gardening

SEEDLINGS AND A MYRIARD OF PLANT POTS

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I’m sitting at the window looking out to our garden from our sunroom, which actually used to be called a Conservatory but when the old roof started to deteriorate and started to leak we got it covered in slate and put in two Velux windows, so now I call it the ‘sunroom’ and that will suffice.

And as I look out to the garden I can see some beautiful shrubs that are flowering right now, the forsythia is a patch of yellow and then there is the Berberis Compacta fully decked in orange,  it’s beautiful to see even through my still blurred eyes, I’ve had cataract surgery last week and I still cannot see clearly.  The Azalea both the purple and white one are coming into flower too, and the Rosemary is one blur of purple and dark green.

Forsythia
Rosemary
Berberis compacta
Very old azelia
Purple azelia, small flowers

 I’ve been working with my seedlings this morning; I’ve been repotting some of them.  The room is filled with all sizes of pots, which I’m filling with soil, and I am planting seedlings like there is no tomorrow, I have got so many seeds coming on and this whole room is absolutely turned into a greenhouse.  I’m so happy with having this space and being able to get my young plants going.  I haven’t been able to set up the small plastic greenhouse in the garden yet but that’s the job that’s got to be done. I will then move all these young plants in there and get them to grow strong before I can put some of them out in the purposed plot, the soil needs to be prepared yet. The grass which I had covered with cardboard needs to be either dug or else I will just throw soil on top of it.  The soil for the potatoes is ready though, and they have been chitin here on the press, so weather allowing, they are next to go into the ground.  

Right now, the sky is gray and there’s a bit of wind, but my chestnut tree is starting to come into leaf, its buds are bursting.  The sky out there is filled with birds flying in all directions, seagulls and crows especially, they’re all happy to be alive I think, yes there is lots of activity, for one I have seen our resident blackbird couple eyeing the thick hedge which is where they made their nest before.  

 It does look like rain and so it probably will rain but there is a lot of inside work and that’s what I’m busy with at the moment.  I have 28 kale plants, they’re very small yet but that’s ok as they are only for use next winter, I sowed some extra to be able to share them with others, because that’s fun.  

Young Lilac tree
Lemon Balm
Pieris berries
Still have to tackle the compost
Plans for another vegetable plot
Seedlings coming on

A week later and now we are April!

Despite my limited vision at the moment I was able to plant my potatoes, which is great as it puts me ahead. Meanwhile the sun has been shining for days and there is a warm wind today, my washing has been dancing on the line all morning, a lovely sight to behold because I can now put my clotheshorse away for the summer (I hope). Young plants and seedlings are coming along great and I’ve sowed more. The garden has dried out in the meantime, mud has become hardened already. I now urgently need a gardener, that is, a person who can do some of the jobs I cannot manage. My grandson has advised me to do proper fencing around my new vegetable plot rather than just put pots around it. The idea is to keep the cats from doing their business in the soil where the vegetables are growing. But I might just settle for keeping an eye on it daily and using a shovel. Not decided yet, but note that I have five different cats, not my own, visiting the garden!

Project not finished, watch this space!

TIME FOR THE GARDEN

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GARDEN AWAKENING
My grandson helping me, so valuable.

With the month of March well under way our garden is crying out for attention.  I have great plans this year, among other things is planting more vegetables and in order to realise this I’m digging up one third of our small lawn. Exciting! 

I have been suffering a bit from writers block for a while now, hopefully my muze will return soon.

Wishing everyone a glorious spring, or as it happens, autumn time. Much love.

CATCHING UP – TAKING STOCK

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It is time for a bit of stock taking, and for catching up with many friends and followers of my blog.  Personally the year 2024 has brought many changes, some challenges, some sad, and some good.  Worldwide it’s been a sad and chaotic year too I think.  Many of us have asked ourselves serious questions about our general humanity, our deeds towards our fellow human beings.  A lot of good has been happening too during this past year, a lot of compassion has been shown, and brave and good people have shown to be always around. 

I visit Ian, my husband, in the nursing home every week, something we both look forward to very much.

And now January is almost over and I’m still organizing my activities inside the house and out in the garden, and in society.  Lots to do, all good things.  During the winter I’ve availed of webinars and zoom meetings a lot.  Webinars about grasses and rushes, and other natural subjects.  Regular zoom meetings of a lace making group.  And an introductory course in tree identification.  Collage making or painting with my grandchildren is very rewarding too. Locally there have been meetings of the Early Retirement Group which has fabulous and interesting (mainly) other women as members and a good program, one of the things we do is a weekly chair yoga session which keeps us all quite flexible.  Then the monthly book club and the poetry circle are such a joy, as are the very regular and hugely interesting art exhibitions.  Skibbereen has it all.  There is simply not enough time to do it all.

