The first rule of potting shed is YOU ALWAYS talk about potting shed. The thread continues.

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Here goes, and feeling bit cheeky as I didn't post much on the last one.

A fine autumn day here, with much seasonal clearing done. Now I come to think of it, is there ever a non-clearing season? :o

Oooh lovely Astrantia. It';s so special when it all starts!
We've got quite a few "Cream Beauty" crocuses (croci?) and two hellebores fully out. And a remarkable number of daisies on the waterlogged swamp of a lawn. The hazel catkins are fattening nicely too.
(I'm in Cornwall, but not the sheltered east bit)

We have a Camellia flowering, some Vinca, a Hellebore nearly out plus some forget me not.

Relocated a rose to new arch and finally planted a clematis sat in a pot for 2 years next to it. Then spent a bit of time tying up the black currant bush plus starting to train gooseberry plants followed by splitting of Hellebore, primroses, that black grass stuff starting with o and forget me not.

Found some seeded Mexican fleabane that has now even replanted around and took a bit off what I think is Geranium Roxanne. Free plants make me very happy.

What are you all most excited to see in you garden this year. mine is a rose that had to be moved with my make-over. It put on lots of growth last year but I am not sure if it is still sulking about the move. it is Lutea and I had already waited 3 years for any flowers. Hope it is not another 3 before it produces again

Camellia and crocuses here, sadly no snowdrops but the winter heather and violas are still lovely. I'm onto the second year of my 5 year garden journal and it's nice to look back and see that already there's much more colour compared to last year. I'm particularly looking forward to (hopefully) getting a good crop from all the fruit trees and bushes which we planted last year, and maybe our very first home-grown asparagus!

Ooh that reminds me to start my garden journal for 2018.

I have a lovely pink mallow thing with a name I can never remember: it flowers all year round with as many flowers in winter as in summer. And a very confused marigold flowering, and, at last, snow drops.

Oh and hellebores - I have a clump of foetidus that seeded themselves when a single plant died, having never produced seedlings when it was healthy: a fabulous fresh sea of apple green. And some pink ones in the front, with my favourite shaggy almost black one about to come out. Must pop out and cut off the scabby leaves.

I also have perverse marigolds which never stop flowering. I should check the hellebores tomorrow - one or two were in bud last week - although my lawn too is a swamp and so best avoided.

That sounds lovely with the foetidus Searabbit. I have a clump that does self seed but I to the drive way and very randomly. Ordered some calendula seeds last week as remind me of Mum’s front garden and my old allotment. I very much hope they turn out to be perverse marigolds !

Decided that as will take a few years to get rose up the arch and flowering well this year I’m going to grow some sweet peas followed by cup and saucer vine up it.

Am off to school allotment this morning, we’re starting a community project with it and I’m quite excited about it. Bit obsessed with orchards at the moment and there is an area by it covered in Bramble’s that could be a small one eventually. Zero budget for this though so am thinking we could do a cutting flower bed and sell flowers once a week in summer and possibly some veg plant seedlings in spring.

Crocus and snowdrops getting going here, and a winter aconite. The erysimum is still at it, and a Bidens from last summer that has just jet going all winter.

Daffodils buds swelling, tulips coming up. Lots of bits I can't think what they are. I am a scatty gardener!

Foetidus is lovely - the sort of understated plant that wouldn't get a look in during summer but this time of the year it's so refreshing - and hopefully will give our bees some nectar and pollen to eat in the warmer days. In other news our greenhouse (or rather the parts for it) get delivered next week which is very exciting!

Oh and I have a clump of yellow meconopsis (Welsh poppies) that have been in flower all year...and still have 5 flowers going strong!

I have just don’t my first bit of gardening for the year. I have cut back my ornamental grasses and pulled up tons of bloody Herb Robert. It was warm enough to sit on the bench with a cuppa afterwards.

I had a lovely go round the garden with one of the steps today, inspecting what's coming up, pulling some weeds, checking the various seedlings not planted yet, and the overwintering pots.

He really likes all that. My lad couldn't give a monkey's about all my sprouting pots.

