tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-69794773687574549162024-03-05T11:25:15.009+00:00The Tenacious Gardener!Sharing our success and failures of cold climate gardening in the Scottish Highlands.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger197125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-82786133517678425842016-10-03T09:06:00.001+01:002016-10-03T09:06:47.046+01:00Tempus FugitIt's been 6 months! 6 months since I posted anything here! Though to be honest I thought it had been much longer.<br />
Back in April I came to the decision to no longer blog, I wasn't enjoying it anymore and I felt that I had nothing interesting to add or that others would want to read about. Over the course of the last year or so I felt like this blog had become a place of negativity for me and all I seemed to post about was how I had fallen out of love with gardening, it had become a chore and I was literally dreading doing something that I once loved so much.<br />
So what's changed? Why come back? (thankfully I refrained from deleting anything).<br />
Well the answer to that is Me! I've changed! Or rather my thought process has changed. It took a while though, I started out the year full of hope and plans after doing very little last year and all went well to start with. Then as things began to bloom in the garden it all got on top of me again and I couldn't juggle the garden with all the other things I had to do so to cut a long story very short I was doing a bit of everything but finishing and achieving nothing.<br />
In the end it broke, or at least I did. I had to admit and truly believe that I can no longer do all the things I expected of me (no one else put me under that pressure except me) and that I had 2 choices - I could either continue in this awful cycle of self loathing because I couldn't achieve anything or I could prioritise and focus on one job at a time. I chose to focus but this is hard for me because my mind wanders, I have very little concentration now, pain is a daily fight and narcoleptic sleep naps pretty much dictate my daily life. On top of that I have had to hand the reins over to Mr TG, I can tell him what I want and where I want it but all heavy labour intensive work has sadly fallen to his shoulders.<br />
It's just a new style of gardening for me.<br />
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Not much has improved in the garden this year but plans are afoot for next year and I've finally agreed that we need to make the garden low maintainence - a large portion is to be decked next year and another large portion is to then be gravelled with lots of planting in the gravel. The one thing we never do is sit out and really enjoy the garden because it never quite looks finished or inviting enough, this is something we have to change.<br />
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The pond had a leak this year. I didn't notice until Mr TG dug a hole for a Lilac tree and the hole filled in with water immediately. At first we thought it was just due to the rainfall and the ground being so wet but then we noticed the sleepers were wet and when Mr TG shone a torch through one (it was hollow) he could see water dripping constantly. I knew where the leak would be because I caused it and forgot to mention it when it happened. I'd basically tried to stab some ice with a garden hand fork and hit the liner instead.........3 times.<br />
Luckily we found a product online that would seal the holes without needing to empty the pond. I was dubious that it work but it has. <br />
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Say hello to my little friend. <br />
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There's been a serious lack of Butterflies this year here.<br />
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This is my favourite view and is every single year. We haven't made much use of the chairs I made yet - I did try sitting out one evening but I ended up wrapped like a mummy in a blanket because of the midges, thousands of them!<br />
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This both amazed and scared me. We have lots of Gorse hedge here and this particular morning it all looked like this. While I was amazed to see all the webs that we don't normally see the amount of them literally terrifies me.<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-59224761083960528072016-04-16T14:03:00.000+01:002016-04-16T14:03:34.822+01:00Sleeper raised bedsI don't normally resort to writing lists of jobs to be done but we have so much that needs doing outside that I've had to list them all so that we can prioritise - often it seems that the one job we want to do cannot be done before another is completed to clear the way.<br />
<br />Filling these new raised beds is a case in point. The raised parts are finally finished mostly (the temporary ends need something more permanent) and so they needed filling. Some of it was filled months ago but then it got left as I pondered on all the other jobs that were piling up - a mistake I promised myself we wouldn't make this year.<br />
I have to say there is great satisfaction in finally seeing the raised beds completed and filled with lovely top soil and compost. We bought the topsoil in last year (or the year before, I forget) but the compost is all free of charge.<br />
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Mr TG collected several Hippo bags filled with all the plant material and spent compost from a local department store. Usually they would pay a firm to come in and haul away the bags but I was asked by an employee as to whether they were any good to me. So late last year hubby collected the bags on his trailer and bought them home - with a police escort as it turned out he was littering the entire 15 miles home, oops! I then covered the tops of the bags to allow the contents to rot down over the winter.<br />
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These bags contain a huge amount of material and it was pleasant to see that the contents had actually managed to rot down over winter despite the cold, I was concerned that they wouldn't heat up enough to do so.<br />
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We have used this type of compost once before and I had forgotten just how back breaking the work is. Ordinarily I think a person could do this and not suffer any pain but for some reason 5 minutes of this and my back feels like it is broken and I have to rest.<br />
There is a system to this stuff though. I cannot empty it directly onto the beds because the contents not only contain the rotted plant material and spent compost but ID labels get chucked in, sticks go in, cane toppers go in, plant rings are in there and even the odd pot has been thrown in.<br />
This is the current sytem:<br />
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<li>3 to 4 shovel fulls go into the barrow. This then has to be hand sifted to remove all the plants that haven't rotted which go straight into the trailer, all the non degradeable stuff goes into a bucket for disposal and all the small weeds etc go into another bucket which again then goes into the trailer. Once the trailer is full I hook it up to the quadbike and it is then driven down the land where the plant material can be shovelled out to rot down.</li>
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It's the being bent over the barrow that actually cause the back pain.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This is what a full barrow looks like and each Hippo bag gets us at least 5 of these.<br />
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This is one part of the filled raised bed. It's approx 2ft in height so has used alot of top soil and compost.<br />
Excuse the boarding to the left, this is going to be removed as Mr TG builds a wall there to protect the garden from the northerly winds that funnel down here. This means though that the plants I put in the raised bed will all be facing south and in full sun all day - insert smiley face.<br />
These raised beds are to house shrubs to form another windbreak until the wall is built but also to add height and enclose the open garden a little.<br />
I'm not 100% certain of the plant combination but I have alot of Hebe,large hardy Fuschia, Viburnums and Hydranges - this is a large area to fill and will frame the new patio we are going to lay.<br />
Just in front of the raised beds we are adding another line of sleepers to create another smaller raised bed so that we can plant Day Lillies, Crocosmia and Iris.<br />
The back larger raised beds will also contain honeysuckle and climbing roses to mask the aviary which is out of shot of the picture.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-1125401429325127572016-03-28T17:59:00.000+01:002016-03-28T17:59:25.189+01:00It's time to weed!I've finally started what I put off for the whole of last year - weeding!<br />
Last year I convinced myself that it would do me good to walk away from any gardening for a year because the tediousness of it was starting to make me not enjoy being out there anymore. A few years ago this would have been unheard of, I had less garden to tend and it was so easy to keep it looking immaculate but then over the years I've added another garden, a veg area and a polytunnel area and trying to maintain it all myself was just taking its toll. After spending another year just trying to keep on top of it while also mowing acres, looking after animals, keeping a house and accounting, I decided I was either going to a) completely gravel/pave/deck everywhere and just have pots b) dismantle the poytunnel and veg area and just let the weeds take over or c) simply take a break from it all and just see what happens.<br />
I chose C - thankfully.<br />
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The weeds are awful - to be expected, but awful. I get alot of couch grass with runners that run like tentacles everywhere and the dreaded creeping buttercup. I don't mind any weed except creeping ruddy buttercup.<br />
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When I first looked at this trowel in hand I almost walked away. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">BEFORE</td></tr>
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Only now can I see that I can actually cram alot of new plants out here, which is a good thing really as I have approximately 400 in my polytunnel that are now getting quite depserate for a life outside their pot.<br />
