We now have a man posted 24 hours a day to watch over the Higgledy Garden…keeping the wildbeasties away and protecting the seedlings.
This wasn’t easy….and put me in a bad mood…then Oli came along and said I’d put it in the wrong place…apparently being on a slope in the middle of a Holly bush was all wrong…then I fell over in it…then I ripped the zip off…
We dug deep and sent Oli on a four day watering workshop in Herefordshire…the results have really paid off…his parallel precipitation is simply unmatched other than by Mr Derek Plimsole of Leeds who is quite simply a genius with a can.
The germination rate of Dot Eckford was disappointing…
Black Knight however did brilliantly.
Dahlia did well too…these are Disco Dancers…yeah baby!
Cleomes haven’t materialised…most probably because I think I may have buried the seeds and they need to be sown on the surface…silly me…anyway I’ve decided I don’t like them anymore and they are banished from the Higgledy Garden for at least a year. Bishops Children (Dahlias) did ok…several more popped up in the following days.
Kindest regards.
Ben
April 13, 2011 @ 3:16 pm
Given your blog an award!! Bx
April 7, 2011 @ 6:45 am
Can tourists have their phtot taken with your Sentry?
And where did the foliage go?
April 7, 2011 @ 6:46 am
ps – these are foreign tourists from the darkest north who can’t spell ;)
April 7, 2011 @ 9:46 pm
Photos are just a pound thanks Mo! I must just find my bearskin hat though…
April 6, 2011 @ 10:16 am
I was given a tip for germinating cleomes as they are a pain. Think cress! Place a damp piece of kitchen roll in a dish and sprinkle seeds on it. Leave to germinate then transfer one by one to a tray of soil and lightly cover. Voila they germinated! Real faff but it worked. However i’m not growing them this year they are vicious and thorny and smell suspect!
April 6, 2011 @ 3:26 pm
I think it was Jan from JW Blooms that said the same about cleomes…they’ve had their chance and blown it…plenty more trying to get in on the Higgledy action… :)
Thx Katherine x
April 7, 2011 @ 12:55 pm
Yes, it was me who said they smelt funny. I have vowed never to grow Paperwhites again for the same reason. Btw, Ben, are you and Oli still coming down this way this month? If so, are you coming to visit? Jan x
April 7, 2011 @ 9:49 pm
You’ve got a good memory! Oli and I may go down separately and I may have have a car full of beauties… ;)
We will be going to deepest Cornwall so I will have to check with my co pilot if we can make a stop. :) Though I am somewhat peeved that you have ALREADY got cornflowers… x
April 8, 2011 @ 10:52 am
Junction 26 of the M5 is the best place to stop for coffee en route to Cornwall. Beauties also welcome, of course. x
April 4, 2011 @ 6:29 pm
I really like this idea, my scarecrow is looking a bit saggy round the middle. I can offer a deluxe home-a mini polytunnel which has been safely re-erected after Thursdays wind blew it down the garden. We didn’t have any instructions about fixing it to the ground, so just turned the bottom flaps under the soil-obviously not enough to cope with a good wind. So now its fixed with wooden stakes hammered into the ground and attached with cable ties to the frame, plus soil along the bottom and bricks on top of that- as I’ve now sown it with salad crops, I hope it will hold-so free radishes on offer too!
April 4, 2011 @ 7:10 pm
Tee hee!!! Good on you Jan….I think your radishes are safe. :)