The pulmonaria is flowering! And left a ton more babies where I moved it from last summer (it was busy engulfing a miniature rose so had to be evicted) so I shall have to see if I can get them into pots for my Dad's church sale. With a warning that they grow big!

Lupins are sprouting like crazy things, and the Arabis is covered in flower buds. I just wish I had more time out there.

I had a brief stroll around the garden, was pleased to see some hellebores in flower but dismayed at the fox poo everywhere. Massive clear-up needed. Yuk.

Oh yuk, my dog loves fox poo. I do not share her love of it one bit. Neither of my DC set foot in the garden these days. I’ve spent a few hours shredding sweet chestnut , after putting some aside some bean sticks. Built another raised bed and am going to use the wood clippings at the bottom of the beds as they are tall and will take some filling otherwise.

Well, my only gardening activity today was dealing with the aforementioned fox poo. Yuk. I did at least notice that the philadelphus my friend grew as a cutting for me is flowering, so that was some compensation.

Boo to fox poo. Despite being very rural we don't seem to get it here. I once saw a fox in the field next door, but that's it.

On the good side I see that my evergreen clematis ("Apple blossom") has both shoots and flower buds breaking out. It hasn't flowered before so I am looking forward to that.

I looked out of the window to see two foxes sunning themselves in the garden a few days ago, maybe 3m from the house. Beautiful creatures but the fox poo is a pain, particularly with a toddler!

Inspired by the sun i’ve ordered dahlias as failed to keep mine alive . Basically the SR Venetian ones but with Merlot Magic instead of Con Amore and another orange Pom Pom one. £16 including postage which I thought was ok in scheme of things.

Comfrey arrived and is planted.

I have finally got my hands in the mud today, weeded a load of stuff, including some stray pulmonaria which I potted up. So many things beginning to sprout! God It's exciting. This is my first spring since really starting to garden and it is wonderful!

And my first batch of seeds is in the propagator ready to get fired up: foxgloves, snapdragons, dahlias and mesembryanthemums.

Boo to fox poo! We have foxes calling at night (boo to that too) but so far no poo. I'm impressed by the propagation. I have got as far as ordering some seeds from Sarah Raven, including some Rudbeckia hirta 'Cherry Brandy' which I fell in love with last year.

The rickety fence between us and next door has fallen apart so we have a lot of planks of wood propped up pretending to be a fence. One gust of wind and they will crush my daffodils. It's next door's responsibility, so what is the etiquette? We don't know them very well - they seem nice enough but we don't often see them - they have no interest in the garden, so don't often go in it and possibly haven't noticed. They do have young (7 upwards) children who might decide on an adventure, and we don't have a gate. Maybe expressing (genuine) concern about the children's safety is the way to go?

Oh I do sympathise about the fence. Our neighbours still haven't done anything with the collapsed and collapsing fence which I'm quite sure is their responsibility (they deny this). I want to say to them that my offer to pay half was intended to ensure that the job got done soon, but as that offer was made about three years ago they should consider it now withdrawn. But that will probably just mean even longer with a fence with a huge hole in it. Sigh.

Meanwhile I'm getting vicarious pleasure from all your tales of shopping, planting and propagating.

That’s really exciting MrsBB, all that new potential!

Sympathy on the broken fences. I think Searabbit expressing concern would be a god way to go about it.

Busy day yesterday as dug up blueberries that are failing to crop next to azalea and a Camellia that won’t flower there either. All now in pots with ericaceous compost. Was shocked at size of rootball on Camellia, very small for size of plant. Might be that I chopped it getting it out but if not it does explain the yellowing leaves due to stress on plant.

Also found some raspberry canes dotted around so have put them in one place temporarily and moved a lovely Hellebore that was hidden from view plus a penstemon. Build a cloche that had been in shed for ages to start warming soil up in one of the raised beds.

Off to community allotment tomorrow for a spot of bramble clearance. Idea is to create an orchard. Only problem budget is zero, so need to think creatively on that one.

Where in the country are you, Post? I might have a contact who can help with some dosh ...

In fact, come to think of it, he can help nationwide, so location should not matter.

Ooo, thank you MoreCheerfulMonica, will PM you