We'll it's been a while since I last blogged. Being back at work restricts the time I had, as I have plenty to do once home.
Today I managed a rarity...Time to do some gardening.
The fruit bushes purchased last week have been planted down the side in the veggie patch. We are hoping to make that side into a 'fruit patch'. Some turf has been taken up by the arch and the final lipids planted. The grape vines ordered last week have arrived and were also planted today. The Judas tree has arrived, but is awaiting its final placement.
Our compost is now ready and I have been using freely with all plantings. It feels good to be using compost we have made on our road to self sufficiency.
I have also had helpers today. My mum stayed over the weekend and my eldest has been away overnight. When my mum left today and Joseph returned home he came to help his dad in the garden, whilst my wife played in the garden with the twins. Needless to say, the twins tried helping too. It was great family time :-)
Sunday 29 September 2013
Sunday 22 September 2013
Bargains for next year
Well yesterday was unexpected.
We went out to our local town to spend my son's birthday money. Whilst I took the twins off to waste some time looking round the garden centre, I came across a few bargains. Mostly half price.
First of all I got a Michelmas Daisy of which most of the ones there were flowering, but we managed to find a very nice specimen which was covered in buds, almost ready to burst with a beautiful purple colour.
We also stocked up on sort fruit bushes ready for next year. Again they were all heavily discounted, but theres nothing wrong with them. We got a Raspberry, Gooseberry and Blackcurrant. They are going to be planted down the vegetable patch to the side, where we are going to have a lovely fruit area.
The final bargain was a Winter Jasmine. I have been after one of these for a long time as we already have a spring flowering Jasmine. It was in a very sad way and got almost for free. But it has been potted up and will have a bit of TLC before being planted in the garden. The plan was to put in near the spring Jasmine so that the two could entwine themselves and give colour in the garden for a good part of the year between them.
That was yesterday.
Today we are going to a very nice Italian chain of restaurant for a birthday lunch for Joseph. It should be very nice, with many of our close family members there.
Looking forward to it, then work beckons tomorrow. To you all, have a good weekend :-)
We went out to our local town to spend my son's birthday money. Whilst I took the twins off to waste some time looking round the garden centre, I came across a few bargains. Mostly half price.
First of all I got a Michelmas Daisy of which most of the ones there were flowering, but we managed to find a very nice specimen which was covered in buds, almost ready to burst with a beautiful purple colour.
We also stocked up on sort fruit bushes ready for next year. Again they were all heavily discounted, but theres nothing wrong with them. We got a Raspberry, Gooseberry and Blackcurrant. They are going to be planted down the vegetable patch to the side, where we are going to have a lovely fruit area.
Raspberry
Gooseberry
Blackcurrant
Whilst on the subject of soft fruit, we have had a lot of Blackberries this year from a bramble going over our fence from next door. This sending runners out and I am going to make full use of this and propergate a couple of plants.
The final bargain was a Winter Jasmine. I have been after one of these for a long time as we already have a spring flowering Jasmine. It was in a very sad way and got almost for free. But it has been potted up and will have a bit of TLC before being planted in the garden. The plan was to put in near the spring Jasmine so that the two could entwine themselves and give colour in the garden for a good part of the year between them.
I also ordered a couple of sale items from a gardening website in the form of a Judas tree and two grapevines. The grapevines will be grown up and over our arch. I'm looking forward to being able to get grapes from our garden. In fact, it'll be lovely to be able to get several kinds of fruits that we have grown. Next year may look at getting some apple trees. We shall see.
That was yesterday.
Today we are going to a very nice Italian chain of restaurant for a birthday lunch for Joseph. It should be very nice, with many of our close family members there.
Looking forward to it, then work beckons tomorrow. To you all, have a good weekend :-)
Wednesday 18 September 2013
Collecting Seeds
Now is one of the best times to collect your seeds ready for sowing next year.
Why do we collect seeds? A lot of plants will self seed, with a bit of help from the wind and birds, the seeds will land and may germinate to make new plants. Collecting seeds and sowing them ourselves, is a more reliable way and a way where we can have the plants exactly where we want them. Seeds can be collected and depending what they are, maybe sown straight away or can be stored for the following year.
For many of our plants, their flowering time is either dwindling or is already over. Once this happens, keep an eye out as most plants will 'go to seed'. For example, my Sweet Peas have been flowering strongly all summer, we have kept cutting the flowers for the house and this has kept them going. But we stop cutting about a month ago to let the seeds come.
A lot of these are now about ready, some are still green but will soon turn brown.
Seeds like these are ready when the pods turn brown. For other plants they may turn black or red and when they look like they are ready to burst their contents, but before they actually do.
Cut off the whole seedpod and place in a paper bag or place somewhere dry, such as a windowsill, so the pods can open. Keep checking. When the pod bursts, collect the dry seeds and clear away any debris. Place the cleaned seeds in an envelope for storage and label. Put somewhere cool and dry until ready to be sown.
There are other seeds that need to be treated differently, this way is for most plants that have these kind of pods.
A good web page with more information on what to do with other kinds of seeds, is the RHS page. Here is the link: http://apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/profile.aspx?PID=675
Why do we collect seeds? A lot of plants will self seed, with a bit of help from the wind and birds, the seeds will land and may germinate to make new plants. Collecting seeds and sowing them ourselves, is a more reliable way and a way where we can have the plants exactly where we want them. Seeds can be collected and depending what they are, maybe sown straight away or can be stored for the following year.
For many of our plants, their flowering time is either dwindling or is already over. Once this happens, keep an eye out as most plants will 'go to seed'. For example, my Sweet Peas have been flowering strongly all summer, we have kept cutting the flowers for the house and this has kept them going. But we stop cutting about a month ago to let the seeds come.
A lot of these are now about ready, some are still green but will soon turn brown.
Seeds like these are ready when the pods turn brown. For other plants they may turn black or red and when they look like they are ready to burst their contents, but before they actually do.
Cut off the whole seedpod and place in a paper bag or place somewhere dry, such as a windowsill, so the pods can open. Keep checking. When the pod bursts, collect the dry seeds and clear away any debris. Place the cleaned seeds in an envelope for storage and label. Put somewhere cool and dry until ready to be sown.
There are other seeds that need to be treated differently, this way is for most plants that have these kind of pods.
A good web page with more information on what to do with other kinds of seeds, is the RHS page. Here is the link: http://apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/profile.aspx?PID=675
Trimming the conifer hedge
The conifer hedge in the back garden is still looking at me. Half trimmed before it claimed its victim in the shape of me falling off the ladder. It needs doing.
