November and December 2022

November

This has been a quiet month really, as I have not had the energy to do a great deal in the garden. To be fair, not very much needs doing either! The weather has been variable with torrential rain mid month leading to flooding of the lower parts of the garden and flood alerts and warnings from the environment agency. Nothing like a paddle in the middle of the night! Luckily, the worst we had was temporary puddles on the path, but it is good to know that the Environment Agency alert system works.

The broad beans that I sowed last month have germinated and are now about 8 inches tall; I may have a glut of beans next year. The plants that I have transplanted appear to have settled in too, so should bring some cheer to the borders next year. Of the two cheap plants bought at Morrisons, only the Clematis has survived. I may have to get another Cistus. I bought a reduced price Penstemon at a local garden centre, as well as a Camellia sasanqua; the latter was to remind me of my late sister who died at this time of year, and who liked pretty flowers. I have also planted snowdrops and fritillaries into pots for the spring.

After the storms the Gingko biloba has lost most of its leaves, so there is a carpet of butter-yellow leaves around the garden. Lovely! I also bought a min-max thermometer for the garden and have been tracking the daily temperature for the last couple of weeks; the temperatures have been unseasonably warm but are gradually dropping, although we haven't got anywhere near a freeze yet. It will be interesting to see the results over the coming year.

Jobs for this month may include building a log pile for wildlife, and seeing what else I can do to encourage wildlife into the garden - I have quite a good range in the garden already but it is always good to have more. I watched a presentation online about Creative Use of Rainwater in the Garden through Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trusts, and have come away thinking about rainwater planters and leaky waterbutts. Sounds mad, but actually makes ecological sense. A leaky waterbutt was easy to implement by knocking the chewing gum plug off the hole in ours! I need to improve this a little but it is a start.

Flowers this month have included:

Camellia sasanqua, Berberis darwinii, Daisy, Evening Primrose, Fuchsia, wild grasses, green Hellebores, Lavender, Toadflax, English Marigold, Rosemary, Spurge, Strawberry, Teucrium, Geranium endressii, Salvia 'Amethyst Lips', Verbena bonariensis, Penstemon, Rosa 'Brother Cadfael', Groundsel, and Dandelion.

December

I have done very little this month as the weather has either been pouring rain or solid frost when I have been free. The broad beans have severe frost damage so probably won't make it. Ah well, worth a try! I planted two varieties of garlic on Christmas Eve (Lautrec Wight and Carcassonne Wight) so hopefully they will do well. There's very little in flower now, just green hellebore, purple toadflax and a dandelion. I must add to the winter planting.

October 2022

Goodness, what a busy gardening month for me! The month started by pruning the blackberry and wineberry bushes and tying in new growth. I have had a fantastic crop of blackberries this year and there are many in the freezer along with apple and blackberry crumble.

I attended a talk locally by Charles Dowding, of 'No Dig' fame; this was very interesting as although I had heard of his system I had not read up on it and had it muddled in my head with permaculture, which is a different system altogether. Anyway, I left the talk all fired up and spent the following weekend covering the path in my vegetable garden (as was) with a thick layer of newspaper topped with a thick layer of bark chips. One of the vegetable patches was cleared of flowers and shrub cuttings -  these were all transplanted - and then topped with a thick layer of garden compost. All that was left was a rhubarb plant, which may not have survived the drought, and some English Marigolds which were still flowering profusely. They will be removed in due course. I also sowed some Broad Bean 'Aquadulce' into the bed, some of which are already germinating. 

 

The wildflower bed next to the vegetable patch was a mess, so I have weeded it, transplanted the Verbena bonariensis plants, cut back the Eupatorium, and tidied a few plants. I think I am going to build a wood pile there to further encourage beetles, frogs and toads, and perhaps hedgehogs, in the desperate hope that they will eat more of the flipping slugs! The Gingko biloba is also there and is turning a beautiful buttery yellow as it always does in autumn.

Around the rest of the garden I have been busy weeding and planting/ transplanting. I really haven't done much gardening until recently so the borders are all rather overgrown. I have planted a Cercis siliquastrum ("Judas Tree"), and a Sambucus nigra ("Elderflower") from pots, and have transplanted Verbena bonariensis, Phygelius capensis ("Cape Figwort"), Helleborus ("Hellebore"), Digitalis purpurea ("Foxglove"), and Prunella vulgaris ("Selfheal") to the side border, and a hebe to the border near the top patio. 

