Forking On The North Front.

MY PENNINE WAY PICTURE FOR TODAY

Foot bridge over Gilderdale Burn.

TODAYS WEATHER READINGS
Temp Low: 6C
Temp High: 14C
Feels Like: 7 to 13C
Precipitation: 0 mm
Wind Speed: 22 mph
Wind Direction: W
UV Index: Low
Weather: Mostly cloudy.

MY WORK BOOK

See to the sheep
Field
Misc
Tue 31/03/2009 08:00
Tue 31/03/2009 08:20
20 minutes
Checked and counted the sheep.

See to the greenhouses
Indoors
Tue 31/03/2009 08:20
Tue 31/03/2009 08:45
25 minutes
Took out the trolley, checked the seeds and seedlings and removed some dead leaves.

Planting
Veg garden
Walled Garden
Tue 31/03/2009 08:45
Tue 31/03/2009 10:30
1.75 hours
Planting out the garlic and sowed a row of Parsnips.

Break for tea
Home
Misc
Tue 31/03/2009 10:30
Tue 31/03/2009 10:45
15 minutes

Forking
North Front
Public Gardens
Tue 31/03/2009 10:45
Tue 31/03/2009 12:45
2 hours
Forking over the border by the lawn.

Break for lunch
Home
Misc
Tue 31/03/2009 12:45
Tue 31/03/2009 13:45
1 hour

Forking
North Front
Public Gardens
Tue 31/03/2009 13:45
Tue 31/03/2009 16:00
2.25 hours
Carried on from where I left off before lunch.

Sowing
Potting Shed
Indoors
Tue 31/03/2009 16:00
Tue 31/03/2009 16:45
45 minutes
Sowed Petunia, Sunflowers, Canterbury Bells, Cauliflower and Capsicum.

Seeing to the greenhouses
Greenhouse & Conservatory
Indoors
Tue 31/03/2009 16:45
Tue 31/03/2009 17:00
15 minutes
Closing the vents, also took some water to the earns on the south front.

Clean and put away the tools
Potting Shed
Indoors
Tue 31/03/2009 17:00
Tue 31/03/2009 17:20
20 minutes


BOB’S BANQUETS
Breakfast: 1 mug of tea and 3 Shredded Wheat
Tea Break: 1 mug of tea.
Lunch: 1 mug of tea, 4 toasted tea cakes.
Dinner: 1 glass of peach juice and tonic water, meat pie and veg.

COMMENTS FROM THE POTTING SHED
The Weaver of Grass I’m pleased to hear that your climbing rose is growing okay, roses are a lots tougher than people give them credit for. I saw somewhere a while ago that some organisation did trails on different pruning methods and it was clear that the best way to prune roses was with the hedge cutter! There were many more flowers than on the ones pruned in the normal way. I think it would be frowned upon if I were to take the hedge cutter to the ones at the big house though.

Hardening Off Trolley.

MY PENNINE WAY PICTURE FOR TODAY

Looking back to Alston.

A grand entrance that had seen much better days.

TODAYS WEATHER READINGS
Temp Low: 5C
Temp High: 12C
Feels Like: 4 to 11C
Precipitation: 0 mm
Wind Speed: 22 mph
Wind Direction: SW
UV Index: Moderate
Weather: Mostly cloudy.

MY WORK BOOK

See to the sheep
Field
Misc
Mon 30/03/2009 08:00
Mon 30/03/2009 08:20
20 minutes
Checked and counted the sheep.

See to the greenhouses
Greenhouse & Conservatory
Indoors
Mon 30/03/2009 08:20
Mon 30/03/2009 10:00
100 minutes
Watered round, put out the trolley and opened the vents as needed.

See to fire supplies
Cellar
Hall
Mon 30/03/2009 10:00
Mon 30/03/2009 10:30
30 minutes
Took up 8 baskets of logs and 1 bucket of coal.

Break for tea
Home
Misc
Mon 30/03/2009 10:30
Mon 30/03/2009 10:45
15 minutes
Forking
Rock Garden
Public Gardens
Mon 30/03/2009 10:45
Mon 30/03/2009 12:45
2 hours
Made a start on tidying up the rock garden area on the North Front.

Break for lunch
Home
Misc
Mon 30/03/2009 12:45
Mon 30/03/2009 13:45
1 hour

Forking
Rock Garden
Public Gardens
Mon 30/03/2009 13:45
Mon 30/03/2009 16:30
2.75 hours
Carried on from where I left off before lunch.

Clean and put away the tools.
Potting Shed
Indoors
Mon 30/03/2009 16:30
Mon 30/03/2009 16:45
15 minutes

Seeing to the greenhouses
Indoors
Mon 30/03/2009 16:45
Mon 30/03/2009 17:00
15 minutes
Closed the vents and take in the trolley. (Note1)


NOTE
1) I was asked the other day about the hardening off trolley so I took a picture of it for you. I use it to harden off plants before planting out. It spends the night in the conservatory and during the day it gets wheeled outside.



BOB’S BANQUETS
Breakfast: 1 mug of tea and 3 and a half Shredded Wheat
Tea Break: 1 mug of tea.
Lunch: 1 mug of tea, 4 egg sandwiches and an apple.
Dinner: 1 glass of peach juice and tonic water, meat pie and veg.