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This though made me smile with happiness when I saw it. I have a Cordyline growing that is self seeded and has done so well until a couple of winters ago when a wishing well fell on it and snapped it right at the base. I managed to stand it upright and bashed a scaffold pole into the ground to tie it to. Then I mulched it with thick straw round the base and covered the straw with slate to keep it in place. The Cordyline appears to have survived which is amazing but now it has babies - twins no less. I thought the green leaves were from a flag iris that runs rampant in this bed but nope - they're definitely coming from the Cordyline stem.<br />
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I've been keeping an eager eye out for signs of my Peonies survivng the winter in the ground and sure enough 'Sarah Bernhadt' appears to be waking up.<br />
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I'm not sure what's going on with this pot grown Camellia in the polytunnel though. It has flowered a couple of times but nothing last year and nothing this year. It's in ericaceous compost that is topped up each year and I keep the watering right but it just doesn't seem to be thriving.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-76006721783526229292016-03-15T17:31:00.000+00:002016-03-15T17:31:06.742+00:00Slipped disc - but not me this time! Canine IVDD.I think we've been blessed weatherwise for the past week or so, if it's rained it's been at night time and the sun has been out during the day. In fact it's been so mild that I'm already drying washing on the line and that is practically unheard of me because the sea air makes it too damp to dry usually.<br />
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I've had big plans to get started on the garden and while we've managed to clear it of rubbish and all manner of bricks, wood and broken projects I haven't actually managed to put a fork in the soil yet. This is down to a little Shih Tzu called Kasa<br />
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This naughty little ray of sunshine has managed to slip a disc in her back - something Shih Tzus and other long bodied stumpy legged dogs are prone to apparantly (why is it we never find this information out until it actually happens).<br />
Initially the vet diagnosed arthiritis but after a couple of days we weren't happy with that diagnosis and took her back to the vet - IVDD is the medical term or Intervertrebal Disc Disease.<br />
To start with a wobbly gait was all we noticed, Kasa was otherwise her normal happy stupid self but it progressed very quickly and by the time we took her back to the vet she had lost knuckle reflex in one of her back paws suggesting that the protruding disc was putting pressure on her spinal cord and causing sensation issues.<br />
Strict crate rest is the solution for this if you opt out of surgery. Surgery isn't guaranteed to help and the nearest animal hospital to do this is about 300 miles away with costs going into the thousands.<br />
Thankfully conservative treatment is the most popular way of dealing with this now especially at the stage Kasa has it so 24/7 crate rest it is! As I'm the only one at home all day this has fallen to me to do and it's taken a while to get my head round it - it's extremely difficult to crate a dog 24/7 and not feel guilty, even if you know it's for their own good.<br />
Kasa hasn't made the journey any easier because she hates a crate and attacks it - literally! I cannot even begin to tell you all the different methods we tried in the first 2 weeks to get her to settle in confinement. Unfortunately her battle against the crate has made her condition worse and she has now lost the ability to gauge placement of both back legs. This is not like losing all feeling though, she still has deep pain sensation, it's just that the disc is pushing her spinal cord more and causing a loss in sensation. The 24/7 crate rest was and is supposed to prevent this!<br />
As of now we have a crate sorted that she cannot scratch, jump out of, chew or attack and fingers crossed she will begin to heal, from all the research I have done (ALOT) this condition is completely recoverable so the crate is now her new best friend for at least the next 6 weeks, she's only allowed out to go to the toilet (whereby I have to carry her, then support her back end in a sling while she does her business and then carry her back).<br />
You would think that crate resting a dog would be easy wouldn't you? Honestly, it is so time consuming you wouldn't believe it, especially with a dog that fights it like Kasa does.<br />
So anyway Kasa is the reason I have not really been absorbed in the garden however that should change once we have Kasas pain meds sorted and controlled.<br />
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During one of my little stints to the polytunnel I did have a lovely surprise. Late 2014 I dug up a clump of amazing white Iris's and temporarily planted them in my polytunnel while the garden was renovated (pmsl, it still isn't done), anyway last year I watched as those Iris plants appeared to grow healthy and then suddenly shrivel up and die. I almost dug them up and chucked them but I didn't get round to it. I was so pleased when I checked the polytunnel bed yesterday and a couple of my pots and saw this sign of life<br />
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At first I thought it was Daffodils coming up because the stems of this Iris do look like Daffodil stems not regular Iris. Unfortunately I don't know the name of it but it has to be the most amazing Iris I have ever seen, it's been a bit reluctant to flower the last few years which is another reason I thought it was ready for lifting and dividing.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-40237128902343187882016-02-24T17:29:00.002+00:002016-02-24T17:29:57.764+00:00Snow!The promised snow has finally arrived! We've been lucky of late because everytime it was forecast nothing actually came of it. The same goes with the wind too.<br />
We have had rain though and it has literally saturated the ground, there is absolutely no way I can get outside and do any kind of gardening - such a shame as I would love to be out there in the cold, NOT!<br />
As I said though, the snow has arrived. It won't stay long as it never does but we tend to get it worse in this village than just 1 mile up the road, I think it drifts and as we're one of the last properties before the sea we get alot of drift.<br />
Having said that, it's hardly been an avalanche of snow. In fact we're talking maybe one inch is all.<br />
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This is the start of it - not much huh!<br />
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Getting a little worse but it'll probably disappear overnight and then we just have the water run off to contend with. While we will never flood here - we're so far above sea level (at least those cliffs are a good 200ft drop) and a burn runs water straight to the sea - the garden could definitely benefit from a substantial drainage system as the amount of water we have is just sitting there freezing over.<br />
We did a couple of drainage channels last year but TBH it looks like it was a complete waste of time!<br />
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I've spent a bt of time in the PT tidying it up ready for Spring and I've found a few issues with it that will need rectifying in spring. The main problem is one bolt holding the bottom trim in place has come away which means that piece is just flapping about, this in turn means the plastic to that area is also flapping and loosening. There's also a few rips to the plastic but I think once I repair those I should get another few years out of the plastic cover.<br />
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I have a system going with my daughters workplace, we collect all their broken pots and make use of them. They store them in giant dumpy bags and then we collect them and bring them home so I can sort them out. For the most part they are not salvageable so I break them up and use them as crocks for the bottom of pots<br />
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There have been a few pots worth saving though so I have quite a collection going now.<br />
I know the big one has the bottom missing but I will sink this one into the ground and use it that way. <br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-68279863087638887762016-02-01T17:25:00.000+00:002016-02-01T17:25:59.340+00:00A new year!Last year I decided that I would start growing veg again this year, I had everything planned - what I was growing, where it would grow etc etc however I have had to take a reality check and reign my enthusiasm in a tad.<br />
I used to try to do it all - keep a house, look after animals, renovate the land, grow veggies, build 'stuff' etc but it got too much and I ended up losing all interest in absolutely everything. I couldn't keep everything in check and felt like I was juggling balls and despite being busy all the time nothing seemed to be getting done.<br />
Then last year I gave it all a break, all of it. The polytunnel housed plants in pots or with no homes instead of fruit and vegetables, the garden probably got weeded once, the land renovations halted and I only built the odd piece of garden furniture. I took the year off and was determined to get back to it this year.<br />
I'm not old - 44 - but no spring chicken either and health issues mean there are days when I physically cannot do anything, depression often seeps in and makes everything seem so much more traumatic and I simply cannot do the things I could do only 5 years ago.<br />
So for the sake of my own health and sanity I have decided what is important this year and reigned the rest in.<br />
The polytunnel will continue to house those plants while I spend this year renovating the land to make new homes for them but I will concentrate on small areas only and will get one area finished before another is begun.<br />
The garden will be weeded and then mulched to help keep back the weeds releasing me from that chore every other day and project making will be stalled until/unless I have time. The only projects outside of gardening that I intend to do this year are a few furniture renovations for the house - which I am redecorating - and some items I am making to sell in my online shop.<br />
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As for the first garden area to be tackled, this is it!<br />
The borders are to be extended and a huge patio laid. A new wall will be built to the left side replacing the fence (hence the boards behind the border) and it will be smothered in shrubs and climbers, especially over the aviary at the back. <br />
