I'm not going to say it...

 We are sitting out this heat wave, I do a bit of gardening first thing, I water later in the evenings, I have a lance on my hose, its a longer pole with spray at the end, allows me to water the base of plants without bending, this is when I am most grateful for a small garden. These roses are stunning, they change colour as they open, I cut it back last year so the flowers are lower. They hide the gap between the fence and garage, by the end of the summer they will reach the top of the fence.

I adore this bed, just 3 years old, these fleabane daisies are a froth of colour, the aquilegia behind are new this year, four plants, I'm happy if they propagate and I have loads more, my snowberry plants (2) are slowly growing and will fill out in time, my astilbe is in the middle and should shoot up soon.

I love pots you can give plants the correct environment to grow, Kirts grass hair is better than I imagined, I do like to have a few pots displayed together. Just a few of the pretty flowers here in our garden.

I will trim our olive tree, its full of blossom and getting bigger than we want, another tree we both love, we have had this tree since 2019, I feed it once a year and clip it often.

Another loved plant is my pomegranate, I started a seed way back in 2017, its been in this pot since 2022, it was moved to behind our seating last year, I've stopped clipping it and would like it to grow higher, its not a tree. I do have herbs in pots at both ends of the seating area.

I have been careful when purchasing new plants to remove weeds from pots before planting, I also prefer to grow from seed, which helps keep weeds at bay, so I don't have too bigger issue. I am pulling the buttercups from my back fruit bed, they are taking over, lesson learnt, they need space. In my side bed I have meadow rue, it's a pretty low green ground cover, all through the summer I am pulling it out, it spreads by root and can be a thug, I do like it around my big herb pot.

We did not see daughter and little ones on Tuesday, they stayed home, where they could play inside in the cool, George was going to have a sleepover, but he's not sleeping well, so we postponed it, whilst sad not to see them, we understand their welfare is always most important. I found sitting outside under the parasol with the slight breeze best, the morning temperature was 29°, as it got hotter we later went back inside.

New life

My pomegranate is coming back to life, I love the colours of these new leaves, hopefully I may get a few flowers on it this summer, I moved the pot last summer and it does seam happy, no signs of any distress, before I kept it trimmed to a lower height, now I will let it grow, it will make a nice backdrop for the seating area, along with my herbs. This plant I grew from a seed, started back in 2017.

I mixed loads of flower seeds and sprinkled them into these two bags, I used these for cut flowers last year, I also have freesias in here as well, most of the seeds should do well it's a warm sunny spot. This for me is proving a successful way to start seeds, the bags protect them from the worse of the weather and snails.

I removed six lupins seedlings from the above bags, I love to grow them, sadly they never return after their first year, these will be useful to fill gaps. The tray at the bottom of photo I have completely forgot what seeds I have sown, I checked with Lens, it can't make it's mind up, could be forget-me-nots or cornflowers, its a case of wait and see.

I also planted some bulbs, liatris spicata, they have tiny flowers on stalks, I put two packs in the back of my square bed last year and nothing grew, so once these are bigger they can go out.

My hubby purchased a plant for our garden, it was market day on Wednesday, the plant stall is good. I made comment I loved these bottlebrush plants and one would go in my pot, which is in a sunny sheltered spot, I had just popped my astilbe in it, but I can place it elsewhere in the garden. As I was deciding hubby paid the man, I'm happy with my latest addition. 

I have been out most days looking for snails, I know where they hide, catching them early helps my crops, I do have beer traps I can use, for now I search by hand, there are not many weeds, I have them under control for the moment. My cucumber plants is growing well, I have 4 tomato plants, hoping for a good harvest this year and loads of lettuce plants at various stages.

I have also purchased another astrantia, it's a pink flower, I do love these plants, I want to dig out my penstemon, it's too big for the spot, plus last year there were hardly any blooms, I also got 20 french marigold plants from B&Q, my own seeds failed germinate. It's truly naughty to purchase more plants, I have plenty growing in the greenhouse. 

It's been a quiet few days, I have hurt my left shoulder, I've had problems since 2010, when an operation left me with nerve damage and a weakness, all I can do is rest, which is not so bad with the sunshine, I do wish the very cool wind would drop, it's nice to work outside but still cool to sit for too long. Today they have promised the wind will disappear, I have high hopes, I have a few jobs to sort in the square flower bed.

