Cold snap

We had snow on Tuesday evening and it was cold yesterday and today but despite this some of the annuals are continuing to flower and the hardy Fuchsias, like Beacon in the picture, continue to put on a good show of colour. The first of the Chrysanthemums are out now although some of the petals have been nibbled by snails which is a bit annoying. And some of the Pineapple Sage flowers are out too.

I harvested the remainder of my outdoor Chillies today, 8 Sicily and about double that of Trifetti. Most weren't ripe so they are on the kitchen windowsill where they will turn red in a matter of days (with a little bit of luck). So that's it for the edibles this year apart from a few remaining Alpine Strawberries and some of the herbs.

It was too cold to stay outside as my garden gets very little sunshine at this time of year so I busied myself cleaning about 200 used plant labels ready for next year. I always use pencil and it never fails me: in fact it took a fair amount of rubbing with a cloth and cream cleaner to remove the writing! I've also been sifting the Tree Spinach seeds which must be the messiest seed to harvest. Either that, or I'm not doing it correctly.

Georgie

More winter colour

I planted up this simple arrangement of Carex and yellow Pansies a couple of weeks ago to bring some much needed colour to the garden over the winter months. I have another one in a slightly smaller pot, three with Pennisetum and Pansies and one with a Hebe cutting and Pansies too. This just left the window box to sort out so, despite the pouring rain, I took myself off to the nursery. I decided to buy a new, deeper window box and bought 3 Solanum pseudocapsicums (Winter Cherry) and two Ivies to plant in it. The whole lot came to just over £12 which I thought was a bargain. I know the Solanum are not fully hardy but I'm hoping the spot they are in will provide sufficient shelter for them to survive. Watch this space!

Very early this year I had a problem with whitefly and aphids in the greenhouse. So I've decided to experiment by over-wintering Tagetes as a deterrent. I sowed some seeds two weeks back and they were ready for pricking out today. I got 8 seedlings from 10 seeds. Five are now in individual 9cm pots standing in a gravel tray in the sunny greenhouse and the other three are in the shady greenhouse. My biggest concern is that they will get eaten by slugs/snails before they get a chance to establish but nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Georgie

Chillies and other things

It's been a good year for the majority of my Chilli plants and despite the lack of sunshine most of the fruits have ripened (but there are more to come). For the first time I'm growing two small fruited types for drying. The one pictured is Thai Hot (I think) and the other is Trifetti. My bigger yellow Chilli has been quite prolific and I have a nice bag of fruits in the freezer. It's on it's second flush of flowering and fruiting now and I hope it will continue to flourish on the kitchen windowsill. The only disappointment has been Sicily which bore very few fruits. I won't be growing it again next year.

I've harvested more seeds in the last few days including Tree Spinach, Allium Tuberosum and Sweet Basil. The only seeds left to harvest are from Coriander,Fennel and Parsley and I hope to gather these at the weekend. The Alpine Strawberries and Physalis continue to produce the odd fruits but I've eaten the last of the Tomatoes. I've cut down the autumn Raspberry canes and planted a thornless Blackberry and both have been given a good mulch of leaf mould.

I still have a number of annuals flowering including Heliotrope, Laurentia, Thunbergia and Nicotiana and there is colour showing on the buds of the Pineapple Sage and Chrysanthemums. And one of my spring bulbs has poked its head about 1cm above the soil. It's in a mixed pot of Eranthis and Snowdrop so I'm not sure which it is yet but it's probably the Snowdrop. I also have Primroses and Toad Lilies out, along with hardy Fuchsias which are putting on a good show of late colour. So it still looks good out there.

Georgie

A few more jobs done

This is part of the patio area showing the pots I made up yesterday. In the background between the Box plants the Heliotrope is still going strong and Blue Fescue grasses either side complete the arrangement. The Cyclamen in the front are plants I managed to keep from last year.

I started the day sowing seeds of Garlic Mustard, Parsley, Cyclamen, French Marigolds and Agapanthus. I pricked out the Dianthus and Aquilegia seedlings and these will be over-wintered in the greenhouse. I potted on two lots of ornamental grasses, Eragrostis Spectabilis and Pennisetum, and planted the remaining Violas, Carex and Tete a Tete.