COMMENTS FROM THE POTTING SHED
Jeanette Yes I did watch the Grand Prix yesterday, it was a very exciting race. Yes you’re right about counting the lambs, I will count them separately from the ewes until they get bigger.
Kimmie It is nice to see the first lambs, when on the farm though it signalled the start of a very busy few weeks when I never had a minute to spare.
EB Yes the plant is Meadow Sweet. This is one of the sections of the walk that is mostly over farm land, it’s known as the ‘Tyne Gap’.
The Weaver of Grass The aphids were from the heated greenhouse, I don’t bother with them too much outside but in the greenhouse you have to watch them or they take over pretty quick when the place heats up.
Matron Actually I did take a picture of the lambs, it can be viewed on my ‘Gardener To The Big House’ blog at http://the-estate-gardeners-diary.blogspot.com/

The First Lambs

Today when I went to check on the sheep I discovered the first lambs of the season had been born at some point in the early morning.

Tonight my ears are driving me crazy, they must hve caught the sun at some point but I'm not sure when as I thought it had been cloudy for most of the day.

First Lambs

MY PENNINE WAY PICTURE FOR TODAY

Meadow Sweet by the river South Tyne.

Approaching Alston.

TODAYS WEATHER READINGS
Temp Low: 3C
Temp High: 11C
Feels Like: -2 to 6C
Precipitation: 0 mm
Wind Speed: 51 mph
Wind Direction: SW
UV Index: Low
Weather: Mostly cloudy and breezy.

MY WORK BOOK

See to the sheep
Field
Misc
Fri 27/03/2009 08:30
Fri 27/03/2009 08:50
20 minutes
Checked and counted the sheep. (Note 1)

See to greenhouses
Indoors
Fri 27/03/2009 08:50
Fri 27/03/2009 09:10
20 minutes
1) Checked the seeds.
2) Did some watering.
3) Put out the trolley.

Hoeing
Herb Garden
Walled Garden
Fri 27/03/2009 09:10
Fri 27/03/2009 10:10
1 hour
Hoed the gravel paths round the herb garden.

See to the logs and coal
Cellar
Hall
Fri 27/03/2009 10:10
Fri 27/03/2009 10:30
20 minutes
Took up 2 baskets of logs.

Break for tea
Home
Misc
Fri 27/03/2009 10:30
Fri 27/03/2009 10:50
20 minutes

Cleaning the pump.
Lily Pond
Walled Garden
Fri 27/03/2009 10:50
Fri 27/03/2009 11:40
50 minutes
Removed the filter and cleaned that and the nozzle.

Clearing rubbish
Herb Garden
Walled Garden
Fri 27/03/2009 11:40
Fri 27/03/2009 12:40
1 hour
Raked the gravel paths.

Break for lunch
Home
Misc
Fri 27/03/2009 12:40
Fri 27/03/2009 13:30
50 minutes

Pruning
Potting Shed
Walled Garden
Fri 27/03/2009 13:30
Fri 27/03/2009 15:30
2 hours
Pruned the Hydrangeas behind the potting shed.

Weeding
Rose garden
Walled Garden
Fri 27/03/2009 15:30
Fri 27/03/2009 16:00
30 minutes
Weeded between some of the paving stones as there a few big weeds starting to grow.

Spraying
Greenhouse
Indoors
Fri 27/03/2009 16:00
Fri 27/03/2009 16:30
30 minutes
Spray some plants infected with aphids.

See to the bins
Hall
Misc
Fri 27/03/2009 16:30
Fri 27/03/2009 16:40
10 minutes
Put the recycle tubs back.

Clean and put away the tools.
Potting Shed
Indoors
Fri 27/03/2009 16:40
Fri 27/03/2009 17:00
20 minutes

Seeing to the greenhouses
Greenhouse & Conservatory
Indoors
Fri 27/03/2009 17:00
Fri 27/03/2009 17:15
15 minutes
Closed the vents, put on the heaters and put the trolley in to the conservatory.



NOTE
1) This morning when I checked on the sheep I discovered the first lambs of the season.

BOB’S BANQUETS
Breakfast: 1 mug of tea and 3 Shredded Wheat
Tea Break: 1 mug of tea.
Lunch: 1 mug of tea, 4 cheese sandwiches
Dinner: 1 glass of peach juice and tonic water, fish and chips.

COMMENTS FROM THE POTTING SHED
EB Luckily for everyone here I won’t ever get to meet the queen but if I did she would probably be curious as to what I had in my sandwiches at lunch time!
Jeanette It must take a while to get back on your feet after a bad loss like you had. You just have to give it time.
Red Clover I already did the cuttings post, it’s posted for last Wednesday at http://the-estate-gardeners-diary.blogspot.com/ The post is actually for Dahlia’s but just do Geraniums in the same way but leave off the plastic bag.

Dahlia's From Tubers & Seed.

Dirt Princess said...
I am a bit confused...are these the same dahlias with bulbs, or no bulbs? I have seen dahlias you plant from seed and bulbs.

The dahlia cuttings I showed you yesterday were taken from bulbs (tubers). These tubers were dug up last year and stored in peat in a frost free place and then brought in to growth in February. The tubers are several years old. The reason for the cuttings are mainly to increase the stock of a particular variety. When I buy new dahlias I just buy the one and grow it on for a year and then take cuttings from it the following year. See below for the dahlias with tubers, boxed and starting to send up new shoots.

Also you can grow dahlias from seed very easily but they are just the same sort of dahlia as the ones with tubers, if you keep the seedlings long enough they too will form tubers, this will happen over the course of the summer. Below is a picture of the bedding dahlias I have growing from seed.

If you want to know anything else just ask.
Bob.

Bob's Banquets.

MY PENNINE WAY PICTURE FOR TODAY
More flowers from along the banks of the river South Tyne.

TODAYS WEATHER READINGS
Temp Low: 4C
Temp High: 14C
Feels Like: -3 to 9C
Precipitation: 3 mm
Wind Speed: 53 mph
Wind Direction: SW
UV Index: Low
Weather: Sunny and breezy.

