And Then There Were Three!

Well, two bags of the multipurpose compost and three of the topsoil down, means we now have a new raised veg. bed….

…. which, nestled between the two we did last year, means that now, we have three!

I have been conscious for some time now, that the Eucalyptus in the front garden was hurtling toward the telephone wires and really needed to be cut back. I know that they can be cut hard back and will regrow from the base with a flurry of fresh, new foliage, but, as I’m growing it mainly for its bark, I wanted to keep the trunk, so I considered pollarding it instead. First attempt! Rather scared!

After (Mr. Chef) brandishing the chain saw, we now have a serious amount of beautiful top growth, to dispose of, a full garden recycling bin, and several trunks/branches – some destined for firewood for the stove, and the thinner pieces for edging beds in the Woodland. I wanted one of the trunks removed at the base, to leave a balanced group of three trunks….

….so then there were three!

The next task was to assemble a new raised planter we had bought, to grow more strawberries. You can never have enough strawberries! We had bought one plus an extension kit, with liners, to give us two more strawberry beds….

….giving us (you’ve guessed it!) three!

Now we just need three days to recover!!

Wordless Wednesday – A Bit of Work!

Jerusalem Artichokes – and “Knock-on Gardening”

I’m sure you’ve played “Knock-on Gardening” before. (No – it’s nothing to do with rugby!) It’s when one gardening task leads to another and so on. Or when you can’t start one job before you’ve done another one. Know that game? Well, that’s what I was playing yesterday. And it all started with Jerusalem artichokes!

For some time now, we’ve toyed with the idea of growing this vegetable in the Allotment. Mr. Chef has been beguiled by them, while watching ” Nigel Slater’s Simple Suppers” and while scouring various cooking programmes and recipes. I liked the idea of growing more perennial veg. alongside our globe artichokes, and rhubarb. We bought some, tried them and liked them, so I started to do my research.

Not so straightforward though. A member of the sunflower family (Helianthus tuberosus), growing it is not without its problems. It can grow up to 10 feet tall, which may be useful if you want to create a division or barrier, but not in a small space where good light is limited. And if grown in the open ground, it can become invasive. Because it can regrow if any remnant is left in the ground and the roots can spread 18 inches in each direction, it is recommended to grow it in its own bed, or confine it with barriers. Nah!

I did read, though, that it was possible to grow them in containers. You would obviously need a large pot, but apparently, they had been grown successfully in 5 gallon containers. So what did we have to hand? I wasn’t keen to buy a whole load of 5 gal. pots – the cost of the compost alone, that would be needed to fill them, would make them an expensive crop. Well, we actually had one 5 gal. container left over from the days when we dabbled in brewing our own beer and wine-making. There was the old dustbin, pre recycling bins, which had hosted potatoes before. There was also a large yellow plastic trug about the same volume. So that’s three! We had already bought a pack of 5 tubers and we didn’t want to waste any so I thought our two defunct 3 gal. wine fermenting bins would probably do. So now to drill some holes in them.

Ah, but! The trug was full of gravel salvaged from my Mum’s front garden revamp, destined to top up the gravel path in our grass garden.

But it needs weeded first!

So first weeding,
then spreading the gravel over the surface,
gave me the empty trug….

….and a spick and span gravel path, through the grass border.

So now, we have the containers all ready.

Best to put them in position before filling them!

But where they are to be positioned is where a stack of bricks for the paths are waiting. They must be moved first!

No I won’t show you a stack of bricks, or a completed new brick path! What I will show you is a horrific discovery – look away now if you’re at all squeamish!

They had to go!

So now the containers are in position waiting to be filled. That’s the nice part! Mind you, a coffee break half-way through, and a reading update, made me doubt my choice of containers. I read that pots of 18 inch diameter were recommended! The dustbin and trug passed, the beer bin was only about 14″, but was 5 gal. One of the wine barrels was replaced with a recycling crate, which was 12″ x 18″. That left one wine barrel which, although, technically too small, was worth a try!

I’m filling them with part top soil and part multipurpose compost. We chose the variety “Fuseau” to grow. It is a “dwarf” variety, only growing to 5-6 feet (!) and the tubers are smoother, less knobbly and easier to deal with.

So, let’s see what happens! Should be interesting to watch! I’m looking forward to tasting the crop.

There will be more episodes of “Knock-on Gardening”. The revamp of the Woodland border – once some of the lower, overhanging tree branches are removed. The reshuffle of the Scentec Shrub border – once the fence panels have been repaired.

What of your experiences of “Knock-on Gardening”? I’d love to hear about them!

My Poor Little Homeless Babies!

Poor little things! It’s not as if they’re unloved – far from it! Just one look, and I had to have them. And that’s the problem. The family is growing and must have a home.

Let me introduce you!
From left to right;

Escallonia “Iveyi”, Salvia “Senation Deep Rose”, Drimys lanceolata, Caryopteris clandonensis “Dark Knight”, Helwingia chinensis, Cestrum parqui, Pittosporum tobira, with a tiny hellebore seedling at the front.

Things appear uneventful on The Long Garden Path over recent weeks, with not much to report or write about, other than broken fence panels, which is of little interest to anyone. Activity levels outside have been far too low, with either the wind or incessant rain beating me, sending me scurrying indoors to the welcome warmth.

There have been some pleasures on the “walks round the estate”.

Winter scent, in the form of Clematis armandii ” Apple Blossom”

and various Sarcococcas,

and the early spring beauty in the Woodland.

But the little grey cells have not hibernated. Indeed, they are working well, if nothing else is. They have long been pondering the problem. And so, now, there is an overhaul in the pipeline.
I think I’ve already mentioned tweeking the cottage border and adding in or moving, scented shrubs, which, hopefully will do better in a sunnier border. And now the “walks” have clarified where each will live.

Of course, this mental exercise has had a knock on effect, which will impinge on both the existing shrub border, and the Woodland. Will I ever resist moving my poor plants about and let them be?

The little grey cells have also pondered the Allotment, and improvements that can be made there. They have persuaded us to add two new raised beds – one for veg. and another one for more strawberries. You can never have too many strawberries!

So I have been shopping. A start has been made. Seeds have been bought and started off, and compost and soil improver stocked up on. Now all we need is some dry and, hopefully, warmer weather, to leap into action! (Or at least creep!)

Oh, but before I get carried away with excitement, I just have to go back to the aforementioned fence panels. None of this can sensibly be done till they are repaired!

Such is a gardener’s life!