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What can I say about this one.<br />
The sleepers have to be dragged out and those back borders have plastic underneath gravel over them - did nothing to stop weeds though. This aviary is also getting some colour to it. <br />
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This is going to be alot less lawn and alot more plants - yay for plants!<br />
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Dreadful! Even the dishwasher got dumped out there over xmas when it broke - it's since got to the landfill though. The house walls are what will hold me back some as we have to erect scaffold to get the harling on the walls.<br />
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This is also on the list for renovation this year. It's quite an extensive area and while MrTG does need some of it for stacking his building materials we're going to utilise at least half of it from the house side. Hoping to plant trees but we have a small issue with that because we had the rock on the ground set to about 3ft, nothing is growing in that! If you look closely behind the old digger you'll see tree stems, these are willow and we had to use the digger to dig out a trench along that back line and infill with topsoil so we could plant the willow.<br />
I think I may have to build some massive planters for any other type of tree but this area is extremely exposed so I don't know what to do yet, I'm no tree expert and have no experience in this area. The sea is extremely close to us - you can see it behind the digger - and any wind from it can be seriously strong though not usually cold because although it's the east coast it's actually south of us.<br />
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This area will no doubt stay the same. There are about 500 plants in this polytunnel if not more, most of them are just waiting for a new home and have been stuck here for a few years. I have a feeling that we may need to renew the plastic on it this year as there are a fair few splits now. Most of them are along the bottom so if I can get a couple more years out of it by repairing rather than replacing that's what I'll do.<br />
Before I can ever grow veggies in here again though I need to raise some on the beds more and add more top soil, some of the beds are too shallow because the area tends to hold water and so those beds can be very soggy.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-67072170825315003672015-12-12T20:47:00.001+00:002015-12-12T20:47:42.678+00:00Birds, birds, birdsI do not have the patience to photograph birds!<br />
I deliberately placed a feeding station outside the living room window so that I could watch the birds and see what comes and goes, usually I forget to even bother until I happen to pass the window and see a blur of colour as a bird flies off.<br />
Yesterday though I thought I'd drag up a chair and hide behind the curtain and see what happens along. How boring???<br />
The Blue tits are brilliant because they're not at all shy and couldn't care less how much movement I make nor do the Robins but the Finches are so ridiculously skittish I had to hide behind the curtain and just point and shoot while guessing where they were.<br />
It kind of worked and I was really pleased to see the greenfinches have returned to the peanut feeder this year.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This pic was taken a couple of weeks ago.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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I'm not entirely sure what this finch is. It has the same wing colouring but is brown rather than green - maybe a female or a youngster?<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-3034398182054382442015-11-30T21:02:00.000+00:002015-11-30T21:02:44.580+00:00Well that was a quick changeWow, is it ever cold out there lately! What with that and the rain I'm keeping off the garden as much as possible. Thankfully I'd done a fair bit of filling the new sleeper beds with topsoil and compost before the naff weather hit though I do still have a fair bit to go.<br />
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Luckily I have plenty more soil available and thanks to my daughter bringing me home about 200 Wallflower plug plants I can fill it up for winter to stop the cats using it as a toilet.<br />
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I'm thinking we have a slight land drainage problem<br />
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When we first moved here 3 acres or so was completely plastered in awful gorse bush. We wasted way too much time and money trying to clear it without researching the correct way to go about it, this resulted in us simply regenerating new growth. We finally decided to pull all the gorse out with a digger, scrape the whole land with a digger and then literally go round pulling up all the little bits of roots that we could find. We now have land that can be mowed but we still haven't resolved the gorse problem - it really is a tenacious plant that isn't even destroyed by fire - we tried!<br />
We can live with it though because the mowing will prevent it gaining any height and we thought it eould eventually stunt the overall health of whatever was left.<br />
No such luck!<br />
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See all that dark green stuff? That's gorse and it's decided that if it can't grow up it will make a lovely prickly carpet instead.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-8418380673051435572015-11-23T21:52:00.000+00:002015-11-23T21:52:06.504+00:00Summer is nearly here!OK so maybe the headline is a great big porky pie but it sure beats the truth - Winter has us in its grasp!<br />
So keeping with the summer theme here's a few reminders to warm the old cockles - I have no clue what that means but I hear it all the time.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-17164981727885955752015-11-15T21:23:00.000+00:002015-11-15T21:23:09.937+00:00Autumn colouring and garden helpWow, there's been a sudden change in the weather hasn't there! The layers of clothes needed to be out in the garden are greater by the day, though I admit I've become a bit of a wimp when it comes to the wind and I avoid it at all costs, I've been utilising those days to get the polytunnel cleared out ready for bringing plants in pots in for the winter. I hadn't quite realised the degree of mess in the PT though nor the amount of plants I actually have to bring in - despite me planting seemingly hundreds of plants every year I always seem to have an increase in young plants waiting to go out the following year.<br />
I've been filling the new sleeper beds but this task is becoming more and more difficult due to the garden 'helpers'.<br />
I put this cardboard down to smother the grass while I fill the bed with compost but I never seemed quick enough and every time my back was turned Huntly decided that the cardboard was obviously for him <br />
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This is a wooden crate I made years ago to grow something in that needed containing, I was supposed to be removing it but Kasa has decided it's more comfy than all the beds she has indoors - I felt awful kicking her out.<br />
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I manage to get Huntly out of the area I need to fill only to find that Atlas has moved in. These dogs are absolutely no help whatsoever but for some reason I feel awful moving them lol.<br />
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With my back to the sleepers this is the area I currently have to work on.<br />
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Despite the weather change I was pleased to see this plant flowering away outside - I forget the name of it but I have it in both red and pink. Always figured it would be too tender for being outside here but I guess not.<br />
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Choisya always looks good this time of year doesn't it! A plant I don't make enough use of and I'm determined to correct that in the new garden next year, I love this Autumn/winter colouring.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-90698549582172203822015-10-24T14:14:00.000+01:002015-10-24T14:14:03.154+01:00Garden sleepers and sand cuttingsI've been making the most of the mild weather we've been getting here. It's extremely unusual for the wind to be as absent as it has been for the past few weeks and I dare say we'll soon return to the usual windy conditions but until then I'm making the most of what we have.<br />
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I had promised myself that I wouldn't make a start on any more hard landscaping until I had caught up and cleared the rest of the garden which has been neglected all year but I couldn't help myself, I have hundreds of plants waiting to be put into the garden and want it all ready for them in spring. These poor plants have been housed in pots for too many years now and they're beginning to show signs of stress so it's important that I make them a home ready.<br />
With this in mind I decided to build a retaining wall out of old old railway sleepers, these sleepers have seen better days to be honest but I have heaps of them and I needed a retaining bed to add some height for the shrubs I want to plant in there.<br />
I've only managed a small section so far - these things weigh a ton and have to be reinforced at the back to prevent them falling - but once I have them all in place I will board the fences behind the sleepers and then fill them with top soil.<br />
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I haven't made the border too wide once it's filled because a) I had to consider the amount it would take to fill and b) I'm only putting shrubs in there.<br />
The ground in front of the sleepers is going to be dug out and curved so that I can plant perennials and then I'll put a decking or patio to the front of that. <br />
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The fence to the right of the wall is an aviary so I''l grow some honeysuckle up that but that back fence will eventually be replaced by a solid wall so I have to make sure any soil retaining boards I put up can stand by themselves until the wall is built.<br />
I also have to add approximately another 4 bays of sleepers to the top left as it's a large area. <br />
