Garden shrubs - fancy a new one? Some of mine that are looking fab this year.

End May/June flowering

Black Sambuca- I love this elder at the moment and is also fab for cordial.

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**$Alert this will be boring for most ****

This is my garden diary in photos - something for me to look back on to see in the non growing months what is growing where and when the plants were in flower- I often dig up stuff accidentally! Hopefully this will remind me what worked and didn't, what I can improve on, add to or change. But also a reminder on what flowers I liked that can be started from seed and when to sow them. 

Rambling rose. Just flowers once in June. Definitely needs some old stems removed. Currently have a Viticella Clematis - Abundance - growing through it that should flower in July. I would like more verbena popping up..should take more cuttings.

The geranium underneath I love - grows like a weed - flowers for ever but its getting very dry and droppy at the moment.

City of York Rose - I love open roses and this rambler is a beauty. Currently also has a purple clematis - The president ( group 2) growing through it. Not sure why the rose hasn't got that many buds on it this year compared to last? 

Orlaya and cornflowers! I love these two together and fill a large spot. For next season I would like to try both a autumn and spring sowing for the Orlaya so I can rip the ones that start to look past their best and replace with a fresh plant.

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I'm absolutely rubbish at growing geraniums,  busy lizzy or begonias so I usually buy some in.  Being a bit tight fisted I look for bargains in mini plugs and bring them on in the gh.  Year after year I've gone against my better judgement and bought from T&M or VM each time ending up in an argument over late delivery,  poor  quality,  etc.  Yes they replace and yes they refund, but it's getting beyond a joke.   My question is, next year, where can I get reasonably priced mini plug bedding plants that are reliable.  I've said to myself I will not use T&M again.

            Pretty, bright yellow flower. Don't remember sowing it. Its in 2 places in the garden. 

 I'm sure I know what it is but can't remember!!

Help!!!

Hi all.

I don't usually grow cucumbers but thought I would try some indoors and some outdoors this year. I have five Konsa cucumber plants from seed purchased at Lidl.

I have lost the packet and was wondering do I need to take the male flowers off this variety, or do I just let them get on with it?
Two will be planted in  MFB's in the greenhouse and three planted outdoors.

I'm thinking this is a small skipper on some white clover.

   

    Spotted this hairy Dogerpillar  in the GH. Even threatening him to water him made no difference. He just loves basking in the heat.

Spud is Bess's son and Ted's brother. I'm sure they'll make an appearance here before long.

If you like Rosemary, read this (taken from "Grown in Wales"'s FB ).

Restrictions have now been introduced on the import of plants than are carriers of the disease Xylella Fastidiosa. This will include Rosemary which is a plant that is commonly imported from the continent as a herb. It is grown in huge quantities and you will all have seen them in the same pots, looking pretty good in every garden centre and florist in the land. We competed with these imports by having a range of varieties (I think we have 9 on the nursery now) having a bigger pot and proudly declaring that they are grown without peat and synthetic pesticides here in Wales.

Unlike most of the herbs that we grow Rosemary is really a shrub and as such it takes longer to produce a decent plant so production for next year starts now with a cutting that, once rooted , is potted into a 9cm pot for overwintering. These are then potted into their final pot as the weather starts to warm up in the spring . At a guess I would say that once they are potted they don't want to experience a minus 5 frost. If the pot freezes solid you get problems so we tend to pot small batches at first,just in case. They are quite happy confined in the smaller pot. They are one of those plants that don't seem to mind it which is good for us because we can keep potting from a 9cm into our large 1.4L as we need them which saves space.

.......................

Time to take cuttings ready for next year!!

Just a couple.....

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I’ve a question. How big do you let your courgette get for seed saving?
I’ve done the isolation thing, and I’ve used the male flower as a paint brush. Do I leave it to get a little bigger than normal. Or do I pick at normal size and in either case store it and allow the seeds to ripen.