I know it doesn’t make sense. Of course it doesn’t! But it’s happining nevertheless.
I’m bringing a further (regular?) feature to my garden blog. Inspired by Paddy, An Irish Gardener, I’ll be attempting to record some of the goings-on over the past week. Very likely, my summary may vary from brief to boringly long depending on factors such as cycling, other commitments and seasonality.
I’ve mentioned several times that I write to record my gardening efforts so that I’ll be able to look back whenever I want. I do like looking back with just one proviso… I want to stay busy now and into the future in order to have something satisfactory to look back on.
Will I be able to find the time to write regularly? The answer is… I’ll make time! Let’s see how things worked out last week…
August 2021 Week 1
It was a wek of very mixed weather, but there was time enough to keep myself busy.
I made light work of emptying the compost heap. The soil is magnificent and I spread it mostly on the empty sections of the vegetable beds. I did store lots of it in black bins in the shed for potting purposes later in Autumn.
The second compost heap is almost filled, but I added a further three feet in height by doing a small bit of carpentry. I’d imagine this will be sufficient for the Autumn garden waste. I’ll have a think about putting a decent cover on it shortly.
On Thursday, I started clearing out sections of the vegetable beds. The Cold Frame was resurrected from its summer out-of-sight corner, and behind it I made a start on preparing space for lettuce, spinach and Spring Onions just to the left of the Blue Doodle. This small space will be enough to get sowing now.
I’ll be tackling the Blue Doodle section very soon. It has my Autumn 2020 cuttings and some plants grown from seed last spring. I’ll be doing a tidy-up but that’s an update for another time.
Again, I’ve sown more lettuce, scallions and spinach in modules in glasshouse. Likely, I’ve sown much too much.
Indoors
During heavy rain, I made a start on putting on paper my vegetable garden plans for next year and I finished the job later one evening by getting it all online using my GrowVeg subscription.
It may change somewhat, but a plan is an important start. For example, because Spring Onions need to be sown between now and October, I know exactly where to put them.
Other gardening bits this week included:
Dead-heading.
Ruthless discarding of weak or unloved Begonias. I’ve too many and I mostly don’t like the red single trailing ones.
Big shed clean-up. This will take several attempts.
Coffee & relaxation time every day. It’s hard to stop wanting to be constantly doing, but regular time-outs are exciting!
It started with a few Guinness last weekend. Offers were made and accepted. A table and chairs set would change ownership and be delivered without delay. And so that’s exactly what happened. Thus begins the tale of my first of Six on Saturday.
1. The Throne
Regular readers will know that the oil-tank was in this corner until last Autumn. It had spent thirty uneventful years there. Now, the transformation is almost complete. Bit by bit, I’ve added trellis and planters, a fountain and climbers. Recently, when plied with drink, I agreed to accept a generous gift of this chair, together with another and matching table. I painted it duck-egg blue, and used Hazard Yellow for the comrade. My sister loves the yellow, but it’s more like mustard. This Duckegg will be my throne, as it is positioned to view the garden from a height, but being mindful of keeping myself well-grounded, I repeat this quote daily:
On the highest throne in the world, we still sit only on our own bottom.
Michel de Montaigne
Hazard Yellow
To add to the scent of sweet peas and Jasmine, I have the sound of running water, but I’m thinking a bit of red carpet on the ground would give me something to be looking at!
2. Sweet Pea
Finally! I’d noticed recently that the Sweet Peas were beginning to make up lost ground. Many of them were damaged by frost in early May, but they survived. The first of the flowers are bottled in the kitchen. Oh happy day!
When sitting on my throne, I am unable to see these beautiful flowers bacause they are bottled in the kitchen. Prior to that, they had been behind the seat. I could only see them with difficulty, but the scent reminded me that they were there!
3. Home Guard Earlies
Oh happy day! The early potatoes are in my belly and I am satisfied. Planted on 11th of March, they are now being harvested regularly and they taste great with a bit of butter.
There’s a downside, however. I have only nine plants, so I’ll savour every last potato right to the very end. My main crop potatoes are coming along well and they’ll be ready for buttering in mid-August.