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A job even more tedious than digging in sleepers is the cleaning of this decking. All those small harling chips are well and truly wedged, I tried to convince myself that I didn't care but I couldn't live with the look. Besides the decking needs sanding and re-treating so I have to keep at it a bit every day - it's soooooooo boring.<br />
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<br />There are two plants in particular that I have never managed to propagate with any success - Cornus and Philadelphus. I'm not sure what I do wrong, I've followed instructions to the letter and yet no matter what method I have used the years of trying have totalled 1 Cornus and 2 Philadelphus. Last year I tried a technique of shoving cuttings in sand but after I did them I damaged my back and completely forgot about them. When I emptied the bucket though all the now dead cuttings showed obvious root growth so a few months ago I gave it another go.<br />
I basically filled a tub with very damp sand, shoved Cornus and Philadelphus cuttings in, tightly packed, then inserted the tub into a large white bin liner, tied it up and left it.<br />
2 days ago I decided to turn it out and see what had happened, I knew they must have rooted because everything was still alive but I was amazed with the results - out of approx 20 cuttings of each I lost literally only 1 or 2.<br />
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Suffice to say I am really happy with the results and will most certainly be doing alot more next year with many other types of plants.<br />
Now I just need to add them to the hundreds of other plants desperately needing to lay down roots in the garden.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-39757917039996065562015-10-20T18:26:00.000+01:002015-10-20T18:26:48.807+01:00A day in the autumn gardenI finally have some control back of my garden.<br />
We've had scaffolding around the house of late while Mr TG did all the harling to the house and it meant that I had to watch as my lovely borders got trampled and damaged and the grass was used to store all sorts of buckets, spades, wheelbarrows etc etc.<br />
I had resigned myself to the damage pretty early on in the year and accepted that I wouldn't be able to do much gardening this year other than any structures that I wanted to build.<br />
It's all go, go, go now. While half the house still needs harling the actuall garden area is pretty much finished, the scaffold is down, the base of the house has been cleared and Mr TG even sorted drainage out for me on the grass.<br />
So for the last couple of days I've been taking stock and looking to see what has been damaged beyond all help (just 1 Fuchsia Genii by the looks of it), clearing debris away, digging over the beds and attempting to clear up the decking. All those tiny harling chips have wedged themselves between the decking planks despite us using poly to keep the area clear and it's taking me an age to get them all out.<br />
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Despite Autumn being here the weather has been very mild, in fact we've had nicer weather over the lastcouple of weeks then we had all summer - the wind has been non existant which is a very welcome relief as it's usually a constant here.<br />
My garden doesn't have much autumnal colour and literally no winter appeal - something I intend to rectify - so I've been out catching the last of the colour that is hanging on.<br />
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I'm not sure what the colour wheel says but I'm thinking that these are two colours that wouldn't necessarily be deliberately put together. I did though and to be honest I quite like the bright orange of the Crocosmia and the pink of the Fuschia 'Tom Thumb'. In fact I like it so much I'm going to do more of it next year.<br />
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Another view of that Crocosmia, Fuschia and a blue Hydrangea in the foreground (Zorro).<br />
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It's so nice to finally have pretty background walls in the photo and because this is south facing this area is going to be a lovely hot area next year. I've got as much as the clay soil out as I can over the last few years so plenty of things are happy to grow here, including all those in the above pix. I'm hoping to add Cordylines or Palms to this area.<br />
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The pond lillies are still flowering away.<br />
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This is my favourite Fuschia of all time! I've had this particular one for years, in fact it's the one I slipped a back disc a few years ago trying to pick up and move. This year I've fed it religiously and have spent a ridiculous amount of time dead heading - obviously worth it as it's still flowering like this.<br />
Despite it being my favourite Fuschia I have forgotten the name of it.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-37100794515845287422015-09-15T22:27:00.000+01:002015-09-15T22:27:01.192+01:00Garden destruction and a secret clubA whole month since my last post :( But it's no wonder because I haven't done anything in the garden to post about.<br />
Mr TG has been harling the exterior of the house so literally half of my flower beds and my entire patio/decking area has suffered - it looked so pretty last year too.<br />
The walls are almost finished so I will soon be able to get stuck in and renovate before winter sets in and I'm sure most of the damaged / trampled plants will recover next spring.<br />
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Even the Adirondack chairs I made were utilised as scaffold stackers.<br />
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I'm not worried though, all will come right next year :)<br />
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Now, I found an amazing little garden club called <a href="http://www.secretgardeningclub.co.uk/" target="_blank"><span style="color: red;">'The secret gardening club'</span></a>, I'm not sure how many of you are aware of it but I came across it and I have to say it's brilliant.<br />
Once a month a plant business in Yorkshire offers plants at very low prices while they are available and the postage is free - even to the Highlands of Scotland which is most unusual.<br />
I bought 6 plants last month - 3x yellow crocosmia and 3x grasses and I have to say the packaging was absolutely brilliant. I expected below par packaging due to the cheap cost of the plants (I paid under a fiver for all the plants and don't forget free postage) but nope, the packaging was actually the best I have ever recieved.<br />
As for the plants themselves - well I was expecting small plug plants to be honest but what arrived was astounding - all the plants were full and a good height and exceptionally healthy.<br />
So, if you want to see what is available head over to the secret gardening club and register for free, you will then recieve a link to this months offers.<br />
If you choose to you can become a premium member which you subscribe to each month. I chose to this month and it cost me £1 though I'm not sure if that was an offer or not. The bonus to becoming a premium member is that you get offers weekly instead of monthly, you get alot more offers and you also get other garden related offers all with an extra 10% off. This week there are 21 premium offers and ALL include free delivery :) <br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-11735134891258864522015-08-18T11:04:00.001+01:002015-08-18T11:04:25.111+01:00How to love your gardenI love joining gardening groups on FB, my favourite being 'Friendly gardeners' and this year I've noticed alot more posts from people feeling frusrated with their gardens, whether it be because they don't seem to have the motivation to get out there, they compare their gardens to other peoples and find their own lacking or just because they never seem to be able to get on top of the weeds enough to actually have the time to create new areas.<br />
Over the last few years I've blogged many times about my own lack of motivation, my own frustration that my garden just never looks good enough (in my eyes) and that I've seriously considered just giving the whole thing up and letting it run to seed and do as it will. The problem with that solution was guilt, I felt guilty that I'd considered giving it up, guilty that I wasn't motivated to be out there and guilty that I just couldn't get it to look how I wanted.<br />
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I don't know what happened this year but I suddenly have a different outlook on the whole thing - it started when I made a comment on a FB group that I hated my garden, while many people were understanding and going through the same thing so many others were actually quite short, sharp and to the point and comments varied from "Get a grip", "Well I wish I had your garden" to "Think yourself lucky, at least you can get out to do the garden".<br />
It made me think. What was my real issue with the garden? Once I had those questions in my head I decided to find a solution to them and the solutions I came up with really surprised me.<br />
<ol>
<li>No motivation to weed: So don't! Simple as that, don't do it! One year of no weeding is not going to turn the garden into a jungle of unimaginable horrors and if it does, deal with it next year but for this year don't weed and just see what happens and what grows.</li>
<li>My garden has no appeal to me: Once I'd thought that one through I realised it wasn't that I didn't like my garden it was simply that certain aspects were not what I had envisioned - such as THAT pond. Once I realised this the solution was simple, keep the things I liked and change the things I don't. The pond is now exactly what I had in mind when we began it a few years ago.</li>
<li>My garden is boring: I figured out that the boringness came from a lack of structure which is easily sorted. I won't buy wood for garden structures but I have heaps of pallet wood and scrapwood so I built the gazebo and am building columns for gargoyles to sit on. I've made plans for solar lighting and have garnered enough battens off Mr TG to build another 3 or so obelisks - the ideas are now flowing and with no weeding to do I have the time to do them.</li>