In the lean-to I have sown seeds of Papaver orientalis ("Oriental Poppy") and have hundreds germinating, Hollyhocks, Primula veris ("Cowslip") and Fritillaria. I also potted up a Cistus and a Clematis that I bought for 50p each at a local supermarket.

The month is ending with high winds and torrential rain (Storm Claudio), and the possible loss of the roof of my lean-to. The neighbour's fence is down.

Flowers this month included: 

Berberis darwinii, dandelions, evening primrose, Fuchsia, Fuchsia ' Bella Soila', Fuchsia magellanica alba, Geranium nodosum, groundsel, lavender, taodflax, English marigold, passion flower, penstemon, ragwort, rosemary, Sedum spectabile, strawberry, Teucrium, Verbena bonariensis, buttercups, Californian Poppy, fennel, Rosa rugosa alba, Cyclamen, hawkbit, lemon balm, Salvia 'Amethyst Lips', Scarlet pimpernel, Sow thistle, wood sorrel. 

My Garden Plants

My garden is a relatively small townhouse garden, perhaps the size of two allotments. There is quite a lot squeezed in and more will be added! I am sure I have missed things off this list.

Trees and Shrubs

1. Gingko biloba ("Maidenhair Tree")
2. Acer japonica ("Japanese Maple")
3. Ligustrum ("Privet Hedge")
4. Sambucus nigra ("Elderflower")
5. Berberis darwinii ("Barberry")
6. Cercis siliquastrum ("Judas Tree")
7. Crataegus monogyna ("Hawthorn")
8. Rosa rugosa alba ("Japanese Rose")
9. Rosa, climbing (Climbing rose, mauve flowers)
10. Rosa 'Brother Cadfael' (Shrub rose)
11. Rosa (pink patio rose)
12. Fuchsia magellanica alba 
13. Fuchsia 'Bella Soila'
14. Fuchsia 'Winston Churchill'
15. Fuchsia 'Mrs Popple' (possibly!)
16. Spiraea
17. Lavandula 'Munstead' ("Lavender")
18. Teucrium
19. Rosmarinus officionalis ("Rosemary")
20. Lonicera ("Climbing Honeysuckle")
21. Passiflora caerulea ("Passion Flower")
22. Hebe
23. Hydrangea
24. "Mallow"
25. Phygelius capensis ("Cape Figwort")
26. Hedera helix ("Common Ivy")