4. Broad Beans
Aquadulce Broad Beans were sown in four batches, the first last October and again on 1st of February, then on 12th and 29th of March. The reason I’m able to rattle off the dates is because all my records are on my phone and online. We have harvested a few meals since mid-June. Twenty pods is about right to accompany the potatoes as a meal for two. The Autumn ones ripened first, and I’ll be waiting a short while for the rest of them. Apparently, the tips can be prone to blackfly attack, particularly on the more tender Spring plants, but I’ve figured out how to starve them. Quite simply, a clean secateurs cut near the top prevents an infestation. Oh happy day for me!
As an aside, it’s not every garden that has the clothes line in among the vegetables or rather above the vegetables to be more accurate, but I spent sleepless nights worrying about the eventual height of the broad beans.
My eureka bean-snip moment has had a second benefit. We can now hang towels, t-shirts and thongs on the clothes line without they touching the tall bean plants. Shirts, shorts and smalls can swing freely. Oh happy days indeed!
Query: Could anyone advise me? Most of the pods are upright and some have turned down. Is it a case that the downward ones are ripe, or can I harvest all the large ones?
5. Ash
The berries of the ash tree are very interesting. Many of the smaller branches are weighed down, yet the flower head faces upwards for ripening.
6. Peachy
I’ve got lots of begonias again this year. This one is a Blurred Begonia, a variety unknown to me. Most were over-wintered and will provide me with colour and satisfaction next month, but as a measure of my impatience, I bought these last week. I’m wondering are they peach or salmon? Whatever the colour, I just love it!
I’ve noticed that annual flowers look a bit wretched until they start to fill the space. Likely, in a few weeks these will look better, they will grow together to become one, and watering will be easier when they begin to keep the heat of the sun from the soil beneath.
As per usual, I am joining in with The Propagator and his “troupe of horticultural devotees” to show six things in our gardens this weekend. The quote is from Ciar at Carrots and Calendula. Sin a bhfuil uaimse don seachtain seo. I’ll be back again next week with another Six-on-Saturday. In the short meantime, I shall be spending some time continuing the Summer watering and reading other SOS updates when I can. Wherever you are, have a great week. Slán go fóill.
Review Gallery
This Time Last Year
At the risk of repeating myself, my writing is for myself. My aim is to record my garden and some little thoughts about stuff from time to time. I want this record in order to look back on things when I’m older and unable to remember. As I’m now into my second year doing this Six-on-Saturday thingy, I’m including a link at the end of this article which was written this time last year. I’ll not be in the least miffed if readers choose not to read it. Happy Saturday! Here goes…
Written in June 2020, here’s a short excerpt:
On June 20-21st 2019 I cycled 400km with my friend Declan, along with support from the local cycling community for sections of the journey. We cycled for 16 and a half hours, 3pm on Friday until 3pm on Saturday with a dinner break, a chipper/pizza delivery at 2am, a breakfast break, a lunch break (in that order), and a two hour snooze, through The Longest Day, helping raise funds for Waterford Samaritans.
The Longest Day is our symbol of constant struggle. The new day does not always bring comfort. Keep a close eye on your struggling plants. Value them as you would the scented rose. Keep a close watch on friends or acquaintances and be there for them with a listening ear. Ar scáth a chéile a mhaireann na daoine.
Happy plants can survive the ups and downs of life. Not alone that, but they blossom most beautifully when the time is right.
3rd April 2021.
I put a bit of thought into my Saturday articles. Some weeks things fall into place easily, while at other times my six items are just that. Six separate items in my garden this week, and that’s perfectly OK too. But I do try to link things up if I can. Writing is an important way for me to make sense of the world. Very soon I’ll have it all figured out, and then it’ll be time to stop.