And then there is the weather which during winter can be quite challenging, storms, heavy rain, frost, the type of weather that makes you want to crawl behind the stove with a good book.  Christmas and New Year celebrations seem to have come and went in a flash this past year.  The dark days are now getting a little lighter and soon it will be the first of February, for Ireland that heralds the beginning of spring, it is also the feast of St.Bridgid and has now become a public holiday.  And so…. I’m chitting my potatoes to have them ready for planting in March.  My garden is still my focus a lot of the time.

This coming season my main big plan for the garden is to plough up half my little grass field so I can plant more vegetables.  For the past five years I have added more and more shrubs because I had much less time to garden and thought it was the better way.  This meant that I now have less and less space for vegetables.  So space will have to be made.  My grandson Ruben who is now a strong teenager and very willing to help me has already cleared one plot in the back of the garden, he wants to do more.  We are great mates and I love him coming over and working alongside me, and afterwards we have pizza and watch a movie.

Luckily during the last storm none of our trees suffered, we have seven trees in a small garden.  We live in a terraced house and the garden is relatively small.  Ours are a birch, oak, chestnut, hawthorn and elderberry, and in the front garden, a currant tree and an acer.  Our hawthorn tree was affected by blight last summer and lost all of its leaves, we’ll see what happens this year.  The chestnut had been trimmed five years ago and has some rot in an outshoot and that will need looking after. 

Gardening and planning a garden, as many people know very well, is a great joy, and keeps us fit, it’s also hard work at times, but that can be done in part, an hour here and an hour there on a daily basis, weather allowing of course (I’m a fair weather gardener).  To be out in nature is such a joy, the fresh air, the scents, sounds, and seeing the growth is all delightful and will keep me going for ever.  The observation possibilities of seeing insects, birds, wild plants and herbs growing, as well as tasty vegetables and trying out new types.  And then there is the digging up of potatoes and the harvesting of edible produce, how much better can it get  I think it satisfies one of our most basic instincts as humans, that of survival. 

Not being sure what 2025 will bring for us all, I wish many blessing for each and everyone.

Loving thought to all.

WHEN EVERYTHING IS SHADES OF GREEN, an update

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In our wild garden, and wild it is at the moment, I’m finding that everything is green, beautiful shades of green, but yet there are some colours to be seen too. I haven’t had much time, and less inclination to garden in the past few months and now everything has overgrown. But it’s beautiful, and there has been a lovely crop of very yellow buttercups in what is now a small meadow rather than a small lawn, I’ve really enjoyed that sight. The Californian lilac has also flowered in a pale blue. And the wild foxgloves that self-seed every year are in full bloom, a beautiful shade of pink.

I like the garden to be lush, and to have secluded spaces where I can sit on the old bench, or totally in the back under the oak tree and surrounded by nettles and foliage of montbretia foliage not yet flowering, protected by the sheds from the cooling wind. I often pick this spot for breakfast on fine days, the sun is only just hitting that spot then and it’s a lovely light. The old bench under the hawthorn tree is another one of my favourites, but I have to watch it as it is the domain of the sparrows and there are often droppings from above, not so nice in my tea.

I am not seeing many pollinators in the garden this year yet, probably because the weather has been rather unpredictable, I’m hoping they’ll come soon. I’ve seldom seen the garden so lush, or else my memory is failing me (which I doubt}. The month of May is of course the most beautiful month in Ireland, and often one of the warmest, not so this May, in fact I’ve had to light the stove today. Probably June will be better.

I’ll let you have a stroll through our garden for now. Enjoy!

Bright beauty of buttercups (Ranunculus)

Foxgloves (digitalis purpurea)

Californian lilac (Ceanonthus)

I hope to be back to my regular blog contributions, there is a lot of material which I can develop and plenty of photos to go with it. As I get used to the changes in my life I’ll get inspired again to share some of the beauty of Ireland, and of my past and future travels. And I look forward to interacting again with the blogs of all my friends and followers.

