and like rhubarb found, it is impossible. So anyway It is lovely to be able to go now that the children are grown up.
We spent a lot of money on taxis though.

Oooh lucky you twos at Chelsea Enjoy your holyers Rhubarb

the Chelsea posts!

I went to Japan for my honeymoon to see gardens, and they are amazing. Their ability to design on gradient is second-to-none, and makes a lot of English gardens look a bit pedestrian. I honestly do not know how they do it.

at a MN garden sponsored by Waitrose and Boden ! Glad you both had a good time. It isn't a good time of year to fit in a day at Chelsea when you have little ones and half term. A friend and I have been lucky enough to go the last two years. The first time we went was due to very supportive DH's giving us both a break as she had just lost her Mum and mine had just been diagnosed with Dementia.

It was a wonderful day and I will never forget walking into the Great Pavillion for the first time, total assault on your senses. We were two country bumpkins in London and so awestruck with it all we forgot to buy anything other than lunch. I will never forget it and although we enjoyed last year, it wasn't quite the same. Not going anywhere this year due to exams and DD's Japan trip but plans for Malvern and Hampton Court underway for 2016.

Good gardening day here yesterday with lots of shrub and bramble cutting to fill up green bin. Found a big frog by the water butt sitting on DS's water gun - not sure who was more surprised, me or the frog. The DC's have called him Kenneth.

Finally a solitary French bean germinated in the greenhouse. I've chucked lots in directly around the bean wigwam. Noticed my perennial sweet pea is looking healthy this year and hoping it will do a Mme Carriere and start flowering.

Courgettes and cosmos planted out and moved the olive tree into the sun.

Had an accident with one if the dahlias and knocked the only shoot it had off - it will produce more won't it?

I have cracked the stem of one of my cheapo dahlias. I think/hope they're pretty robust.

It's suddenly gone very dark here. I think a storm might be on the way.

If Rhubarb will design it, I'll be one of the planting pixies.

::reaches for Boden catalogue::

PS Kenneth is an excellent name for a frog, just as Nigel is for a dog. The next frog I find in the garden will be called Malcolm.

We called the frog in our garden (that also scared the bejesus out of me with some frankly aggressive hopping) Leslie/Lesley (we weren't sure whether it was male or female)

Lovely to hear all the reports from Chelsea - so nice to hear the personal reactions to all the plants and gardens that were shown on the TV and more besides.

I plan to go to Hampton court next year too - I have a new job (as of last year) and one of my colleagues is a very experienced gardener and has done some design qualifications (she is both lovely and useful). So hopefully we will go together in 2016

Why Malcolm?
I have had a lovely afternoon pottering. I potted on some Heleniums (waltraut) and a couple of clematis and swept the patio and raked the lawn. I've put out my recently acquired irises next to the already planted ones for them to be acquainted. The new lupin 'Masterpiece' goes very well in the border which needed that tall structure and deep colour. Oddly though, the bees go to it, but they don't seem to be drinking any nectar? I hope it isnt one of those sterile plants.
My patio suffers from the same problem as yours maud ie there are lots of pots of plants on it some waiting to be planted out, others are germinating seeds. others are being nurtured.
My sweet peas are growing very slowly indeed compared to last year. What are yours doing?

I have yet to get to a proper show. I'm not sure if I'd love it or struggle too much with the crowds .

Bearleigh and I are meeting up this Friday morning at Wisley for a plant swap and a stroll around. Is anyone else free and fancy it? I shall have the DDs with me as it's half term.

Here's Kenneth and is that Valerian in the other picture ? I see it everywhere and wondered for years what it was, just want to be sure though.

Malcolm is and Lesley/Leslie are excellent frog names. I did chuckle when I heard another dog walker calling Kevin the other day. She said her DC's named him and her DH is embarrased .

We'll both have to keep fingers crossed with the Dahlias then Maud.

FP my annual sweet peas are pretty slow this year, the perennial ones are greener and taller.

Bertha I would loved to have join you both but DS has a friend coming. One day I will make it to Wisley Instead of driving past it en route to Euro tunnel.

I've had a good couple of days in the garden too. I'm revising for an exam and have developed a genius strategy where I do 30 mins revision then 15 in the garden and I have managed to get quite a bit of both done. (I don't have children which is why this is feasible!)

