0 comment Friday, August 22, 2014 | admin
When the bramble was cleared earlier this year, I had no idea what would be revealed; there was a LOAD of bramble out there, and while I'm certainly a fan of bramble-berries, I don't like the spiky plants in my garden. It was so prolific, I had no idea that anything could possibly be underneath all the stuff, but now, as I went round picking elderflowers yesterday, I made some rather amazing discoveries.
For one, I've always wanted a peony, and even though a friend graciously donated some tubers from her own huge plant, I'm more than aware it will be years before the thing decides to give me some blooms. Imagine my surprise when yesterday I found a overgrown peony growing in the lee side of the elderflower and snowberry! It's a small but obviously established plant and I would never have seen the thing due to winter die-back and all the brambles that used to be there. I'm overjoyed, and I think I'll be doing my best to rip out the shrubbery around it to give it some more room to grow.
The elderflower itself has been a nice find - and it turns out there's some elder growing out front, too! So perhaps purchasing an elder tree was a moot point. I'm in a bit of a quandary with the stuff outside. On the one hand it keeps the cats from using the under-tree area as a litter (and - disgusting but true, keeps my dog from eating the cat's droppings too). However, the cats are trying to rip up other areas in my beds for their leavings - there are soooo many cats in this region, and while I'm fond of them, I'm not fond of my garden turning into their midden. So, slices of lemon have been duly laid about and that should help to deter.
In addition to nice finds, I've got a bit of a woodland garden going alongside the house. I've already mentioned the lovely bluebells and primroses, but I've got freesias as well as a few other blooms which, thanks to being free of brambles, are starting to establish themselves. The bramble is trying to come back but it's sparse now thanks to the volunteer work, so I should be able to root out the last of the stuff myself. It looks a bit "wild" and probably always will do, but I rather like it wild out there. As long as I can keep the largish trees somewhat trimmed back (and this may require investing in some loppers soon) then it can stay as it is. I do however need to detach the chainlink fencing which, for whatever reason, was nailed to the lopped-off tree-trunk to one side of the house (which, also, was lopped off for who-knows-what reason rather than completely removed). It's covered with ivy now and I actually think it looks rather picturesque; so for now, it's staying.
In the front of the garden, I've found that I have gladioli coming up, and in the spring, there were some hydrangeas too. While I still think those beds aren't ever going to be very productive, having bulbs out there is quite nice. I've found some volunteer tulips which I've been transplanting to the front beds as and when, and hopefully I'll be able to find a few more.
The lilac bush is something I've decided I want to encourage back into bloom, provided I can keep it small and trimmed. I don't want it to choke out the white roses out front so I'll have to somehow strike a bit of a balance. Underneath this bedraggled rosebush is where I've found quite a few tulips, so again, a good find.
Now, contrary to the belief of the rental agency, there's been a lot of work done out there, and will be even more as things progress. The garden is coming along very nicely, but pacing myself proves rather difficult. There's so much to do and I want to do ALL of it right NOW! I'm especially keen as this week there's going to be a fair bit of rain, so working in the garden will be a rare activity. I'd take photos of all these nice garden finds, but unfortunately due to the barometric pressure change, my shoulder is playing up. I'm rather frustrated as I really want to be out there working on cutting down, trimming back, and re-cultivating my re-found plants today. But I'll have to wait till the paracetamol kicks in, then maybe I can get a little bit done today. Photos taken as I go!
For one, I've always wanted a peony, and even though a friend graciously donated some tubers from her own huge plant, I'm more than aware it will be years before the thing decides to give me some blooms. Imagine my surprise when yesterday I found a overgrown peony growing in the lee side of the elderflower and snowberry! It's a small but obviously established plant and I would never have seen the thing due to winter die-back and all the brambles that used to be there. I'm overjoyed, and I think I'll be doing my best to rip out the shrubbery around it to give it some more room to grow.
The elderflower itself has been a nice find - and it turns out there's some elder growing out front, too! So perhaps purchasing an elder tree was a moot point. I'm in a bit of a quandary with the stuff outside. On the one hand it keeps the cats from using the under-tree area as a litter (and - disgusting but true, keeps my dog from eating the cat's droppings too). However, the cats are trying to rip up other areas in my beds for their leavings - there are soooo many cats in this region, and while I'm fond of them, I'm not fond of my garden turning into their midden. So, slices of lemon have been duly laid about and that should help to deter.
In addition to nice finds, I've got a bit of a woodland garden going alongside the house. I've already mentioned the lovely bluebells and primroses, but I've got freesias as well as a few other blooms which, thanks to being free of brambles, are starting to establish themselves. The bramble is trying to come back but it's sparse now thanks to the volunteer work, so I should be able to root out the last of the stuff myself. It looks a bit "wild" and probably always will do, but I rather like it wild out there. As long as I can keep the largish trees somewhat trimmed back (and this may require investing in some loppers soon) then it can stay as it is. I do however need to detach the chainlink fencing which, for whatever reason, was nailed to the lopped-off tree-trunk to one side of the house (which, also, was lopped off for who-knows-what reason rather than completely removed). It's covered with ivy now and I actually think it looks rather picturesque; so for now, it's staying.
In the front of the garden, I've found that I have gladioli coming up, and in the spring, there were some hydrangeas too. While I still think those beds aren't ever going to be very productive, having bulbs out there is quite nice. I've found some volunteer tulips which I've been transplanting to the front beds as and when, and hopefully I'll be able to find a few more.
The lilac bush is something I've decided I want to encourage back into bloom, provided I can keep it small and trimmed. I don't want it to choke out the white roses out front so I'll have to somehow strike a bit of a balance. Underneath this bedraggled rosebush is where I've found quite a few tulips, so again, a good find.
Now, contrary to the belief of the rental agency, there's been a lot of work done out there, and will be even more as things progress. The garden is coming along very nicely, but pacing myself proves rather difficult. There's so much to do and I want to do ALL of it right NOW! I'm especially keen as this week there's going to be a fair bit of rain, so working in the garden will be a rare activity. I'd take photos of all these nice garden finds, but unfortunately due to the barometric pressure change, my shoulder is playing up. I'm rather frustrated as I really want to be out there working on cutting down, trimming back, and re-cultivating my re-found plants today. But I'll have to wait till the paracetamol kicks in, then maybe I can get a little bit done today. Photos taken as I go!
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