Discussions have been had between me and the wife and a plan has been formulated. I shall trim the sides as I was doing, but the height, of which there is approximately 12 feet of it, needs to be tackled. For this, we are going to invest in the one off use of a 'tree surgeon'.
Currently the hedge is approximately 20 foot long, 10 foot high and 4-5 foot wide, with an archway cut in the middle.
We are going to get a couple of feet cut off the top, probably to bring it to the level of the top of the current arch. We will then possible train it for a new arch afterwards.
Trimming it to this sort of height, will mean in the future I will be able to manage it much easier, as currently, I don't have ladders tall enough and only have a basic hedge trimmer. It will also let a bit more light over into the vegetable patch and garden, without losing the wind break it gives us.
So, at some point in the next few days, I need to think about trimming the sides and getting a quote for a price for taking the top off. It'll will ultimately depend on the quote, as we are not in the position of being able to pay too much. It maybe, if not, that the top is left to grow a little longer.
Lets see what happens.
Discussions have been had between me and the wife and a plan has been formulated. I shall trim the sides as I was doing, but the height, of which there is approximately 12 feet of it, needs to be tackled. For this, we are going to invest in the one off use of a 'tree surgeon'.
Currently the hedge is approximately 20 foot long, 10 foot high and 4-5 foot wide, with an archway cut in the middle.
We are going to get a couple of feet cut off the top, probably to bring it to the level of the top of the current arch. We will then possible train it for a new arch afterwards.
Trimming it to this sort of height, will mean in the future I will be able to manage it much easier, as currently, I don't have ladders tall enough and only have a basic hedge trimmer. It will also let a bit more light over into the vegetable patch and garden, without losing the wind break it gives us.
So, at some point in the next few days, I need to think about trimming the sides and getting a quote for a price for taking the top off. It'll will ultimately depend on the quote, as we are not in the position of being able to pay too much. It maybe, if not, that the top is left to grow a little longer.
Lets see what happens.
Tuesday 17 September 2013
Everyday plants to disappear?
I was sat in bed the other night checking twitter, as you do, and noticed a tweet from the Telegraph. Normally I may have just quickly scanned and then moved onto the next, but the headline caught my eye...
"European Commission proposal 'will see plants disappear from garden centres'"
Here is the link to the article:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/10311033/European-Commission-proposal-will-see-plants-disappear-from-garden-centres.html
What the article is basically saying, is that the European Commission have drafted legislation to have all plants registered, so that us, the consumers, are not sold fake or inferior plants.
Now this is possibly a good idea, but if you look into it deeper, it could cause problems, and as the headline suggests, see many of our common plants, for just one example, Lavendar Hidcote, just disappear.
In the picture below of pots in my garden, in the future the lavendar could disappear, where as the dianthus and cineraria would be ok as these are botanical names.
This is because of our estimated 50000 ornamental plant varieties, only about 2000 actually have a detailed botanical description, as the European Commission are suggesting there needs to be. There could be arguments for this. When I was looking for examples of problems using common names I came across the following on the RHS website. What we call the bluebell in England is called the wild hyacinth in Scotland and to them a bluebell is something completely different, so there could be some confusion. It does however have a botanical name, which is Hyacinthoides non-scripta and is universal. Ok, so register all the plants, this would no doubt take time, but could be done.
Again, there is a stumbling block. To have the plants registered, hiring an expert to do it, would cost someone approximately £500 to fill in detailed forms. Who would pay this, plant breeders? Garden centres? The Government? Its not going to happen.
That then, in theory, means that plants not registered, and therefore would not be allowed to be sold by garden centres or the usual high street diy stores because anyone who sells them could be fined, which means they could eventually disappear. Everyday plants that we know and love, may no longer be available.
Obviously the European Commission are not trying to ban these plants, but if there is this massive administrative hurdle, then that is basically what could happen. It does state in the Telegraph's article that "The Government confirmed it was trying to block any proposals which would require the laborious descriptions."
This is obviously a proposal and shows the worst case scenario, but it is draft legislation and shows what could happen if allowed to go through. There is however, other ways. For example, there is a database of common names for plants. This does go along way, but as I said above, there would still possibly be confusion in other countries.
There are other consequences of losing plants like this. The lavendar, for example, is one of the most loved plants by bees. It has been in the news recently about the decline in bee numbers. Any loss of some plants could further impact. The issue isn't just about losing these plants but the whole impact.
Whatever the outcome, I for one, would not want to lose any of these plants. Probably most plants in my garden are would not be registered. Plants that I intend to buy for my garden, may not be available in the future...
Lets see what happens, I will be keeping a close eye on this one.
Sources I referred to for this blog and found very interesting are the ones mentioned above. Here they are again.
The Telegraph's article:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/10311033/European-Commission-proposal-will-see-plants-disappear-from-garden-centres.html
The RHS's website, specifically, information on the naming of plants and botanical names:
http://apps.rhs.org.uk/rhsplantfinder/plantnaming/index.asp
"European Commission proposal 'will see plants disappear from garden centres'"
Here is the link to the article:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/10311033/European-Commission-proposal-will-see-plants-disappear-from-garden-centres.html
What the article is basically saying, is that the European Commission have drafted legislation to have all plants registered, so that us, the consumers, are not sold fake or inferior plants.
Now this is possibly a good idea, but if you look into it deeper, it could cause problems, and as the headline suggests, see many of our common plants, for just one example, Lavendar Hidcote, just disappear.
In the picture below of pots in my garden, in the future the lavendar could disappear, where as the dianthus and cineraria would be ok as these are botanical names.
This is because of our estimated 50000 ornamental plant varieties, only about 2000 actually have a detailed botanical description, as the European Commission are suggesting there needs to be. There could be arguments for this. When I was looking for examples of problems using common names I came across the following on the RHS website. What we call the bluebell in England is called the wild hyacinth in Scotland and to them a bluebell is something completely different, so there could be some confusion. It does however have a botanical name, which is Hyacinthoides non-scripta and is universal. Ok, so register all the plants, this would no doubt take time, but could be done.
Again, there is a stumbling block. To have the plants registered, hiring an expert to do it, would cost someone approximately £500 to fill in detailed forms. Who would pay this, plant breeders? Garden centres? The Government? Its not going to happen.
That then, in theory, means that plants not registered, and therefore would not be allowed to be sold by garden centres or the usual high street diy stores because anyone who sells them could be fined, which means they could eventually disappear. Everyday plants that we know and love, may no longer be available.
