Awful weather - typical Brits talk

YoungBlueEyes

I love daisies too 2p, I used to mow round mine if I absolutely had to mow. I don't have any now

I don't know what the cherry variety is or how much it'll differ Dusty, birds poo'd them out in my garden so I lifted them and stuck them in pots. There were 4 but half died. I'll let them get bigger so I can see what's occurring, then I might properly plant them anyway if they're pretty I'm not even sure they are cherry, that's just what the seeds looked most like to me when I planted them. They were small and hard, pale cream colour, bit more elliptical than round really, and concave on the back. 

Did everyone survive the storm without too much damage? It was pretty wild here but not the battering you southerners were forecast to get. I wodged my fritillaria in between big heavy pots but the wind still got it up. More wind today, and rain this aft into tonight. They say. The air is lovely and fresh and clear now though. I love that. 

Farway

Waiting for the promised grotty weather to arrive, it's calm before the storm right now, blue skies and still air after a tremendous downpour earlier

Not holding out much hope for my pear & plum crop with this weather and all my open blossom, I know last year's plums were very sparse with the poor blossom set. Fingers crossed everybody

I have daises in my grass, I like daisies, very underrated IMO, I can understand if you want a bowling green they may be a hindrance, but for normal walking / sitting on, or kids playing they provide an ideal low maintenance surface,

And dandelions, nothing more cheery than loads of yellow faces in the sunshine, and for those with a traditional bent, 23rd April, St George's day is the day to pick the dandelions for your Christmas drinking wine. It is also the day all the dandelions seem to open

Talking of cherry trees, my local council is providing, at subsidised cost, fruit trees in an effort to "green up" the place, a fruit tree in every garden. I have my name down and hope to get a cherry, which I'll plant in the volunteer place. Doesn't happen until December this year, last year's went very well, which is why they are repeating this year.

Maybe yours is same YBE? Our council trees come from Blackmoor, which is local so should be decent quality

Today's gardening is very minor, pot on the last five tomatoes

twopenny

It's just climbed up to 6c! Blooming freezing inside and out with howling gale and heavy rain so I'm not a happy bunny.

Thinking of finding a bit more sock and tying my lovely tree a bit higher. In full leaf it's tall new growth has been bent double.

I can't even think of going out for fruit trees. My Cox seems to have only one bloom. I must post some photos about pruning as I wasn't sever enough when I asked last and I think I may have to bite the bullet and cut right back and start again.

What a lovely thing to do Farway, discounted fruit trees for every garden. Can't understand why anyone wouldn't. You plant and they give you fruit with very little attention. What's not to want?

So here are some cheerful photos - the walflower garden which smells divine when you go outside - the pale one on the left is one of the new perenials as is the one on the right

 

This is another of the new perenials but deep red, a bit less vigorous - it has a giant walflower growing in the middle. I thought it hadn't survived and over planted

And just some of the seedlings.

 

Last the Bowles Mauve that is doing best. One suceeded, one failed and one had to be cut back from straggly and seems better.

You need to constantly dead head or the foliage dies back, it doesn't seem to do well from cuttings or planting deeper if straggly but careful cutting back helps.

For the ordinary walflowers I throw the seed heads onto the soil even if they are green. Tough old birds.

Got to say so far, I'm taken with the new perenials. Bloom all winter whatever the weather and very little attention needed other than dead heading and evergreen of course.

YoungBlueEyes

Fingers and toes all crossed here Farway  🤞🏻 hopefully all the goodness hasn’t washed away and some of them come good 😊 I don’t know if my council do anything re fruit trees, I’ll fire up me kapok and check their website. Ooh I hope they do! 

Ahh your flowers and plants are beautiful 2p, very cheering 😃 The collection at the front would be so welcoming to come home to 😊

Garden next door (next door but one neighbour) is cultivating a thriving dandelion patch. A lot of them are open already. I’ve plucked a couple outta my grass after they clocked, the bees got full enjoyment out of them. There’s nothing else up yet to replace though… 

The drunkards gave rain and high winds from first thing… so I set off in the sunshine to Lidl for bread loaf. Came back with 2 freesia plants (mum’s favourite), some big pots and more compost. 

I’ll never be rich, I’m resigned to it now.

Dustyevsky

You have fairies at the bottom of your garden as well, 2p! Lovely selection of pictures.

I vaguely recall having to recite a poem about fairies for some sort of infant school parental presentation. I began with “There are fairies at the bottom of my bottom..." and after that things didn't go so well. Being about 70 years ago, can't recall whether I got fits of the giggles, or if the audience did, and I fled in tears, but either way I know the poem was not read in its entirety.

You have Bowles well summed-up there. Most cuttings take, but they don't all survive transplanting, and old plants 'may' respond to pruning....or not!

Had a letter from the Planning Enforcement officer today. She is playing her cards close to her chest. I'm replying in similar style, but I'm sure we'll eventually work something out.

Weather here is highly changeable with sunshine, hail, rain, and short bursts of violent wind. Looks somewhat better next week is all the positivity I can muster! Will try to get a piccy of our cowslips soon. 

twopenny

Oh I have fairies

I bought some for a joke during lockdown and they keep on going. Mostly I've put them in the woodland part now....seemed appropriate.

I have some cockle shells too -

Mistress Mary, Quite contrary,
How does your garden grow?
With Silver Bells, And Cockle Shells,
And so my garden grows.

Still 6c, I'm freezing but the keyboard is warm. It's cold inside but cold wet and windy out so not much choice.

twopenny

The fairies are lights by the way. They change colour all night

Hard to pin down a fairy for a  photograph

Farway

twopenny said:

Oh I have fairies

I bought some for a joke during lockdown and they keep on going. Mostly I've put them in the woodland part now....seemed appropriate.

I have some cockle shells too -

Mistress Mary, Quite contrary,
How does your garden grow?
With Silver Bells, And Cockle Shells,
And so my garden grows.

Still 6c, I'm freezing but the keyboard is warm. It's cold inside but cold wet and windy out so not much choice.

I have a gnome picking it's hooter, but none of it lights up so that would seem to be a future modification, gnome nose 2.1

YoungBlueEyes

Love the fairy 2p

Farway What does your council call the tree give-away thing? I've fired up my lappy now (not kapok as per previous post, stoopid autocarrot). I can't find anything about it on my council's website but maybe I'm searching for the wrong thing....

Good luck with the Planning Enforcement lady Dusty, these things are often akin to a dance. Or maybe musical chairs...

Lashing down and cold here now. My connie roof sounds like the Gaza Strip!

Dustyevsky

YoungBlueEyes said:

Good luck with the Planning Enforcement lady Dusty, these things are often akin to a dance. Or maybe musical chairs...

I know. I'll start by giving away as little as possible, while remaining cordial and open to advice. With the timescale we have now, it's very unlikely matters could be decided formally before the big digger arrives, so the chances are we'll be going for it regardless. After all, the digger guy and OH misunderstood my wishes last year and messed the polytunnel up, so these things happen. I may have to go on a short "holiday" in June!

Wonderfully still and sunny here this morning.