Thank you for your kind comments regarding our garden, whilst I do most of the work these days, it's a space for both of us, our refit back in 2023, was the final stage, ensuring its a much easier after 17 years we have done all the hard work, we know what grows here, I am an organic gardener, I use no chemicals anywhere, watching the wildlife gives us as much pleasure as seeing the blooms. I don't regard anything here as work, I'm happiest with a set of snipps in my hand, either deadheading or keeping things in shape.

What am I doing

Over the years I have taken great delight in growing things from seed, my greatest achievement is this plant, grown from a pomegranate seed, I planted this in May 2017 with loads of other, only one seed grew. I have nurtured it for years, when smaller it was always popped back into the greenhouse for the cooler months. Once put into this pot, (2022), it stays in this sunny spot outside the garage. It's never flowered, but I keep on hoping.

I purchased this cranberry plant last year, so far all I can say is I have not killed it, it did get very water logged, so for now it lives just inside my greenhouse door. There is new growth on it, so I need to consult Mr Google again to see what I need to do next. 

This is my horseradish plant, I popped it into an old chicken pellet container, again I have checked and the roots are harvest in November, when they should look like a parsnip, leave a bit of the root in the ground to grow a new root. Hubby loves horseradish sauce, I will be able to freeze it and it should hold the heat, this is another crop just for him. 

This is my only citrus left, lime plant and for the first time I have had a flower and more buds, this was not grown from pips, these days limes are more often without pips. I've had it a few years, it's not that huge, I am feeding it with citrus feed once a month.

My bougainvillea lost all it's leaves last winter, it was in my greenhouse wrapped to protect it, it looked terrible and I was going to ditch it, but decided to cut it right back, I'm glad I gave it another chance.

I do love a challenge in life and have grown loads from seeds and pips, my kiwi I got to small tree size, but as the fruits are ready from December onwards, they never ripen so I passed it on, the stem and leaves are very pretty, my avocado got to a nice size but died in my cool greenhouse over winter, again nice leaves. I got lemon and orange from pips, but never to a good size, each are shown in my list on my sidebar if you want to know more or pop to this post. 

I'm sure I will find more unusual things to grow, having said that, I have loads of things I can't grow, sweet peas, which is one of my favourite blooms, I have purchased plants, grown from seeds, in the ground in containers, never thrives. Large daisies, grow for the summer and never returns, I have replanted into large pots to over winter, without success. Little lemon clematis and chocolate cosmos, both don't like my garden, these days it's all about understanding my limitations. 

What's growing

Of all the plants in our garden, these violets have me worried, after the cold snap they do look sick, I have these are grown from cuttings I took and I've spread them around this section. I have everything crossed they come back again. I have more in a long pot, which look just as sick, but as they grow in the wild locally, I am hopeful. 

My pots and raised beds have loads of spring bulbs in green leaf, the warmer temperatures after the cold weather has fooled them into thinking it's spring, there are leaves in my flower beds as well. As much as it is lovely to see so much green, it is the wrong time of the year. 

It's not just the bulbs, lots of fruiting shrubs are showing signs of new growth.

Even my Acer planted in the ground has tiny buds forming, nature is out of her cycle this year, most will just die back and not harm the plants, our coldest months here are the first 3 months of each new year. 

Inside on my desk I have a lovely display here, there is a radiator under the top and the huge window gives light, the Chinese money plant is a re-potted baby, my succulent on the window sill is about to flower, and my Albuca Spiralis Frizzle Sizzle is still throwing up new shoots, I have cut back a few of the longer stems as the do curl over and flop. My man's 'brain' doesn't grow very quickly, but I do love him. 

I don't do much gardening at this time of year, we are still picking up leaves which blow into the garden, normally I am planning what needs to be done when in the winter months I can see the structure of the garden, this year I don't have any plans, it's a case of wait and see what I have lost and what is growing. Most of last summer we were both pleased with the garden, we had colour for months and loads of birds and insects, I am an organic gardener, I don't use sprays at all, I also don't dig unless I am moving plants, each year about October I mulch the garden, which feeds and protects the plants. 

Our space behind the garage after removing the shed is working very well, it's a working space, but can't be seen from the house and most of the garden. Being in the garage for my shed space is also working well, I'm not taking hubby's space, my stuff is along one wall, it's much better for me, the space inside the shed was very tight. 

