My compost is cooking really well . Just added apple peelings - I’m making rhubarb, marrow and apple jam with port infused sultanas - hence the peelings. And I Added a good handful of comfrey to maintain compost combustion xxx
Early garden work yesterday morning - watering, planting my two Munstead lavender plants in my flower site. Masses of bindweed throughout all my plants which I'm slowly pulling out!
My new comfrey plants, marrow and courgettes are all doing well with new compost added . Also adding small amounts of compost to my flower site.
My evening primrose plants have done very well but should these also be cut back to promote lat e summer flowering?
...Cucumbers ready to pick and first pickings of new kale leaves for salads and sauteing.... But my veg site is still rather empty so what else could I add?photos here of my Artemisia or Wormwood xxx
With my new scythe to hand and thinking of the beastly crop of weeds, grasses, bolted spinach plants plus a few poppy plants and corn chamomile, imagine my disappointment at its poor handling. Could it be my poor handling of this new tool Oh Noooooo! Well probably ! So reverting back to my trusty shears, I spend the ensuing 10 minutes bent in half, attacking said crop. Discussing this whole subject with my son in Australia, by Skype, he tells me about soil solarization wh...
I’ve seen masses of butterflies recently in my allotment herb border - on the lavender, Nepeta and sage. Bees were thickly gathered on my sage flowers two weeks ago but now that much of the flowers have gone over, the bees have largely deserted us. But we have butterflies in the blooming lavender ! Therefore it’s time to prune out the faded flowering stalks and hope for more flowers soon. Deadheading is not just removing faded blooms but also cutting out while stalks of faded flowers; cutting herbs down to the ground - particularly parsley - for new growth to burst into life. Even venturing into your flower garden to cut down to ground level poppies, Marguerite and other fav. plants to encourage extended growth throughout summer's 2nd half.
The first-flush of summer blooms has now ended but don't end up with a half-dead garden for season's ending...get busy with your secateurs to keep summer alive and well for as long as possible ! Long live summer blooms. Hip hip hooray for. summer 2018 - long may she reign over our daily lives xxx.