Obviously the European Commission are not trying to ban these plants, but if there is this massive administrative hurdle, then that is basically what could happen. It does state in the Telegraph's article that "The Government confirmed it was trying to block any proposals which would require the laborious descriptions."
This is obviously a proposal and shows the worst case scenario, but it is draft legislation and shows what could happen if allowed to go through. There is however, other ways. For example, there is a database of common names for plants. This does go along way, but as I said above, there would still possibly be confusion in other countries.
There are other consequences of losing plants like this. The lavendar, for example, is one of the most loved plants by bees. It has been in the news recently about the decline in bee numbers. Any loss of some plants could further impact. The issue isn't just about losing these plants but the whole impact.
Whatever the outcome, I for one, would not want to lose any of these plants. Probably most plants in my garden are would not be registered. Plants that I intend to buy for my garden, may not be available in the future...
Lets see what happens, I will be keeping a close eye on this one.
Sources I referred to for this blog and found very interesting are the ones mentioned above. Here they are again.
The Telegraph's article:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/10311033/European-Commission-proposal-will-see-plants-disappear-from-garden-centres.html
The RHS's website, specifically, information on the naming of plants and botanical names:
http://apps.rhs.org.uk/rhsplantfinder/plantnaming/index.asp
Monday 16 September 2013
Great Bloggers Bloom Day
Ok, so I'm a day late. Seen this about before but only just realised what it is, so here's my effort for Septembers GBBD!!
I've just had a walk around our garden to see what I can find, and sadly because we're still at an early stage with our garden, theres not much to see this year.What we do have is:
I've just had a walk around our garden to see what I can find, and sadly because we're still at an early stage with our garden, theres not much to see this year.What we do have is:
Fuchsias
Sweet Peas still flowering, although we have left them to go to seed now, so that we can collect for next year
Hydrangeas
And a couple of terracotta pots with Dianthus and Cineraria
Hopefully next year I'll be able to show off more plants.
Sunday 15 September 2013
Miserable Sunday Weather
The weather outside is looking very autumnal. Its grey, its cold, its rainy and its miserable.
I'm still getting over last weeks accident and so have not done a great deal in the past week. The stitches are out tomorrow and I think I will be off work a couple more days until its at a more manageable stage, though I am feeling a lot better than earlier in the week.
Due to these circumstances and a family bereavement, progress in the garden has almost come to a standstill. This week, the usual daily routine with the chickens has continued and a couple of vegetable plants have been put in to fill a few gaps, but even after that easy work, I have needed a rest.
In the garden we now have lots of potato plants at various stages of growth, carrots coming through nicely, broccoli and cauliflower plants starting to establish, beetroot plants looking very healthy and sprouts still struggling on.
The sweet potatoes have been dug up, as they haven't really done anything this year. More reading up on their care is needed for next year, before I try again. The fennel took a beating with a particularly heavy downpour a few days ago. Whether they will recover on not, I don't know yet, I do know they can be very temperamental though. The courgettes seem to be slowing down in they final few weeks, although we have still got a few this week.
The tomatoes in the greenhouse are slowly turning red and what we thought was the final cucumber, is ready for picking, although I did spot yesterday a very small one poking out. We shall see.
The peppers are still looking good and shouldn't be too much longer.
As outside has been mostly off limits to me, I have been doing some reading up on what I have grown, for tips on why they may not have performed, or if I could increase the crop next year. Notes have been made and I will refer to these next year.
Sadly, its getting to that time of the year when these sort of miserable days will become the norm. There are however still things that can be done.
I do also still have a cold frame to build, which looks like it will soon be need for strawberries and fuchsias to live in over winter.
In the garden, time still moves on...
I'm still getting over last weeks accident and so have not done a great deal in the past week. The stitches are out tomorrow and I think I will be off work a couple more days until its at a more manageable stage, though I am feeling a lot better than earlier in the week.
Due to these circumstances and a family bereavement, progress in the garden has almost come to a standstill. This week, the usual daily routine with the chickens has continued and a couple of vegetable plants have been put in to fill a few gaps, but even after that easy work, I have needed a rest.
In the garden we now have lots of potato plants at various stages of growth, carrots coming through nicely, broccoli and cauliflower plants starting to establish, beetroot plants looking very healthy and sprouts still struggling on.
The sweet potatoes have been dug up, as they haven't really done anything this year. More reading up on their care is needed for next year, before I try again. The fennel took a beating with a particularly heavy downpour a few days ago. Whether they will recover on not, I don't know yet, I do know they can be very temperamental though. The courgettes seem to be slowing down in they final few weeks, although we have still got a few this week.
The tomatoes in the greenhouse are slowly turning red and what we thought was the final cucumber, is ready for picking, although I did spot yesterday a very small one poking out. We shall see.
The peppers are still looking good and shouldn't be too much longer.
As outside has been mostly off limits to me, I have been doing some reading up on what I have grown, for tips on why they may not have performed, or if I could increase the crop next year. Notes have been made and I will refer to these next year.
Sadly, its getting to that time of the year when these sort of miserable days will become the norm. There are however still things that can be done.
I do also still have a cold frame to build, which looks like it will soon be need for strawberries and fuchsias to live in over winter.
In the garden, time still moves on...
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Saturday 14 September 2013
Todays family plan
Well it's the weekend. That means that this morning my wife took our eldest to his swimming lesson while I spent time while the twins and also did a few jobs round the house.
The wife is now back and just been preparing some pastry for later. The pastry is for pies she is making to compete in her Bloggers Bake off which running along with the Great British Bake off. More info on my wife's blog http://hijackedbytwins.blogspot.co.uk
Next job is to take the three kids for new shoes as the twins feet are growing at an alarming and expensive rate and Joseph needs new school shoes. It's going to be a painful day on my wallet!!
Then it will be time for home. Twins teatime and bedtime, then a visit from Mother and Father in law for the evening, which I'm sure will be very nice. And also a taste of the sample bottle I received from the Isle of Arran distillery.
Hope you all have a good day :-)
The wife is now back and just been preparing some pastry for later. The pastry is for pies she is making to compete in her Bloggers Bake off which running along with the Great British Bake off. More info on my wife's blog http://hijackedbytwins.blogspot.co.uk
Next job is to take the three kids for new shoes as the twins feet are growing at an alarming and expensive rate and Joseph needs new school shoes. It's going to be a painful day on my wallet!!
Then it will be time for home. Twins teatime and bedtime, then a visit from Mother and Father in law for the evening, which I'm sure will be very nice. And also a taste of the sample bottle I received from the Isle of Arran distillery.
