O.K. AUTUMN - BRING IT ON!

24TH SEPTEMBER 2019 - NORTH YORKSHIRE

Autumn has arrived. Heavy rain caused by tail end of Bahamas Hurricanes and a distinct chill in the air each morning. Plants still surviving well – third bloom of Roses has arrived with glorious results. Petunias, Geraniums, Begonias and dahlias soldiering on until the first frost strikes – possible in next fortnight, and the Fuchsias and Pansies just coming into their own.

Lots of lovely roses!

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Late clematis

Cascading begonia

Tumbling fuchsia

Fuchsias and geraniums still happily blooming together

Window box petunia almost touching the ground

Dahlias better than ever this year

Hydrangea paniculata just beginning to fade

Favourite dahlia  Bishop of Llandaff

Just another dahlia!

Enjoying an amazing crop of Chillies (Cayenne, Piri Piri and Habanieros) – some in the green house – been ready for early picking for last four weeks – those outside have just started to go red. Head Gardener busy finding ways to preserve for winter use, all three varieties making excellent Chilli Oil – in various strengths of heat from Cayenne through Piri Piri to ‘Blow your Head Off’ Habeniero Oil. Fill an empty one litre Olive oil bottle with a third of the volume of prepared Chilli ( cut length ways and remove seeds – unless you are ready for a ‘Journey into Space’) and top up with good quality Olive Oil –leave for four weeks until oil starts to colour (longer if you are very brave) before using sparingly in all your exotic cooking. When you have filled your cupboards with bottled oil try freezing some or simply string together and dry for winter use.

Cayenne chilli on the vine

And many more to come

The four tomato plants grown outside from early June have started to produce a usable crop of small tasty fruits – truly amazing and pest free in the open air, one up for Climate Change then? 

Hoping that these will ripen

May have to make Green Tomato Chutney!

Have always had an addiction to local flower shows and the one in our local village beckoned – so on the morning of the show decided to go to the show site early and get hold of an entry schedule (HG had warned as the poster was advertising a ‘Produce Show’ that this would preclude ‘Flowers’ – she was wrong). Returned to garden to see what was almost ‘showable’ and returned to venue with thirty minutes to spare before entries closed. Showed two vases of three Dahlias ( White cactus and Red/White ‘Danish Flag’), Three individual Roses – Gertrude Jekyll, Summer Sunshine, Falstaff) one single white Hydrangea and two Cayenne Chillies. Got it all set up with two minutes to spare before the Judges arrived. On return after lunch was astonished to find cayennes got First Prize and Best Vegetable in Show, Gertrude Jekyll rose got First and best Single Bloom in Show, White Cactus Dahlias got First and Bishop of Llandaff Dahlias and Hydrangea both got Second Prizes. (All down to watering and feeding).

Prize winning chilli peppers

Second prize for the white hydrangea (looking rather green!)

First and second for the Dahlias

And First prize and Best in Show for Gertrude Jekyll

So with Autumn in the air it’s the time to sort out last year’s ‘Summer Stored’ Bulbs to check and plant the survivors together with the new acquisitions (Aldi Tulips and Daffodils still best value at £1.69 per pack of ten). As the summer tubs fade they are each being emptied, washed and sterilised, filled with fresh compost and planted with two layers of bulbs ( around twenty per pot for Tulips and fifteen for Daffodils) bottom layer 200mm deep, second layer 150mm from top and then the tub is topped off with winter flowering Pansies and Heartease ensuring continual winter colour and Spring flowering until late April next year.

Everything that is ‘Straggling’(ie growing long and ‘leggy’) has just received a late September ‘Haircut’ – if it stays mild they may come again; if cold they will soon die off completely. As Roses are still flowering well, will leave Autumn prune until first frost. Geraniums will be brought in and cut back (take plenty of cuttings) for winter store – free of frost. Dahlias will also require winter frost free environment – found cutting back to 75mm and leaving in tub produced best results rather than trying to dry out the tubers for storage.

Lawns and Hedges are at last showing signs that their growing season is slowing (lawns have often needed two cuts per week this year and hedges have already had three cuts). So with time now available a start can be made on the clearing of the Herbaceous borders and the winter planting with miniature evergreen shrubs of the Hanging baskets.

