WET WEATHER RAMBLINGS

20^th July 2014  Central Portugal.

Strange summer weather, after a week of plus 30 degree temperatures and brilliant blue skies with golden sunshine a sudden reversal to March weather for two days. Thunderstorms are expected in July but temperature dropping to the mid ‘teens’ with high wind is not acceptable – come on Portugal brighten up your ideas and let us have some proper summer heat.

The main crop tomatoes, ruined by ‘Blight’, are now a distance sad memory, however the emergency ‘back up’ crop is performing well, glorious crop of ‘Red Alert’ just ready for picking with ‘Principe di Borghese’ hot on their heels, the second ‘Ultra Emergency Planting’ , seeded on the 16^th June, now up to second truss with first sign of flowers on both ‘Roma’ and ‘Tigerella’, so should have some pasta sauces this winter.

tomatoes at last!

The ‘Blight’ badly affected the Aubergines ( they will take on any excuse not to perform this year) but judicious spraying with the ‘tomato blight’ spray have caused a renaissance of leaf growth and an exuberance of purple flowers, so ‘may-be’ just ‘may-be’ there will be fruit this time?

aubergines in flower

Now the ‘Runner Beans are 2.5 metres tall they have decided to flower profusely and it does seem as if the beans are setting better than during the first flush in June.  The purple beans growing in tandem with the ‘Runners’ have been prolific so this may have given some encouragement to their ‘Orange Flowered’ relations.

Now is a good time to get your rose cuttings planted, (you have done your summer pruning and feeding for late summer flowers? ) trim the rose prunings down to 300mm, find a shady spot, insert your spade to one spit depth, insert cuttings in space behind the blade to a depth of 200mm, remove spade  and firm in cuttings with foot, water and leave until next spring, plant twenty to ensure you get ten ‘new’ rose trees. Right time to take Fig, Orange, Lemon, Lime, Peach and Apple cuttings (against all the normal advice, they do take better if  taken while the fruit is growing, the ‘Whips’ cut at this time are more vigorous and root quickly), plant the cuttings round the rim of a deep ‘Plastic’ pot (not terracotta as it dries out in the heat of summer) 300mm in dia., two thirds of ‘Whip’ buried and top third with minimal leaf growth (other than growing tip) above growing medium (use something which retains moisture longest), water daily until October and transplant your new trees in March next year.

Datura in full flower, trumpets in white with palest pink edge to the bell or delicate yellow (just like the Butter Flies on ‘Hot’ summer days of fond memory), must have constant watering if in tubs but will grow happily out of cracks in the pavement in every Portuguese village street (this in gardening parlance is known as ‘Sods’ Law). Always wash hands if you are taking cuttings or trimming plant as all parts are very ‘toxic’, ( must remember not to use leaves for making ‘Head Gardeners’ tea, on those troublesome days when ‘Blight’, ‘Green Fly’, ’Black Fly’, ’Red Spider Mite’, ‘Lilly Beatles’ etc. appear by magic due it seems to the ‘Labourers’ incompetence).

I can never have too many pictures of these lovely Angel's Trumpet flowers!

 

Amazingly it seems to have stopped raining!!!!! Is that a patch of blue appearing in the heavens? It is, and the sun has started to shine. Forget the last few days and enjoy the ‘rejuvenating rays’ along with the garden. Isn’t nature wonderful and,  as always, unpredictable. The Head Gardener has just offered ‘coffee’, now that’s not just ‘unpredictable but is ‘amazing’( do keep quiet about the ‘Datura’ infusion).

Must dash, as coffee might get cold, see you soon.

Stuart.