So I spent a whole afternoon battling the brambles that had grown over and under the branches of my little Monkey Puzzle tree and it really is not looking very happy .
Last year , someone thought they were helping by cutting the brambles down , but in reality what they had done was pruned them and now they were flourishing .
I managed to clear this side of the fence , but there is still a lot to do .
To one side there is also a young Trachycarpus which also needed protection .
This was just before the bad weather came in . I pruned back some of the branches from the Bay tree and lay them down to surround both the Trachycarpus and the Monkey Puzzle tree . We will burn those branches as soon as the wind is in the right direction , but for now they'll make for a good windbreak until I can get out to continue the job of tidying this corner and planting more hedging .
I hope not ,but , if I lose that Monkey Puzzle then I do have the third one still waiting in the wings , to replace it .
This one has two leading shoots , of which I think I will take off one , so it will make a better shaped tree .
It is also looking a bit battered in all this cold , haily , windy weather .
So I have popped it into the shed , just until all these hail and sleet showers have gone .
It's looking happier already !
Other big news - I sowed my first seeds of the year today .
Sweet Peppers " Marconi "
They were great last year and I remember saying that I wished I had started them off a little bit earlier . So I did !
I also sowed a few Cucumbers which might really be pushing my luck . I have two generous packets of seeds so I can always sow some more if they fail .
In the pot at the end are some cuttings of Jiaogulan roots also known as "the Immortality Plant " which I bought from the expert Vegetable Gardener Klaus Laitenberger .
I am so excited and pleased to have acquired these and am getting them started on my bedroom windowsill . It is a herb with many health benefits .
I had to use slug pellets because there were slug/snails eggs in the compost . I am very excited to see some tiny shoots pushing up already .
I get very excited about such things !
That's all fer now ! Debbie x