I’m happier now that the decision is made. The greed and corruption of the upper echelons within society will no longer drag me downwards. I am reminded of the movie The Lion King and in particular the problem-free philosophy that allows us to develop as good humans. It’s called Hakuna Matata, and it means no worries for the rest of our days! That’s something to sing about on this first Saturday of April. Let’s see if I can link it to some garden stuff…
Broad Beans
Broad Bean Super Aquadulce
The Broad Beans are flowering but also being nibbled by somethingrud éigin. I’ve put up some climbing supports but that will not stop the nibbling. I also planted another row of seeds three weeks ago for a later harvest but nothing has appeared. It’s likely there’s underground nibbling afoot as well, so I’ve resorted to plan B, sowing a batch in modules in the glasshouse, and I’ll plant them out when they get to a about 5-10cm.
Happy Easter.
Much of society is being nibbled and devoured, day in day out. Nibbling is generally done by those higher up on the food chain. Getting even doesn’t work, but a plan of action for self-care does help.
Saxifrage Peter Pan
This little rockery plant has been in its little spot for five yearsle cúig bliain and seems very happy there. At the time I bought three of these, but the other two have not survived. A few days ago, I found out the likely reason. The plant needs sun and partial shade. In other words if it is in full sunshine all day it will struggle. Death by sunstroke! This one is sheltered for part of the day behind an Agapanthus that reaches about 40cm. The two that died had no sun protection.
Problem-free philosophy.
Who makes up plant variety names? If I produce a new variety can I call it whatever I want? As an aside, I am frequently amused by the names given to horses, for example Call The Beacon or There You Go Now. A further aside is my habit of naming a variety in memory of someone, but perhaps I should go one step further? Any variety whose name I don’t know, I could simply make one up! I’d never be accepted for mention in the horticultural journals, but I’d have a way of distinguishing one variety from another. For example, if I have another unknown Saxifrage I could call it Saxifrage Alum Rock. I have cousins living in the Alum Rock area of Birmingham, and I have a feeling that a name allocated by myself is less likely to be forgotten by myself.
Happy plants can survive the ups and downs of life. Not alone that, but they blossom most beautifully when the time is right! I’m more than happy to be noticing this small miracle than seeing examples of power battles on my news feed. Beauty amid the rubble.
Peas
Pea Onward 13/03/21
Similar to the Broad Beans, it appears that pea seeds go missing regularly. I’ve come across this little ditty, which seems accurate.
One for the mouse, One for the crow, One to rot, One to grow.
Now I understand why there are enough peas in the packet to feed an army. By the time the select few grow to maturity, there’ll surely be enough for us. We are a small family! This variety is also known to me as Pea Legs 11.
Enough for everyone.
I’m happy to plant forty, in the knowledge that ten will be delicious. Everything else is of no consequence to me. No worries.
Dahlia
Dahlia Disco Dancer.
Apart from the large Dahlias planted in the ground and in pots, I chose to grow some lots from seed this year. I’ve got five varieties, and started them in late January. At the moment, they are really pushing on, and are at the point where I will carefully pinch out the central growing tip. This is done in order to get the plant to send out side shoots. Since mid-March, I’ve had a chance to put these outside on warm sunny afternoons but they return to the sheltered environment by night, as they are not frost-hardy. Very importantly also, I do remember to shut the door and window before dusk!
Mother and baby.
Dahlias remind me that this problem-free philosophy is the way to go. They bring forth the most stunning flowers, yet they are such tender plants, and they have their troubles in life. Problem-free does not mean that I have no work to do. It means I’m happy to care for the plant in order to get enormous satisfaction in return.
Tomatoes
Tomato Tumbler
Generally, I grow three tomato plants in the glasshouse every year and a few of the tumbling ones outdoors. This year, I’ve gone completely bonkers. There are seven different varieties, and thirty-something plants altogether. However, I’ll be giving most of them away to friendscairde at the end of April or early May. There are a small few plants still unclaimed, so if you’d like a change from the taste of supermarket tomatoes, let me know. Of course, I don’t want any smartasses. I nearly fell off my stool last week…
“Would you like a few tomato plants?”, I asked.
“Oh, no thank you. You just grow them and I’ll come over to collect the tomatoes when they’re ready.”
Joyeuses Pâques.