MY WORK BOOK

See to the sheep
Field
Misc
Thu 26/03/2009 08:30
Thu 26/03/2009 08:50
20 minutes
1) Took across some hay.
2) Checked and counted the sheep.

See to the greenhouse work
Indoors
Thu 26/03/2009 08:50
Thu 26/03/2009 10:00
70 minutes
1) Checked the seedlings.
2) Did some watering.
3) Put out the hardening off trolley.
4) Potted up a few plants.

Forking
Conservatory
Indoors
Thu 26/03/2009 10:00
Thu 26/03/2009 10:30
30 minutes
Made a start on forking over the cut flower borders in the old part of the conservatory.

Break for tea
Home
Misc
Thu 26/03/2009 10:30
Thu 26/03/2009 10:50
20 minutes

Forking
Conservatory
Indoors
Thu 26/03/2009 10:50
Thu 26/03/2009 12:45
115 minutes
Continued forking conservatory borders also planted more sweet peas and top dressed grape vines with blood fish and bone meal.

Break for lunch
Home
Misc
Thu 26/03/2009 12:45
Thu 26/03/2009 13:30
45 minutes

Continued work in the conservatory
Conservatory
Indoors
Thu 26/03/2009 13:30
Thu 26/03/2009 16:45
3.25 hours
1) Washed down the glass as it was green in places.
2) Split up a few of the plants growing in the borders.
3) Finished planting the sweet peas.
4) Forked over the rest of the borders.
5) Swept and hosed down the path.

Seeing to greenhouse work
Greenhouse & Conservatory
Indoors
Thu 26/03/2009 16:45
Thu 26/03/2009 17:00
15 minutes
1) Closed down the vents.
2) Put on the heaters.
3) Took in the hardening off trolley.

Clean and put away the tools
Potting Shed
Indoors
Thu 26/03/2009 17:00
Thu 26/03/2009 17:15
15 minutes

See to the bins
Hall
Misc
Thu 26/03/2009 17:15
Thu 26/03/2009 17:30
15 minutes
Took back the black bins and put out the recycle tubs.


NOTE
1) Although I have classed work in the old part of the conservatory as being indoors in actual fact its more outdoors than indoors due to the fact that although it has all its walls there is no longer any roof so I guess you could say that it was inside out.
2) Due to popular demand Bob’s Banquets are back. To avoid intrusion in to my work book I’ve decided to list the contents of my trough in its very own section so all those who are interested see below.

BOB’S BANQUETS
Breakfast: 1 mug of tea and 3 Shredded Wheat
Tea Break: 1 mug of tea.
Lunch: 1 mug of tea, 1 bowl of homemade leek and potato soup, 2 slices of bread, and 4 slices of malt loaf.
Dinner: 1 glass of peach juice and tonic water, mashed potatoes, peas, fish fingers and parsley sauce.

COMMENTS FROM THE POTTING SHED
Sara you will be pleased to see that taken heed of your wishes.

Jim The garden centre is only a couple of miles down the road, I did feel a bit guilty that it took me an hour actually but I checked out a few other things while I was there so it took a bit longer than it need have done. I’m glad you’re still enjoying the pictures from the Pennine Way. I’m not really sure what was going on with the roses, I don’t think they actually took anything just either left it on the floor or still half attached to the rose bush which has resulted in quite a bit of die back in places due to the fact that it wasn’t pruned back to a bud.

Another Seed Sowing Day

MY PENNINE WAY PICTURE FOR TODAY
Flowers along the river South Tyne

TODAYS WEATHER READINGS
Temp Low: 5C
Temp High: 13C
Feels Like: 1 to 9C
Precipitation: 2 mm
Wind Speed: 82 mph
Wind Direction: NW
UV Index: Low
Weather: Sunny with showers.

MY WORK BOOK


See to the sheep
Field
Misc
Wed 25/03/2009 08:30
Wed 25/03/2009 08:50
20 minutes
Checked and counted the sheep.

See to greenhouse work
Indoors
Wed 25/03/2009 08:50
Wed 25/03/2009 09:00
10 minutes
Checked round and put out hardening off trolley

Sowing seeds
Potting Shed
Indoors
Wed 25/03/2009 09:00
Wed 25/03/2009 10:45
1.75 hours
Sowed Tomato (2 types), cabbage (red and green), salad rocket, lettuce, beetroot, mangetout, nicotiana, radish, carrots.

Break for tea
Home
Misc
Wed 25/03/2009 10:45
Wed 25/03/2009 11:00
15 minutes

Shopping
Garden Centre
Misc
Wed 25/03/2009 11:00
Wed 25/03/2009 12:00
1 hour
Bought
1) 3x 70 litre bags of compost.
2) 1 Miracle-gro.
3) 1 bucket of pelleted chicken manure.
4) 1 box of blood fish and bonemeal.

Pricking out
Potting Shed
Indoors
Wed 25/03/2009 12:00
Wed 25/03/2009 12:45
45 minutes
Pricked out Busy Lizzies.

Break for lunch
Home
Misc
Wed 25/03/2009 12:45
Wed 25/03/2009 13:30
45 minutes

Sowing
Potting Shed
Indoors
Wed 25/03/2009 13:30
Wed 25/03/2009 15:00
1.5 hours
Sowed snapdragon and marigold, sunflower and cucumber.

