West Cork garden

THIS MOMENT IN TIME

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The scairbhin (scaroveen) has almost come to an end.  For the past few days there was an icy east wind, quite blustery, a little crazy, it blew over the land.  Locally this wind is known to arrive between mid-April and mid-May. Also around here it is known as the “rough weather of the cuckoo”, as happens around the time that the cuckoo arrives, it is also the final bit of cold before the summer.  But the days are getting warmer all the same.  Yes this moment in time is just perfect, I look out at the trees, moving in the wind, and their young leaves a vibrant green, and I sometimes wish I could stop time.  Early spring in nature is awesome!

The sodden feeling underfoot in the garden is gone and so it is time to take the growing season more serious, whipping out detailed plans and giving them an overview, while being on the ground so to say.  Taking in what is happening, and bearing in mind that my garden more of less dictates what goes on in there, I adjust my ground plan.  My garden is mostly filled with wild plants and herbs, and also some quite residential shrubs which supply good and strong colour.  New for this season, is that a little plant, which I have been pulling up year after year, I’m now going to allow it to grow, it is the herb Robert, it usually thrives well, I love its scent when I crush a leave or disturb it in any way.  Beautiful, it grows in an interesting way, the fine red stems and light green leaves radiate from the centre, the little pink flowers delicate.  

At the moment the three cornered leeks have rather taken over the borders, beautiful nodding white flowers streaked with fine green lines, I also love their delicate garlic taste.  Buttercups have started to bloom, they are some of my favourite flowers.  Daisies, white with a flourish of pink are also willing partakers of my garden, as are dandelions, all these are so important for our pollinators especially early in spring.  From year to year evening primrose, mullein and the different willow herbs have become well established.  Besides all this the usual herbs are enjoying regrowth and looking robust already.

What used to be a lawn is now just tufts of grass, part of it marked for winter vegetables like leeks, celery and kale.  And I set up the small tunnel today, I’m going to try my hand at growing some tomatoes this year, my sister Eveline is very good at growing big bright red and deliciously tasting tomatoes year after year, and she is giving me advice.  It is nice to try something new.  So I bought some tomato plants at the market earlier

In the next few days attention will go to getting the new large planter ready for my summer greens and small herbs like thyme and chives. 

Thankfully the garden is already alive with bumblebees, so nice to see the pollinators.

My garden is an adventure, an experiment, a place of observance, a real joy, where I find solace in this chaotic world.  It is a place where I feel good, relaxing on the bench under the hawthorn tree, cup of tea in hand, listening to the birds singing, or just soaking up the sunshine. 

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.

A SUB-TROPICAL WILDERNESS

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This is what I choose to call our garden at this moment, a sub-tropical wilderness. It all happened in a week or so of soft rain during the beginning of July, come to think of it there was an awful lot of rain, both soft and heavy! There were some warm days and some less warm but overall the climate was conducive to rapid growth resulting in our present wilderness. It did not help that I tripped and fell and was out of action for over a week.

All the same there are lovely surprises to be discovered among all this wild growth. The most beautifully coloured hydrangeas have not been affected by the wet weather, whereas the lavender this summer disappeared rather too fast, they got destroyed. The shasta daisies held out beautifully despite all the wind, I did tie them to bamboo sticks though.

The lush growth is itself really lovely to experience and I’ve learnt to embrace it and not worry about the neatness that most of us expect in our gardens. I’ve learnt that such wilderness is very beneficial for our pollinators which at present is so important, I’m happy to say that our garden was absolutely brimming with all sorts of insects and butterflies during the past summery days.

Of all the flowers that I sowed the lobelias did best of all and are still in full bloom. Some of the self seeding flowers like the marigolds also did well. And I’ve got rudbeckias coming on. First year using a small greenhouse and I have found it very beneficial for all sorts of plants and seedlings. The tomato plants did not do well despite looking up information and trying to follow it, they became affected with some sort of fungus and I have no harvest. The potatoes on the other hand did fantastically well, we are still eating them.

First time growing gladioli, I find them such majestic flowers, and the colours are wonderful! Seeing that it’s becoming late summer, I’ve been drying several different herbs and saving lots of seeds.

I took a soil sample and tested for pH, I’m pleased that it is 7.0 to 7.5 which is ideal for growing vegetables and flowers alike. Though I did nothing to the soil around our hydrangeas the colours are changing, more purple and deep red which I love. I’ve also looked up our regional growing zone and see that it is 9a, it is always good to know what zone one is in, especially when planning new purchases.

Somewhere in the dark back of this last photo is our back gate… it’s not surprising then that my most urgent job tomorrow will be to cut down some of this elderberry tree at the very back of the garden, we cannot get to the gate anymore because of growth! I was hoping to save some of the berries but will have to cut some down before they are ripe. That area is also full of montbretias which of course are very good at self propagation. I love to see these grow for their bright orange colour and fresh green leaves, and they are so easy and hardy, totally taking care of themselves. For the next week or so I’ll also be planting out some leeks, kale, kohl rabi, and celery, but first I’ll have to make space for them.

Here in West Cork it is 16 degrees Celsius at present, and raining, no sun. I hope that wherever you are the weather is bearable and good for your gardens and your health.