Busy & Beautiful

Well it has certainly been a busy weekend, phew! I'm plum tuckered out!

Having had a lovely day on Saturday at Akamba and spent just a little bit of money!! Oh by the way I used my garden vouchers at last!!

Sunday was so warm that we decided to plant one or two plants!
The Trachycarpus Fortunei, that has been in a pot for quite a few years and has now got to the stage where we struggle to lift it, so it had to be planted. Here is hubby in his stripes (he does like his stripes!)digging a big hole and next to him is Trachy!


Trachy, now planted, I took of a few palms and will feed it with Palmbooster

I am pleased how this looks as the far side has room for me to plant a couple of my brugmansias. I have decided to plant alot of them this year as this should hopefully reduce the need to water so often, then late autumn I will dig them up and over winter in the greenhouse!

My Tetrapanax Papyrifera 'Rex' which has been overwintering in the greenhouse has speeded up its growth rate, so for the last week I have had it sat outside to harden off. At long last after much deliberation and tea drinking I have decided where it should be planted.



I have taken a pic of it with a standard unit of measurement you will all recognise and we can all watch it grow!I hope to do this about once a month, as I believe these can shift!!!!!

Sassy was exhausted with all this going on and found somewhere cool to lie down!



The Borneo Giant unfurling another leaf! I hope we get some good weather soon as I want to move this up onto the patio where its nice and hot, or should be if we get a good summer!!


Sparmannia africana,(House Lime or African Hemp) probably not the most sensible buy, but these leaves are soft and fluffy! Another one that will need to be lifted in for the winter, maybe a bit tender but should be ok on my south facing patio!



You will like these......did you know there was such a thing as Hardy Impatiens? (Busy Lizzies) not that they look like your standard Busy Lizzie

on the left we have Impatiens omeiana and on the right Impatiens tinctoria now aren't you jealous!!!! I have always loved busy lizzies and often have them planted in my window boxes.
I was so impressed by these I bought a book about them.
Off for a cuppa and a read!!!!!

Deep in the Jungle! (pic intensive)

Hubby & I had a day out yesterday. It was a day out like no other I have been on! If you thought I liked tropicals, well think again after yesterday I am besotted with them!



There where animals running in all directions!



Under tall palms,



With animals getting closer



and closer



creepy ones



tall ones



we finally found some sign of inhabitation




where the natives where friendly and waved



and we sought shelter, coffee and bacon butties



This was the Hardy Tropicals forum meet at Akamba. What a place, I have never been to anywhere in the UK, like this before! I was so gobsmacked I only got photos of the carpark!!!!!!
I came away with lots of plants, which I forgot to take pics of!! New friends and tons and tons of inspiration!
If you happen to be in the area, of this unique Garden Centre then do pop in for a peek and a Fairtrade coffee or tea! If Easy Exotics are not your thing then just go for the experience, it is amazing!

Still in the Greenhouse!

We had sunshine and showers today,



the showers where pretty heavy but not really heavy enough to refill my water butts. Because it was raining so heavily when I got up and I wanted to check that all the gutters where lined up to fill the butts and sort out the ones that weren't, I jumped into some joggers and just put a coat on over my nightie and charged off down the garden, good job all the neighbours leave early for work!
Anyway once that was sorted and I was suitably attired, I fixed the automatic opener on the second roof vent and generally just pottered around.

My Aeonium is still doing well, it seems to thrive on neglect, but it has lost alot of its leaves/petals so maybe needs re-potting or feeding.



I love the way the leaves go pink at this time of year!

I potted up two of its babies



This is my Ensete ventricosum Montbeliardii



with Tango sussing out the best place to be..........
he found it.............



on my chair in the sunshine!!!

Happy St Georges Day!

What a glorious day we had yesterday weather wise. I got alot done and am paying for it today with a dodgy back!
I did all the shopping in the morning, posted lots of parcels, a whole load of washing, prepared the tea............... then went outside..........

I unwrapped the greenhouses, which is quite a fiddly job as I take care in packing the bubble wrap away so I can use it again next year! The maximum high yesterday was 15.9C but obviously inside the greenhouses, even though all the windows and doors where open it was quite abit hotter.
The smaller one unwrapped with a piece of bubble wrap drying. I will have to tidy up my workbench abit now everyone can see in there!



The full view of the big one, I really must look into getting some staging.



All my Elephants leaves in full glorious view!



and finally my brugmansias got a very thorough soaking, my hat which should have been on my head, but my head got too hot and in the top of the picture a small radio and my chair.................. Heaven!!!!!!!!!!



Whilst I was inside the big one,unwrapping, I had done one side and the back and was steadily working my way up the other side,I kept catching movement out of my eye at the back of the greenhouse and when I looked on the other side of the glass (thankfully) was a Rat!!! Sassy was down with me but not close by as she usually is but sat just in front of the small greenhouse looking at a gap under the shed, I believe our rats have a new home, so we obviously still have a problem. So I think a trap will be purchased. Oh and to confirm the problem, I nipped in the house to get a drink and found



One reason not to have cats! But then we do live in the country and so far have not had any baby rabbits like we usually do!

I also unwrapped my bananas which seemed to have come through the winter just wrapped in fleece very well




I then went on and planted out my onions, peas and beans. As we have such a mild week, weather wise I thought I would grasp the moment! But have fleece on standby! We didn't shut the greenhouses up till 7pm last night! A first for the year! I have put greenhouse shading on my shopping list as I can see it will be needed!
Now it is raining which I am grateful for as I already have two empty water butts!!!!

Chickens, Cuttings & Things!

Eggs Laid This Year: 135

The chickens have been doing remarkably well this year, in the egg laying department! They will be 2yrs old soon,if they are not already, we got them in May 2006. I always though there egg laying dropped off as they got older!
This is three of them enjoying the sunshine and wrecking the lawn (if you could call it that)




I have taken to spending alot of time in my large greenhouse, the one behind the chickens, its like a conservatory. I have a chair in there and will often go and sit, to rest my back. I go in when its raining too, its like being in a caravan hearing the rain on the roof, I love the smell, the warmth, the brightness, just being in amongst the plants. I think I will look out for a little table then I could have a radio on when I'm in there and on cooler days maybe even read a book then maybe not.






How could you not enjoy leaves with such magnificent markings and colours, are you beginning to understand why I love them so much?

When I sit, I'm always looking and doing, seeing how things are coming on, are there any bugs that need destroying, has that plant grown since I looked at it 5 seconds ago, what can I do to make them bigger and better! You see this is my tropical greenhouse, the house with all the jungle plants with large leaves. I also overwinter my brugmansias in here.
I was sat in here on Sunday and spotted something that needed doing, can you see?



My standard brug had shoots growing from its stem


so not wanting to waste anything, I took them off and


potted them up. Well waste not want not. If they take I shall sell them on Ebay!! I have to pay for my expensive taste somehow!!!