“I’M SO GLAD I LIVE IN A WORLD WHERE THERE ARE OCTOBERS” L. M. Montgomery,

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It was a mellow October afternoon and I decided to plant out some spinach seedlings which I still had growing in a pot. I had a wander through the rest of the garden and saw that there is actually quite a lot of winter produce doing well, and it pleased me. I also saw how beautiful everything looked, the colours, the autumn shades which are wonderful. An October sun illuminated everything. It was a perfect afternoon.
  • Our winter leeks
  • Huge kale plants
  • A few beet leaf
Glorious colours of the hydrangea even after the summer.
  • I will grow these beautiful Rudbeckia again
  • The Mediterranean oak tree in full colour
  • Another oregano plant
  • Italian flat-leaved parsley
  • A type of catnip
  • Lemon thyme
  • Our lavender bushes
  • A new hydrangea
  • Some of our produce
There is so much to find growing even at this time of the year, and it will do so during the winter months thanks to the gulfstream which gives us a very mild climate.
Pleasure can be gained both from tending to the garden and growing some things, or from just having a wander around.

Enjoy a lovely weekend everyone, and I would love to hear about your autumn garden too.

THE GARDEN IS AWAKENING

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I guess it is – or rather – the gardener is awakening! Because a good crop of herbs and vegetables was growing all winter long in our little garden. But today I started getting organized because there is lots to do, and I cannot wait to get going!

Vegetables in abundance – overwintering colourful Chard, Rosemary, Kale and Celery.
  • Young Foxglove plant
The Lavender is in good condition after the winter, and the Rosemary bush is getting larger by the day.
  • Thistle and Mullein
  • An almost ready crop of Kale
  • Andive

Much of my space is still taken up by winter vegetables but some of the beds are ready, one for potatoes, and another one for flowers, this season the emphasis is going to be on food for the insects, that is so important today.

    • Helleborus
    • Primroses among the grass
    • Oxallis
    This book I took out of the library, lots of information on what to grow to help butterflies survive, great for ideas.
    • Oca is another crop I’ve tried over the last few years, not very successfully.
    • Wild growing three cornered leeks
    • Green leaved celery grows very well here during the winter
    • Wild growing Cleavers in my garden

    So yes there is lots going on even as early in spring as right now. We have enough food coming from the garden, and that helped me make the decision to grow a lot more flowers seeing that insect population is under such threat. But personally I am also very happy with this decision because I am very fond of flowers.

    • Grass needs cutting
    • A few of the raised beds surrounds are in need of repair!
    • I planted a Forsythia bush today!

    Dear friends, followers, and readers of my blog, I would like to thank you for all your encouragement. I’m coming up to 800 followers now and I treasure everyone of you.

    SUMMER IS UPON US

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    I saw a heart in the sky the other day, and I would like to wish all my friends and followers love and kindness in their lives.

    Lots is happening in the garden of course at this time of the year, wonderful things;  strawberries ripen, some are eaten by the birds who then give us their beautiful singing in return.  Basil mint is about the nicest scented mint I ever smelled, I am glad to have been given a pot of it.  The empty beehive on the little roof in our next door neighbour’s garden has of today received a swarm of bees.  We have to find out yet what type they are, they came buzzing around my head quite aggressively while we were drinking tea outside, so I wonder.  The comfrey flowers got destroyed by a week of wind and rain and it is now all manure on some of the raised beds.  There are but few flowers left in the garden at present but more are on the way to blooming.

    Basil mint

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    I think that there is something so nice about seeing clean linnen blowing in the wind outside, the will be so fresh when I take them in.

    But more importantly here is an small update of my experiment in plot 1 and plot 2.

    In Plot 1 the beans are finally growing better, they are well established and are climbing up the poles.  The spinach on the other hand are bolting, though they are growing leaves too.  There is a lot of wild plants growing in between the beans beside the spinach, the beans, and the radish (for the experiment).  I have found double poppies and also borage plants which I want to keep so I am not touching them at the moment.  In Plot 2, and there is a huge difference, there is nothing growing from under the leaf mould.  I am still giving this plot seaweed fertilizer every week.  I have sown radish there also.  The bean plants are doing ok but they are only 42cm high whereas the ones in plot 1 are already 82cm high.  So there is a marked difference between the two plots already.  In plot 2 also I have found a few flowers on the beans.  When not raining I give both plots water.  I have also noticed that now that the leaves on the trees in the canopy above my two plots are throwing a huge amount of shadow – I think that this is interfering with the growth of my plants.

    And here  in the following photos are some of the other vegetables growing such as asparagus, onion, marrow, rhubarb, chard, kale, leeks, orka, several different types of herbs, and finally runner beans and broad beans.  If they all do well we will not be stuck for vegetables next winter.

    Basil mint

    This beautiful Cinnabar moth was on the leaves of the lemon balm.

    CINNABAR MOTH - TYRIA JACOBAEAE

    I was given this lovely window hanger by my daughter, I like it very much.  White and blue (in this case the sky) are some of my favourite colours.

