Agaves , Epiphyllums and Curly Wurly Kale 🌿

 

Up early - cut the grass in the ornamental garden....except for one last little bit ....because the damned battery ran out !

Anyway then spent a couple of hours up in the shed , pricking out and potting on the curly wurly kale seedlings .

 Pricked out and potted on more lettuces . Gave everything a drink . Tradescantia cuttings still looking good . Egyptian Onions looking great , I had thought I might have lost them but I had saved lots of bulbils and they are all coming up .

 Tidied up some of the Epiphyllums . Need to spend some more time pruning , repotting and generally pampering them . They will soon be showing signs of new shoots and buds .

After potting up all the seedlings I was somewhat aching , so then sat chatting on the phone with my botanical brother up country . 🥧🥟He of the wonderful pies ! 

Anyway , he told me he was repotting his Grape vine cutting and it got me thinking about the cutting I took last year , or maybe the year before . I haven't given anything any attention since the end of last August after my spine injury  .I'm only just getting back on track with my health . I am feeling so much better now thanks to my very patient doctors , nurses , therapists and physiotherapists .

So , oh my goodness , I went to take a look at my grape vine cutting in the greenhouse .

                                              Where did I put it ? ! 🤔

                                          Oh dear ! ...... There it is !   😔

                         I 'd better take it out and have a closer look at it  .

                              Oh dear !  And the compost is bone dry !

    Hang on a minute ......  can I see buds ?     🎉Yes ! 🤩

                        Dash about to find a bigger pot and some fresh compost !

                                 I teased out the root-ball a little bit .

                                       Into the bigger pot with fresh compost .

                                    Given a good long drink .

And into the greenhouse . Sort of intensive care unit .

 I have put it in with these poor Agaves that I had not been able to bring in to over winter . I was unable to do any gardening at all from the end of last August and so many things had to be just left to take their chance through the Winter months . 

I think I can save them . Some have pups (off shoots ) coming out of the bottom of their pots . Even if I lose them , I do have more healthy ones .

                                 Here is a more healthy looking one !

               It will eventually replace this monster  !

                                             Agave salmiana var ferox  

 I am hoping this one will put up it's huge inflorescence soon . Maybe this year .

 Then it will wither down , I will take it out , pull up all the off shoots and replace with that new one.

The fence around it at the moment, is so that I can more easily throw a cover over it if we were to get an Arctic blast .  It's been quite mild this year  .   BUT  we could , as yet , still get some cold weather . 

   They can actually take quite a bit of cold . It's the wet that Agaves don't like . 

                                               Last job of the day .

 I coppiced down this willow . It will now produce lots of lovely golden yellow stems .

               That's all fer today ! Have a great weekend all ! I'm thinking of you !

                                🌼  love Daisy Debbie x🌼

                                              🤍💐🕊️ 

                                                    ☀️    

What I actually ended up doing - Today ☀️

 So first of all I wanted to move all the seedlings from my bedroom windowsill into the shed . So to make space , I had to get this hanging basket out and move it into it's place under the kitchen window . 

             I still have a few tomato plants indoors....just incase the worst happens .

I have some fleece to one side should we get cold weather , I also have a foil survival blanket which I pull down that reflects the light from behind them .

Next I shovelled earth into the wheelbarrow to partially fill the potato tubs .

Next the potatoes went on top and then I used some nice compost for the next layer to give them a good start .

 I will just keep earthing them up as they grow . These should be ready to harvest end of May I think .

I do this so my grandchildren can enjoy harvesting the potatoes 🤗🌿

                🌿  So that's the spuds in tubs done ! 🌿

                    And then this happened ......blue sky ! 

I was told to go and put a pretty frock on , we're going to Godolphin Manor .

We love this place ! There is a second hand bookshop in there and a lovely cafe  , loos and ramps for prams and wheelchairs .  I'm not sure if wheelchairs and prams can access all parts of the garden and today we were sorry to see so many fallen trees after the recent storm Goretti . Much of our usual favourite pathways were therefore closed off .

It is a splendid house . We didn't go into the house this time .

   I just love to walk around the beautiful gardens and enjoy seeing it change with the passing seasons .

 Then home ....

 

   .........and straight off up to the shed to check on my seedlings . I hope they'll be o.k. tonight .

I didn't get everything done that I had wanted to do ...never mind .

                  I'm aching from shovelling earth ...tomorrow I'm resting .

                        I hope the sun is shining where you are . ☀️

                                     🤍 Love and Peace 🕊️

                                                    

Tomorrow

 

Jobs for tomorrow -

 Plant my potatoes in tubs . Albert Bartlett absolutely delicious and Soraya for a little bit later on .

Venture into the jungle , trail blaze my way up and along the top , prune hydrangeas , roses and Photinia "Red Robin " , check on a couple of young saplings that I planted last year and fight brambles .

I want it tidy before the lovely Azaleas begin to flower .

And I want to get this bed a little bit more ready .🌿🌿🐰 My chives are coming up nicely , but being nibbled by cheeky bunnykins !  🐰🐇🌿🌿 So I need to invent some sort of cover with the blue water pipe stuff and netting again ...probably .....  🤔  

My Rhubarb is very slow to grow this year , maybe because we haven't had a particularly cold Winter . I'm not sure ? Maybe it needs a good feed with something . I'll have a think about it ...hmmm ....

Meanwhile up in Buckinghamshire ....

       Not only is my brother's Rhubarb three times the size of mine ....🙄........

 

....... but , he is making pies and crumbles galore !  🤩    He is the champion of all Rhubarb growers and pie makers !   🏆🌿🌿

Weather has been "Oh ! My goodness ! Sunny and very warm !  🌤️Very strange and wonderful !☀️

    🐝  I saw my first Bumblebee of the year basking in the sunshine !  

           Sorry   🤣  ....... you can zoom in a little bit !           

I couldn't get down any closer as I would have been kneeling in squelchy muddy grass . Normally I don't mind having muddy knees but we were about to go out .

                   Tomorrow I can enjoy getting my knees muddy  !

                                          All fer now my lovelies !  

 

                                                         Love   Debbie  x

                                                           🌿🐝🌿