Both black bins full of shredded leaves are water tight and nature is working towards making mulch, the compost bin is full of worms and there should be loads of compost in the spring, I use a 'Hotbin' which is sealed and looks good, it also makes compost much quicker and it's a small size. I have checked how much compost I purchased last year, whilst I'm self sufficient in mulch, I think I will still need to purchase compost, but it will still save me money, the cost of the garden bin collection has gone up again this year, opting out of that scheme and using my own garden waste for compost, even with purchasing more compost, it's still a saving. Hubby did suggest I got a second Hotbin, which would give me enough compost, but I don't have enough garden waste to fill 2.

All the water butts are full, I have been draining water from them when nights are freezing, ensuring there is no water in the down pipes, and enough space in the buts to allow the frozen water to expand and not have anything split. 

I am itching to get outside, but it is pointless, our garden is too small to have space for summer and winter colour, so I sit and watch the birds and the relentless rain, and dream.

Tidy garden

 We got this new square plastic pot, the pomegranate plant was not as pot bound as I thought it would be, but this pot will be placed where our large water but is, on the side of the garage, it's a sunny spot so it should do well here. I got plastic because the whole plant and pot is still very heavy, hopefully once in place it should not have to be moved. 

There are still pockets of colour around the garden, the begonia's have been fantastic so far, but the cold weather will kill them off soon, they grow from corns, which I leave in the soil, all are planted in raised section, so the flowers tumble down. Most of the plants returned after the drought, but few are in flower, so we have lots of different shades of green everywhere.

I have done more stitching, I love the flower design on the outer section of the bottom square, I normally finish my thread and then pack my sewing away, yesterday a neighbour popped in, so I did not finish my section. I have now decided how I am going to finish these squares, and I've started to think about what to pop next to them. 

The shed is empty, hubby helped and gave it a good sweep, he place a free ad on our local Facebook page and it was quickly snapped up. Hubby has been out and removed loads of the screws holding it together, it should be collected later today. Removing the shed will not as bad as we feared, it did just fit into the space behind the garage, it had been built from the inside, so everything is accessible. Hubby has also remove the canvas roof to our pergola, he packs it away each winter, stored in the garage in the dry, it prolongs the life of the canvas and keeps it looking good, plus it does flap in the wind. 

It's been a busy few days in the garden, it's that time of year when it's easier to do so many jobs, it's much cooler this September, so some jobs are being done now instead of later in the month. I still have 2 pots with gladiola bulbs in I will dig them out and plant loads of spring bulbs, they can be done later in October as the soil in the pots stay a bit warmer. I have one big round pot, which the pomegranate was in, not sure what to use in that pot, it may stay empty for a while.  I also have my old 3 level  tower pots, I need to decide if I am going to use them or pass them on.

Trees give life

I always show photo's of our Magnolia tree, it is a beautiful tree, but we do have more tree's in our small plot, this twisted willow is very pretty, I use thin twigs from here all the time, we do keep it small, it would grow huge if left.  

For 10 years this Acer grew in a wooden frame beside the garage wall, it loved the spot, but was becoming too big, so rather than pass it on, hubby suggested we pop in into the ground, it looks stunning here. 

The triple Acer was potted to fill the space from the bigger red Acer, I love these colours and hope to keep them together in one pot for as long as I can. I purchased a twig last year, it's another acid green shade, it's already doubled it's size. 

The Olive has been in this pot for a few years, I do feed it twice a year, the wind has battered the leaves, but they will come back. There are still a few Olives left, they do not ripen enough to be able to harvest them, so I always leave them for the birds. 

This is my success story, it's a Pomegranate grown from a pip in the fruit, started back in 2017, back in bud, the colours of these leaves are lovely. I don't ever expect to have fruit from this tree, but for as long as it looks good I will keep it in a pot. 

Again all grown from pips, Lemon, Orange and Lime, these aren't really doing well, I need to care for them better, I'm going to keep them here infront of the greenhouse, it's a very sunny spot and they will get extra heat from the glass. 

Our garden has loads of hard landscaping, the decking and the concrete path to the garage, plus our fake lawn, so I have tried in ensure there  are loads of natural grown things to please the birds and other wild life. With the flower and shrub boarders, there is so much colour, I tend not to think too much about the rest of the un-natural parts. Trees do give life to my garden and any other landscape. 