Moved some plants from the greenhouse to the conservatory
Greenhouse & Conservatory
Indoors
Wed 25/03/2009 15:00
Wed 25/03/2009 16:00
1 hour

See to the bins
Hall
Misc
Wed 25/03/2009 16:00
Wed 25/03/2009 16:20
20 minutes
Potting
Potting Shed
Indoors
Wed 25/03/2009 16:30
Wed 25/03/2009 16:45
15 minutes

Clean and put away the tools
Potting Shed
Indoors
Wed 25/03/2009 16:45
Wed 25/03/2009 17:00
15 minutes

COMMENTS FROM THE POTTING SHED
EB I think I’m in the one job where amateurs tell the professionals how to do their job. They read a book by the RHS or watch Gardeners World and they think they know what they’re talking about. If the makers of Gardeners World were true professionals they wouldn’t break up for the winter and have school teacher’s holidays in summer. I would like to see someone tell a plumber how to mend a pipe but that’s what I get all the time so don’t worry too much about the poor garden owners feeling left out of their own gardens, believe me it isn’t the case at all. I don’t think that the phantom rose pruner has anything to do with the owners as the boss seemed as puzzled about it as I when I told him and the lady of the house asked me to show her how to dead head roses last summer and she did the job properly afterwards and cleared away the rubbish so I don’t think it was her unless she forgot what I told her.
salina Thank you, I’m sorry I’ve been a bit slow at checking my mail of late, I send you my address this morning so I hope everything is okay now.
The Weaver of Grass I’m keeping my fingers crossed for your rose, it may take a while to shoot if it’s from old wood. I will have to take a look at your PW picture and see if I can guess where it is.
Matron Oh my goodness my menu’s sure spark an interest, I think I’m going to skip the garden entries and just write about what I have for dinner! I just stopped writing what I have because for one thing I thought it would be boring you all after 3 months of ‘1 mug of tea, 4 jam sandwiches and a piece of cake’ secondly this is supposed to be a copy of my work book and I don’t put in there what I have for lunch. But if you’re all so interested I will bring it back, by popular demand so to speak. Tonight for dinner I had 1 glass of peach juice and tonic, 1 bowl of home make leek and potato soup with 3 slices of bread.

Taking Dahlia Cuttings.

A while ago I said that I would show you how I take dahlia cuttings, this also applies to certain other plants that will root from softwood cuttings. First of all you need to make sure you take the cutting from new growth and preferably with no flower, if you do end up with a flower attached pinch it off. You really want to be taking the cutting from just above a joint in the stem so that you have new growth of 3 to 4 inches long as below. The number 5 on the label you see is just to tell me the name of the dahlia. Rather than having to write Border Princess on every label I find it easier to give each variety a number as its easier to write down. I have a paper with the list of names plus a picture of the flower and the number I've given it so all I have to do to see what number 5 looks like is look it up on the paper. In this case Number 5 is actually 'My Love' and is medium sized white dahlia.

Once you have your material take it to a hard surface and trim off the stem to just below a joint as in the picture below. Use a very sharp knife as the cut needs to be a clean as possible. I use a modeling scalpel.

When you've cut off the stem below a joint remove the lower leaves leaving just 1 or 2 big leaves plus the growing tip as in the picture below. You can also see from this picture that the cuttings are about 3 inches in length.

Now fill a small pot with compost, I use a mix of half potting compost and half sharp sand but if you don't have the sand just compost will do, try not to over water it though. I add the sand to help drainage. Now push the cuttings in around the edge of the pot as you see in the picture below and then gently firm them in before adding a little water. They then need to be put somewhere bright and warm but out of direct sunlight. I pu mine in the warm greenhouse behind taller plants. A window sill in the house should be okay provided it doesn't et full sun on it.

A good idea with some plants is to put them inside a plastic bag as below. You do have to be careful of rotting if you do this though and its not something I would do with such as geraniums which are prone to rotting off at the best of times. It does seem to help with dahlia's though as they tend to droop all over the sides of the pots if not done like this.

Phantom Rose Pruner.

MY PENNINE WAY PICTURE FOR TODAY

Garrigill Village

River South Tyne

TODAYS WEATHER READINGS
Temp Low: 3C
Temp High: 10C
Feels Like: 1 to 6C
Precipitation: 0 mm
Wind Speed: 45 mph
Wind Direction: W
UV Index: Low
Weather: Sunny becoming cloudy later.

MY WORK BOOK

Seeing to the sheep
Field
Misc
Tue 24/03/2009 08:30
Tue 24/03/2009 08:50
20 minutes
Checked and counted the sheep.

Seeing to greenhouse work
Greenhouse & Conservatory
Indoors
Tue 24/03/2009 08:50
Tue 24/03/2009 09:15
25 minutes
1) Swept the path in the old conservatory.
2) Did some watering.


Took some cuttings
Potting Shed
Indoors
Tue 24/03/2009 09:15
Tue 24/03/2009 10:00
45 minutes
Took cuttings of dahlia’s and busy lizzie

Planting
Potting Shed
Indoors
Tue 24/03/2009 10:00
Tue 24/03/2009 10:30
30 minutes
Re-did the window box for Pumpend. Put in new plants as they thought the others were too bashed about. I think they will recover okay and so potted them up for now.

Break for tea
Home
Misc
Tue 24/03/2009 10:30
Tue 24/03/2009 10:50
20 minutes

Pruning
North Front
Public Gardens
Tue 24/03/2009 10:50
Tue 24/03/2009 12:15
85 minutes
Pruned all the roses. (Note 1)

Pruning
Tower Cottage
Public Gardens
Tue 24/03/2009 12:15
Tue 24/03/2009 12:45
30 minutes
Pruned the roses in the lawn.

Break for lunch
Home
Misc
Tue 24/03/2009 12:45
Tue 24/03/2009 13:45
1 hour

Hoeing
North Front
Public Gardens
Tue 24/03/2009 13:45
Tue 24/03/2009 15:15
1.5 hours
Top dressed rose beds with bone meal before hoeing in.

