Gardening: Hints and Help!

Oh well Hosta, order a few catalogues and get ahead of the queue for Autumn orders! 

B2 hope you can identify the rose, I just did an online photo comparison but the dates might be wrong. It must be out there somewhere! I can see Dora has grown a bit. 

I don't know where you're based but David Austin Gardens  we did them whilst near Ironbridge, are worth a visit, if they're open at the mo, this from a non rose lover. Should be a lot to look at and if they haven't got it you can order potted or bare rooted. I bought a climber which was sent bare rooted at planting time, very easy.

Everything is very odd this year isn't it??

PS yes brue Dora is growing and developing a lovely personality, with plenty of cheek. Yesterday she charged round the garden with the pond net no damage done but the net has a couple of larger holes but a 4 foot bright blue cane followed 🤣.

Yes plenty of research on the rose, it's the dates!!

Garden is very productive this year, everything is growing and fruiting at a tremendous rate.  A first for us is, we have, for the first time ever a flowering peany.  I guess this is luck rather than judgement.  Now wondering whether this will be the start of a long term relationship

I'm picking our soft fruit now, the raspberries didn't get enough rain so they're not so good this year.

The farmshop has sent us some fresh turmeric in our "random" veggie box. Whilst stopping OH trying to grow it (he's done it before!) I've had to look up how to use it. Will try it in a curry this week. 

I sat watching a flock of sparrows munching on our early raspberries yesterday, little blighters. Need to net them really.

Still pondering on Bakers rose. I think I must have found around a dozen possibles now (I might list them with dates and photos) but I am now wondering if it might be a climber, which opens up a whole different avenue. Massive base, and such long strong shoots......🤔Driving me nuts🤪 

Meanwhile here, currently have most of mine now out, drowning in today’s downpour😢 When it slows I will nip out and cut some for house.

 Takethedogalong it definitely isn't a climber. I think its tall cos mum couldn't bend low to prune and it grew in a very full bed. In fact we were there today and you wouldn't have know it had been removed. No not weeds just healthy perennials.

Had our block paving blasted today. Got to be resanded and then sealed so not sure when my garden will look as it should again, it needs to be very dry to do it. Weve have lots of rain although beautiful blue sky now. 

Did anyone watch Gardeners World Friday 19 June? 

The lady gardener from Swansea who was born with shortened arms is a true inspiration to us all. A sports therapist by trade, she uses her feet to massage and garden. She also adapts things and tools to suit her needs. She manages a 1/3 of an acre garden with some help to cut grass and prune. Her big unable to overcome issue - no one makes foot gloves so sometimes jobs are a bit painful.

She's adapted wardrobe fittings to grow strawberries in the greenhouse this year as picking them from the ground with toes squashes them! Watching her plant out was amazing. 

Where there's a will there's a way!

My  daughter has ordered a ' Bathsheba ' from David Austin for Fathers Day , but will  arrive between 29 June to 3 July. So Job done. Thanks everyone for your help. 

It’s a lovely rose, sure you won’t be disappointed😁

'Mum and Dad's' rose is blooming beautifully. It was out for his birthday with several blooms. Sadly because of work it had been popped in a corner, finally got all the pots back onto patio but it was hot slow work this week!

I've posted several photos shows blooms and buds if you're interested. Some blooms have a white streak in a petal not all.

I'm really pleased with my efforts to keep it going. The same efforts seem to be paying off for 'the great daughters' rose I had more fears for that! As the leaves turned crispy twice but that too looks healthy and has several buds - it's called lovely lady and I'll post a photo once it actually blooms.

The stool over a pot on the right is to stop the puppy digging in it! More of mums bulbs, when I repositioned the pots I notice these were actually on the top of the soil. I repotted them, I expected to just rebury the bulbs but there were loads so I divided them half each for my brother and I and increased the pot size. All carefully watched by the youngest member of the family and then she found she could reach and dig 😲. I've used Holly prunings to good effect on the ground but have run out!