Still gathering and blooming

I'm sorry that the photo is slightly out of focus but these are Cucumber Richmond Green Apple. I've only grown one plant but it has been prolific and these four were picked yesterday. They are the size of large Kiwi fruits and are beautifully crunchy with a good flavour. I've run out of seed now so it will have to go on my wish list for next year. And the other edibles are performing just as well as I'm still picking plenty of Tomatoes, Physallis, Chillies and Raspberries.

A day of rain in the week meant I could no longer put off mowing and edging the grass but it wasn't enough to satisfy the container grown plants so they all got a thorough watering today. Nothing is going over yet and I'm getting a lovely late show of colour from Fuchsias, Nasturtiums, Laurentia, Heliotrope, Dianthus, Pelargoniums and even a few Dianthus and Sweet Peas. This is of course good news on the one hand, but things are getting rather desperate in the greenhouses because there are lots of small plants in there waiting to be planted out and they are outgrowing their pots. So I was left with no choice but to pot on Ox-eye Daisies, Solanum, Polemonium, Aquilegias, Hesperis, Euonymous and Cyclamen.

On the seed front I pricked out Aquilegia Clementine White, Digitalis Tinkerbell and Blue Fescue. I collected seeds from Hyssop, more Sweet Peas, Nasturtiums and Tomatoes and sowed a few more Pansies. I've also taken some Fuchsia and Bay cuttings. I just can't help myself!

Georgie

My experiments for next year

Well, my Myrtle is blooming as you can see from the photo: it's so pretty and it smells divine. And I've made my decision about my experimental plants for next year and yes, they are fruits.

The first will be Pepino (Melon Pear or Solanum muricatum) which I will be growing from seed from T&M. The second is Melon 'outdoor wonder' from Marshalls, as someone has kindly offered to send me a few seeds, and finally I might try a dwarf Apricot from Bakker, another recommendation from a gardening friend.

Georgie

Annuals, Bees, Berries and Seeds

Over the last few years I have steadily reduced the number of flowering annuals I grow but there will always be some that I simply have to have. The bee pictured here is on a Centratherum plant (technically a short lived perennial I believe but grown as an annual). This plant has surpassed my expectations: it's drought tolerant; forms nice bushy plants about 40-60cm high; has pineapple scented leaves; doesn't suffer from any pests or diseases: and is still covered in these lovely lavender coloured blooms which will go on until the first frosts. And as I have no success with Asters, I think it makes a very good substitute.

Other 'must have' annuals are Laurentia, Nasturtiums, Poppies and trailing Sweet Peas, all of which produce plenty of seed to save year on year. In addition to these plants I will also be growing Ipomoea and Calendula next year and (if I can find it) a dwarf Nicotiana to grow in containers. I love Nicotiana but the varieties I've tried in the past have just grown too tall.

This week I've sowed more Pansy (in the hope of getting more of the beautiful lavender flowers) and Sweet Cicely seeds, a new venture for me. Some of the Sweet Pea pods have gone dry and crisp so these have been harvested, with lots more to follow.

I made a dreadful mistake with the self-saved seeds of Tomato Whippersnapper. I'd read that if you leave them in water for a few days the pulp around the seed goes mouldy and floats to the top of the water, leaving behind clean seed. This seemed preferable to my previous method of rubbing them around in a metal sieve until my fingers are raw so I thought I'd give it a try. Sure enough, after a few days some of the pulp did float to the surface which I skimmed off but some was left behind so I left them for another couple of days. Imagine my horror when I checked them again to see that every one of them had begun to root!

Finally there are further signs of autumn approaching with lots of berries on the Ivy, Honeysuckle and Jasmine and huge orange fruits on the Passiflora. The birds are in for a treat.

Georgie

Enjoying my leave

The weather this week has been much better than forecast so I've been able to enjoy the first week of my fortnight's holiday pottering in my garden and visiting much grander ones.

The picture is of Myddleton House Gardens, the former home of plantsman EA Bowles. The garden is a modest four acres and I enjoyed a few hours wandering around in the sunshine marvelling particularly at all the beautiful trees. I'll definitely be going back in the autumn to enjoy the colours and again next spring to see the national Iris collection and the wild flower meadow. As I left I couldn't resist a look over the plants for sale and it seems that Myrtles are like buses, you wait for ages and then two come at once! After my 99p bargain last week there was another one shouting 'take me home' which I did, for the princely sum of £1.75. This one hasn't got any flower buds but it's nice and bushy so I just had to have it.

Yesterday I spent a couple of hours tidying up the front garden. The Pyracantha which my OH cut down to about 4 feet in the spring had shot up to about 8-10 feet again so that was given a further prune as was the Choisya Sundance and Lavender, both of which are growing too big for the space available. The whole thing needs a make over really but as we need new windows, I'll not do anything until next spring as I don't trust the builders not to trample on the plants. Then I think the Pyracantha and Choisya will have to go.

I've pricked out the Wallflowers which will be planted in containers with Tulips in autumn. I've also started potting up the Pansies in containers for some winter colour. There's lots more to do on that front including the hanging baskets.

When I was at the nursery last weekend I noticed that they are stocking a new Organic and peat free compost by Miracle Grow. It's not cheap at £4.99 for a 56 litre sack but I thought I'd give it a try. When I opened a sack yesterday the compost was black and crumbly with no unpleasant odour (unlike the New Horizon compost I bought earlier in the year which was woody with the odd sack smelling a bit unpleasant). I'll be using it for my spring containers so it'll be interesting to see how it fairs.

Georgie