Hope you all have a good day :-)
Simple Raised Beds
The wife wanted to have her own herb garden. The constraints were that it needed to be near the house and it because that would mean it would be in 'our' area, it had to look nice.
So, instead of just digging some turf up and planting some herbs, I decided to make her a raised bed herb garden.
It's really basic, just made out of decking boards secured to stakes in the corners and at intervals down the sides. I did have the original idea of using railway sleepers as I think they look lovely, with the rustic, weathered effect but they are rather expensive.
So all I did was to dig out the measured area, knock in some stakes and then screw the decking boards to the stakes. I have to say they do look good and are inexpensive. I did end up putting a small raised area on the end, which this year has had lettuce leaves in. Next year we may look at extending the other way as we are trying to create seperate areas in the garden. This one being our 'adults' area.
There has been talk about also making the vegetable area into raised beds, though I haven't decided yet. Any suggestions?
The other thing I built which was very similar, though not a raised bed, was a large planter.
In our back garden there is a large metal manhole cover on the edge of the grass. It's an eyesore, but we can't do much with it. I decided to make a planter large enough to cover it. This was made in a similar way to the raised beds and from the same materials. Therefore it hasn't cost much to make plus it blends on well.
Raised beds can work really well, though you do need to keep an eye on watering a bit more. They do how ever look very attractive and provide focal points in the garden.
So, instead of just digging some turf up and planting some herbs, I decided to make her a raised bed herb garden.
It's really basic, just made out of decking boards secured to stakes in the corners and at intervals down the sides. I did have the original idea of using railway sleepers as I think they look lovely, with the rustic, weathered effect but they are rather expensive.
So all I did was to dig out the measured area, knock in some stakes and then screw the decking boards to the stakes. I have to say they do look good and are inexpensive. I did end up putting a small raised area on the end, which this year has had lettuce leaves in. Next year we may look at extending the other way as we are trying to create seperate areas in the garden. This one being our 'adults' area.
There has been talk about also making the vegetable area into raised beds, though I haven't decided yet. Any suggestions?
The other thing I built which was very similar, though not a raised bed, was a large planter.
In our back garden there is a large metal manhole cover on the edge of the grass. It's an eyesore, but we can't do much with it. I decided to make a planter large enough to cover it. This was made in a similar way to the raised beds and from the same materials. Therefore it hasn't cost much to make plus it blends on well.
Raised beds can work really well, though you do need to keep an eye on watering a bit more. They do how ever look very attractive and provide focal points in the garden.
Thursday 12 September 2013
Thrifty gardener
This post is going to be about what I've done in our garden so far on the cheap. Things that haven't cost much if anything.
A lot of things in the garden can't be done cheaply, but theres a lot of things that can if your willing to look and do a bit of work.
Plant wise, some of my best bargains have come from two main sources, although there have been others. Shrubs have been gained for next to nothing from a local DIY superstore. There is a reduced section for plants that maybe looking a bit sad, are at the end of their flowering period or have maybe got a bit pot bound. From these sales we have got a few conifers for about £2 each, an Azalea for a couple of pounds, an Euomymus for £3 a hellebore which was just finishing flowering for £1 and a Rhododendron for £3. All these were good size but needed a bit of care, so I stood them in a bucket of water for a few days and gave them a good soaking, before planting them with some feed.
The other two real bargains I got were when I used a birthday voucher. I found a trimmed Bay tree and an Olive tree. Both trees were rot bound and looking sad. After asking the cashier for a discount we ended up getting £50 worth of trees for less than £20. These two trees are now planted, one in the garden and one in a nice, free, terracotta pot and are both looking really good.
It just shows, that with a little care and attention, a lot of plants can come back from the brink, and grow into strong, healthy specimens.
The other good offers we have taken advantage of for plants is from the Gardeners World magazine offers. Once a month there is a good offer to get plants for free, just paying postage. All these need are potting up and growing from very small plug plants.
So far we have had, three clematis plants, forty eight geraniums, forty eight lavenders of different cultivars, forty eight Sweet Peas, which have grown well and provided endless flowers for the house as well as colour in the garden. We have also got forty eight plants of Salvia, Echinacea, Delephinium and Pestemon which are currently in the greenhouse growing strongly.
We also have a Camellia that was going spare from a friends garden. It looked like we were losing it at one point. I think it was because it was getting the early morning dew and then strong sunlight, it leaves looked as though they were almost burning. I ended up moving to the opposite side of the garden and cutting it right back to almost nothing. It is now growing again with healthy looking leaves.
The other obvious source of virtually free plants is to grow from seed. Seeds don't cost much to buy and if you collect them yourself from plants in your garden it can be more satisfying. Lots of our plants and vegetables have been grown from seed. I am now also trying to propagate plants by taking cuttings. So far I haven't had much success, but I have got some Forsythia cuttings looking quite promising. As mentioned in another post, I have also increased my strawberry plant supply, by planting runners from this years plants.
I would be interested to know if for cuttings, anyone has any thoughts on whether or not rooting powder/ gel is needed. So far I have used any, but I have recently purchased some organic gel to try.
Well that's my thrifty ways as far as plants are concerned.
Other things that have been free or cheap are the pallets for our compost bins, which cost nothing as many of those came from work when they were being thrown out. I also have some cut down conservatory roof panels waiting to be made into a cold frame. These came from a friend who had replaced their old conservatory.
Some of the wood in the garden has come from my Mum's house when she had work done and some of the paving stones where salvaged from my Mother and Father-In-Law's.
Many tools in my shed came from either my Dad or Grandad. Not many have been bought. The odd one is also borrowed from my often pestered Father-In-Law.
In our household we are very thrifty. In today's day and age, it pays to be. Wages are low and bills are high, and the garden is one place that prices can be kept low with good results.
Well that's all for today, Harvest 2013 is just about to start :-)
Ps, liking the part on Harvest about the organic farmer.
A lot of things in the garden can't be done cheaply, but theres a lot of things that can if your willing to look and do a bit of work.
Plant wise, some of my best bargains have come from two main sources, although there have been others. Shrubs have been gained for next to nothing from a local DIY superstore. There is a reduced section for plants that maybe looking a bit sad, are at the end of their flowering period or have maybe got a bit pot bound. From these sales we have got a few conifers for about £2 each, an Azalea for a couple of pounds, an Euomymus for £3 a hellebore which was just finishing flowering for £1 and a Rhododendron for £3. All these were good size but needed a bit of care, so I stood them in a bucket of water for a few days and gave them a good soaking, before planting them with some feed.