Ah well - now exhausted 

getting old and ready for a welcome cup of the HG’s coffee.

See you soon

Stuart

DOG DAYS AND HOT STEAMY NIGHTS

31st JULY 2019 - NORTH YORKSHIRE

Cayenne and Piri Piri Chillis growing and ripening outside in North Yorkshire, temperature touching 37 degrees C., torrential downpours between blazing sunshine, night temperatures above 20 degrees C. Is this a Gardener's paradise or ‘Hell’ (more Paradise than Hell – remember this is the Prairies of North Yorkshire ). Well, weather like this was unusual five years ago, but now seems like the norm- maybe just touch of Climate Change in the air.

Piri piris outside!

Chilli peppers

Can’t beat Sunshine, heat and a little rain at the right time, to bring out the best in your garden - really makes all the effort worthwhile. Really has been a spectacular show in the last few weeks with everything just giving its best. Last year’s Oriental Lilies, written off as miserable last year, have certainly redeemed their virtue, and the ‘Star Gazer’ white Lilies, left in the tubs over winter and really ignored, have been truly amazing from their 200 mm long flower buds to the enormous heads of flowers that last for weeks and fill the garden with a glorious perfume. The Dahlia tubers left in their tubs from last year and kept in the greenhouse during the cold months, are in full and multi headed bloom. The large white ‘Snowstorm’ and the red a white cactus type are over 1.4 metres tall and very floriferous. The old friend ‘Bishop of Llandaff’ is resplendent in Episcopal Red.

Dahlia Bishop of Llandaff

Huge Stargazer Lilies

Snowstorm Dahlia in a garden full of pots and baskets with all kinds of bedding plants

Clematis have pleased in every quarter of the garden (from trellis, tub and border planting). The original ‘Purple Prince’ has been in flower since April and is still going strong and the assorted ‘Group 2’s’- all bought from local Supermarket for around £1 each, are growing and blooming  to perfection (not forgetting the three varieties of the ‘Montana’ strain that gave such colour in April and May). It really is amazing how they respond to regular feeding, watering  (when dry) and general neglect.

Still blooming!

Begonias, in tubs outside and in pots inside, have worked well this year and the Fuchsias are enormous and set for at least another three months of bloom (if well fed and watered of course).

Had a great success (mainly due to the weather) with hanging baskets, tubs and troughs. Have varied the hanging baskets with various plant combinations – some more successful than others (but that’s Gardening) Impatiens, Brachycomes and Dianthus have produce splendid results, Petunias have been excessive in their fecundity while the sun shines but look very sad after the rain.

Mixed basket

Dianthus 

The Delphiniums having replaced the Foxgloves have enjoyed the sunshine and are now being replaced by the hollyhocks all well underpinned by a mass of lupins. Lots of height and colour in the Island Bed.

Planted the Alaskan nasturtiums in individual pots this year and the result has been much better, greater control and lots more flower and a lot less leaf (always avoid feeding all Nasturtiums as they will just grow leaves). The window boxes just seem to get better.They have now been giving colour for the last twenty four months - non- stop. The combination of ‘Heartsease’ Pansies, surfinia petunias, geraniums etc., when fed on a weekly basis, never stops growing even in winter.

potted nasturtiums

more mixed pots and baskets

Having received a selection of Zantedeschia Corms – sent by my daughter during a visit to the Chelsea Show - the results have been splendid with planting to flowering six weeks – the colours are vaguely exotic and very genteel.

Elegant Zantedeschia plants - indoors, of course

Well, saving the roses till last – what a year, The much awaited climbing roses on the trellis performed and are currently on their third bloom ( had to water during the very hot spell to keep them going  but a daily flood and plenty of ‘feed has done the trick). Bantry Bay’(pink), ‘That’s Jazz’ (dark red) and Arthur Bell (yellow) being the outstanding bloomers.  The hybrid tea bush roses have also given their all. The first flush of flower was spectacular and after a summer prune and feed they are about ready to do the same again in early August. The two standard roses have also flowered themselves to distraction and are enjoying a well earned rest prior to another flush of colour in late August.

Below - just roses!