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    And so ends my present story of my garden.  I’m in the garden everyday, planting out young vegetables and tending to seedlings.  I love it very much.  The birds are singing, blackbirds have nests quite close by and are feeding their young.  I find that the closeness to the earth and the soil is what gives me solace and is what keeps me very happy indeed.  I can only say one thing about it….

    IT IS PURE MAGIC!

    DISCOVERIES IN A NEGLECTED GARDEN

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    A longwinded journey brought us from Gozo back to Ireland, via visits to family in Henham, Hertford, and Cambridge which was, of course, much enjoyed as was the mild spring weather and all the beauty of the English countryside this time of the year, but more about that in another blog.
    So we arrived home here in West Cork greeted by my daughter and lovely grandchildren, that was a beautiful moment. Next day and after unpacking all our suitcases I went for a leisurely walk around our garden. Neglected as it was, it has not become totally overgrown yet and I was able to find many treasured wild plants and even vegetables among the grasses and on the beds. So I enjoyed myself with these discoveries, taking note of what I will be cooking in the next few days, and which wild plants I’ll be using, and also taking photos.

    I found a little plant that is new to my garden, it grows wild around here in West Cork on walls, but here it came to grow in an old flowerpot, maybe birds dropped its seeds.  It is the little Ivy-leaved Toadflax.

    Cymbalaria muralis - Ivy-leaved toadflax
    Cymbalaria muralis – ivy-leaved toadflax

    Forget-me-nots in flower
    Myosotis arvensis – Forget-me-not

    And a left over from last year, the lovely blue Forget-me-not I found blooming.

    Melissa – Lemon Balm
    Salvia officinalis – Sage
    Origanum vulgare – Oregano varigated
    Lavandula – Lavender
    Rosmarinus officinalis – Rosemary

    As far as herbs go, West Cork, because of its mild climate is good for growing these.  I found the Melissa doing just fine, the Oregano coming up, the Rosemary and Lavender doing really well.  So maybe it is time to add a few more herbs during this summer.

    Littel Borage plants coming up all over the place
    Some good nettle plants for the soup
    Chives looking great and ready to use

    I was pleasantly surprised by the numerous Borage plants coming up all over the garden, even in the cracks of the concrete path.  The bees will be very happy about this.  The Chives are ready for cutting, and Nettles ready for the soup!  And I nearly forgot all the three corned wild Garlic which are just everywhere, so delicious in salads and mixed in an omelet.

    Three cornered wild leeks
    Three cornered wild Garlic

    And lovely Muscari – grape Hyacinth
    This Verbascum – Mullein plant makes me very happy.
    A young silver Birch tree came to grow in the garden

    Everything is sprouting and budding
    Winter storm damage
    Seedpods of Evening Primsore flowers

    Delighted to have found a Mullein plant, this is also a medicinal plant of which I sowed a few last year.  And of all things I found a young silver Birch, well I know it was there as I put it in a pot to share with someone after it came growing in the garden, a baby of our large Birch.  The only damage during the winter was to our small greenhouses, wear and tear you could say.  I also found that the massive seedpods of my Evening Primrose plants had survived all the storms, these plants should be coming up soon by themselves I think.

    A type of salad
    Plenty evidence of lots of rain
    Our Bayleaf tree doing well
    The broadbeans in flower
    Berries full of buds

    Salad leaves are ready to eat.  Bay leaf tree is growing well and full of very green leaves which will be uses in soups nice and fresh.  I also found several broad bean plants in flower and all, Ian will be very happy about that, his favourite vegetable.  Leek plants which I planted out toward the end of last summer and just before we left are growing.  And finally, but not really finally as there is no saying what else I might find, the bed with the berries is absolutely full of flower buds, it promises to be a good summer for soft fruits.  The water barrel shows that here has been no shortage of rain!

    I am totally happy with what I found, it is lovely to come back to my garden, and looking at the evidence, the garden has benefited from being left to itself for a while, there might be something in Permaculture after all.  It feels like nature is now growing what it likes to grow, and the soil in my garden is showing me what will thrive best.

    I am taking note!

    LILIES OF THE VALLEY

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    While doing some gardening today I discovered that the lilies of the valley were flowering, such a heavenly scent. I picked some for the house and got to play around with taking photos, then experimenting with editing, it is after all the weekend, we worked hard all day, and anyhow I have got writer’s block right now. I have one favourite among these pictures, I wonder would anyone guess which one. 🙂  Have a lovely weekend everyone.

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