The other two real bargains I got were when I used a birthday voucher. I found a trimmed Bay tree and an Olive tree. Both trees were rot bound and looking sad. After asking the cashier for a discount we ended up getting £50 worth of trees for less than £20. These two trees are now planted, one in the garden and one in a nice, free, terracotta pot and are both looking really good.
The other good offers we have taken advantage of for plants is from the Gardeners World magazine offers. Once a month there is a good offer to get plants for free, just paying postage. All these need are potting up and growing from very small plug plants.
So far we have had, three clematis plants, forty eight geraniums, forty eight lavenders of different cultivars, forty eight Sweet Peas, which have grown well and provided endless flowers for the house as well as colour in the garden. We have also got forty eight plants of Salvia, Echinacea, Delephinium and Pestemon which are currently in the greenhouse growing strongly.
We also have a Camellia that was going spare from a friends garden. It looked like we were losing it at one point. I think it was because it was getting the early morning dew and then strong sunlight, it leaves looked as though they were almost burning. I ended up moving to the opposite side of the garden and cutting it right back to almost nothing. It is now growing again with healthy looking leaves.
The other obvious source of virtually free plants is to grow from seed. Seeds don't cost much to buy and if you collect them yourself from plants in your garden it can be more satisfying. Lots of our plants and vegetables have been grown from seed. I am now also trying to propagate plants by taking cuttings. So far I haven't had much success, but I have got some Forsythia cuttings looking quite promising. As mentioned in another post, I have also increased my strawberry plant supply, by planting runners from this years plants.
I would be interested to know if for cuttings, anyone has any thoughts on whether or not rooting powder/ gel is needed. So far I have used any, but I have recently purchased some organic gel to try.
Well that's my thrifty ways as far as plants are concerned.
Other things that have been free or cheap are the pallets for our compost bins, which cost nothing as many of those came from work when they were being thrown out. I also have some cut down conservatory roof panels waiting to be made into a cold frame. These came from a friend who had replaced their old conservatory.
Some of the wood in the garden has come from my Mum's house when she had work done and some of the paving stones where salvaged from my Mother and Father-In-Law's.
Many tools in my shed came from either my Dad or Grandad. Not many have been bought. The odd one is also borrowed from my often pestered Father-In-Law.
In our household we are very thrifty. In today's day and age, it pays to be. Wages are low and bills are high, and the garden is one place that prices can be kept low with good results.
Well that's all for today, Harvest 2013 is just about to start :-)
Ps, liking the part on Harvest about the organic farmer.
Wednesday 11 September 2013
Harvest 2013
Well its Wednesday night and I've just sat down to see whats on television. BBC2 8pm...Harvest 2013.
I didn't know anything about this programme, I've just stumbled across it, but I thought I'd take a look. Tonight's episode, one of three, is 'Vegetables: The Goodness of the Earth'.
The title has got me interested straight away. Its following different farms growing and harvesting veg on a huge scale. How they do it, how they time growing and keep veg for the year.
But even for farmers, this can be a problem. If the weather isn't right planting can go wrong. The broccoli crop at the moment is an example. All the plants had to go in at the same time, due to weather, and some ended up being wasted as they were all ready at the same time. Another farmer, grew carrots in the summer, then covered them over with black plastic and straw to keep them ready to be harvested whenever they were needed. This is something we can do in our gardens and allotments, on smaller basis, but using natures larder...the earth. Although, of course, this won't work with all crops.
At the moment on the programme, there is basically a massive warehouse come green house growing tomatoes in the middle of winter. It looks amazing, tomato plants as far as the eye can see. One day hopefully I might be able to do a similar thing, growing summer veg and salads in winter, when I have my own heated greenhouse. Thats a dream, at the moment though I make do with my small plastic ones. Glass greenhouses are expensive and probably not a great idea with kids kicking footballs.
Watching a programme like this throws up so many thoughts, ideas and insights. For example, one farm had to spray the entire potato crop as they were suffering from blight. We at home may have the same thing to do, but on a much smaller scale. But, will they be using an organic spray? Probably not, which does make me proud of the vegetables I grow in my garden. Admittedly, the veg and fruit grown by these farmers may look good and taste good, but can you beat the taste and feeling of eating food you have spent time rearing yourself, knowing exactly how it was grown.
Following the tomato greenhouse, there is what could be almost called a boutique farm. Down scaling a large farm to concentrate on the quality of veg, most of which is sold to Michelin class restaurants. In this section, one tip picked up was that for example, the turnips grown are sown much closer together so it restricts the growth size, meaning you can grow more crops and harvest much sooner. For me in my garden, that might be an idea. Balancing the need for plenty of food, but also tasty food.
They are also doing a scientific test on whether coloured light makes a different of growth. Seemingly it looks possible that some coloured light sources may give more root growth while other give more foliage growth. Things like this are ideas to consider.
I have to say one of the most important things to me when it comes to growing vegetables, is to grow organically. No chemicals, just all natural ways.
I will be watching the next programme in this series. Whether its how I grow or not, its still interesting. No doubt, there are some tips I can pick up and change to work in my veggie plot. Anything I can use to expand my knowledge and experience is always welcome.
Right, I think its time for me to say goodnight :-)
I didn't know anything about this programme, I've just stumbled across it, but I thought I'd take a look. Tonight's episode, one of three, is 'Vegetables: The Goodness of the Earth'.
The title has got me interested straight away. Its following different farms growing and harvesting veg on a huge scale. How they do it, how they time growing and keep veg for the year.
But even for farmers, this can be a problem. If the weather isn't right planting can go wrong. The broccoli crop at the moment is an example. All the plants had to go in at the same time, due to weather, and some ended up being wasted as they were all ready at the same time. Another farmer, grew carrots in the summer, then covered them over with black plastic and straw to keep them ready to be harvested whenever they were needed. This is something we can do in our gardens and allotments, on smaller basis, but using natures larder...the earth. Although, of course, this won't work with all crops.
At the moment on the programme, there is basically a massive warehouse come green house growing tomatoes in the middle of winter. It looks amazing, tomato plants as far as the eye can see. One day hopefully I might be able to do a similar thing, growing summer veg and salads in winter, when I have my own heated greenhouse. Thats a dream, at the moment though I make do with my small plastic ones. Glass greenhouses are expensive and probably not a great idea with kids kicking footballs.
Watching a programme like this throws up so many thoughts, ideas and insights. For example, one farm had to spray the entire potato crop as they were suffering from blight. We at home may have the same thing to do, but on a much smaller scale. But, will they be using an organic spray? Probably not, which does make me proud of the vegetables I grow in my garden. Admittedly, the veg and fruit grown by these farmers may look good and taste good, but can you beat the taste and feeling of eating food you have spent time rearing yourself, knowing exactly how it was grown.