The only thing remaining to plant this year are the Allium Purple Sensation bulbs and I still haven't got space for them in the border. I'll also need to find some plants to put in the window box to replace the Pelargoniums when the temperature drops. I was going to use the pansies but I ran out. Oh well, looks like another trip to the nursery beckons!

Georgie

Pottering

My day started with a trip to the local nursery. I went for more compost and some Violas but as usual came back with considerably more. The first bargain was 10 bags of decorative stones reduced from £3.99 to 50p each. I'll use them as I need them to top off pots of perennials. I picked up a tray of 24 yellow Violas, then I spotted some very healthy Carex grasses. I thought these would look good with the Violas so I popped 5 in the trolley. Well, that was until I came across some lovely dwarf conifers (Chamaecyparis lawsoniana Snow White) for an amazing 99p each and some gorgeous Cyclamen with deep magenta flowers. So I got three conifers and six Cyclamen. The trolley now full I decided that was enough for one day (apart from the compost of course which they helpfully carry to the car for weaklings like me).

Back home in the garden the first task was to plant up the remainder of the spring bulbs in pots. I did two with Tulip Praetens Fusilier and Narcissi Tete a Tete, one with Leucojum and Tete and Tete, one with Hyacinth City of Haarlem and one with Narcissi Chinita.

Looking over my purchases I then planted up three pots, each with a conifer, a Carex and two Cyclamen. This leaves me with the task of planting up the two remaining Carex plants with some of the Violas and Tete a Tete in two more containers tomorrow. The rest of the Violas will go in the windowbox.

The picture is of Gladiolus Callianthus which I've grown for the first time this year. It's a very attractive flower but sadly the blooms don't last very long and I couldn't detect the scent that was promised. It certainly doesn't earn its keep in a pot and I think it would be more suited to the back of the border. I gather the bulbs are a little tender so once the foliage has died down I'll over-winter them in the shed and see if I can find a spot for them in the sunny border next year.

Georgie

Review of flowering annuals

I grew ten different flowering annuals this year with varying degrees of success. The most disappointing was Ipomoea Alba, the Moon Vine, which failed to flower, probably due to lack of prolonged sunshine. Also poor was the Calendula, which I'm certain was down to seed quality and Swan River Daisies which were neither prolific nor scented as promised on the packet. But everything else has earned its keep. The Nicotiana Affinis white (pictured) is still flowering well and coping with the difficult conditions I mentioned yesterday. I've saved seeds for next year. As ever the Laurentia Axilliaris has put on a wonderful show and is still producing lots of buds. The self-saved Nasturtiums - trailing mixed and Milkmaid - have looked good in a hanging basket in the wild area and continue to flower. The Sunflowers didn't last very long but were attractive whilst they were out. I'll be saving some seed for next year and leaving the rest for the birds. The Thunbergia was something new and I've been very pleased with it. Next year I'm growing a scented variety. And finally Heliotrope Marine was my favourite of the lot. The scent hits you as soon as you open the kitchen door - and that's with only three plants - the dark foliage is very attractive and there are new buds on it yet to open. So that's another one I will definitely be growing next year.

I said the other day that the only thing left to flower in the garden was the Chrysanthemums and the Fatsia. How did I manage to forget my beautiful Pineapple Sages? I've got three of these plants which are about three to four feet tall growing in pots in the semi-shade. Walking round the garden this morning I noticed that one of them has got a number of buds on it. The flowers are one of the brightest scarlets you can get so I can't wait!

Georgie

No gardening, just thinking ahead

The picture is of the top end of my sunny border which I struggle to keep looking good. The problem is that at the back there are all sorts of old roots which I can't get out due to lack of space and the fence means it's in rain shadow. The Nicotiana has managed to thrive somehow but the climbing Nasturtiums I sowed behind it did nothing. And let's face it if Nasturtiums won't survive, it's an uphill battle. So next year I'm going to try Centratherum, watch this space.

I've had a good sort out of my seeds and will be sowing Calendula, Parsley and Garlic Mustard tomorrow. I've also received my first seed order for next year. This includes climbers Thunbergia fragrens, Passiflora edulis and Clitoria ternatea and flowers Asclepias incarnata, Heliotrope 'Marine' and French Marigold 'Hero'.

Georgie