Planting
Veg garden
Walled Garden
Tue 24/03/2009 15:15
Tue 24/03/2009 16:15
1 hour
Planted some Asparagus.

Planting
Veg garden
Walled Garden
Tue 24/03/2009 16:15
Tue 24/03/2009 17:00
45 minutes
Planting peas and broad beans.

Clean and put away the tools
Potting Shed
Indoors
Tue 24/03/2009 17:00
Tue 24/03/2009 17:15
15 minutes


NOTE
1) It would seem we have a phantom rose pruner on the lose because when I went to prune the roses I found old stems littering the ground around them. I don’t mind, next time though can you take away the prunings and be sure to prune them back to a bud because as they were it looked like they’d been pruned with a machete! As you can just make out from the picture below many of the stems were still hanging on by a thread, some even being hacked at several times so I don't know whats been going on there, it was obviously done by someone with no knowledge of gardening.


COMMENTS FROM THE POTTING SHED
The Weaver of Grass I took the sheep a bit of hay across but it seems they’re finding enough grass to eat now as they had some hay left, they also have some sugar beet.

Window Box Woes.

TODAYS WEATHER READINGS
Temp Low: 3C
Temp High: 11C
Feels Like: -6 to 5C
Precipitation: 0 mm
Wind Speed: 69 mph
Wind Direction: NW
UV Index: Low
Weather: Wind and cold .

MY WORK BOOK

See to the sheep
1) Took across some hay.
2) Checked and counted the sheep.

See to greenhouse work
Potting Shed
Indoors
Mon 23/03/2009 08:50
Mon 23/03/2009 10:00
70 minutes
Picked out 180 Petunia seedlings.

Seeing to a window box
Kitchen window
Pumpend
Mon 23/03/2009 10:00
Mon 23/03/2009 10:30
30 minutes
The wind blew off the window box during the night.

Shopping
Home
Indoors
Mon 23/03/2009 10:45
Mon 23/03/2009 11:45
1 hour
Ordering a few additional seeds.

Tidying
Potting Shed
Indoors
Mon 23/03/2009 11:45
Mon 23/03/2009 12:45
1 hour

Break for lunch
Home
Misc
Mon 23/03/2009 12:45
Mon 23/03/2009 13:30
45 minutes

Seeing to greenhouse work
Potting Shed
Indoors
Mon 23/03/2009 13:30
Mon 23/03/2009 15:00
1.5 hours
Picked out 180 Petunia seedlings.

Feeding
Lawn
Main Garden
Mon 23/03/2009 15:00
Mon 23/03/2009 16:45
1.75 hours
Applied some liquid feed to the grass where the worst of the chaffer grub damage is in the hope it will help the grass recover a little.

Clean and put away the tools
Potting Shed
Indoors
Mon 23/03/2009 16:45
Mon 23/03/2009 17:00
15 minutes

COMMENTS FROM THE POTTING SHED
Red Clover I will tell you how to take geranium cuttings in a blog post on my other blog, it’s the same as taking Dahlia cuttings. I took the pics for the post the other day but I’m not in much of a mood for this at the moment but I will get too it as soon as I can.
The Weaver of Grass I agree with the farmer although its not really the best way to treat a climbing rose, I doubt any harm will come of it though. More likely it will encourage it to put out lots of new growth.
Jeanette Maybe you can show us some pics of your primula’s when they get to flowering.
dinzie Our temps have cooled down no end over the weekend, today has been bitter because of the strong wind from the north west.

Barn Wall Border Work.

MY PENNINE WAY PICTURE FOR TODAY

Gregg's Hut

The Way Off Cross Fell.

TODAYS WEATHER READINGS
Temp Low: 3C
Temp High: 12C
Feels Like: 3 to 12C
Precipitation: 0 mm
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind Direction: E
UV Index: Low
Weather: Cloudy and cool.

MY WORK BOOK

See to the sheep
Field
Misc
Thu 19/03/2009 08:30
Thu 19/03/2009 08:45
15 minutes
Checked and counted the sheep

See to greenhouse work
Indoors
Thu 19/03/2009 08:45
Thu 19/03/2009 10:15
1.5 hours
1) Watered round.
2) Took some geranium cuttings.

Break for tea
Home
Misc
Thu 19/03/2009 10:15
Thu 19/03/2009 10:45
30 minutes

Pruning
Barn Wall Border
Main Garden
Thu 19/03/2009 10:30
Thu 19/03/2009 12:45
2.25 hours
Pruning the bushes in the barn wall border, there are also some old neglected roses that need training on the wall.

Break for lunch
Home
Misc
Thu 19/03/2009 12:45
Thu 19/03/2009 13:30
45 minutes

Forking
Barn Wall Border
Main Garden
Thu 19/03/2009 13:30
Thu 19/03/2009 16:30
3 hours
Finished tying the roses in to the wall then top dressed the border with bone meal before putting a new edge to the grass and forking over the border. I haven’t finished yet but I don’t think I will get to it tomorrow as I have other things need doing before the weekend

Clearing away rubbish
Barn Wall Border
Main Garden
Thu 19/03/2009 16:30
Thu 19/03/2009 16:45
15 minutes
Cleared away what was left of the days rubbish.

Clean and put away the tools
Potting Shed
Indoors
Thu 19/03/2009 16:45
Thu 19/03/2009 17:00
15 minutes

Seeing to the bins
Hall
Misc
Thu 19/03/2009 17:00
Thu 19/03/2009 17:15
15 minutes
Took back the wheelie bin and put out Franks recycle tub.