So it really is all very rosy in the garden just now so am spending time in the greenhouse sowing next year wallflowers, heartsease, pansies and taking first cuttings from almost anything that looks good (if you only get one plant in every four cuttings, think of next year show).

The attraction of buddleia to butterflies has also added a further dimension to  the general feeling of good health in this summer’s garden. Their colour and the drone of bees and proliferation of many other insects do make gardening so worthwhile.

Peacock and tortoiseshell butterflies on a buddleia

Think that was the sound of the HG with a tray of coffee – 

must dash before dehydration sets in,

See you soon

Stuart

GETTING NEAR THE LONGEST DAY

7TH JUNE 2019 - NORTH YORKSHIRE

Mild nights, sunny mornings with rain each afternoon - the start of a truly English Summer. Temperatures reaching 18 – 20 degrees most days so everything is growing. Lots of early summer flowers in bloom –Lupins, Iris, Roses, Petunias, Dahlias, Pansies (as always), Foxgloves, Geraniums, Begonias, Nasturtiums, Impatiens and Forget-me-nots are all visible from the Potting Shed window; and the stove has not been lit for at least two weeks. Much of the floral glory is due to two exceptionally warm weeks in mid May which stirred the summer ‘Bloomers’ into action.

Lupins and foxgloves, with iris and dicentra

Our favourite iris

Flourishing petunias

Begonias happy in a basket

pretty trailing geranium

Petunia happy in a trough with budding fuchsia and lobelia

trough with petunias and herbaceous border in the background

Another favourite - nasturtium Cherry Rose

Dianthus coming again after the winter

So much happening that the Head Gardener has been hard pressed to maintain the photographic record of the season, but, as you can see here, she is doing wonders really. Keeping a photographic record of your garden allows swift comparison with previous years and ensures a reduction in the boastful – that this year is the best ever for a particular genus. Much of the fast growing contributors have already had the ‘Chelsea Chop’ – the ritual cutting back by one or two thirds of the seasons new growth at the time of the ‘Chelsea Flower Show’. This ensures enhanced bush growth and lots of July flowers, and stops the ‘Bean Poling’ of many of our summer favourites.

The Climbing Roses are a full bloom – fortunately they are all repeat flowering until October if deadheaded daily, fed and watered weekly (remember Roses must have water all summer if you want a good ‘Show’). The Bush roses – always pruned harder than the Climbers to keep their shape and height constant – are well in bud a looking rather well ordered – hoping for great things as this is their third year since planting.

Climbing Arthur Bell

Gertude Jekyll

Golden Showers

Bantry Bay

Made a few changes this year to the Tub, Trough and Hanging Basket planting schemes. Managed to persuade some of the tubs and troughs to weather the winter – mainly Evergreens, Ivies and Heartsease endured the cold a frosty months. Having taken all the Geraniums into the Green House before the first October frost and cut them back 100mm tall, have been delighted with over winter progress (hence the early flowering Geraniums in the Garden by first week in May). The Hanging Baskets have been refreshed with new compost and a selection of seasonal plants and are growing well.

Lots of baskets and pots of summer bedding

A gathering of pots and a basket

We love our baskets

Wall basket with heartsease

Of course, climbers are doing well too with several clematis montana in flower and the large flowered ones also starting to bloom.  Also have a very pretty pale blue abutilon - a present, grown from a cutting, from a very dear friend. Not to mention the rampant Golden Hop!

This was the only plant in the garden when we arrived - clematis name unknown

Clematis Montana

White Montana

Such a pretty abutilon

Galloping Golden Hop

Having promised never to grow anything edible ever again, must admit that four Tomato plants  have insinuated their way into Cold Frame and are actually coming into flower (even had to buy some ‘Tomorite’ tomato feed) – now if they go Red the blame will be placed at the door of ‘Climate Change’.

The task of keeping Lawns short and Hedges well shaped is causing the usual ‘aches and pains’ of this old Gardener’s body – never mind it is yet another ‘Bonus’ year so should not complain. When the sun shines, the flowers are in their ‘Glory’ of colour and perfume all the aggravation disappears as if by magic.

Talking of ‘Magic’, here comes the HG with Coffee and Scones to ensure the energy levels are maintained for the coming months of gardening pleasure.

Must dash

 lots to do

 see you soon

Stuart