Herbaceous Annuals and Perennials

1. Bergenia 'Rotblum' ("Elephants Ears")
2. Agapanthus
3. Saponaria officionalis ("Soapwort")
4. Echinacea
5. Eupatorium
6. Linum ("Purple Toadflax")
7. Scabiosa ("Scabious")
8. "Wood Sorrel"
9. Astrantia
10. Osteospermum ("Cape Daisy")
11. Urtica dioica ("Stinging Nettle")
12. "Creeping Jenny"
13. Nepeta 'Six Hills Giant' ("Catnip")
14. Dianthus ("Pinks")
15. Orobanche hederacae (Ivy Broomrape)
16. Lampranthus
17. Convulvulus ("Hedge Bindweed")
18. "Selfheal"
19. "Enchanters Nightshade"
20. "Golden Rod"
21. Alchemilla mollis ("Ladies Mantle")
22. "Feverfew"
23. Eryngium 'Magical Blue Lagoon'
24. "Nipplewort"
25. "Evening Primrose"
26. Penstemon
27. Cephalaria gigantica ("Giant Scabious")
28. Hemerocallis ("Day Lily")
29. Potentilla
30. Senecio "Ragwort"
31. "Hawkweed"
32. Trifolium repens ("White Clover")
33. "Dock"
34. Various species of grass
35. Geranium (purple perennial)
36. Knautia macedonica
37. Plantago ("Narrow Leaved Plantain")
38. Salvia 'Amethyst Lips'
39. Verbena bonariensis
40. Papaver orientalis ("Oriental Poppy")
41. Celandine
42. Primula veris ("Cowslip")
43. Taraxacum officionale ("Dandelion")
44. Euphorbia (purple variety)
45. Myosotis ("Forget-me-not")
46. Cardamine hirsuta ("Hairy Bittercress")
47. Helleborus (green flowers)
48. Lunaria annua ("Honesty")
49. Lamium galeobdelon ("Variegated Deadnettle")
50. Pulmonaria vulgaris ("Lungwort")
51. Primula vulgaris ("Primrose")
52. Ajuga reptans ("Bugle")
53. Geranium, annual sp.
54. Lamium purpureum ("Red Deadnettle")
55. Anagalis arvensis ("Scarlet Pimpernel")
56. Ranunculus repens ("Creeping Buttercup")
57. Viola riviniana ("Dog Violet")
58. Bellis perennis ("Common Daisy")
59. Euphorbia, yellow flowers
60. Sedum, yellow flowers ("Stonecrop")
61. Aquilegia vulgaris ("Granny's Bonnets")
62. Erigeron karvinskianus ("Mexican Fleabane")
63. Iris germanica 'Oklahoma Bandit' ("Bearded Iris")
64. Veronica chamaedrys ("Speedwell")
65. Tiarella 'Iron Butterfly' (May have succombed to the drought)
66. Geranium robertianum ("Herb Robert")
67. Iris germanica 'Indian Chief' ("Bearded Iris")
68. Sonchus ("Sow Thistle")
69. Digitalis purpurea ("Foxglove")
70. Geranium macrorrhizum
71. Geranium endressii
72. Geum urbanum 
73. Heuchera
74. Geranium nodosum
75. Helianthemum ("Rock Rose")
76. Dianthus ("Sweet William")
77. Sisyrinchium alpinum
78. Sisyrinchium striatum
79. Campanula
80. Nigella ("Love-in-a-Mist")
81. Pelargonium
82. Euphorbia ("Spurge")
83. "Willowherb"
84. Sedum spectabile ("Ice Plant")
85. "Californian Poppy"
86. Sedum spectabile purpurea ("Purple Ice Plant")
87. "Perennial Sweet Pea"
88. Senecio vulgaris ("Groundsel")
89. "Hart's Tongue Fern"
90. Other fern

Herbs

1. "Winter Savory"
2. Mentha ("Mint")
3. Calendula officionalis ("English Marigold")
4. Foeniculum vulgare ("Fennel")
5. Melissa officionalis ("Lemon Balm")
6. Hyssopus officionalis ("Hyssop"
7. Chives
8. Oreganum ("Golden Oregano")

Bulbs

1. Bluebell
2. Allium triquitorum ("Three Cornered Leek")
3. Nectoscordum
4. Alliums (medium and large)
5. Gladiolus 'Jessica'
6. "Pineapple Lily"
7. Narcissus
8. Galanthus ("Snowdrop")
9. Crocus
10. Arum ("Lords and Ladies")

Perennial Fruit and Vegetables

1. Thornless Blackberry
2. Japanese Wineberry
3. Rhubarb
4. Strawberries
5. Wild Blackberry

Wildlife Survey 2022 - 23

I have decided to keep a log of any wildlife I find in the garden this year. It is not comprehensive, and may be poorly identified as I still have a lot to learn. I shall do my best though!

1. Bats - possibly pipistrelle
2. Woodlice - not pillbugs
3. Brown slugs - possibly Spanish slugs
4. Yellow slugs
5. Flies! Bright green, black, big, small....
6. Aphids
7. Brown moths
8. Common snail (Helix aspera)
9. Orb weaver spider (Araneus diadematus)
10. White orb spider
11. Mayfly
12. Leafcutter bees
13. Jumping spider (black and white stripy)
14. White tailed bumblebees
15. Cabbage white butterflies
16. Harvestman
17. Woodlouse spiders
18. Wolf spiders
19. Rose sawfly adults and larva
20. Common frog
21. Wasp queen (October and February)
22. Angle shades moth caterpillar
23. Earthworms
24. Slow worms
25. Tiger worms
26. Black beetles
27. Red and black true bugs (Corizus hyoscyami?)
28. Shield bugs
29. Blue tits
30. Sparrows
31. Herring gulls
32. Pigeons
33. Starlings
34. Blackbirds
35. Brown lipped snails
36. White lipped snails
37. Leopard Slugs 
38. Red ants
39. Brown ants
40. Cellar spiders
41. House spiders
42. Bee flies
43. Solitary bees
44. Honey bees
45. Blue butterflies
46. Red Admiral Butterfly
47. Peacock butterfly
48. Painted Lady butterfly
49. Comma butterfly
50. Brimstone butterfly

