It's Time To ...

Good Morning!

I can't believe that tomorrow we are starting October already, this year has flown by! However this month is my favourite and not just because it's my birthday on Monday lol I love seeing Autumnal foliage coming through and the cooler days are a lot easier to cope with!

Back to today's post and it's about what I have done this week.

First up was finding some time to take some Penstemon Cuttings, just incase I lose some over the Winter, it's always good to have some back ups! I have a lovely deep purple and white Penstemon of which I have taken the cuttings from.

First off when taking Cuttings I like to prepare the pot they are going into first. I use a mix of Compost and Perlite for drainage then wet the compost.

I collected 4 cuttings just incase some of them fail.

Stripped them off their lower leaves, dipped into Rooting Powder and then placed down the side of the pot.

I will keep these over winter in my GH and hopefully I shall have some healthy plants for next year.

I also sowed a selection of seeds for next year, can you tell the colour theme?

I'm going for a mix of Reds & Pinks!

This year I thought I would try sowing the Sweet Pea's in Toilet Roll Tubes. Due to their depth they are recommended for Sweet Pea's so that they can develop a good root system, might aswell give it a try!

Lastly it was also time to compost the left over Tomato Plants which included my 3 TomTato Plants! I have to say I wasn't overly impressed with the total amount of Potatoes from all 3 together, especially the size of a couple of them, but it's always worth trying something new.

However there was one Potato that caught my eye, don't you think he looks like a Whale! He even has an eye! lol ... I don't even think I can bring myself to eat him!

Thanks for popping by, what are you up to in the garden this week?

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX

Weekly Garden Checklist ...

Good Morning!

It's Monday so it is time for another Weekly Garden Checklist. 

Incase this is the first time you have seen this particular themed post, it's a quick list of jobs you can be doing in the garden this week.

Let's get started!

1. Aerate Lawns - Lawns may not be looking at their best at the moment, well mine certainly isn't due to the recent rainfall. To help aid drainage aerate the lawn with a Garden Fork.

2. Old Bedding  - The majority of Summer Bedding will be looking rather tired by now, why not spruce up your pots with some fresh Autumn / Winter Bedding.

3. Plant - October (I know it's not technically until tomorrow but hey ho) is a good time to plant new Fruit as it gives it time to get established in the warmer soil before Winter.

4. Top Dress - If your plants have developed a lean and the visable soil doesn't look too appealing, simply top dress with some Horticultural Grit. I also like to add a fresh layer of compost before adding the grit just to give the plant some fresh nutrients. It only takes a minute and the finished look is a lot nicer.

5. Leaves - Keep on top of collecting Autumn Leaves, try to do this at least once a week. If the leaves are left they can smother young plants and cause lawns to turn yellow underneath.

Thanks for stopping by,

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX

A Shopping Trip ...

Good Morning!

Another post from me today, you are certainly being spoiled this week! lol

Last weekend I made a trip to the Garden Centre to get some more compost but I couldn't resist buying a few extra bit's once I was there, well it'd be rude not to!

The Cyclamen and Conifer were for a large pot at the front of my house and along with them I have planted some 'Primrose - Rosebud' and a Wallflower. Not forgetting a couple of Dwarf Narcissus bulbs which should make an appearance next spring!

Currently it's sat alongside my 'Pittosporum - Tom Thumb' and a Dianthus. However knowing me I shall probably end up adding and re-aranging the display in a few weeks.

The White Cyclamen has been potted up and is currently sat in the GH. I love the clean white petals and this Winter I am hoping to keep some flowering plants in the GH so that it still feels as inviting inside as the Summer!

Thanks for stopping by,

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX

Getting Ready For Winter ...

Good Morning!

Okay so maybe the title is a little bit more alarming than it should be! 

Earlier this week I dug up the Dahlia's and Antirrhinum's from the front border as they were looking a bit tired and I wanted to get the Winter Bedding in whilst the ground was still warm to give them a good start.

However there was 1 or 2 Dahlia's that were still looking okay so I popped them into some pots and lined them along the front of the house.

Once all the plants had been pulled out and any debris picked up I gave the ground a quick turn over ready for the new residents!

As always I like to position the plants where they are to go before planting. 

As you can see here at the back of the border will be some Wallflowers and I also planted some dwarf Narcissus bulbs at the same time which will hopefully come up next spring.

These have been joined by a row of Bellis- 'Pomponette' in the middle and some 'Primrose - Rosebud' at the front! I then added a mulch of compost over the top to add some extra nutrients to the soil and also give a neat finishing touch!

Thanks for stopping by,

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX

Autumn Planting Onions & Garlic ...

Good Morning!

On Monday's Checklist one of the points was to plant Onions & Garlic. Well this is something I have done myself this week and I thought some of you might like to see how to do it if planning to do so yourselves. 

This is my first year doing this so it'l be interesting to see how they turn out, and apparently Red Onions are one of the easiest to bolt, but at least if that does happen I can say I tried!