Following the tomato greenhouse, there is what could be almost called a boutique farm. Down scaling a large farm to concentrate on the quality of veg, most of which is sold to Michelin class restaurants. In this section, one tip picked up was that for example, the turnips grown are sown much closer together so it restricts the growth size, meaning you can grow more crops and harvest much sooner. For me in my garden, that might be an idea. Balancing the need for plenty of food, but also tasty food.
They are also doing a scientific test on whether coloured light makes a different of growth. Seemingly it looks possible that some coloured light sources may give more root growth while other give more foliage growth. Things like this are ideas to consider.
I have to say one of the most important things to me when it comes to growing vegetables, is to grow organically. No chemicals, just all natural ways.
I will be watching the next programme in this series. Whether its how I grow or not, its still interesting. No doubt, there are some tips I can pick up and change to work in my veggie plot. Anything I can use to expand my knowledge and experience is always welcome.
Right, I think its time for me to say goodnight :-)
My veggie plot
The most important area in my garden is down at the bottom where I have my vegetable patch. When we were looking to buy our first house, our first HOME, the garden was something very important for me to look at. The garden we inherited with this house is ideal. A blank canvas, but with an old neglected vegetable patch.
This first year was always going to be a trial year. A year to see what I had to work with. A year to learn about my garden and plan for the future.
The area that was already cleared as a veggie plot has been increased slightly but my plan eventually is to clear all the grass in that area apart from paths through. Down there we also have the chickens and compost bins.
I started off by clearing the area of weeds and old leeks. The ground was then dug over. I started off putting a few seeds in wanting to see how things did, going for foods that we like.
Potatoes were an obvious choice. I started with two varieties, King Edward and Desiree. Carrot seeds were sown in the form of early Nantes with some onions around the edges as I am a great believer in companion growing as a natural and organic way of pest control.
Next to the carrots I sowed some radish seeds for a quick crop. The next seeds were something I have never grown before and don't know much about, Kohlrabi. This is a member of the cabbage family.
Round the back of these I had some areas with turnips and sprouts.
The radish came up quickly as expected and were the first harvested crop of the year.
These grew very well but we did find that the slugs really enjoyed them too. The potatoes although sown over a few weeks, all ended up being ready almost together as the weather got better and the last lot came on quicker and caught the first lot up.
The carrots did well and we got a few turnips too. The kohlrabi were very disappointing and we never got to try any, although I am going to have another try at growing them. The sprouts are still in and are growing, but also seem to have been attracting some interest from some sort of pests.
We have a couple of the small green greenhouses made out of plastic and polyethylene. In these, seeds of cucumber and courgettes were sown in trays and potted on as and when they were ready. We also purchased some tomato, pepper and strawberry plants.
The courgettes were eventually planted out down at the bottom the garden. They attracted slugs in a big way and I seemed to be on slug patrol every night. At one point I thought we'd lost the plants, ended up cutting off all the eaten leaves and hoping for the best. All the plants grew back and had no more slug damage. Of the six plants I had five provided lots of courgettes and two huge ones boarding on marrow size.
The cucumbers, tomatoes and peppers were all potted up or put in grow bags and stayed in the greenhouses. The cucumbers did well. Tomatoes were quite disappointing and the peppers are still producing.
We have also had strawberries hanging on the wall and have now taken runners from so we have more plants for next year. We got a crop from the strawberries, but I think they will be going in the garden next year instead of in the troughs.
Lettuce leaves and herbs have also been abundant.
We have learnt lots about our garden and its visitors. Plans are in place for next year.
But, to become self sufficient I need to have food growing through out the year. So, there are more potatoes in, more carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, beetroot and fennel, with lots more to be planted.
This year has been a learning curve. I hope to have better results next year. But also feeds haven't been used much this year. Over winter homemade compost is going the be added to the veggie plot and I'm already planning ahead.
I would love to know your experiences, ideas and tips, so feel free to leave them below or tweet me @jphillipsonlowe whether they be regarding gardening or blogging, still learning this blogging lark and any feedback is always welcome.
Thanks for reading.
Thanks for reading.
Tuesday 10 September 2013
Chickens
Having chickens has been one of my dreams for a long time. When I half mentioned it to my wife as an idea to consider for the new house, I never thought she'd take to it so much. So much so, the chickens have now become the wife's.
My idea was to get chickens at some point in the future. My wife's idea was to get them as soon as winter ended. In the end, we said hello to two new family members in March. Apart from a couple of occasions, we have had two eggs everyday, which is good because we soon get through them. If we're not eating them, the wife is baking with them.
Before we could let the chickens move in, however, we needed to get ready for them. This included reading up a lot and picking the brains of chicken owners, as well as building them a home and buying supplies.
We looked at many different coops and runs for the chickens, not really knowing which would be best. In the end we found one we liked and sounded the best. It got delivered flat pack and set us back just over £100.
Once I got it all put together, with help from my 8 year old boy, we saw exactly what we were dealing with. The built in run and coop is lovely, sturdy and looks great...but we felt they needed more room. The problem is, we want to have free range chickens, but with some restrictions. For example, we don't want them roaming everywhere and eating veg. Also, our neighbours on either side have dogs. Chickens and dogs don't go. The dogs on one side had a tendancy to jump over or come under the fence. The other problem, is foxes. We live in the country, with fields feet from our door. We know there are foxes around, and have been told that they have been in the gardens before. Because of this, protection was needed.
So, before we went ahead and got the chickens, a few things needed doing. First of all, I took the simple step of blocking up all spaces at the bottom of the fencing. We spoke to our neighbours about dogs jumping over and suggested some additions to the top of the fencing, which is a shared boundary. They were really understanding and said as it was they're dogs, they would sort it. The next weekend, wood and chicken wire went up on top of the full length of fencing. The final thing I did, was to make a run. Originally my idea had been to make a run that fitted on to the existing run and coop, but this wouldn't have worked well, as gaining entry wouldn't have been easy, plus we heard about the foxes capabilities, so opted for a large run all round the small coop and run so foxes would have two sets of wire to get through at night.
Few the next two weekends, I built an 8 foot square wooden frame and door, then covered it in chicken wire. This means the chickens have quite a bit of space, but we know they are safe and not doing any damage. Inside this run, we have their small run and built in coop, which has much thicker, fox proof wire.