Tree's can be hard work when they require cutting back, our policy has always been, never let them get to big, keeping them to a size where we can reach them. Growing in pots is not ideal, as always at some point they require to be planted into the ground and there is not enough space in our garden. I have always offered them free on our local Facebook pages, I'm happy to pass them on for a new life in a bigger garden. I have put links on each tree, if you want to look back at post and see what I did, not that I knew what I was doing, just having fun. 

We are very lucky as our neighbours to the back of the garden has 3 huge trees, which we steal into our view, they leave their trees to just grow. I have always loved trees, and also the challenge of growing things from seed, so hopefully I will always have loads of different trees here. 

I'm bored

I love the leaf colours of my jade plant, it lives and thrives in my greenhouse, don't you just love the pot it's in, it's a biscuit barrel, and reflects everything around it. 

These bedding plants are ready to go out, I am going to have to get them in the ground soon, some are ones I dug up last year and the others were plug plants I have grown on. . 

Blooms in the greenhouse, these will be placed around the garden in June. 

My pomegranate plant, grown from seed, it's a few years old, last year it was left outside in winter for the 1st time, I love the colours on the leaves, it's a really healthy plant. I have no idea on how this will grow, is it a big bush or will it grow into a tree, I'm just happy to watch and learn. 

I may have purchased another indoor plant, I have always loved maidenhead ferns, this is a nice size, and looks good on kitchen window sill, my herbs are now in the garden, I will use the pots in my greenhouse. I have got my plants online, Candide Gardening plants are always sent well wrapped and the plants have all been if fantastic condition, I'm not being paid to say this, just my own thoughts. 

The 3rd Amaryllis is also sprouting leaves, I am doing nothing to these bulbs, just waiting to see what happens, they are on the floor in the greenhouse, my cucumber behind is in it's growing pot. 

This is the straight view from our sitting room, 

I love it, it's our world, it makes me smile.

Our world has become very small, it's all about home life, the past year home has been our safe place, my post have become boring, we are doing nothing, so sewing and garden updates are all I have to talk about, with the odd photos of Will and George. We have popped to a few shops, but we have over the years got into the habit of not purchasing stuff we don't want or need, understanding our commercial world, where the shops/internet flash stuff at you, you need this, buy it now. 

We are both tidy people, so the house and garden is sorted to how we like it, after living here for 11 years, it's all to our taste. I am almost finished my big cross stitch, I have books to read, and a couple of small ripple blankets to make, but I am bored. Our world has shrunk far too small, we are starting to meet up with friends, later this month my brother will be here and then we will visit my family in Somerset, we have a short mid week break booked as well. We need summer to be here, so we can go further from our house, do different things, widen our outlook. Any task we find to do, we jump on it, enjoying the purpose of the task, something to do, we work well together, our skills between us ensure we can sort most things. We now need to get out and start enjoying the bigger world, I love our home, but it's not enough at this moment, hopefully Boris will release us more today, Monday can't come soon enough, I will still be very cautious, it's been a long, long winter in every way.

Colour all around

Kirk leading the way, his hair is looking good, I moved him to this cooler spot as he was getting really hot in the sunshine. The black cable is tacked to the wall behind and nothing to do with Kirk, my Jasmine  behind which I cut back is now a deep green of new growth. 

Just some of the many flowers in the garden, 

so much colour and loads grown from seed. 

Pot's will always be loved in my garden

The herb bed is done, the poles are there until they grow bigger, for protection. I moved the smaller round hoops to the left of the bed, and popped a bigger round hoop on the front right, to be able to grow a mixture of tender herbs. My pomegranate in the big clay pot I will move once the fruit net is packed away. The Rosemary is at the back, I did cut it back and now I can see new growth.  

My raised bed, not looking so great, but I am watching for new growth on the replanted climbers. I am not planting much in here this summer, I have a plan for next year, but for now I want to be able to watch the climbers come back. I also want to plant a honeysuckle when I have created a new plant.  

These became a main meal for bugs when planted in the garden, so they are back in pots, each is showing tiny signs of new growth. 

This makes me chuckle, carnivorous plants all together in a water bath (they love their roots in rain water)  with a fine spiders webb, mainly around the pitcher plant. 

I treated myself to another planter, this is bronze, I love the handle, and had been watching it on a facebook selling page, once the price came down to a level I felt happy with, I got it. It will have to be placed out of direct all day sunlight as it can become hot, now the fun of deciding what to plant in it. 