NOTE
COMMENTS FROM THE POTTING SHED
Sara Polyanthus prefer some shade in the summer, in winter or spring they are okay in the open.
Kimmie The sick sheep seemed a little better this morning although knowing sheep that doesn’t mean it’s getting better as they sometimes like to do that before they die. I could tell there was something wrong with it because it was laid on its own and when I got it to its feet it didn’t want to move around very much.
The Weaver of Grass Its like the farmer with his plough, he will always clean and grease the bodies before storing it because he knows it will make a better job and be easier to use the next time he comes to use it. I clean off and oil everything before its put away every night, its the way I’ve been taught from when I was at Chatsworth House Gardens.

UV Index Moderate (That's a first).

MY PENNINE WAY PICTURE FOR TODAY
Two pictures from Cross Fell - yes it relly was July!

TODAYS WEATHER READINGS
Temp Low: 0C
Temp High: 14C
Feels Like: 3 to 17C
Precipitation: 0 mm
Wind Speed: 6 mph
Wind Direction: W
UV Index: Moderate (That’s a first for this year!)
Weather: Sunny

MY WORK BOOK

See to the sheep
Field
Misc
Tue 17/03/2009 08:30
Tue 17/03/2009 09:00
30 minutes
Checked and counted the sheep. One of them looked to be a bit off colour.

See to the greenhouse work
Potting Shed
Indoors
Tue 17/03/2009 09:00
Tue 17/03/2009 10:00
1 hour
Checked round, took some dahlia cuttings, did some watering and potted on a geranium.

Break for tea
Home
Misc
Tue 17/03/2009 10:00
Tue 17/03/2009 10:20
20 minutes

Forking
Flower border
Main Garden
Tue 17/03/2009 10:20
Tue 17/03/2009 12:45
145 minutes
Break for lunch
Home
Misc
Tue 17/03/2009 12:45
Tue 17/03/2009 13:30
45 minutes

See to the sheep
Field
Misc
Tue 17/03/2009 13:30
Tue 17/03/2009 13:50
20 minutes
Looked in on the sheep that I think is sick.

Edging
Flower border
Main Garden
Tue 17/03/2009 13:50
Tue 17/03/2009 14:15
25 minutes

Forking
Flower border
Main Garden
Tue 17/03/2009 14:15
Tue 17/03/2009 16:45
2.5 hours
Finished off forking over the border.

Clean and put away the tools
Potting Shed
Indoors
Tue 17/03/2009 16:30
Tue 17/03/2009 16:45
15 minutes

See to the greenhouse work
Conservatory, Greenhouse
Wed 18/03/2009 08:50
Wed 18/03/2009 09:20
30 minutes
Checked round and put out the plants hardening off on the trolley.

Seeing to the sheep
Field
Misc
Wed 18/03/2009 08:30
Wed 18/03/2009 08:50
20 minutes
Took across a bag of minerals, put some in the trough and the rest in the bucket for use later.

Painting
Summerhouse
Misc
Wed 18/03/2009 09:00
Wed 18/03/2009 10:30
1.5 hours
Undercoating one of the benches.

Break for tea
Home
Misc
Wed 18/03/2009 10:30
Wed 18/03/2009 10:50
20 minutes

Pruning
Blue Spruce Border
Main Garden
Wed 18/03/2009 10:50
Wed 18/03/2009 12:45
115 minutes
Pruned what shrubs I could.

Break for lunch
Home
Misc
Wed 18/03/2009 12:45
Wed 18/03/2009 13:30
45 minutes

Forking
Window borders
Main Garden
Wed 18/03/2009 13:30
Wed 18/03/2009 16:00
2.5 hours
1) Pruned the roses.
2) Applied bone meal.
3) Forked over the soil.
4) Mulched with compost.

Planting
Rose garden
Walled Garden
Wed 18/03/2009 16:00
Wed 18/03/2009 16:30
30 minutes
I had some Polyanthus and Pansies in pots so I used them to plant up a stone trough in the rose garden. (Note 1).

Cleaned and put away the tools
Potting Shed
Indoors
Wed 18/03/2009 16:30
Wed 18/03/2009 16:45
15 minutes

Seeing to the greenhouses
Greenhouse & Conservatory
Indoors
Wed 18/03/2009 16:45
Wed 18/03/2009 17:15
30 minutes
Closing the vents and putting away the hardening off trolley.

See to the bins
Hall
Misc
Wed 18/03/2009 17:00
Wed 18/03/2009 17:10
10 minutes
Put out two green bins


NOTE
1) I got to thinking today what a good plant Polyanthus are. The ones in the wall have been flowering all winter, even through the snowy period and now they’re getting even better. They are similar to Primula’s but rather than a lot of little stems with a flower on the top you get one stem with lots of flowers on it. I prefer Polyanthus to Primula’s because of this longer stem. I would certainly recommend them for winter/spring bedding.

COMMENTS FROM THE POTTING SHED

EB I wouldn’t give up on Dahlia’s if I were you Emily as they will reward you with flowers all summer long whether it be wet or dry. I’m not sure how you killed yours off as they never give me any trouble at all. I’ve grown some bedding ones from seed this year and they’ve come up as easy as anything and will soon be ready for pricking out.
Red Clover No you don’t have to wait until the last frost to plant them, you need to plant them several weeks before, it will take the shoots about 3 or 4 weeks to start poking through. If you do get shoots through and there is a risk of frost just cover them with something for the night. The tubers will be fine under the soil so it’s just the shoots you have to think about.
The Weaver of Grass I have plenty of moss in places but I don’t bother too much, I always think it feels nice to walk or lie on to be honest and its certainly preferable to the darn chaffer grubs.

The Allett Mower

MY PENNINE WAY PICTURE FOR TODAY
High Cup

Approaching Dufton

TODAYS WEATHER READINGS
Temp Low: 3C
Temp High: 14C
Feels Like: 0 to 14C
Precipitation: 0 mm
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind Direction: W
UV Index: Low
Weather: Times of cloud and sun.