I have used Garlic - Macro and Red Onion - Electric.

When planting it's always a good idea not to plant these in the same place as you have done so previously with them or Leeks. I have planted mine just to the side of where my Leeks were so fingers crossed they'll be okay! Ideally I would have done them at the opposite side of the Raised Bed but that is currently taken up.

When planting make sure you go over the soil and remove any weeds first. Using a Bamboo cane mark out a line or a drill as it also known to mark where you would like to plant them.

To start off with I am planting my Garlic which needs to be 1 inch deep and with 4 inches between them. Position them so the pointy end is facing upwards.

I then marked out a 5 inch space along and repeated the process with the Bamboo cane, planting my Onions also at 1 inch deep but spaced 5 inches apart this time. I have also heard that some people like to plant them with the tips showing, so it'l be good to see how the technique I've tried turns out.

TIP - Label your bulbs with the name and variety before you spread the soil back over. That way you will know exactly where they are.

Water the soil and make sure it kept moist for the following few days, also check that the soil hasn't been disturbed by pesky birds, replacing any if you need to.

I hope you have found this helpful!

Thanks for stopping by,

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX

Weekly Garden Checklist ...

Good Morning!

It's Monday so it is time for another Weekly Garden Checklist. 

Incase this is the first time you have seen this particular themed post, it's a quick list of jobs you can be doing in the garden this week.

Let's get started!

1. Botrytis - Check for Botyrytis or Grey Mould as you may know it by on your plants. With the warm yet damp weather this will spread easily amongst plants if not checked. Simply remove affected leaves as soon as you spot them.

2. Divide  - Now is the time to divide your perennials, not only does it help stop the plant become congested but you also get free extra plants! Tease the roots apart with two garden forks (pushed in the opposite direction) for large clusters.

3. Rose Cuttings - Take cuttings of your favourite roses now. You need a healthy shoot about 20-25cm long and cut it on a diagonal just above a bud. Place the cutting into the ground and leave for about 18 months, which by then the cutting should have developed a root system.

4. Clean the GH - If your GH is looking a bit empty and your ready to start bringing tender plants back in, make sure you give the GH a good wash, inside and out. This will help rid of any pests that have made themselves comfy during the summer months. Also don't forget to check the plants when bringing under cover so that you don't bring anything in!

5. Onions & Garlic - Now is the time to get Autumn planting Garlic & Onions planted! Just make sure you don't plant your Garlic in the same place as Leeks if you have grown them recently. 

Thanks for stopping by,

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX

A Spare 5 Minutes ...

Good Morning!

Just a short and sweet post from me today, but I thought it was better than nothing at all! I had a spare 5 minutes yesterday morning so decided to have a bit of a clear up of the potted plants. The following set were holding a selection of Diascia and Nemetia, but they were past their best and ready for a freshening up! 

After getting these lone 3 White Polyanthus plants I hadn't made my mind up where they would be going in my Winter display seeing that there is only three. However the answer came when emptying the above pots, a happy coincidence!

They were ready to be potted on so I planted them up with some John Innes No.2 (Multi - Purpose would be perfectly fine, I've just ran out of it!)

I then set them outside in a spare patch of the garden, once flowering I think they'l look quite cute together!

Lastly one of my Dianthus Plug Plants has flowered that I received back in Mid Summer. It's the only one that has flowered so far, as you can see the plant is still rather small so could've probably done with the flower head snipping off to concentrate it's energy on the rest of the plant. But I couldn't bring myself to do it and it give's a lovely splash of pink and has a vanilla scent!

The variety is called 'Romance' and you can find the set that I ordered HERE.

Thanks for stopping by,

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX

Weekly Garden Checklist ...

Good Morning!

It's Monday so it is time for another Weekly Garden Checklist. 

Incase this is the first time you have seen this particular themed post, it's a quick list of jobs you can be doing in the garden this week.

Let's get started!

1. Plant Spring Bulbs - September / October is a great time to plant your Spring bulbs as the ground is still warm which will help the roots develop well. Although some people dispute it I still prefer to plant my Tulip bulbs however in November.

2. Prune Shrub Roses  - If your Shrub Roses have stopped flowering and have some rather lengthy growth then you can prune your roses back by half now, which also helps against windy weather disrupting their roots.

3. Collect Leaves - Leaves are starting to fall so instead of collecting them to go in the bin why not make your own leaf mould? Simply put the collected leaves in Hessian sacks, place in a corner of the garden in about 2 years you will have your own leaf mould which is great for plants!

4. Tender Plants - If the temperature is dropping a fair bit where you are it's time to start bringing tender plants under cover such as Agapanthus and various tender Perennials. 

5. Sow Vegetables - There's still time to sow some Vegetables including Lettuce & Salad leaves, Winter Radishes, Spinach and Spring Onions! 

Thanks for stopping by,

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX

This Week In The Garden ...

Good Morning!