<li>I have too many gardens to cope with: Sounds ridiculous doesn't it - too many gardens lol. But it's true, we have 3 acres here but I have several areas dotted around that need tending - none of them connected so it's all a bit haphazard. The solution was really quite simple - don't worry about fruit and veg in the PT this year, they take too much time to tend and never really produce much. The tunnel now houses tender plants and a few cutting flowers and takes a bit of watering and that's it. The greenhouse area has a garden that was once a masterpiece (as far as I'm concerned) because it was the only garden I had, this year I've adapted the greenhouse (more a shed with extra windows- DIY) for the hens and the garden is their territory - no tending needed. I have another area next to the natural pond that I've been attempting to renovate and make look smart but can never get it to look right, this year I've left it. The weeds are head high but I don't care I just don't look at them when I pass it lol.</li>
<li>Gardening is pointless because no one ever sits in it: This was the easiest solution of them all - get a grip woman! Who cares if no one sits in it, seriously? This year I've taken time to sit in it myself (which I never do) and I've really enjoyed it. A year ago the weeds would have done my nut in they just don't now, all I do is take some scissors cut the flower heads of and go back to my book. Who knew it was so nice to sit in a garden!!!</li>
</ol>
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I think the best thing about this new found garden freedom is that the plants seem to be growing better without my interference. Yes, there's weeds everywhere but they're green so they blend well lol. and let's face it, some of them are prettier than the rest of the plants.<br />
Taking the time to relax in the garden ahs also helped me to watch the garden through the season and see what's working and what isn't - I have alot of Day lillies in the wrong place and are reluctant to flower, roses that aren't getting enough air and are looking mildewy and a Buddleia that isn't looking too healthy due to it's damp position. These are all things I can improve for next year.<br />
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St Johns wort? Certainly self seeded whatever it is. <br />
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Stag Horns Sumach - despite it's tendency to migrate and sucker everywhere I have wanted one of these for years. I grew this one from seed and was surprised to see it doing so well as I didn't really think it would survive the winter here.<br />
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There's Thalicturm in flower in this image of you look close. I grew it from seed and planted them out last year whereby they did nothing! If I'd been weeding this year I would have dragged them out but luckily I didn't weed and they've now flowered. Can't say they do much for me though and certainly won't bother with them again.<br />
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In amongst the weeds Roses bloom. The pink one was due for ripping out this year as it never flowers, now it decides to flower. The white one is my favourite - it doesn't do well after a shower, the blooms rot but it's now about 9ft high and has been plastered with blooms this year.<br />
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So lazy have I been this year a wheelbarrow didn't get emptied on the muck heap and not only did I find this Pink growing but also a most amazing poppy and a lovely Lily. Both the lily and the pink will be saved and I'm garnering the seeds from the poppy.<br />
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So you see, learning to love your garden doesn't necessarily mean producing the immaculate instant garden that we see on TV. Often times it's about not stressing, accepting your garden as YOUR garden and learning to relax in it. If you really don't fancy gardening this year - don't! It's certainly not going to do you or it any harm and you never know it may just make you fall in love with what you've got all over again. Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-19454983394080733562015-08-04T09:53:00.000+01:002015-08-04T09:53:24.740+01:00Octagonal pergola and lazy peopleThis weather continues to astound me. It's now the height of summer and yet I not only needed to wear a thick fleece when I was mowing the lawn on the ride on but I had to have the hood up and tied tightly to keep it there! I have never known summer to be so naff in the 12 years I've lived here - I understand the North East of Scotland is never going to be tropical but seriously, it feels like Autumn right now.<br />
The garden has taken a serious battering and has been neglected for a while now because I've been getting on with building projects instead - weeds can wait lol.<br />
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I decided I wanted to build a gazebo as a walk through where the formal part of the garden meets what will be the new unformal part of the garden (once I've done it) but it couldn't be any old gazebo. Me being me I decided to go for an octagonal one and me being me again decided I could mash it together without plans.<br />
The first few attempts were diabolical - I built the panels in the workshop (and even made a mistake on those that still exists because I'm too lazy to change it) and then formed the structure in situ. The problem is I'm one of those people where if there's a quick way and a right way I'll choose the quick way and every time I do that something goes wrong - as it did here.<br />
I just could not get the angles right and couldn't figure out how to do it. In the end I sucked it up and asked Mr TG what I needed to do to get the angles correct, unfortunately this meant doing the job the long slow way and required me to build a square frame and work measurements out - booooooooring!<br />
I have to admit though that the structure went up much quicker and easier once I had the frame to go by and used scaffold poles to hold things in place instead of attempting to hold everything level and drill at the same time - yes, that it how lazy I am.<br />
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Stage 1 - after several attempts at getting these level upright I had a tantrum, pulled them out the ground (even though I had blisters on my hand from digging holes for the spikes) and threw them on the ground. Yes, I had a paddy!! and there they stayed for a few days.<br />
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Stage 2 - Mr TG told me how to get the angles correct and how to keep them level while I worked on the structure. <br />
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Most of it's up here. It's not perfect but then neither am I so who cares!!<br />
Do you see the mistake on the panels I mentioned earlier? I must have measured 2 of them from one end when putting the cross sections in and two from the other end because two of them have an extra piece at the top - two don't lol.<br />
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The tedious job of painting it. I also weeded the bed to the right and planted Bamboo and a climbing rose. The rose is tied to the vertical wires I added to the side gaps as an afterthought.<br />
The bed to the left is in dire need of weeding but it will have to wait. <br />
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Gras mowed makes a huge difference. I also completed the base inside the gazebo. It involved loads of cement and plenty of mess - those bricks and shingle are going nowhere!<br />
The bricks sit just proud of the lawn on this side because the ground is lower here and I used the other side as a reference for height. The bricks are level but I will be adding a small step this side so there'll be no tripping over bricks.<br />
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I bought the compass slab a few years ago and have never used it until now. Mr TG set it in concrete for me but I didn't realise until it was done that he has the North pointing the wrong way. I did give him instructions as to where it needed to be - everyone here knows the sea is directly south lol- so the North should have pointed just before where the East currently is. Mr TG did offer to rectify it but tbh I like the quirkiness to it now and it's typical of all my projects - there's always something not quite right lol. I like it!<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-28570113686605016642015-07-10T10:44:00.003+01:002015-07-10T10:44:55.135+01:00Weird trees, floods and weed growth Mr TG and I ususally take our holidays during the winter months with the idea that it would break up the long winters here in Caithness and give us that Vitamin D boost when the daylight levels are so low here. We also figured this Vitamin D boost would set us up for the following spring and keep SAD at bay for us both, I now realise this hasn't been the case - the Vitamin D would always be depleted by the time spring or summer came so I would usually be well on my way to a bout of depression by the time the gardening months rolled around.<br />
Having just spent 2 weeks at a friends place in Los Lobos, Almeria I've decided that this is the best time for holidays - we've returned rejuvinated and ready to tackle what is now an extremely over grown garden and land.<br />
<br />I've also noticed that all the things that would normally have bothered me in the garden and set me on a downward spiral are actually not bothering me at all - novel! Everything suddenly seems doable and what isn't doable right now doesn't matter - its not going anywhere.<br />
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Faced with these weeds I would normally run, hide and possibly cry at the thought of the work, it's not bothering me at all though, in fact I saw it and smiled.<br />
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Initially I took the shortcut to the polytunnel but was faced with this and had to go the long way round - honestly there's a path in there somewhere and I found the weeds amusing.<br />
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I got to the polytunnel and was faced with a river of water both outside and inside. We definitely need to get the drainage sorted this year because this area tends to hold water the longest and it makes the flower beds in the tunnel too soggy to grow anything.<br />
On the upside instead of having to fill a watering can for some plants that had dried out I just put the pots in the water for half an hour.<br />
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This is inside the tunnel after I'd swept most out. The left hand bed is fine as it's a good 18" high but the right hand bed is only about 8" high and you can clearly see how wet it is compared to the one on the left. <br />
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While out in Spain I was surprised to find a lack of flowers anywhere. I figured anyone living in such a warm climate would have lovely plants growing. Maybe the fact that every day was over 40 degrees makes it too hot to garden so most places were filled with Oleander in flower and Aloe Vera.<br />