MY WORK BOOK

See to the sheep
Field
Misc
Mon 16/03/2009 08:30
Mon 16/03/2009 09:00
30 minutes
1) Took across some hay.
2) Checked and counted the sheep.
3) Put out some minerals.
4) Check the water was okay.

See to greenhouse work
Potting Shed
Indoors
Mon 16/03/2009 09:00
Mon 16/03/2009 10:30
1.5 hours
Sowed, Celery, Aubergine, Melon, Lettuce, Broad Beans, Peas.
Planted some new Dahlia tubers and pricked out Chilli Peppers. (Note 1).

Forking
Flower border
Main Garden
Mon 16/03/2009 10:45
Mon 16/03/2009 12:45
2 hours
Continued to work on the flower border.

Break for lunch
Home
Misc
Mon 16/03/2009 12:45
Mon 16/03/2009 13:30
45 minutes

Forking
Flower border
Main Garden
Mon 16/03/2009 13:30
Mon 16/03/2009 16:30
3 hours

Close greenhouses
Greenhouse
Indoors
Mon 16/03/2009 16:30
Mon 16/03/2009 16:45
15 minutes

Clean and put away the tools
Potting Shed
Indoors
Mon 16/03/2009 16:45
Mon 16/03/2009 17:00
15 minutes

NOTE
1) The new Dahlia tubers are some that me and Vicki bought the other weekend so what I do is grow them on at work and then take some cuttings from them for the hall gardens for letting me grow them on in their greenhouses that way everyone is a winner.

COMMENTS FROM THE POTTING SHED
EB Yes you’re right, the Allett mower is a beast. It has a 36 inch cut and weights nearly half a ton.

Jeanette Such times are always sad ones, it comes to us all though which is why we have to enjoy it while we can. I hope everything goes as well as it can for you all.

Flower Border

MY WORK BOOK

See to the sheep
Field
Misc
Fri 13/03/2009 08:30
Fri 13/03/2009 08:45
15 minutes
Checked and counted the sheep.

Reset the mole trap
Tower cottage
Public Gardens
Fri 13/03/2009 08:45
Fri 13/03/2009 09:00
15 minutes

See to greenhouse work
Potting Shed
Indoors
Fri 13/03/2009 09:00
Fri 13/03/2009 10:00
1 hour
Took some Geranium cuttings for Pumpend wall.

Cleaned down a bench
Summer House
Misc
Fri 13/03/2009 10:00
Fri 13/03/2009 10:45
45 minutes
I have to paint the bench from the rose garden so was wire brushing prior to undercoating it.

Break for tea
Home
Misc
Fri 13/03/2009 10:45
Fri 13/03/2009 11:00
15 minutes

Forking
Flower Border
Main Garden
Fri 13/03/2009 11:00
Fri 13/03/2009 12:45
1.75 hours
Made a start on tidying up the flower border.
Top dressed with pelleted chicken manure before forking over and applying a mulch of leaf mould.

Break for lunch
Home
Misc
Fri 13/03/2009 12:45
Fri 13/03/2009 13:30
45 minutes

Forking
Flower border
Main Garden
Fri 13/03/2009 13:30
Fri 13/03/2009 15:30
2 hours
Carried on as before lunch.

Watering and feeding
Indoors
Fri 13/03/2009 15:30
Fri 13/03/2009 16:30
1 hour
Watered all indoor plants with Miracle gro.

A Sowing Day

MY WORK BOOK

See to the sheep
Field
Misc
Thu 12/03/2009 08:30
Thu 12/03/2009 08:45
15 minutes
Checked and counted the sheep.

Reset the mole trap
Tower cottage
Public Gardens
Thu 12/03/2009 08:45
Thu 12/03/2009 09:00
15 minutes
One of the traps had gone off but the was nothing in it.

See to greenhouse work
Potting Shed
Thu 12/03/2009 09:00
Thu 12/03/2009 10:30
1.5 hours
Sowed
1) Petunia Light Lavender
2) Petunia Pearly.
3) Petunia Pink.
4) Petunia Baby Duck Yellow.
5) Dahlia Violet Shades.
6) Impatiens White.
7) Basil.

Break for tea
Home
Misc
Thu 12/03/2009 10:30
Thu 12/03/2009 10:45
15 minutes

Forking
West Shrub Border
Walled Garden
Thu 12/03/2009 10:45
Thu 12/03/2009 12:45
2 hours
Continued to fork over the shrub border.

Break for lunch
Home
Misc
Thu 12/03/2009 12:45
Thu 12/03/2009 13:30
45 minutes

Mowing
Lawn
Main Garden
Thu 12/03/2009 13:30
Thu 12/03/2009 16:00
2.5 hours

See to the bins
Hall
Misc
Thu 12/03/2009 16:00
Thu 12/03/2009 16:15
15 minutes
Put the black bins back and put out Franks recycle tub.

Forking
West Shrub Border
Walled Garden
Thu 12/03/2009 16:15
Thu 12/03/2009 16:45
30 minutes
Finished forking the shrub border.

Clean and put away the tools
Potting Shed
Thu 12/03/2009 16:45
Thu 12/03/2009 17:00
15 minutes

Close the greenhouses
Conservatory, Greenhouse
Thu 12/03/2009 17:00
Thu 12/03/2009 17:15 15 minutes

The First Cut.

MY WORK BOOK

See to the sheep
Field
Misc
Wed 11/03/2009 08:30
Wed 11/03/2009 08:40
10 minutes
1) Took across some hay.
2) Checked and counted the sheep.
3) Put out some minerals.