Potted up all the marigolds which are coming into flower. I have erm rather a lot of them, but I have plans to use the petals for dyeing so that's fine, and I can dot them around the veg garden and by the back door

Also dwarf sunflowers planted out dotted around the veg

Tulip bulbs lifted and stored

Cosmos potted up

Remembered to do some succession sowing of lettuce, rocket, pak choi and spinach (I rarely remember this)

Did some weeding and feeding

All rather pleasing

That looks like valerian to me!

Thanks HapShawl. Good strategy, very productive. Maybe if I make DD do 5 minutes in the garden she would be more happy to revise....

Bought her some lucky bamboo earlier as noticed my £1.50 Vouchers for Wyevale run out at end of the month so decided to have a quick look. I got a pot of Angelica and a bit of lucky bamboo for free so was pleased.

Looking forward to the meet on Friday - well be delighted if more people can make it - the more the merrier. I won't have DS with me - he'll be catching up in his sleep and getting ready for the next instalment of his GCSEs. Mind, he did comment that the potatoes need earthing up (they do) and volunteered to help tomorrow.

Here's a photo of the offending yellow irises, in the purpley pinky bluey bed, and a picture of them in their new home next to some red & yellow geums I got from one of those 70 plants for £20 offers last year, (and the last of the lemon wallflowers) - much better. They geums are gorgeous colours. The irises themselves are beautiful -so velvety. I want a yellow velvet dress!

Ah yes, I can see why they were not allowed to stay. No yellow in my bluey, pinkey, purpley bed either.

My DDs are far from exam age thankfully but I still struggle to get them interested in practical garden stuff. DD1 did assist with pulling out some weeds in the drive this afternoon. Then she pronounced that she was, 'Bored now' and wondered off to paint something purple instead.

I've had a good weekend. I got my box and verbena for the large pot and put up some trellis and tied up my wayward climbing rose.
Dh wants to pull out the broom, but it's still there at the mo...

I feel Malcolm has a similar vibe to Nigel and Kenneth, as far as pet/amphibian names go. That is not, of course, intended as a slur on the name.

::worried in case anyone's partner is called Malcolm::

My sweet peas look fine but, then, I cheated by buying them at the school fete. They're only about six inches tall, though, and it bothers me I don't know what variety/colour they are and if they might mess up my colour scheme. Are they prone to slugs? It's so long since I grew any, I can't remember.

Yes I can also see about the yellow. The rest looks lovely.

I can't get my children into the garden very often. DD will photograph flowers but only if the light is right or something. And she looks accusingly at me as if it is my fault when the light isn't doing what she wants it to. I can hear some little ones playing out somewhere now, nice to hear.

Think I might have id'd the heuchera I used in flower jug - Heuchura rave on. I'm probably wrong but it looks similar. Spurred me on to hack bits off it just now so have 3 little ones potted up, found space for when they are bigger. In the process I found a small fern so split that and hopefully will both take in shady border.

Whilst I was about it chopped off a couple of bits of Aster and potted up for a friend. Am hoping they will be a reasonable size for the Autumn as I'm on a bit of a mission to introduce flowers to her garden. She has just shrubs but sneaks longing glances at her neighbour's which is stunning. She's worried about the level of work involved though. I'm thinking if I give her a pot of an easy perennial every so often I can help her create flower borders by stealth! Bowles mauve cuttings are next on my list.

Water butts in back garden now empty.

Not sure about sweet peas and slugs. Think a big problem is they sulk for ages if they go out and ground is cold.

Soil seems to have warmed up a fair bit here. Mange tout that went in recently has come up pretty quickly. Spurred on by this more calendula seed has just gone in.

I think I have had sweet peas nibbled in the past by slugs, but never ravaged

Oh yes the yellow irises look happier in the new place!

I've a couple of bug issues, there are black bugs at the top of my mock orange and someone has started eating one (I have three next to each other) of my phlox.
What should I do?

Well this time last year I am sure my sweet peas were a lot taller. Now they are only about 3 inches (grown from seed). Sugarplum you could be right about them sulking in the cold nights. They are still in pots as too little to go out in the garden but they are outside all day and all night not in a cold frame or anything so perhaps that's why they are still little. Perhaps I ought to put them in the southerly front porch.

The tops of plants often seem to get knocked off. Luckily with later flowering ones I don't think it matters a jot.

I'm very tired today. Chelsea does need energy.
I do enjoy watering the garden in the summer evenings.