As soon as our runs were ready, our farmer friend brought us our two chickens. They have become favourites with my family and neighbours, all checking on them to see how they are doing.
My wife is in charge of them and goes down with our twins after dropping of my other son at school in a morning. She cleans them out and changes any straw if needed, and feeds and waters them. We read up a lot about their care, about how to check for mites, for example. So when we found mites last week, we knew straight away what to do. After about a week of treating them with an organic powder and spray, we seem to have got rid of them.
On an evening, I tend to go down and give them a treat and check they have food and water in the small run, before locking them in to it. A bit later when it is dusk I go back down, and find they have gone to roost by themselves, and so lock them in the coop for the night.
In a morning on my way out to work, I go down and open the door to let them into the small run, then my wife goes down a little later and does her routine, before letting them into the large run for the day.
We love having chickens. They seem to be happy, as they supply plenty of eggs. We've even had a couple of double yolk eggs, or 'double oakers' as my son calls them. We will be sad when anything happens to them, but no doubt we'll get some more, and think they will be a fixture in our garden for many years to come!!!!!
My idea was to get chickens at some point in the future. My wife's idea was to get them as soon as winter ended. In the end, we said hello to two new family members in March. Apart from a couple of occasions, we have had two eggs everyday, which is good because we soon get through them. If we're not eating them, the wife is baking with them.
Before we could let the chickens move in, however, we needed to get ready for them. This included reading up a lot and picking the brains of chicken owners, as well as building them a home and buying supplies.
We looked at many different coops and runs for the chickens, not really knowing which would be best. In the end we found one we liked and sounded the best. It got delivered flat pack and set us back just over £100.
Once I got it all put together, with help from my 8 year old boy, we saw exactly what we were dealing with. The built in run and coop is lovely, sturdy and looks great...but we felt they needed more room. The problem is, we want to have free range chickens, but with some restrictions. For example, we don't want them roaming everywhere and eating veg. Also, our neighbours on either side have dogs. Chickens and dogs don't go. The dogs on one side had a tendancy to jump over or come under the fence. The other problem, is foxes. We live in the country, with fields feet from our door. We know there are foxes around, and have been told that they have been in the gardens before. Because of this, protection was needed.
So, before we went ahead and got the chickens, a few things needed doing. First of all, I took the simple step of blocking up all spaces at the bottom of the fencing. We spoke to our neighbours about dogs jumping over and suggested some additions to the top of the fencing, which is a shared boundary. They were really understanding and said as it was they're dogs, they would sort it. The next weekend, wood and chicken wire went up on top of the full length of fencing. The final thing I did, was to make a run. Originally my idea had been to make a run that fitted on to the existing run and coop, but this wouldn't have worked well, as gaining entry wouldn't have been easy, plus we heard about the foxes capabilities, so opted for a large run all round the small coop and run so foxes would have two sets of wire to get through at night.
Few the next two weekends, I built an 8 foot square wooden frame and door, then covered it in chicken wire. This means the chickens have quite a bit of space, but we know they are safe and not doing any damage. Inside this run, we have their small run and built in coop, which has much thicker, fox proof wire.
As soon as our runs were ready, our farmer friend brought us our two chickens. They have become favourites with my family and neighbours, all checking on them to see how they are doing.
My wife is in charge of them and goes down with our twins after dropping of my other son at school in a morning. She cleans them out and changes any straw if needed, and feeds and waters them. We read up a lot about their care, about how to check for mites, for example. So when we found mites last week, we knew straight away what to do. After about a week of treating them with an organic powder and spray, we seem to have got rid of them.
On an evening, I tend to go down and give them a treat and check they have food and water in the small run, before locking them in to it. A bit later when it is dusk I go back down, and find they have gone to roost by themselves, and so lock them in the coop for the night.
In a morning on my way out to work, I go down and open the door to let them into the small run, then my wife goes down a little later and does her routine, before letting them into the large run for the day.
We love having chickens. They seem to be happy, as they supply plenty of eggs. We've even had a couple of double yolk eggs, or 'double oakers' as my son calls them. We will be sad when anything happens to them, but no doubt we'll get some more, and think they will be a fixture in our garden for many years to come!!!!!
Monday 9 September 2013
Composting
Well with yesterdays events putting me out of action, i have time on my hands, so time for another post.
Running with the theme of what we have done in the garden, and catching up with the last 9 months, the next project I did in the garden was to build some compost bins.
With our garden, I try to be a bit of a thrifty gardener not wanting to spend too much money if I can find a way of reusing things.
The compost bins were always going to be one of the first jobs as I want to be as self sufficient as possible. I also want our garden to be organic and as friendly to wildlife and nature as possible.
So, with that in mind, I managed to get my hands on some pallets that were basically going in skips before I got my hands on them. So already I'm helping the environment. Saving these pallets from pointless disposal and managing the find a use for them.
To start with I made one compost bin by fitting three pallets together by screwing the corners to each other. I then fitted a small pallet to the front to stop contents spilling out. Since that first one, I managed to get hold of some more pallets and have managed to make three compost bins and a space for turf that has been taken up around the garden.
A couple more pallets are needed to finish them off, but we started composting as soon as the first was made.
Now to the composting.
General thought is that more compost bins that you have the better so you can turn and store, but obviously for a lot of gardens, space affects what you can do. We are lucky with our space. I really wanted three bins so that one is working, the second can be turned into and the third is ready to be used.
At the moment we have one bin nicely composting and is already to be used as a mulch, but a bit longer and we will have a good compost. My plan for this is to spread it around different parts of the garden and especially in the veggie plot as a mulch for some plants and to add some goodness. It will be put down when the frosts start coming so it will help protect the roots of more tender plants and shrubs.
We have a second bin that we are now filling and the third is empty but will be used when the second bin wants turning.
Turning is very important as it aerates the composts and moves it around and can kick start the composting process. I tend to find that my compost heats up well, but when it cools down, I turn it and the process starts again.
The other thing I mentioned is about turf. I don't like to waste anything. When turf comes up I tend to relay some of it in paths in the veggie plot. The rest goes into an area I made, where the turf is stacked on top of each other as tight as possible, grass down. This will make a nice loam which can be used around the garden or added to compost to be used. This process does take a very long time. I think around 18 months, but nothing needs to be done to it, just leave it piled up up out of the way.
Composting is a lot of trial and error and also a learning curve. When I first started, I tended to just throw things in, whereas now i try to layer. I found that before, I used to get ants nests in the compost, whereas now with it being layered, turned and heating up well, not too many ants turn up.