Now, if ever there’s a perfect example of a problem-free philosophy, this is it! Everything will be OK. Just wait and see. You know what, when these restrictions are lifted, I’ll be more than happy to have my friend over to share in the tomato harvest! One hundred percent! Be certain though, that overpaid CEO’s won’t get within an asses roar.
Mina Lobata
Unusual leaf shape.
This is the last of my Six this week, but in fact after I took this photograph on Wednesday and checked the name on the seed packet, the Lion King and the Hakuna Matata sprang to mind. Mina Lobata. Hakuna Matata. In effect, it was this little seedling that sparked a few neurons in my head. That’s where neurons do their best work.
Spectacular for months.
Mina Lobata is commonly known as Spanish Flag or Exotic Love Vine. It’s a climber and, by all accounts, can reach up to 5-6 metres. I got the seed freesaor in aisce with Amateur Gardening magazine before all that kind of thing stopped. Akin to many of my selected items over the past few weeks, I’ve not grown it before. I sowed it early last month and it is still only at 2cm. Definitely a slow starter! I’ll also sow seeds outside in mid-April and see how both compare. Hopefully, I’ll need to put up a few trellises before long. I love the name Mina Lobata, and I just can’t get the tune from the Lion King out of my head.
Hakuna Matata! What a wonderful phrase Hakuna Matata! Ain't no passing craze It means no worries for the rest of your days. It's our problem-free philosophy. Hakuna Matata!
Best Belgian chocolate.
It’s a Wrap
That’s my six this week and to finish, here’s a short recap video of end-of-March goings-on in the glasshouse.
The video is up there on the YouTube cloud thingy. There’s a commentator error towards the end… They are in fact cucumber seedlings, not spinach. Contract renewal negotions may break down.
Getting Very Busy Now
Gladioli and most of the begonias are planted up.
Trellis delivered.
First muggy night and that meant slug patrol.
Propagator put back to the attic.
About half of the daffodils put away to their summer corner.
Lilies planted.
Some of the grasses divided and planted up.
Salad vegetables ready to harvest from now onwards.
Some of the Sweet Peas planted out.
Enjoying the scent of wild garlic and furze while cycling. Two very different aromas, both wonderful.
That’s my lot for this week, a cháirde. I’ll be back with more next Saturdayan Satharn seo chugainn. In the meantime, please visit Mr. Propagator’s garden blog where you can find many more Six on Saturday articles from around the world, together with details of how to participate if that’s your thing. I hope you have a great week. Slán go fóill.
It’s been a mixed-up week. There were several beautiful days of spring sunshine, perfect for spending time in the garden. On the other hand, we’ve had two days of high winds, torrential rain and flooding.
27th February 2021.
In normal circumstances at this time of the year, my friend Declan and I would have completed two long 200-kilometre cycling days out. We’d have had plenty coffee, laughs and lunch along the way. So far since the start of the year, I’ve barely covered 200 kilometres in the car, as I go round and round within my 5 kilometre zone. In all of this madness, I’m ever so happy to be able to move unhindered through the garden. There are no Garda checkpoints and I’m not required to wear a mask.
So, here we go again for this week’s end of February Six-on-Saturday. All you got to do is follow this link, read Jon’s update and then look at all the links from everyone in the comments. You’ll likely come across mine there, and simply by tapping on it, you’ll end up back here. By the way, tap is the new click for touchscreens. Tapping on an older screen is very therapeutic but gets you nowhere.
1. Agapanthus
I had left the old seed heads of the Agapanthus rather than cut them for the compost heap. FinallyFaoi dheireadh, they got the snip during the week, but I couldn’t bring myself to dump them. For the time being, they’ll do just fine here. I’ll plant Sweet Peas and other annual climbers here in May, and even as they bring colour to this bare wall, the Agapanthus shall remain hidden behind.
2. Polyanthus
Patience is a virtue. So goes the old saying. Well, I’m delighted that the polyanthus plugs I bought from Jersey Plants Direct back in September are beginning to flower. At present, they are all in pots and window boxes. Yes, there are 160 of them. Yes, they arrived by post as tiny babies and yes I grew them on carefully and planted them before Christmas. What I like about these ones is that the flowersbláthanna are held above the plants on a stem.