We did get a visit from daughter, Will and George, on Friday afternoon, just long enough for Will to eat most of our fruit, typical growing lad, 'hello Nanna, I'm hungry', I do love he is always looking for fruit and never asks for crisp and sweets, I know it will change as he gets older. 

Most of the weekend has been sat outside, watching and listening to the small birds in the garden, they are very entertaining, the warmth of the sun is great again, Saturday we had more cloud, but still warm, Sunday was a beautiful day. It does feel good to be able to sit and enjoy the space we have created, it's full of life and colour, and for a change, I can sit and not see anything which needs sorting, both hubby and I love a chat over coffee and a small treat, home made cake or biscuits.

Hubby has started working on 2 benches, one child's size and a full size, he's not so good at sitting and doing nothing, again purchased second hand, so he has plenty to keep him busy.

I have not done any knitting or crochet, I have been reading, the heat makes me tired in the evenings, which is not a great thing when crafting. I have been thinking about  designs for a glass fusion, I hope to be able to make it soon, I am hoping I can make one good enough for a gift for my sister. 

Just another lazy weekend, no desire to pop anywhere, it's peaceful and safe at home together, 

What are you growing.

In 2019 I had a beautiful Amaryllis, as the flowers went over they produced seed pods, so I planted the seeds, and they grew.

The pot above was crowded, so I thought I would pot them on, I was surprised to see such good roots and a tiny bulb has formed, I had to find bigger pots for them. 

 Six in plastic pots, 3 in bigger pots which can be used inside, it's exciting to see something new growing from saved seeds. I have no idea how these will progress, or even if I will get flowers.

 I thought I would update you on other seeds and pips I have growing.

In flower is my Lime plant, this was purchased as a plant, I was not able to find pips in limes. Next is my orange tree, this was grown from a pip planted back in 2015. Both are due to be placed in bigger pots. 

 My Lemon tree, planted in 2014, I cleaned and popped the pip in soil and was pleased when it grew, this started my fun on growing things from seeds and pips. I have a bigger grey pot to give this plant more space. These 3 plants are still in the greenhouse. 

 Cape gooseberry, planted in 2018, I have cut all the growth back, it had better shoots from the base, again I have no idea how I should be growing this. 

 Pomegranate sown in 2017, I cleaned the pink fruits and 1 grew, I have just put it in a bigger pot, the leaves drop each year and every spring it gets bigger and more wonderful. 

 Kiwi also planted in 2017, it took a couple trys to get these to grow, 1st attempt I picked out all the tiny black seeds and popped them on a wet kitchen towel, they grew but were to tiny to pop into soil. 2nd attempt, I cut a slice of kiwi and popped it on soil, it did go moldy, but I left it and I got 1 plant. It has been outside for a couple of years, and loves a sunny spot in the garden. 

 I am growing this kiwi for the blossom, it is beautiful, as yet this plant has not produced any, but I am hopeful this will be the year, the leaves are furry as is the stems, it's a very different plant. There was one growing in a neighbours garden back in 2013. 

 One of the babies from my pineapple plant, after the tiny fruit ripened, the plant died, so I potted up the babies, this lives on my desk, it's always sunny and warm here. 

 In the green house I have 2 other pots, the single baby had good roots, the pot with the glass cover has 3 plants which do not have many roots, the dome I hope will help them to grow, it's working so far. 

I have other things, an acorn sapling, I have a couple of nuts in soil, to see if they will grow, I am always looking for something to try and grow. I did grow  an avocado and had it for a couple of years, but it did not winter well in the greenhouse. Not everything grows, I had walnut sapling given to me, which curled up and died, and loads of things which never started growing, but if you don't try you will never succeed.
My green house is full, I have trays of flower seedlings, a couple tomato plants and I got another packet of cucumber seeds, the old ones I planted did not grow. I was given 3 camellia seeds, which I have planted, the itch to grow is huge at this time of year.
My mood has picked up again, feeling more positive, I'm finding it better for me if I focus on home and family, I can't change the world, but I can live the best in my world.
Husband went to our local B&Q, he got loads of bits, so he can finish jobs, mainly painting, he's ex army and follows the mantra, if it does not move paint it.
This weekend I am planning time with my sewing machine, simple projects, things which can be finished, my crochet blanket is growing slowly, having mastered the design, I am finding it's very repetitive, but it does look good. I am also reading, which is always good for me.