There were these wonderfully weird looking trees though - I wonder what they are!<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-87340916821371825192015-06-11T13:44:00.000+01:002015-06-11T13:44:03.493+01:00Polytunnel produceStill not much doing here in my Caithness garden. The weather has finally decided to give us a glimpse of a possible summer on its way but everything outside is stunted almost in limbo as though it's all deciding "do we, don't we". As it is right now I'm happy for everything to stay a little shy for 2 reasons 1) I wouldn't be surprised if we have snow next week and 2) I go on holiday next week and I don't want to miss all the first blooms.<br />
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The polytunnel is a different story completely, I am getting heaps of Strawberries - at least the ones the birds haven't gotten to first - the apple tree is plastered with fruit so I'm waiting for the June drop to see what needs culling after that and the flowers (especially the Roses) are about 6 weeks ahead of those outside.<br />
Tomorrow I will have to begin moving all the plants in pots to an outside sheltered place, I just hope the weather stays kind.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Rose 'Nostalgia' my first one to flower this year, has a lovely sherberty scent.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">This tree has heaps of apples this year but it's destined for the garden later on so probably won't produce this well again.</span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmEOuj8JkcPmSAVZUkV5Cqzj0rdpS3vKUlRirvDz0c1t_9TDpkzW2NuvTzvqxa3NMVBLzC0tgNJenA9aQomjkoqjUqg2_z7sJ1xatX-ImFZmjdp9H4nHxv0Ssc1Ez-DIIU_Q8NIldv8xk/s1600/strawberry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmEOuj8JkcPmSAVZUkV5Cqzj0rdpS3vKUlRirvDz0c1t_9TDpkzW2NuvTzvqxa3NMVBLzC0tgNJenA9aQomjkoqjUqg2_z7sJ1xatX-ImFZmjdp9H4nHxv0Ssc1Ez-DIIU_Q8NIldv8xk/s400/strawberry.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I almost gave up on Strawberries this year as I never get a decent crop. I put these into some hanging baskets and the crop has been mammoth so far.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTVRIsmvBg96j6mW0mROV8e0itClATA1gvvmBRQntoKLYK4n7GaCFhPAQngWzigig2MKbRLt5MK-Epm3A5WhDjIj3TF8ig2v01GjsUyUjYsYckJGskl7hQzAK3y5bq4FF1UDmW1nFEyjw/s1600/hen+eaten+hosta.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTVRIsmvBg96j6mW0mROV8e0itClATA1gvvmBRQntoKLYK4n7GaCFhPAQngWzigig2MKbRLt5MK-Epm3A5WhDjIj3TF8ig2v01GjsUyUjYsYckJGskl7hQzAK3y5bq4FF1UDmW1nFEyjw/s400/hen+eaten+hosta.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">No slug damage here! Hens have made a meal of my Hostas, it's prettier than slug damage though and a small price to pay for the fact that they also control marestail.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNl5k19UU7u_yYd7kJerFSIaKuLn9c6ME-TEooxbrX2qrPMhnNycVKMIEBLg7B9En6aCyndZkk-1-MAniHw8J0DO6A-gEPEPKxsR4wOnYFbzPEMgUFp8OVwb10aTXLONFp05oMi9foGPc/s1600/weather.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNl5k19UU7u_yYd7kJerFSIaKuLn9c6ME-TEooxbrX2qrPMhnNycVKMIEBLg7B9En6aCyndZkk-1-MAniHw8J0DO6A-gEPEPKxsR4wOnYFbzPEMgUFp8OVwb10aTXLONFp05oMi9foGPc/s640/weather.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Even on the sunny days there's always a storm threat over the sea.</span></td></tr>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-88482205812818639952015-05-30T14:55:00.001+01:002015-05-30T14:55:46.321+01:00Garden DIY projectsI'm one of 'those' gardeners that despite having what seems like a hundred unfinished projects on the go I am always on the look out for inspiration for more to do. As a consequence of this I am adicted to 'Pinterest' and sadly can admit to spending a ridiculous amount of time on it most evenings.<br />
The weather here has prevented any kind of gardening for some time now, I can't even mow the lawns as it's too wet and on the days when it's just cold rather than rainy it's just too windy to get motivated.<br />
This has given me time to add to my growing 'Pinterest' folders and I thought that as I have nothing to show from my own garden right now I would post some wonderful garden projects that are cheap and easy to do - I'm all for cheap (preferably free) and easy.<br />
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I found these concrete globes on '<a href="http://www.thegardenglove.com/diy-concrete-garden-globes/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc0000;">the garden glove</span></a>' along with a fabulous tutorial with 4 different recipes depending on the finished look you prefer. For me it would have to be the pure cement one for 2 reasons - 1) Cheaper - I'm not into buying ingredients if I can help it and 2) I think it would lend itself to spray paint alot nicer than the others.<br />
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I came across this next project on '<a href="http://www.creektree.net/infopages/ctinfopage_hummervids.php" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Creek Tree USA</span></a>' and they describe these as ceramic hummingbird feeders, obviously I would have no need for that here (though maybe Bee or Butterfly feeders) but I thought they would make the cutest plant supports with very little cost or time.<br />
Pretty door knobs are selling for a couple of pounds for a set of 4 in many of the cheaper stores (none of which I have here) and the right gauge wire would only cost a few pounds too. It would be very easy to attach the wire to the door knobs and voila - no more poked eyes.<br />
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Hopefully this year we will be building new pillars at the top gate and I have always wanted to add a Narnia style lamp to the side of them. I did some research on the lamps though and to get the exact one I wanted I wasn't going to get much change from £400, plus the cost of then running electrics up to it. I turned to Pinterest to find an alternative.<br />
This guy, Mark, has come up with the answer for me and I'll definitely be doing it. He's constructed a Narnia style lamp from wood and best of all he's included a solar light to the top so no need for wiring. It may not be the exact style I was looking for but it can easily be adapted to what I want and the guy has even done a video tutoral on it. Check it out on '<a href="http://www.hallmarkchannel.com/home-and-family/how-to/marks-diy-solar-lamp-post" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Mark's DIY solar lamp post</span></a>'. <br />
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This next project is so simple and obvious yet I never would have thought of it in a million years. I'm always thinking that I wish decking was a bit more comfortable underfoot so I could go outside barefoot in summer, obviously a rug isn't going to last too long out there and will only end up smushy and horrible. Not now!<br />
Laura from '<a href="http://hayestone.blogspot.co.uk/2011/04/happy-monday-all-things-have-been.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Design share</span></a>' has given us a fab tutorial on how to turn a tablecloth into a waterproof patio / decking rug - imagine all the wonderful colour and pattern choices available. This is a definite project for me this year.<br />
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I have no lighting in my garden currently - I must be one of the few people who just hasn't got round to it - and so I'd like to start adding a few pieces especially around the patio seating areas. I'm not really into buying the ones on stakes though because I can get a bit OCD about them being perfectly upright but I found this great idea (one of many on Pinterest), unfortunately I cannot find an original link to who created it but the photo speaks for itself - vases, stones and solar lights.<br />
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<br />Again I cannot find a direct link to the creator of this next one but I like it so much I wanted to include it. It really is a simple idea and seeing as I have all the ingredients to put it together I will definitely be doing this to add some attraction to my garden. I'm not sure how to do the knot but I'm sure a google search will be productive.<br />
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I have plenty of wood scraps laying around, usually I put them in the log shed for winter fuel but now I have seen these I think my garden will instead be plastered with scrap wood animals. I'm not sure whether I want a moose but definitely dogs, horses, hens etc.<br />
'<a href="http://paintedtherapy.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/what-to-do-with-those-scraps.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Painted Therapy</span></a>' provides a good tutorial using a Silhouette Cameo but I think I'd prefer to freehand draw.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-80332556852962907452015-05-26T08:05:00.000+01:002015-05-26T08:05:29.032+01:00New growthThe weather here has really scuppered my new found enthusiasm to get my garden in order. No sooner had I decided on some lovely new features and actually started building them when the heavens opened and don't seem to have closed since. I'm certainly no fair weather gardener but I hate, hate, hate sloshing around like a pig in muck so most of my time outdoors has been spent either in the workshop or in the polytunnel - which has actually never looked so organised.<br />
There's not much flowering in the garden at the moment - a design flaw (I use the word 'design' very loosely here) on my part, most things seem to flower in summer in my garden with little interest the rest of the year round - a flaw I aim to correct this year and next year.<br />
The polytunnel is a different story though, there's greenery everywhere and plants are starting to flower that wouldn't be flowering for another 6 weeks or so outside.<br />
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These Hostas and Acers are romping away under the polytunnel staging.<br />
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This Weigela is in full flower whereas the one outside has barely leafed up yet. The Heuchera next to it is also in full flower.<br />
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My first standard Fuschia! It was a cutting from a Fuschia I found growing wild up the road and it's perfect for standards - grew very quick and forms lovely. It is starting to flower but I've pinched the ends out again since this photo was taken so that I can get a larger shape.<br />
