Garden Checklist ...

Good Morning!
I hope you have all had a lovely Easter weekend, typically we have torrential rain today so it doesn't look like I'l be able to do anything in the garden!
However if the weather is fine where you are here's a few things that you can be getting on with today and over the rest of the week ...

1. Transplanting  -If you have plants in the wrong place or they've simply grown too big for the space that they are in now is a good time to dig them up and relocate them. Avoid doing this however if the ground is frozen or water logged. If your wanting to move a plant but don't have anywhere for it to go then pop it in a pot until you have found the right place.
Below you can see that I have taken out the Hardy Fuchsia which was in the middle to the right and moved the Salvia to the centre as it has put on some good growth since I first planted it. I finished the spot off by under-planting with some Snowdrops and the Fuchsia has been relocated elsewhere in the garden!

2. Sowings - Now is a good time to get on with some more seed sowing! For example yesterday I sowed some Cosmos 'Xanthos' and 'Double Click Snow Puff' along with some French Marigolds in 'Vanilla Cream' and 'Spanish Brocade'. 

There's also still time for you to sow Greenhouse crops such as Peppers, Cucumbers and Tomatoes.

Cosmos 'Xanthos'

3. Strawberries- If you are growing Strawberries outside you can encourage early fruits by covering the rows with Cloches. Alternatively you can grow them undercover in a Greenhouse which will also encourage early fruits! This year I am growing 'Mara des Bois' which is a perpetual strawberry so hopefully I shall have more strawberries for longer throughout the year!

4. Potatoes - If you are growing Potatoes this year then the Easter weekend is traditionally the time to get them planted. If you are limited on space but want to grow this crop then large bags with drainage holes and containers can also be used. Ensure when planting that each seed potato has healthy shoots and give the soil a water after planting.

5. Dahlia Tubers - Dahlia Tubers can also be started off now. Plant them in pots of multi purpose compost and place in a cold frame or Greenhouse. Once you spot them green shoots emerging from the soil give them a water.

6. Basket Plants - Garden Centres will be getting in plug plants of Basket plants now, if they haven't already! If your only wanting a couple for your Summer Bedding this year then it's a great way of getting just a couple for a cheap price. Of course it's still too cold for them to go outside so it's best to keep them in a Greenhouse right now. Pot them up into 9cm pots of multi - purpose compost as soon as you get them home. Once they have filled these pots you can plant your baskets / containers up and keep them undercover until it's time to go outside.

One of our nearby Garden Centres has them on offer for 6 for £5 so of course I had to pick up a few!

Thanks for stopping by, don't forget you can find all the previous Checklists on the page tab above.

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX

Weekly Garden Checklist ...

Good Morning!
It's time again for my Weekly Garden Checklist, I know it's been more than a week, apologies!
Okay, let's get started!

1.Feeding - Plants such as Strawberries & Roses would benefit from a liquid feed right now with something like Tomorite or Liquid Seaweed. Not only will it give the Strawberries a boost but also the Roses will appreciate it once they have started flowering.

Another plant you can start feeding now are Tomatoes, make sure you wait until they have started setting fruit and give them a weekly feed. Summer Hanging Baskets & Pots can also be fed weekly now too.

2. Deadhead - Cut down the faded flower stems on Euphorbia's that flower in the Spring. 

Do this with care as the milky sap can be an irritant on skin.

3. Pinching Out - Keep pinching out the growing tips from plants such as Dahlia's and Fuchsia's to promote bushier growth. Don't let the tips go to waste though as you can use them for Cuttings. With Fuchsia cuttings cut the stem to beneath a leaf node and remove the lower leaves. Place down the side of a pot holding watered compost and within a few weeks you should see some new growth which will prove that it's rooted.

4. Plug Plants -Plants that arrived as Plugs a few months ago are putting on good growth and so should yours. Hopefully you have done the same as me and planted them in 9cm Pots upon arrival, gradually working up a pot size as they grow. They should now be ready to be planted into their final pots, here you can see that I have done this with one of my Dianthus Plugs. 

Also just like I have mentioned in no.3 you could also take some Cuttings from the non - flowering shoots to give yourself even more plants! 

Thanks for stopping by, don't forget you can find all the previous Checklists on the page tab above.

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX

Easter Gardening ...

Good Morning!

I hope you are all enjoying the Easter Holidays, it's the prime time to be getting on with bits in the garden! As you are reading this I will be at work along with tomorrow too, but here's what I managed to get done in the Garden yesterday.

This year I have decided to try growing Strawberries in Hanging Baskets kept in the Greenhouse.

I bought 3 Early Season 'Christine' and 3 Main Season 'Hapil' plants this week and planted them up yesterday.

Along with these baskets I also -

* Potted on some Evergreen Shrubs that had outgrown their current pots using John Innes no.3 Compost.

* Sowed Some Dahlia and Cosmos seeds in the Greenhouse, along with some Carrot & Swiss Chard seeds in the Raised Bed.

Lastly I couldn't resist taking a few snaps of the plants in the Garden that caught my eye during the day. 

First up is the 'Silver Lace' Primrose I bought along with the Strawberries earlier in the week.

I really have a fondness for Primula's this year, and this is no exception. The delicate flowers on the 'Primula Veris' have slowly appeared over the past couple of days.

There's also some pretty spring blooms on some of my spring flowering Alpines ...

Finally the flower spikes on my 'Carex - Oshimensis Evergold' have appeared and unless you look closely they're hard to notice, but when you do spot them they're a pleasant surprise.

Thanks for popping by,

HAPPY GROWING!

XXX