Slugs ID and slug control ideas

September 2022

Grass and wildflowers have burgeoned in the last few weeks with the grass turning from short and brown to long, luxurient green following cooler, wetter weather. I have cut the grass on the highest cut, just to tidy it up a bit. I also saw a frog just before I started mowing and didn't want to kill it by using a low cut setting. I did encourage it to move along but it disappeared among the lower stems. Frog camouflage is very effective. It is also great to see lots of seedlings coming up; so far I have spotted foxgloves, primula, geranium, and a lovely blue flowered annual whose name I have forgotten which probably won't survive the first frost. Fingers crossed that it does!

Brambles have been cut back by hand in the long hedge - next jobs include cutting the brambles in the high hedge back with the extending hedge trimmer.  I have cut back some perennials that have finished flowering, but not to ground level as stems may be useful for winter wildlife.

I spent an hilarious morning with a friend putting new roofing material on the shed. This involved standing on wobbly ladders, climbing on fences and ultimately climbing onto the roof itself, then sitting there enjoying the sunshine and scaring the neighbours! Great fun. Oh yes, we got to hit things with hammers too. Yay!

The thornless blackberry continued to be fruitful and I have picked and frozen several kilos of berries, made apple and blackberry crumble, and chutney. I have started cutting the fruiting stems back now and will tie in this year's canes soon. 

The compost bin needed dealing with so I emptied out the dustbin of mature compost and spread it under shrubs, then emptied the big bin. In the process I found three slow worms and lots of slugs, spiders and woodlice. Mature compost was put into the dustbin ( it has holes in) and a large bucket, and the new material was put back into the big bin. I always find compost bins fascinating.

I am slowly dealing with the paper bags full of seed heads that I have collected over the summer, and spent a very pleasant hour detaching honesty seeds from their papery seed capsules while also trying to get a photo of a high speed camera-shy woodlouse spider. I failed at the latter task. Many of the potted plants around the garden have been moved under the lean-to at the side of the shed so that they don't get too wet over the winter. I may make that area into a nursery, but not sure how as yet.

There is still plenty to do in October so I will be busy, depending on the weather and my energy levels!

Flowers this month:

Agapanthus, California Poppy, Hawkbit, Chives, White Clover, Dandelion, Echinacea, Evening Primrose, Fennel, Fuchsia, Fuchsia 'Bella Soila', Fuchsia 'Winston Churchill', Geranium nodosum, Geum urbanum, Golden Rod, Lemon Balm, Lavender, Toadflax, Mallow, Calendula officionalis, Passiflora caerulea, Pelargonium, Perennial Sweet Pea, Phygelius capensis, Penstemon, Ragwort, Red Deadnettle, Scarlet Pimpernel, Sedum spectabile, Sedum spectabile purpurea, Soapwort, Teucrium, Verbena bonariensis, Mexican Fleabane, Mint, Oregano, Willowherb, Wood Sorrel, Hyssop, Buttercup, Fuchsia magellanica alba, Sunflower.

August 2022

The drought continued until nearly the end of the month. when we had a huge thunderstorm and downpour and my water-butt went from empty to overflowing in about half an hour. There was flash flooding locally as water came down too fast to be absorbed by the parched ground. There was then more gentle but prolonged rain during the remainder of the month which had a chance to soak in. We are, however, still officially in drought conditions and the hosepipe ban continues. 

At the start of the month a lot of the garden was parched and browning, and I was only watering where absolutely essential. It was interesting to see which plants were coping well with the dry conditions and which weren't/ I thought my hydrangea had had it, as all the foliage died off and the flowers shrivelled, but after the rain and cooler conditions it started to sprout again. I just hope we don't have hard frosts as those would finish it off! Plants that did well include Fuchsias, Golden Rod, Mallow, Fennel, Rosa Rugosa, Teucrium, Sempervivum, Sedum, Lavender, Oregano, Mint, Passion Flower, Rosemary, and Lemon Balm. Many of these are native to hot, dry climates anyway so no great surprises. Many of the perennials have died back, but I have hopes that they will survive and resprout in the spring and run the gauntlet of the slugs! There were still a fair amount of flowers blooming which I will list later on.