I also have a Hawkshead standard that I grew at the same time as this one but it doesn't look anywhere near as impressive and the growth is nowhere near as bushy.<br />
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In December 2013 I thought I'd give Rose cuttings a try. I took several cuttings from various roses I have and quite a few have taken and succeeded. This one is a climber called 'Snowqueen' (I think) and will be ready to plant out this year along with the others I did.<br />
I forgot to take cuttings late last year so I did them in January this year on the off chance they would take - out of about 10 cuttings only 3 have taken but that's 3 new roses I don't have to buy.<br />
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Outside the Rhododendrons are flowering, at least the ones near the polytunnel are, the ones on the garden are still just in bud.<br />
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THE most loathesome plant I have ever had the misfortune to come across - Gorse. At first it was a novelty, it completely covered our 3 acres here but to start with we found the spears amusing and the flowers and scent made up for the fact it's such a bully. But that was before we knew how hard it is to eradicate.<br />
The first 2 years we lived here we bulldozed the land of all this gorse and set fire to the heaps - huge mistake. The heaps were full of dry spindly gorse which doesn't really burn well but given that the soil was peat based THAT managed to burn and burn and burn. 2 years after lighting the fires if we got a good crosswind we could see smoke start billowing from those heaps - I kid you not!<br />
That was our first realisation that this awful plant was not going to go down easy, followed by the renewed growth that was thigh high by the following year. We knew then that all those days and nights with the bulldozer, all those blisters and all those painful piercings from the spikes was a complete waste of time.<br />
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We contemplated weedkilling the lot but in the end, 2 years ago (10
years after moving here) we got another bulldozer in, scraped the lot
out, pulled out every root we could find, every rock we could find,
levelled the land and then reseeded it all. We figured that our mowers
could keep the stuff down if it manages to start growing again.<br />
This is the land that we've managed to sort out as it stands now. The bottom fence is to keep the dogs on this area but we also have the trees past the fenceline and a lovely burn running straight the way through. I love the deciduous trees down there, especially the Oak trees but we haven't even made a start on the Gorse that grows beyond the point of the fence.<br />
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The area of grass directly in front of the house is the land that MrTG ploughed by hand, rotovated by hand, de-stoned and raked and flattened all by hand and it has to be said it's the best bit of land we have. The land further down is what the diggers and ploughs did and it just isn't as level as we'd like PLUS that darned Gorse is still attempting to come through. There's a carpet of it around the corner of the polytunnel but luckily the mowers do keep it down. Think that weedkiller may be coming out after all!!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-67243723335567940862015-05-07T09:57:00.000+01:002015-05-07T09:57:20.097+01:00FreebiesI'm so lucky that I have a daughter that works at a DIY superstore! She's bought me back many many plants that were destined for the skip for various reasons - often times they're on the brink of death - and I cherish each and every one of them.<br />
The latest haul she bought me back included Hyacinths in Teracotta pots, loads of Erica, a few Leucothoe and plenty of Viburnum Tinus - all healthy plants too.<br />
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These are Pansies that she rescued from the skip a few weeks ago - they've given me weeks of colour and smiles. <br />
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Lovely aren't they. I've never grown Pansies before though so I really don't know what i do with them after they've flowered - do they come back next year?<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-62151959291549673032015-04-30T18:03:00.000+01:002015-04-30T18:03:08.442+01:00Pallet wood Adirondack chairsMy garden really is taking some neglect of late. I really should be much further along with the re-design than am I, in fact to be honest I've done nothing out there since my last post. It's not from a lack of caring though it's down to the fact that I've been super busy in the workshop building furniture for the new decking (that isn't even in place yet) and building planters for Roses.<br />
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I was super surprised the other day when my daughter came home from work with a boot full of plants that were headed for the skip, once I've sorted through them I'll post pix but I know for definite I'm making a hedge from the amount of Viburnum Tinus I now have.<br />
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For now though I'm simply going to show you my latest project. Remember the Adirondack chairs I made last year? (or the year before - I forget), well I've made a second batch and MrTG has declared they far exceed the previous ones in both looks and comfort.<br />
I couldn't find the exact plans I needed to make this design so I basically made it up as I went along but used inspiration from 3 seperate designs. Of course I made the footstools to match though I have since realised they don't actually match as they are angular on the ends as opposed to rounded like the chairs.<br />
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What i love most about these chairs is that they have cost me nothing more than time as all the wood is either from pallets or old stuff I have stored. All I have to do now is paint them and while I painted the last ones in 'Summer Damson' by Cuprinol I have chosed 'Fresh Rosemary' for these ones because I'm going much lighter on the new part of the garden.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_cKnfYSzT_p5-BeWv5AVhF3YXO_5IDZeXZVnqO7_oS4fqHKzDKyPhSrFWbj9E43yBbUWIz9IW0hvU7qGQTb9Aznrm5Az3l22A4UyMzchdCznY1bXpjtPF3218Yvg2z7Zx4vn1mffA1MA/s1600/GS_FreshRosemry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_cKnfYSzT_p5-BeWv5AVhF3YXO_5IDZeXZVnqO7_oS4fqHKzDKyPhSrFWbj9E43yBbUWIz9IW0hvU7qGQTb9Aznrm5Az3l22A4UyMzchdCznY1bXpjtPF3218Yvg2z7Zx4vn1mffA1MA/s1600/GS_FreshRosemry.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Cuprinol Garden Shades 'Fresh Rosemary'</span></td></tr>
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The shade is actually a mintier green than is showing above.<br />
Here's the Adirondack chairs I made previously. A very different style as they're more angular and don't have floating arms like the new ones do.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-31142658655335942882015-04-19T15:09:00.000+01:002015-04-19T15:09:20.848+01:00Re-design.Considering how busy I've been outside lately I have very little content for any of my blogs. <br />
Most of my time has been spent clearing up dead plants from the half of the garden that is sort of finished and also in the polytunnel trying to keep on top of the mess that's in there.<br />
For the first time in 6 years or so the PT is not being used for fruit or veg this year - I have finally accepted that I do not enjoy attempting to grow food - so it's going to be full of cut flowers.<br />
I'm also starting on the second part of the garden with the help of MrTG, it involves alot of gravel clearing before we can remove the sleeper beds and then begin cutting in new curved beds ready to be packed with plants.<br />
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If I don't get it cleared now it will look like this before long and then I won't be able to tackle it again until it all dies off.<br />
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Once it's all cleared I just have to work out what beds are going where - true to form I have no plan on paper. I know roughly what I want to include but I'm finding it a tad difficult to mesh the square lines of the existing garden to the curves I want on this side. I'll get there eventually though.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This si the side I'm renovating.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<span id="goog_746475786"></span><span id="goog_746475787"></span><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-43040662721625419132015-03-19T13:28:00.000+00:002015-03-19T13:28:54.328+00:00Taking stockI decided to do a list of all the plants I have in my polytunnel ready to get planted out in the garden this year - the result surprised even me and I see them every day.<br />
Here's part of the list:<br />
Roses x 17<br />
Hydrangea x 4<br />
Caryopteris x 3<br />
Geum x 6<br />
Hebe x 9<br />
Honeysuckle x 3<br />
Thread palm x 8<br />
Rosa Rugosa x 15<br />
Hosta x 12 <br />
Hibiscus x 20<br />
and that's without all the Day lilys, pokers, Crocosmia and heaps upon heaps of other plants and bulbs.<br />
What the heck am I supposed to do with 20 Hibiscus? I mean, I don't even know if they do well in this climate.<br />
What about Thread Palms? Do they survive the weather here?<br />
I also have a Chusan Palm but I believe they're supposed to be hardy enough to survive here and in fact someone along the main road has a huge one in their very exposed front garden and that one appears to be thriving, though it is secured with lots of pulleys.<br />
I have a Phoenix Canariensis too but I'm not sure whether to plant it out and protect it through winter or leave it in a pot and bring it in for winter - I suspect the latter because I had one many years ago that died in the winter.<br />
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Anyways, those geese that arrived earlier in the year are still here. They appear at the same time every year but I've never known them to stay longer than a few days so I'm not sure what has happened to make them stay all this time. I'm not complaining though cos I love seeing them especially when they get ready to take off and land - they're so chatty.<br />
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The gardens been too boggy to work in at the moment, I've managed the odd day of weeding and tomorrow MrTG has stated that he'll be taking the day off work to give me a hand out there (Yes, I know how lucky I am) but for the moment I'm making use of my new workshop and decided to make a few bird houses.<br />
