Funny old game, gardening.
Early September 2015
Leaving the garden in July to go away for a number of weeks is never easy. Everything is in full flower and the fruit and vegetables are about to yield. It is now that I need to be around to pick raspberries, strawberries and blackcurrants; to grab any peas that have survived the slugs and mice; to cut the lettuces and to feed, water and nurture everything else.
Last year, two weeks of extreme heat followed then by heavy rains left me with nothing but disappointment on my return - drought stress followed by wet stress is a killer. This year the rain has been abundant but the sun and heat have been miserly so, once again, I have very little to show for weeks of hard work.
The first set of runner beans I planted are doing well with plenty of long, straight pods developing. The second set are weak and paltry and I doubt will produce anything much at all at this point, confirming once again that timing is all in vegetable gardening.
The strawberries have not had enough sun and the raspberries, redcurrants and blackcurrants were stripped by the birds. (At least something got to enjoy them!)
I grew dwarf broad beans this year and they have produced nothing. I won't be doing that again - bigger plants, bigger yields clearly holds true.
I have had a couple of small courgettes (again, anything that was ready while I was away was duly eaten by slugs and snails) and a few shallots and garlic. The cabbages became as Victorian lace, the rocket, chard and curly red lettuce bolted. The celery put on a reasonable show and the parsley proliferated. The lavender, contrary to all reason, is flourishing again and I have been able to make little muslin bags full of pungent perfume to put by my pillow and lure me into sweet dreams. I didn't do carrots this year but I seem to have a good enough number of potatoes, all grown in pots to avoid the worst perils of growing them directly in the ground. I have mint too. Lots of it. Endless mint tea. Lovely.
As for the rest of the garden, the lawn is looking exceptional thanks to all the rain and Ian's hard work earlier in the season scarifying it to get rid of some of the moss build up and make way for more grass. The roses have been lovely and I continue to dead-head them to prolong the show. The heleniums, anemones, actea, cosmos, crocosmia, achillea, rudbeckia and sedums are also creating colour in the borders and the grasses and everygreens are maintaining structure and interest. If nothing else, my planting schemes to prolong the season (so that on my return from summer holidays there is still much to relish in the borders) have actually paid off.
In other words, it's not all gloom and doom. And best of all, I have picked a delightful little posy of sweet peas whose looks and scent quite simply sum up the quintessence of an English garden.
Leaving the garden in July to go away for a number of weeks is never easy. Everything is in full flower and the fruit and vegetables are about to yield. It is now that I need to be around to pick raspberries, strawberries and blackcurrants; to grab any peas that have survived the slugs and mice; to cut the lettuces and to feed, water and nurture everything else.
Last year, two weeks of extreme heat followed then by heavy rains left me with nothing but disappointment on my return - drought stress followed by wet stress is a killer. This year the rain has been abundant but the sun and heat have been miserly so, once again, I have very little to show for weeks of hard work.
The first set of runner beans I planted are doing well with plenty of long, straight pods developing. The second set are weak and paltry and I doubt will produce anything much at all at this point, confirming once again that timing is all in vegetable gardening.
The strawberries have not had enough sun and the raspberries, redcurrants and blackcurrants were stripped by the birds. (At least something got to enjoy them!)
I grew dwarf broad beans this year and they have produced nothing. I won't be doing that again - bigger plants, bigger yields clearly holds true.
I have had a couple of small courgettes (again, anything that was ready while I was away was duly eaten by slugs and snails) and a few shallots and garlic. The cabbages became as Victorian lace, the rocket, chard and curly red lettuce bolted. The celery put on a reasonable show and the parsley proliferated. The lavender, contrary to all reason, is flourishing again and I have been able to make little muslin bags full of pungent perfume to put by my pillow and lure me into sweet dreams. I didn't do carrots this year but I seem to have a good enough number of potatoes, all grown in pots to avoid the worst perils of growing them directly in the ground. I have mint too. Lots of it. Endless mint tea. Lovely.
As for the rest of the garden, the lawn is looking exceptional thanks to all the rain and Ian's hard work earlier in the season scarifying it to get rid of some of the moss build up and make way for more grass. The roses have been lovely and I continue to dead-head them to prolong the show. The heleniums, anemones, actea, cosmos, crocosmia, achillea, rudbeckia and sedums are also creating colour in the borders and the grasses and everygreens are maintaining structure and interest. If nothing else, my planting schemes to prolong the season (so that on my return from summer holidays there is still much to relish in the borders) have actually paid off.
In other words, it's not all gloom and doom. And best of all, I have picked a delightful little posy of sweet peas whose looks and scent quite simply sum up the quintessence of an English garden.
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