Jobs have been fairly few and far between, mostly because it has simply been too hot, and also because there was a tent in the way for a few days as it was cooler to sleep outside at night than in the house. Anyway, jobs included moving potted plants to trays to minimise water loss and water could then be absorbed from the tray at the plants' leisure, deadheading and cutting back perennials as needed, potting up some pot bound succulents, and taking a large amount of non-compostable rubbish to the tip.

Flowers include:

Agapanthus, bindweed, blackberry, Hawksbit (previously named Cats Ear by me for some reason), white clover, fennel, enchanter's nightshade, echinacea, eupatorium, evening primrose, mexican fleabane, Fuchsia, Fuchsia 'Bella Soila', Fuchsia 'Winston Churchill', Geranium nodosum, Geranium endresii, lemon balm, Gladiolus 'Jessica', Honesty, hydrangea, lavender, toadflax, mallow, mint, oregano, passion flower, pineapple lily, cape figwort, penstemon, ragwort, Salvia 'Amethyst Lips', Scabious, Sisyrinchium striatum, soapwort, sweet william, teucrium, Verbena bonariensis, willowherb, Californian poppy, fennel, golden rod, hyssop, marigold, pelargonium, Sedum (yellow), Sedum spectabile, Sedum spectabile purpurea, spurge, perennial sweet pea, winter savory, wood sorrel, climbing rose, dandelion, and red deadnettle. 54 - not bad!

July 2022

This month has continued hot and and dry, with two of the hottest days on record recorded. There has been no rain, there are cracks in the soil, and my waterbutt has finally emptied, apart from the thick layer of sludge at the bottom. From the end of the week we will very likely have a hosepipe ban.

Most gardening jobs have taken place in the evening when the weather is marginally cooler. Jobs have included deadheading foxgloves and cowslips, saving seed from the latter, cutting back perennial geraniums and brambles, as well as part of the mallow which had snapped and fallen over. I have also had to throw out several potted plants that had succumbed to the heat and erratic watering. There is a lot of rubbish to take to the tip that cannot be composted at home. I have finally emptied the dustbin of rotted compost around the blackberry and the climbing rose, so will need to turn the big bin next month.

The Japanese Wineberry bush has produced a pleasing crop - I had forgotten how sticky they are, but they are delicious. The thornless blackberry is laden with unripe fruit so I am looking forward to harvesting them soon. I picked a kilo of berries from the wild bushes up a nearby lane today. They are my favourite fruit.

Flowers have been fairly abundant this month too! Over 60 varieties in flower over the month, which is not bad going for a small, somewhat neglected and slug-ravaged patch:

Alchemilla mollis, Astrantia, Blackberry, Cat's Ears, Cephalaria gigantica, White Clover, Creeping Jenny, Bellis perennis, Enchanters Nightshade, Eryngium 'Magical Blue Lagoon', Evening Primrose, Privet, Rosa 'Brother Cadfael', pink patio rose, Rosa rugosa, Tiarella 'Iron Butterfly', Fennel, Feverfew, Digitalis purpurea, Fuchsias, Geum urbanum, Grasses, Hebes, Hydrangea, Lemon Balm, Lavender, Purple Toadflax, Mallow, Salvia 'Amethyst Lips', Sweet William, Verbena bonariensis, Geranium nodosum, Pink Perennial Geranium, Calendula officionalis, Orobanche hederae, Passiflora caerulea, Pelargonium, Penstemon, Pinks, Potentilla, Sisyrinchium striatum, Spiraea, Strawberry, Teucrium, Willowherb, Helianthemum, Bindweed, Sedums, Scabious, Nigella, Self-heal, Ssoapwort, Sow Thistle, Spurge, Sweet Pea, Oreganum, Agapanthus, Echinacea, Lunaria annua, Plantain, Eupatorium, Gladiolus 'Jessica', Knautia macedonica, and Wood Sorrel.