3. Potting On
In Nora’s Teach Gloine, the top shelves are almost full. In all, there are seventeen trays of seedlings. Now, it’s time to move to the next step of the process. The Dahlias, Sweet Peas and Osteospermums are ready to be potted on to three inch pots, while the five Tomato varieties will be ready in another week or two. I made a start during the week, and as a consequence, space will be at a premium from now until the end of April. Very soon I will need to store plants on the lower shelves, knowing that they will not get as much light there, so a rotation system will need to be started. I have four rows of shelving on each side, and plants will need to be moved up one shelf every four or five days. Plants on the top shelf will then be demoted to the bottom. I have a feeling that I’ll be moving seedlings in my sleep!
4. Paeony
Three Peony roots arrived last November from China, because I ordered them. Logical, really. Having ignored the instructions which advised immediate planting, I got around to it in early January. Last week, my fellow Six-on-Saturday gardener Gill The Gymnist showed her’s peeping above ground. I spent a while walking around practicing swear words as Gaeilge because all I could see here was bare soil. Therefore, when I spotted this on Wednesday, I stopped walking around and put a few bob in the swear jar. (Don’t believe everything you read… I don’t have a few bob to put in the swear jar).
5. Vegetable Beds
There’s a lot going on here. In the foreground, the broad beans are beginning to stretch so I’ve added some bamboo canes and string to support them. There’s a second batch sown just to the right of them and I expect them to pop up any day now. On the extreme right the autumn-sown onions are doing well and I expect to harvest them in May or June.
The second bed at top of picture is emptyfolamh* at the moment except for cuttings and pelargoniums in the cold frame on the left. I have a half-door placed on top to heat up the section where the early potatoes will be planted very soon. There’s an old saying here that earlies would need to be in the ground by St. Patrick’s Day. Sounds about right to me. Half doors added in late February add flavour to the spuds.
*Note: In Irish, the combination of letters “mh” is sounded as “v”. There are only 18 letters in Irish alphabet. J, k, q, v, w, x, y and z are not used in native words. Thus endeth the lesson.
6. Spinach
Last year, I grew Spinach for the first time. I enjoyed the harvest for many months and resolved to grow plenty again this year, and perhaps a few new varieties too. So, I’m starting with Spinach Perpetual. I’ll be sowing this outside in early April, and in the meantime, I’ll sow it in the heated propagator in the hope of having an earlier harvest. Fine big seeds, so there’s no problem sowing.
When it comes to planting these outside in April, I’m going to make sure they are shaded by larger plants because they are less likely to bolt in shade. The cucumbers will be sown beside them. It’s all planned out.
In Other News…
February’s full moon is known as the Snow Moon, and sometimes as the Hunger Moon. Every 29 years there is no full moon in February, known as a Black Moon. The next one is in 2033. I don’t understand how something that doesn’t happen can be named.
Ireland is experiencing the pain of extended Level 5 restrictions. We continue as we were until the first week of April. We are also experiencing extreme helplessness in bringing about change to Government policy of not giving an adequate damm about allowing contaminated inward flights. Quarantining is not effective because it is recommended rather than mandatory.
On the positive side, Mam got her vaccine yesterday, and the second dose is scheduled for next month. Not a bother, she says.
Six-on-Saturday: Who are we?
We are a group of gardeners who write. We write about six items in our gardens, and we do it on Saturdays. I’ve been doing this since last June and I enjoy nothing more than reading about and seeing other gardens from as far away as New Zealand, Tasmania, USA, Canada, Britain and Waterford City. Lest we forget, hundreds more choose to publish on Twitter and Instagram. You can find out more about it here. Six things, in your garden. Could be anything, and frequently is. Do join in.
Sin a bhfuil uaimse don seachtain seo. I’ll be back again next week with another Six-on-Saturday. Thank you for reading. Have a good week. Stay safe. Slán go fóill.
I discovered that there are several vegetables that will grow away slowly right through the winter. and I’m thrilled also because there’s no bolting.
9th January 2021.
Having spent a few fortunes buying plants for over thirty years, I added a subscription to Growveg last year. It turned out to be a very worthwhile investment, costing me nineteen euro. So here we go with a six-point review.
Six things, in the garden, on a Saturday. Can be anything. This week I’m on the laptop planning my vegetable garden for the year. In fact, I had created this plan last November and I just tweak it whenever I want. You may be wondering if it would be easier to use pen and paper. Each to their own, I say. Yes, I do use a notebook to make notes (of course), yet a plan that can be shaped, adapted or extended is worthwhile. This will help a lot.
I mapped out my vegetable beds in square foot sections and selected the vegetables I want. Miraculously, the next step brought me to an online ordering portal, and having selected the retailer of my choice, my order was processed pronto-like. That’s a thumbs up from me.
Another thumbs up is the built in weather forecast for my location. Sometimes inaccurate though. I find that the best indication of the weather and possibility of getting a few outdoors gardening hours is by looking at the sky. So, perhaps I’ll give it a thumb down after all.
This one is a bit dubious… It’s the estimated first and last frost days for my location. If I select vegetables whose growing conditions conflict with these dates, the laptop screen turns red, gets very hot and starts smoking. Admittedly, it’s a bit over the top, but might be useful at some point. In fact, I discovered that there are several vegetables that will grow away slowly right through the winter. Specifically, several varieties of lettuce are providing tasty lunches since way back in early November, and I’m thrilled also because there’s no bolting.
Here’s a thumbs down. The website provides a free journal, even if you choose not to subscribe to the planner. I could specify what I’ve done every day, and for the purposes of this article, you’ll see above that I’ve planted 36 dahlia seeds, when in fact I have not. I cannot see myself using this any longer. I have a notebook that follows me around the garden and most of what I need to record gets done when I remember to do it.
Also provided free are growing details for all vegetables. Thumbs up again. When combined with a subscription, the details (usually on the packet anyway) are at my fingertips.
I haven’t used this section yet. There are over 700 guides to everything. If I start reading, I’d never get anything done. Not sure yet if it’s thumb up or down.
How does the garden off-season progress? I guess it’s different for each of us. In my case, November is still very busy getting things tidied up and December is really about Christmas, mostly spent indoors. January can be the problem month. I really want to get things moving along but it’s too early. Yes, I can see the faint glimmer of new growth on spring bulbs, but other than that, it’s the month that cannot give as much as I need.
With that in mind, I invented “My January Inspiration”, helping me seek out and nurture the small aspects of gardening that lift me up. Little things that help me make it through the dull, dreary weather.
I’ll mention only a little about today’s inspiration because there’s a full Six-on-Saturday article about it tomorrow. I use a website subscription service called GrowVeg to plan my vegetable growing for the year. Go check it out.
Some of us use pen and paper, others a spreadsheet and a few just wing it. I do a bit of all these at various times of the year. GrowVeg has worked really well for me since last October, so it gets added to My January Inspiration repertoire. Read all about it tomorrow.
For the past number of years, I have grown some vegetables. In 2015 I had created two raised beds in order to make things easier for myself. Most raised beds are constructed using wood to a height of about 30 centimetres, but I decided to use concrete, and I raised the beds much higher. One of my favourite vegetables is Brussels Sprouts. The interesting thing about sprouts is that they are also favoured by caterpillars and slugs. Back in 2017, I selected three plants from the row of seeds I had planted and set them about 60 centimetres apart. As the butterfly season approached I covered two of the plants with netting and left the third uncovered. The result was that the butterflies colonised this plant, while the others were saved for our use. This year I intend growing vegetables again and I put a permanent netting in place. Nothing will be planted here until mid-April but I like the idea of being able to keep all the home-grown food for ourselves rather than feeding the invaders. I will need to do some further adjusting during the summer because the sprouts will rise higher than this netting. How will I stop the slugs? I think I’ve got it sorted.
Pádraig de Búrca - Grow Write Repeat 