See to the greenhouses
Conservatory, Greenhouse
Wed 11/03/2009 08:40
Wed 11/03/2009 10:30
110 minutes
1) Moved some plants from the cool house to the conservatory to make way for seedlings.
2) Put sweet pea on the trolley for hardening off.
3) removed bubble insulation from the warm house.

Collect minerals
Barn
Misc
Wed 11/03/2009 10:30
Wed 11/03/2009 10:45
15 minutes
The farmer brought me some more minerals.

Break for tea
Home
Misc
Wed 11/03/2009 10:45
Wed 11/03/2009 11:00
15 minutes

Forking
West Shrub Border
Walled Garden
Wed 11/03/2009 11:00
Wed 11/03/2009 12:45
1.75 hours
Break for lunch
Home
Misc
Wed 11/03/2009 12:45
Wed 11/03/2009 13:30
45 minutes

Checking over the Allett mower
Potting Shed
Wed 11/03/2009 13:30
Wed 11/03/2009 14:00
30 minutes

Mowing the lawns
Walled Garden
Wed 11/03/2009 14:00
Wed 11/03/2009 16:45
2.75 hours

Clean and put away the tools
Potting Shed
Wed 11/03/2009 16:45
Wed 11/03/2009 17:00
15 minutes

See to the bins
Hall
Misc
Wed 11/03/2009 17:00
Wed 11/03/2009 17:15
15 minutes
Put out 3 black bins from the hall 1 from Pumpend and 1 from Franks.

A Clearing Up Day.

MY PENNINE WAY PICTURE FOR TODAY

View back to Cauldron Snout

Approaching High Cup

TODAYS WEATHER READINGS
Temp Low: 2C
Temp High: 11C
Feels Like: 1 to 8C
Precipitation: 2 mm
Wind Speed: 30 mph
Wind Direction: NW
UV Index: Low
Weather: Clouds giving way to sun.

MY WORK BOOK

See to the sheep
Field
Misc
Tue 10/03/2009 08:30
Tue 10/03/2009 08:45
15 minutes
Checked and counted the sheep.

See to the greenhouses
Conservatory, Greenhouse
Tue 10/03/2009 08:45
Tue 10/03/2009 09:00
15 minutes
Had a quick look round.

Remove mole hills from the lawn
Tower cottage
Public Gardens
Tue 10/03/2009 09:00
Tue 10/03/2009 09:30
30 minutes

Transplanting Potting Shed
Tue 10/03/2009 09:30
Tue 10/03/2009 09:45
15 minutes
Transplanted some Cotton Thistles

Splitting logs (Note 1)
West Shrub Border
Walled Garden
Tue 10/03/2009 09:45
Tue 10/03/2009 10:30
45 minutes

Break for tea
Home
Misc
Tue 10/03/2009 10:30
Tue 10/03/2009 10:45
15 minutes

Carting away
West Shrub Border
Walled Garden
Tue 10/03/2009 10:45
Tue 10/03/2009 11:45
1 hour
Took away the rest of the bigger branches from the felled tree.

Carting
West Shrub Border
Walled Garden
Tue 10/03/2009 11:45
Tue 10/03/2009 12:45
1 hour
Carted the logs away to the summer house.

Break for lunch
Home
Misc
Tue 10/03/2009 12:45
Tue 10/03/2009 13:30
45 minutes

Slitting logs
Blue spruce corner
Main Garden
Tue 10/03/2009 13:30
Tue 10/03/2009 14:30
1 hour
Split the wood from the felled tree.

Carting
Blue spruce corner
Main Garden
Tue 10/03/2009 14:30
Tue 10/03/2009 15:00
30 minutes
Took the split logs to store in the summer house log store.

Clearing up
Blue spruce corner
Main Garden
Tue 10/03/2009 15:00
Tue 10/03/2009 16:35
95 minutes
Raking up the rest of the rubbish from the felled tree.

Clean and put away the tools
Potting Shed
Tue 10/03/2009 16:35
Tue 10/03/2009 16:50
15 minutes

NOTE
1) Yesterday we felled two trees in the gardens so today has been spent clearing them away. Anything that was good enough to make logs was split and taken down to the summer house to burn on the beaters fire next winter, the rest was taken to the burn pile.

2) If anyone wants to see the pics I took while on holiday last week you can view them on my other blog at http://the-estate-gardeners-diary.blogspot.com/

Whitby

Here are some Views of Whitby taken last week during our visit there. We had a great time and as you can see the weather was very good so that made things even more enjoyable.

This is the harbour, its three pics joined together

which is why there is a colour variation.

If you click the picture it will become larger for better viewing.

Looking along the beack towards the pier.

A view across the harbour to the church,the old abbey is out of sight behind the church.

Bob.

North Yorkshire

Hello everyone.

Today me and Vicki are going to be visiting some of these places. As you will see I borrowed these pictures from the internet, we don't expect the weather to be this sunny. I will take some more pics for you whilst I'm away and post them some time after I return.

Whitby

Robin Hood's Bay, the steep road down to the sea.

Helmsley

Pickering Bob.

More From Lincoln.

Today me and Vicki are off to North Yorkshire for a couple of days but before we go I will leave you with a few more pics from inside Lincoln cathedral. These pictures are all taken of the chapel for the armed services. Not just the people from this country are remembered but also friends of ours.

In the chapel some of the seats are dedicated to various countries, this one obviously being to Australia

Bob

Lincoln Cathedral

Yesterday me and Vicki went to Lincoln where we visited the cathedral, below are some of the pictures I took for you. This first one is taken from a leaflet I got there.

I like the one below because it shows how the place is like built up of different layers

This one I like for how the light falls on a certain place, a bit like its coming from heaven or something.


Bob.