I've got a few photo's to share with you today of what has caught my eye this week in the garden and what I've been up to. 

You can certainly tell Autumn is on it's way as there's been a bit of a chill in the morning now, however Autumn is one of my favourite seasons and as you can see the Cotoneaster which was one of the very few plants here in the garden when we moved in, is looking forward to it to with all it's lovely red berries!

Rather surprisingly one of my Auricula's was in flower yesterday morning. These usually flower in the Spring so it was a lovely surprise, the cold mornings we've been having must've encouraged it. I need to get a cover for them sorted soon though (or in my dreams an Auricula Theatre) as your not meant to get water on the leaves!

The pot of Begonia's is providing some late summer colour whilst many other things are dying down.

Over in the Greenhouse I decided to strip the Tomatoes of their leaves to try and help the remaining fruits ripen quicker as this should now focus all the plants energy on the fruits.

Due to not being able to plant my Winter Bedding out yet as the Dahlia's are still going strong in the front border, I potted on the plugs which were ready. Instead of keeping them in the trays and them becoming root-bound over the next couple of weeks potting them on should encourage them to become bigger and stronger plants by the time of planting them out. I potted on the Bellis & Wallflower's.

Lastly I got a lovely surprise from a neighbour offering me the following large Teracotta pot. They were revamping their garden and it'd of gone to the tip otherwise. Now I just need to decide what to plant it up with!

Thanks for stopping by,
HAPPY GROWING!
XXX

Weekly Garden Checklist ...

Good Morning!

It's Monday so it is time for another Weekly Garden Checklist. 

Incase this is the first time you have seen this particular themed post, it's a quick list of jobs you can be doing in the garden this week.

Let's get started!

1. Pot up Tender Perennials - Now the nights are getting cooler it's a good idea to start potting up your tender Perennials so that you can bring them undercover when cold temperatures are forecast.

2. Start planting out Winter Bedding  - I know I have mentioned this before, but if you haven't started to do so yet then now is a good time to start. I replaced what I had in these tubs yesterday with Forget - me not's.

3. Rambling Roses - Once your rambling roses have finished flowering it's a good idea to give them a prune. However I wouldn't recommend doing this on other roses yet.

4. Aerate Lawns - To help aid drainage in your lawns now that the weather is changing, go over it with a garden fork spiking holes.

5. Sow Sweat Pea's - For early flowers next year, sowing Sweat Pea's in the Autumn is ideal and now is a good time to start.

Thanks for stopping by,

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX

Around The Garden ...

Good Morning!

Before I get started I better warn you now that there is a LOT of photo's in this post, so you might want to get comfy! Here are a few snaps of how the garden is looking at the moment, albeit it's not at it's best and it's made me think about what will work next year, and what won't. But surely that's all part of the fun of gardening isn't it?

First up is the side border near the conservatory is one of the areas which I'm forever re-jigging lol Tucked in the corner is some staging with my Bonsai's, a wall basket of a Fuschia and in-front of that is a Rhododendron and an Apple Tree. Infront of that is one of my few remaining pots of Summer Bedding, a tub of Dianthus which you can only just see in the centre and then a big pot holding my David Austin Rose. I planted my 'Carex - Buchananni' in the border earlier in the week and grasses really do provide a lot of interest in the garden at this time of year.

TIP - Grasses are great for gardens which catch the wind.

Also planted in the border but is rather hard to see in the photograph is a spare Rudbekia plant that I had. The red's match the brown of the Carex perfectly.

Dianthus 'Crimson Rim' in the centre pot and also the high planters near the door.

This is the pot display near the back door, as you can see it consists of a few Evergreens which provide year round interest along with some remaining Summer Bedding. In the centre is one of my Agapanthus plants but as you can see it's decided not to flower this year. This will be moved into the GH over Winter and fingers crossed will bloom next year!

Tucked on the other side of that display is a small potted Gerbera which as you can see has lovely coloured petals. The only thing I'm not too keen on with them is the foliage.

My potted Alstromeria has been moved from the front of the house to the back and provides height and colour in one of the corners.

My Dahlia border in front of the shed has done well, there is also some deep red Rudbekia's tucked in and I shall be using more of them next year.

Next year I will also be spacing the Dahlia's out more as to be honest I knew I'd planted them a bit tightly. One variety bloomed at the start of the season but as you can see there's only one going for it now lol

If you spin around you will see my other border which is much more established, consisting of another grass and some Phygelius & Penstemons. These provide great colour and height right from the start of Summer to the early frosts.

The majority of my Penstemons are purple but there is one white which has sneaked in and I love it. It was originally labelled as Pink but I'm much more happy with the white!

Towards the back of the garden my winter climbing Clematis 'Winter Beauty' on the shed which has put on some good growth this season so fingers crossed we'l have some nice flowers at the start of next year.

My mini pond area consisting of some more grasses and an Acer in the background.

Then finally there is the Salix - Flamingo which I planted a month or so ago!

Thanks for stopping by,

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX