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Sally Nex

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Sally Nex

Tag Archives: jobs

This month in the garden…

05 Saturday Nov 2016

Posted by sallynex in climate change, greenhouse, my garden, this month in the garden

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Tags

cloches, garlic, greenhouse, greenhouse insulation, jobs, leafmould, Musa basjoo, spring cabbage, tulips, winter salads

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Just-planted garlic

…it is getting cold. Seriously, properly cold.

Actually I can’t remember being cold before Christmas before (well, a bit chilly, perhaps, but not cold of the three layers and double socks kind just yet).

We have, I think, become a bit soft in recent years what with all this global warming malarkey. Things may be a little extreme in this respect at my end of the country, around 20 miles from the south coast and never the coldest of places generally.

But since the epic winter of 2010 (when we had about 10 winters’ worth of snow, hoarfrost and ice for a memorable three or four months from November to February) we’ve been lucky to get a frost at all. Last year the lowest temperature I recorded was around 1°C, in February; the previous year we dipped to an adventurous -2°C for one night only. It was hardly the second ice age.

Anyway, all this is by way of saying that this month in the garden I have had to get my skates on (not quite literally but you never know) in a way I have not been accustomed to doing, and do all those getting-ready-for-winter things I’ve previously been putting off till about January. So here’s what I’ll be up to…

Planting garlic I have had a bit of a garlic crisis this year: every last plant succumbed to rust. I am therefore launching an experiment: I’m replanting the bulbs from the garlic which survived the longest, in an attempt to select a strain that copes better with the (now endemic) garlic rust in my garden. I will report back with results.

Collecting leaves There are so many leaves. So, so many leaves. I watched them rain down the other day like a golden snowstorm. And so to work with my trusty rake and wheelbarrow to fill as many leafmould bins as I can before they all run out.

Putting the veg garden to bed The endless task continues: clear crops, cart off to compost heap, weed, mulch, cover, repeat. I am still only halfway down the veg garden and I’ve already run out of soil improver.

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Spring cabbage still going strong after around ten straight months of harvesting

Picking spring cabbage Yes, you read that right: spring cabbage. I planted it last August (that’s August 2015) and it has been going strong ever since, mainly through my laziness in not getting around to pulling it out, so it just sprouts again. A happy accidental discovery: I shall be doing this again…

Clearing the greenhouse The cucumbers are spent; the green peppers picked. Time to strip out the last of the summer crops and get the greenhouse ready for its winter role. I have only one this year, as we’re having to move the other: I am bereft.

Lining said greenhouse with bubblewrap insulation You save around 25% on the average heating bill by insulating your greenhouse, so they say. I know it keeps things much cosier, and often means I don’t have to turn on the heater at all.

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Winter lettuces, ‘White Lisbon Winter Hardy’ spring onions, American land cress and a couple of rows of corn salad and radish seedlings tucked up safely in their plumbing pipe cloche

Planting winter salads under cloches Since I am deprived of my winter salads greenhouse this year I am resorting to planting out my greenery under cloches instead (or rather, one massive cloche made of blue plumbing pipe and clear polythene).

Wrapping bananas The Musa basjoo in the back garden has been going great guns this year, so the plan is to wrap it in the time-honoured way (chop leaves off, wrap in straw and hessian or fleece, big bubblewrap hat) and leave it outside for the first time.

Digging up pelargoniums My scented-leaf pelargonium collection is expanding all the time: I do need to bring it in for winter, though. This year they’ve been in containers on the front steps, making this particular job much easier.

Planting tulips Ah yes: there is some joy to be had this month. This year’s order includes ‘Ballerina’, ‘Jan Reus’, ‘Purple Prince’, ‘Violet Beauty’ and ‘White Triumphator’. I am looking forward to spring very much.

In the garden this month…

05 Friday Jun 2015

Posted by sallynex in this month in the garden

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Tags

courgettes, jobs, june, monthly tasks, succeessional sowing, tender plants, Weeding

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June! Doncha love it?

It’s probably my all-time favourite month of the year, with the possible exception of September. And March. And probably May. Oh look, most months in the garden are pretty good but this one is exceptional.

The weather is (at last) warm enough to put out the tender stuff; yet there’s still enough dampness in the soil and growing conditions are all but perfect. On the downside, the weeds have started growing – with a vengeance.

So here’s what I’ll be doing this month in the garden:

  • planting out courgettes, and squash: they’ve been languishing too long in the greenhouse and desperately need to stretch out their roots

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  • weeding: once-a-week hoeing plus beheading the bindweed
  • sowing the next batch of salad: I sow mixed salad, lettuces and coriander most months for an endless supply
  • weeding

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  • tying things in: peas, tomatoes, French beans and sweet peas are all getting out of control as I haven’t been keeping up with their stupendous rate of growth
  • did I mention the weeding?
  • netting the strawberries: they’re now at small-green-berry stage and the mice and birds will be eyeing them up as greedily as I am

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  • closing the gaps in the insect-proof mesh that’s supposed to be protecting my brassicas. Cabbage whites are on the wing already: I’ve spotted at least two.
  • uh… yep, more weeding
  • planting out the scented-leaf geraniums: now thoroughly hardened off and ready to fill my herb garden with scent and colour.

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