I would really urge people to compost. It helps your garden, the environment and is a good way of disposing of a lot of your waste.
There are many books on this topic so I won't tell you how to do it, I just record my experiences. I hope I can inspire other people.
Running with the theme of what we have done in the garden, and catching up with the last 9 months, the next project I did in the garden was to build some compost bins.
With our garden, I try to be a bit of a thrifty gardener not wanting to spend too much money if I can find a way of reusing things.
The compost bins were always going to be one of the first jobs as I want to be as self sufficient as possible. I also want our garden to be organic and as friendly to wildlife and nature as possible.
So, with that in mind, I managed to get my hands on some pallets that were basically going in skips before I got my hands on them. So already I'm helping the environment. Saving these pallets from pointless disposal and managing the find a use for them.
To start with I made one compost bin by fitting three pallets together by screwing the corners to each other. I then fitted a small pallet to the front to stop contents spilling out. Since that first one, I managed to get hold of some more pallets and have managed to make three compost bins and a space for turf that has been taken up around the garden.
A couple more pallets are needed to finish them off, but we started composting as soon as the first was made.
Now to the composting.
General thought is that more compost bins that you have the better so you can turn and store, but obviously for a lot of gardens, space affects what you can do. We are lucky with our space. I really wanted three bins so that one is working, the second can be turned into and the third is ready to be used.
At the moment we have one bin nicely composting and is already to be used as a mulch, but a bit longer and we will have a good compost. My plan for this is to spread it around different parts of the garden and especially in the veggie plot as a mulch for some plants and to add some goodness. It will be put down when the frosts start coming so it will help protect the roots of more tender plants and shrubs.
We have a second bin that we are now filling and the third is empty but will be used when the second bin wants turning.
Turning is very important as it aerates the composts and moves it around and can kick start the composting process. I tend to find that my compost heats up well, but when it cools down, I turn it and the process starts again.
The other thing I mentioned is about turf. I don't like to waste anything. When turf comes up I tend to relay some of it in paths in the veggie plot. The rest goes into an area I made, where the turf is stacked on top of each other as tight as possible, grass down. This will make a nice loam which can be used around the garden or added to compost to be used. This process does take a very long time. I think around 18 months, but nothing needs to be done to it, just leave it piled up up out of the way.
Composting is a lot of trial and error and also a learning curve. When I first started, I tended to just throw things in, whereas now i try to layer. I found that before, I used to get ants nests in the compost, whereas now with it being layered, turned and heating up well, not too many ants turn up.
I would really urge people to compost. It helps your garden, the environment and is a good way of disposing of a lot of your waste.
There are many books on this topic so I won't tell you how to do it, I just record my experiences. I hope I can inspire other people.
Sunday 8 September 2013
Gardening accident
Well yesterday wasn't a good day.
I eventually got round to trimming our conifer hedge. But due to accidentally falling through the platform I was stood on, it didn't get finished. Instead a 6 hour trip to a +e ensued. After time spent waiting, being prodded, poked and other tests, an x-Ray and telephone conversations with a specialist, it was decided among other things, that I had fractured my cheekbone and got a haematoma under my eye and blood in my sinuses.
After threats of being sent miles a way to a larger hospital for treatment, it was eventually decided that I'd be sent home with strong pain killers and antibiotics and a outpatient appointment.
This morning at home I am sat in pain with one eye I can't see out of because of swelling and reflecting on my gardening accident and what could have been.
I am not put of in the least and will be gardening again soon...just out of action for a few while being waited on by my amazing wife. She was to my rock yesterday. Don't know what I'd have done without her. Love you xxx
I eventually got round to trimming our conifer hedge. But due to accidentally falling through the platform I was stood on, it didn't get finished. Instead a 6 hour trip to a +e ensued. After time spent waiting, being prodded, poked and other tests, an x-Ray and telephone conversations with a specialist, it was decided among other things, that I had fractured my cheekbone and got a haematoma under my eye and blood in my sinuses.
After threats of being sent miles a way to a larger hospital for treatment, it was eventually decided that I'd be sent home with strong pain killers and antibiotics and a outpatient appointment.
This morning at home I am sat in pain with one eye I can't see out of because of swelling and reflecting on my gardening accident and what could have been.
I am not put of in the least and will be gardening again soon...just out of action for a few while being waited on by my amazing wife. She was to my rock yesterday. Don't know what I'd have done without her. Love you xxx
Wind break
So far this year, we have made some big changes to our originally bare garden. New fencing, conifers, compost heaps, new plants, bamboo screening, an archway and new shed, not to mention the wife's chickens. These are the first things we started doing with the blank canvas. Not all of the above are finished. Some are works in progress based on time and financial constraints.
I'll touch on all these things in my blogs, i'm sure.
In this post i'll start with the conifers.
Our house is in a small village and set at the end of a cul de sac over looking fields. The view is beautiful and for our first and hopefully only home, it is more than we could have ever wished for. In the nine months that we have lived here, we have seen winter, spring and the summer and so have seen the majority of what our garden has to offer.
One of the very first things we noticed about our garden was that we get no shelter from the weather. Being the second to last house on our road, and with the neighbours and our fencing both being low, the back garden gets whatever comes over the fields.
So, our project in our garden came in the format of creating some sort of wind break on the left hand side of our garden.
We looked at several options, the first of which was fencing. We did a bit of research into prices and found that to fence right down to the bottom of our garden would cost us in excess of £400/ £500 as it is a shared boundary and we were looking at £900 for the lot. This was something we couldn't consider. Having moved in to a house that needed some modernisation, we couldn't justify this sort of an amount. Plus the upkeep of staining the wood every year or two.
So we decided on a more natural wind break. Shrubs were considered, but with many having some sort of berries on and us having small children who would be tempted to eat said berries, we opted for conifers.
As I said in the last post, we have a conifer hedge seperating the garden, but this is a dark green cultivar of conifer. We decided to go for a brighter colour and fast growing type, so opted for Gold Leylandii 'Castlewallan'. As we needed so many, we bought in bulk from a garden centre, and chose three foot high ones. These set us back around £100. Admittedly this is not an instant windbreak, but there's less care needed, as for several years they will be left to grow, and in the future only a trim will be needed every year to keep them in check.
We would much rather look at plants than fencing or walls and with these conifers we will have some colour in the garden in winter.
When they were first planted, the conifers turned very golden brown. At first we were worried that we'd lost them all, but by April/May time, the colour improved after a feed of blood fish and bone and now they are a beautiful golden green and looking very healthy.
Over the next few years they will grow and make an excellent wind break and give some privacy to our garden.
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