Flower Of The Week This Week.

I think my favourite flower in the garden this week is this Fuchsia.

It lives in a stone trough in the Japanese Garden. It's been there around five years now and was originaly one of several varieties, this one has taken over though but thats okay as it puts on a good display. I must try and get some cutting from it in case we have a hard winter and doesnt survive.

Wired.

Today was not as productive as I was hoping on account of the weather not being so good during the morning. It was so wet early on that I decided to come home and look in to ordering some Garlic for planting in the garden. Whilst looking I came on this collection for Garlic, Onions and Shallots all for planting anytime soon so I though I would give that a go. Below is the link if you want to check it out.
Garlic/Onion Collection

I did manage to cart off all the prunings from yesterday and tidy up any other mess I'd made. This had to be done whether it was raning or not because of the wedding tomorrow. Thankfully by the time I got round to that the rain had eased off quite a lot so I only got a bit damp.

This afternoon I finished off the pruning on the Barn wall Border but there is more work to be done there on Monday so I didn't bother to take any pictures of it yet. I did take a picture of the roses I trained yesterday and the wiring arrangement just in case it's of help to anyone.

This picture shows how I attach the wires to the wall. In the past I have used rawplugs and vine eyes but I've found that these floor board nails work very well. They hammer into the joints easily enough and fasten themselves in very well, I've never had one pull out yet. Also they are tapered so if you wrap the wire round them a couple of times it can't slip off. I find it very easy doing it this way. 

It depends on the courses in the stonework as to how far apart I place the wires but I aim for the length of the hammer apart which is 12 to 14 inches apart. 

Barn Wall Border Tidy (Part one).

Today I made a start on tidying the barn wall border which is a continuation of the dog run border. Both have been neglected over the past few years on account of building work being carried out on the barn. I can tell you there is nothing more demoralising than having builders working around the place.

It's hard to see in this first picture but there are three roses to be trained against the wall but before I could do that I needed to add wires to the wall on to which to tie the roses.

After that was done I set about the shrubs. Some needed a massacre, others needed just some light cutting back for now, and then the ones on the wall at the back need retaining. The Holly tree to the left also gets a bit of a trim but that will happen just before Christmas.

I got quite a lot done today but there is some left for Friday, In fact there will be some left for Monday as there is a wedding here on Saturday so I will have some jobs to do in relation to that.

Strawberry Runners.

Today I managed to get some Strawberry runners potted up which as it happened turned out to be a good job as there some quite heavy showers this afternoon. The ones in the pictures are to be grown on before being planted out in the garden at a later date. I also have some more smaller ones coming on which I am thinking of growing in the greenhouse. I already have some indoors but they don't seem to be a very productive variety so it might be time for a change.

Also today I managed to do a cut of the small lawns in the walled garden. They where long overdue on account of all the wet weather we have been having of late. It was still wet this morning when I cut them but this mower seems to cope quite well with wet grass so I was able to get them done.

Also today I had to attend the diabetic clinic just so they could check to see if I was coping okay. They were very pleased with both my record keeping and also the way I have been keeping my blood sugars under control.

Finishing Of The Border.

Today I managed to finish off the border behind the dog runs which I started yesterday. The first job was to cart off all the Ivy to the burn pile. I then laid off the border job while I cut the lawn in the front garden as it had dried up enough to do so and the way the weather is I have to make the most of such opportunities. Before I could do any cutting I had to clear up a load of Beech nuts as I couldnt run on where they were or I would have pressed then in to the lawn. Once the grass was cut I returned to the border work where I pruned a few low branches off the Fig tree in the corner. That done it was just a matter of putting a new edge to the lawn around the border and this finished the job off nicely.

Below is a picture of the finished article.

Tidying the dog run border.

Today I made a start on tidying the border behind the dogs runs although we had more rain on and off so I didn't get on as well as I might. First job was to cut down all the old growth and clear it off the border on to the grass. I have recently been following this contract gardener who doesn't take away any rubbish, instead he reduces everything and then returns it back from where it has come from. This goes against the way I've always done things but it does make sense so I thought I would give it a try. So I got all the rubbish laid out in a row on the edge of the grass and then ran over it with the mulching mower that I have. It took a few passes but it did reduce everything to almost nothing. The only problem I encountered was the mower didn't want to pick up the long stalks so maybe next time I will try and cut them off shorter. After mulching everything down in then got the big leave blower and blew everything back on to the border. I have to say that I am happy with the way it looked and there wasn't to much that it buried the plants so hopefully there are to be no hidden problems caused by it. It certainly saved carting away a lot of rubbish and I can see that it will be good for the soil as it dogs down.

After dealing with the border I then set too removing the Ivy from the top of the wall. This proved to be quite a job but I just managed to get it all done before it was time to go home. I still have it all to cart away in the morning. It will have to go away to be burnt as there is far to much to mulch and it would be to strong for the mower anyway.

 This picture was taken before I started work.

Another Train Ride

This afternoon we are going on another train ride. This time from Buckfast to Totnes and back.

Buckfast Abbey.

This morning we are visiting Buckfast Abbey.

Torquay

Yesterday was spent in Torquay, mostly just sitting around in the sun and looking at the various boats.

Torquay Harbour

Some of the gardens.

Round Robin Train Ride

Today I am going on a train, boat and bus ride from Paignton.