Under glass

My forget-me-nots are doing well, I hope these will fill the garden with loads of tiny floating blue flowers next spring. 

My passion fruit plants and salvia hotlips are all growing well, I hope to get a couple salvia into the garden next month so they can settle in and regrow next summer. The passion fruits will all be given away. 

Violets and Violas starting to grow, 

these will fill my pots with winter colour.  

I have 5 pineapple plants around my home, this one in the greenhouse is the best looking, I have another one growing well in my office, the last 3 are all much smaller.

Succulents, some I have had for years and loads with tiny new growth. I do love my pots, the brown 'chamber pot' I have had since the 70's, I no longer own the onion pot which matched.

My hydrangea cuttings did well in the Perlite, and had lovely roots, so I planted them, but left them were the rain could water them, they have gotten too wet, so I am hoping they come back, if not, I will have to start again.  

 I also have a tomato and cucumber plant in the greenhouse, both are producing fruits, but not as many tomatoes as the outside plants and the cucumbers have stalled, there are a few starting to grow again, I think for a week it was just too hot in the greenhouse. My nasties and succulents both loved the hot days, every plant is looking good. 

My 1st task everyday is to walk down my tiny garden and check the greenhouse, open the door and ensure everything is as it should be. 

We have been having rain most nights, not storms, no thunder and lightening - very very frightening (sorry, sing along), and the days are now cloudy and dull, but it's perfect weather for the garden.

Yesterday Will and George came with mummy, for a couple of hours I also had a neighbour's children, so 3 of them ran around the garden playing, Will was the youngest, but he happily shared the toys we had. Later we popped to our neighbour's to see their new puppy, both of their children were so happy and excited. 

What's growing

The greenhouse is full of cuttings, most are doing well, most of these are salvia's of different colours, I also have a couple lavender and honeysuckle, plus a passion flower which rooted in the garden. 

I am following Monty's advice here and have softwood cutting in Perlite, held in a tray of rainwater. I have a couple of Hydrangeas, a Clematis, a Rose, and a few smaller cutting in the round pot, they have been here for a few weeks and none have died. 

Will loves my string of pearls, 

so I have popped a few in this little pot, just for him

My Amaryllis seeds at the back are strong, I do have a few of these potted up, 

and at the front is one of the pineapple babies again looking good. 

Another Coleus cutting rooted, I have planted in a pot, it will live on outside table, hubby love these colouful plants.  

This lovely looking succulent has taken weeks for this flower shoot to form and it has been promising to bloom for the past week, I do hope it will be worth the wait. 

We are away for a few days, back home in Somerset, staying with my brother, everyone here is good, we have visited family, staying most of the time outside keeping our distance. We have no desire to book a short break away, not wanting to stay in holiday accommodation, but we do have the need to catch up with family.  

We even managed a pint in our local village pub beer garden, just sat outside chatting and catching up, no days out, just family and resting, back home tomorrow. 

Glasshouse

I have flowers forming everywhere, 

my succulents and cactus love it in the greenhouse.

 My pitcher plant is regrowing, pus the other two are both producing flowers, I'm not sure if you can see, but there are flies in them, these three plants keep the insects down.

 Salad and herbs, next month these will be outside.

 my lower shelf, loads of seeds and pips.

 Soft wood cuttings, been in here for a few days.

 Lupins, Cosmos and purchased Coleus, the Coleus had shallow roots, so these are in here to get a bit bigger before planting out. 

 My bleeding heart did not do very well in the garden last year, so I have potted it to help it grow stronger, I will plant it back out next year. 

My greenhouse is a good size, and I try and use it fully all through the year, I do have a cucumber plant in a huge pot inside, I open the door early each morning, it gets sun most of the day.
I have to call the greenhouse a glasshouse, Will got very confused with me, I could see his face saying 'but it's not green'.
Yesterday was a perfect rest day, we had our loungers outside on our new decking, resting, reading gardening magazines, my subscription for Gardeners World has ended, I have had a copy delivered every month for 2 years. I have kept every copy, they are a good reference, but I won't subscribe again.
The sky had lovely soft white fluffy clouds floating across, and was very interesting, and it was very hot. We had another small BBQ later.
Today we have to purchase the last of the blue slate for the garden, then other than planting, which is never done with, everywhere will finished.
So on the eve of another Bank Holiday, we have nothing to do, and loads of time to do it.
I will post photo's of garden next time.

Eat,shoots and leaves.

Yesterday was a perfect day, we spent our time in the garden, firstly we moved this table and chairs down to our decking area, it captures the first of the sunshine. 

 The empty space outside my greenhouse, I filled quickly, I have moved the blackcurrant bush here and have a huge pot for our outside tomato plant, plus a few smaller pots. 