I don't know why I did it but I decided to make a bird house from an old wooden carriage clock we were going to throw out, I figured it would look nice on my worshop wall when it's done and maybe even a Blue Tit would make use of it.<br />
I kind of like the finished look but I am totally disappointed with Ronseal clear external varnish - it's not clear and it's ruined the colour of the paint I used, it's given it a dirty look and so the finished piece doesn't look like what I wanted.<br />
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See the dirty grungy look that the varnish has left! Not cool Ronseal!!!!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-60927653170619141582015-03-09T15:19:00.002+00:002015-03-09T15:19:41.190+00:00Crocus - the Tulip wannabe?So today we're battening down the hatches ready for these storms that are supposed to be hitting us overnight and tomorrow. Already the wind is picking up and I'm finding myself looking out at my garden more and more as it starts to whip through - the damage from the last storm has been recified but I don't want to subject it to another onslaught.<br />
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I'm happy to report though that I am now quietly confident that the Yucca which had its root snapped during the last storm is looking like it is going to survive.<br />
I really did have my doubts because the main root was snapped to halfway though but we staked the Yucca up using a scaffold pole, insulated all round the base with straw held down with slate and the Yucca appears to be thriving (if not a tad wind burnt).<br />
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<br />I grew Crocus in pots last year and left them in my polytunnel pretty much forgotten about so I was really surprised to go in there a couple of days ago and find them flowering their little socks off despite my neglect. I bought them in doors onto the kitchen window whereby they very quickly seemed to wilt and as I've never grown these before I'm not sure if this is normal or whether they didn't like being looked after - ungrateful so snd so's.<br />
Anyway with the weather outside being naff for a change (yes I joke. Not about it being naff but about it being for a change) I decided to get to grips with an Olympus bridge camera that I got for xmas 2 years ago after much moaning to MrTG that I desperately needed one (I've used it about 4 times...including this time).<br />
As it turns out my Nikon Coolpix camera that is only 2 years old has finally given up the ghost. It's been repaired 3 times under warranty but I'm not paying for this new needed repair (dropped it in the pond for literally 1 second) so I figured I should get used to this Olympus bridge camera.<br />
It has some really weird and strange functions and I can't imagine why a person would need to use them but I thought I'd try a couple of them:<br /><br />Here's the reflection setting<br />
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I kind of enjoyed playing with that setting, it made the Crocus look so arty.<br />
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This next setting is called starburst I think and it adds a sparkle to the white highlights<br />
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The next two are just the usual P setting meaning that I could set all the white balance etc.<br />
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I'm not actually a fan of Crocus - they look too much like a Tulip wannabe to me, so I suspect these bulbs will all be planted out once flowerng is over along with some Iris retuculata in pots that seems to be determined not to flower despite producing lovely foliage.<br />
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6979477368757454916.post-48210222198528833432015-02-07T14:28:00.001+00:002015-02-07T14:28:25.263+00:00Pallet wood planterMy new workshop is now up and running ready for Spring and I couldn't be more chuffed and so grateful that Mr TG gave up one quarter of his own shed to make me my own area. I now have a 20ft by 20ft space with fabulous scaffold board work surfaces and every tool I imagine I will ever need - except for one of Mr TGs table saws which I have my eye on, I've never used one because they scare the heck out of me but I still need one lol.<br />
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So my first projects are pallet wood planters. I've made planters before and I didn't want just a bog standard boring square but I've made 6 sided ones before and tbh I can't remember the degrees etc so bog standard square it is.....with a little scallop included.<br />
These take me one day to build and cost nothing to make cos it's all pallet wood<br />
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I know not many people will want a blow by blow account of how I made it so if that includes you then I guess you shouldn't read on. If however you want to make one and want to know how I did it then continue reading and I'll try to tell you as best as I can, plus you can learn from my many mistakes as we go.<br />
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First assemble your materials - I know this is common sense but when I made the prototype of this (I had no plans) I kinda made it up as I went along and by the time I was on my third panel I realised I was out of pallet wood that had the same dimensions as the other 2 panels and although it only made a teeny weeny increase it affected the entire structure.<br />
So gather your pallet wood first ensuring you have enough of the same size for the 4 panels, my panels measured 20" high by the combined width of 4 pieces of pallet wood wide (14").<br />
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First I cut 16 pieces of pallet wood @20" high and 4 pieces of batten @ the width of the panel (I used pallet wood that was about 3.5" wide so we'll say the panel width was 14") We actually need 8 pieces of batten but we'll come to that later.<br />
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So, I lay 4 pieces of the 20" wood down on my workbench best side down as we're working on the inside of the planter here. I actually made use of this iron angle square screwed to my workbench and I cannot tell you how much it helped, not only did it help square everything up but it helped keep everything tight together.<br />
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Next I attached a scrap piece of wood across the centre to keep all those boards tight together (I forgot to photograph that though).<br />
Next I started marking out the arches top and bottom of the panel. I made a pencil mark 2" in from either side at the top at the same at the bottom, then I took a huge round plate and placed the edges against those marks and traced round it to create the curve - I did this top and bottom.<br />
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<br />Next I used a jigsaw to cut out the arch following my pencil line.<br />
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TIP: Once you have cut the arches out do not be tempted at this point to remove the scrap wood. I did that once and it was ridiculously annoying trying to get the arch back to shape.<br />
Next make a pencil mark 3" up from the bottom and 3" down from the top on either side of the panel. Take your cut batten and screw it down to the panel making sure each end is flush with your pencil mark. Do this top and bottom and then remove the scrap piece from the middle.<br />
Then turn your panel over and screw into those battens from this side also as this will help make it super secure - remember to pre-drill first and use a counter sinker if you like, I didn't in the prototype and the wood split terribly. <br />
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That's one panel complete and you now need to make one more exactly like that.<br />
Next you need to make 2 more panels the same as the first two but with one slight difference, the batten pieces need to be shorter to enable the entire structure to fit together.<br />
To get the desired width of the shorter battens I simply held up the two finished panels against my new panel and measured the width required. This next photo shows you the process and the yellow pencil shows the width I need to take the measurement of<br />
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<br />Fix the shorter battens in place 3" up from the bottom and 3" down from the top as you did on the other two panels. Once that's done pre-drill and screw in from the front again and then make another panel exactly the same.<br />
You should now have 4 panels looking like these<br />
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The next bit couldn't be simpler - construct a box with the four panels.<br />
Then pre-drill pilot holes and screw the sides together, again using the counter sinker if you like - this made it easier when I gave it a light sand too as there were no screw heads to rip paper on.<br />
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Once constructed this is what the inside will look like (those shorter battens suddenly make sense).<br />
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Next I cut 3 pieces of scrap wood and screwed them to the bottom battens to form a base, I left gaps between so that I can puncture the lining to allow water to drain.<br />
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For the liner I would usually use some of Mr TGs DPM poly as it's really thick but I was feeling particularly lazy and wanted to use what was to hand - bin liners!<br />
As it happened these particular bin liners were a perfect fit and I secured it by stapling it to the top batten supports with my nail gun.<br />
To hide the plastic and the staples I cut some really thin laths to fit around the top of the battens and nailed them in place.<br />
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Finally a quick sand down with 60 grit and then another quick going over with 240 grit and a coat of external varnish and the job was done.<br />
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<br />My instructions may make this seem difficult but it really couldn't have been simpler to make nor quicker. It used minimal wood and cost nothing and a rose is going to look lovely in it.<br />
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I'm currently working on other planters, I'm hoping my mitre saw will cut accurate angles for an 8 sided planter and I'm trying to work out a square planter that staggers outward - could take a while.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com9