 Our wooden table and chairs are often in the shade through out the day

 Even the cats came out to play

 These are grown from seeds and cutting, on the left is a kiwi, on the right a passion fruit. In the middle I'm not sure, I think it could be a pomegranate, I will have to wait until the leaves to form. 

 Right photo, is my new Clematis, Lovely yellow flowers, middle sweet peas, right is the grass plant, I decided to put it in front off the hedgehog pot,  once it grows it will give cover to the space, this pot was used last year by our local hedgehog. 

Hubby cleaned his motorbike (loads of chrome to polish) and then our car, I just pottered, it was so lovely and warm, I am loving the extra space outside my greenhouse, I will miss having the table to use, but I have a tall stool in the shed I can use. My shed is tidy, and looking good. I have planted out a few stronger plants, the bedding plants won't be ready until next month.
My walnut twig has new shoots and is out side the greenhouse, but both my citrus plants look sad, I am going to keep both in the greenhouse for a bit longer, my olive bush is also still inside the greenhouse.
The area along the front of the greenhouse now has more space, we pushed the huge pot with the rhubarb in the corner by the raised cut flower bed, we had the blackcurrant bush here, but I was worried about harvesting the fruit in such a small space, it won't be a problem with the rhubarb.
We had a late lunch early dinner at 4pm we had our first BBQ of the year, we sat outside until almost 6pm, it's a perfect prelude to summer, and like so many other I can't wait for it to come.
Last night I watched Monty for an whole hour, I love this format, we also watched a Viking York, shown on BBC2, last week it was Roman Chester, these are very interesting to watch, we have visited both cities and could relate to where they were filming.
This morning, we are dull, loads of mist, which should burn off in time the the fore caste rain!

Around the plot

We had to get some plastic covered canes for my huge tomato plants

it's not perfect, but for now they hold the plant up

These are as tall as me now.

 My cucumbers are both doing well, loads of tiny fruits growing

 Watching Monty on Gardners World, he spoke about leafy Allium plants a few weeks back, stating this was due to overcrowding. So I did as he did and cut into the roots and divided the plants, today I have 12 new flower heads popping through. With another plant in the garden gaining strength. 

My cuttings are becoming nice plants, 

soon I will be able to plants the Coleus in the garden 

 My Lilles have loads of buds

The marigolds are huge around the outside of the pot. 

 Finished this book last night

Slow start, but a good read

I am about to start reading Faith by Lesley Pearce, one of the girls in work is passing a few books she knows I am a fast reader and will finish them before I leave in just over six weeks.
The worms have stopped escaping their nice home, I added a bit of top soil, so the level is deep enough for them. We can't start feeding them yet.
I have decided to sort all the spare plastic pots which are stored beside my shed, firstly I don't use them so they will be taken to garden center for recycling. I will put a huge pot on it's side with the bottom missing, like a tunnel, so the hedgehogs can get through, we popped next door and checked behind their garden wall and the hedgehogs can get through to other gardens.
Hubby got two new bird feeders, they are huge, only the small birds can feed off them, the pigeons can't get near them which is good as they wasted all the seed out of the old feeders. Now we are getting so many different small birds.
Our potatoes were yummy, I have a couple potato bags, so I will grow plants again next year. We have strawberries and raspberries each day, putting the strawberries in the high long tubs have worked, the fruits are not touching the ground and the bugs are not eating them.

Wet outside

Bird box before the varnish

 Simple decoration, using acrylic base coat and sharpies for the flower decoration. 

Once it is varnished, it will go in the garden.
I hope we can get birds to use it, if not it will look pretty.

I have had one pomegranate pip grow, just small beginnings

This is on my office desk, with a radiator below and loads of sunshine 

I will pop this into a larger pot this week.

 In the same box, kiwi's I have never got these seeds beyond this stage.
I will leave these in this tub with the clear plastic lid,
and hope they get to a size I can pot on.
I cut a thin slice of Kiwi and lay it on farmyard compost,
it went mouldy and then these tiny seedlings grew.

 I repotted my African Violet, and left in on the kitchen window sill, 

the leaves have burnt, but the plant is healthy. 

My cutting for my Coleus, each spring I start more plants from the mother plant I keep inside over the winter, so for the 3rd year, free plants. 

For the 4th day we have rain, today is over caste and we keep having light showers, every where is wet, much needed rain, so whilst we are inside we are pleased. This is perfect weather after all the work and planting I did in the garden on Saturday.
I am home today on sick leave, I have picked up a bug, and it's best to stay away from the office rather than spread it around, my boss is very understanding.
I have plans to do some sewing, I still have curtains to make for the van, our local shop was out of stock of 1" curtain tape, and I am happy to wait for them to restock. I do like to try and use local shops where possible. Later this week I am back on sewing instruction, helping Marie make cushions for her van.
We have also booked our 1st night away in the van on Bank holiday weekend, just a tester to ensure everything is working as we want.