💛Opuntia Full Bloom 💛

 

                                                       🌿💛🌿

💛Opuntia bud update - opening 💛

 

After a chilly night the sun came up and this is at 2pm .There was heavy dew on the grass in the meadow but no frost . 

I wonder if it will open up any further ? I'll give another update later on .

                    I picked another lot of tomatoes ....very happy me !

Plenty of tomatoes this year and this Roma variety pleased me very much . I will be growing this variety again next year .

I have begun to clear out all of the tomato plants now , hanging up the green ones on a line to ripen up a bit more before bringing them in .

I just have one plant left in it's pot as I am hoping the tomatoes on it will fatten up a bit more .

 All the spent compost will go on the Butternut Squash bed .

 I have to clear it out because the men are coming back to fix the leaking ,badly fitting top window . 

I have to bring in all the cacti collection and rearrange them with our fossils and stones . There is one very precious stone which has gone missing . It is an ancient loom weight and means a lot to me . 

Anyway , yes , I am delighted with the harvest of tomatoes ,cucumbers and the sweet peppers .

It won't be long before we are starting all over again . 

In the veg trug the Winter Density Lettuces are doing o.k.......a couple have disappeared .

 I took up my husband's garlic , they are just one clove as they were planted way too close together , but still useable and smell delicious !

The lettuces in the shed are doing better and are bigger . I must remember to sow more .The cabbages are also going o.k in the safety of the shed .🦋🐛🪲

I need to tidy them all up a bit , take off the withered leaves and give them all a good rain water drink .

Does anyone else grow their cabbages in the shed ? lol ! Or is it just me ? 🪲🦋🐛

                                  Safe !               Safe in the shed ! 

                              Dasylirion , Aeonium and a huge Pregnant Onion .

Soon  , very soon , it will be time to move my less hardy plants into their shelter zones .The bananas have got to be taken up and put into a couple of big tubs with fresh compost to over winter in the wood store ....but not today . Feeling a little poorly . My daughter  has been decorating my bedroom and the smell of the paint has made me feel a bit sick . I have put bowls of Bicarbonate of soda around the room , I've been told it absorbs the fumes somehow . No idea how long this takes . 

Things to be done - find the big cloches to go over the Agaves and cut some big branches to go over this one as it is now too big for the cloche .

Get compost in for the Banana plants .

Order the Outside Tap covers .

Sow some more Lettuce seeds.

Pick and nosh the remaining Sweetcorn .

Pray over the Butternuts Squashes ----grow ---grow -----grow ! (looking pathetic right now ) but there's still time . They have until the end of October .

Clear the weeds out of the drive .

Take down the Runner-Bean/ French Bean Frames and put away all the bamboo canes into the shed .

Cut the Hazel branches that are rubbing against the garage roof tiles .Store for next years pea sticks and bean poles . 

Harvest my apples ...make Apple Cake .

Order seed catalogues - plan for next year .

Indoor Hyacinth Bulbs

 Purchase Sweet Pea seeds to sow in November - done !

The list is endless !

 Today's weather - 🌤️                                 

                                  🌿  Make it a great weekend all ! 🌿

                                       

Opuntia update

 

                               Opuntia update- September 12 2024

Last night was clear skies and chilly into the morning , but then the sun came out and she is beginning to open her petals .

We are forecast to have another chilly night 6 degrees C  /45 degrees F and then it is supposed to warm up again for a few days....aah...lovely sunshine  .

I'm afraid that if I move it now , then we will lose the flower bud .

I think Opuntias are fairly tough and it is fairly sheltered on this windowsill .  I think she will make it !

I just want to see it fully open then I will take it into the greenhouse . 

Oh .........o.k. I'll go find some fleece to throw over her !  

                                                   🌿💛🌿

The Swallows are still here .

Opuntia 🌵💚

 

While I was topping up the bird feeders yesterday ....thinking to myself what a disappointment this years window basket is this year . Those begonias were supposed to have been lovely big doubles .....I noticed an Opuntia cactus that I had just put there earlier in the year while the new greenhouse was being built .

(still waiting for the leaky window to be fixed .They promised to come and do it )

                           Opuntia ...can't remember the variety I've long lost the label .

I had forgotten all about it . It was never the most beautiful of plants . It has no spines....but be aware that it does have glochids !

But look ! It has a new leaf pad .....and what looks like a big fat bud coming !   

What should I do ?  Autumn is fast coming in now . Will it make it ? 

                Watch this space !

                                                  🌿💚🌿

p.s The swallows are still swooping .

 

Cactus re-potting 🌵

 Today I took my dreaming Buddha from his temporary home in the porch and carried him up to his place in the new greenhouse .

Instantly the atmosphere became peaceful , warm and comforting  . 

                   I love this place so much 💗🙏🏻🕊️

So time to make a start bringing the plants back into the new greenhouse .

First to bring in the  biggest and most dangerous of my Cacti . These , for safety reasons , have go into the furthest corner of the greenhouse .

These haven't been re-potted for at least fifteen years . Now would be a good time to do it . 

I had to cut the plastic pots apart from these pot bound beasts !  

    Thankfully cactus roots don't have spines ! It would be impossible if they did !

  I managed to drop it into it's next size up pot and lashed it to a couple of canes .

                 This , the biggest , fiercest and oldest Opuntia was a bit more difficult .

I had to cut the pot and find a heavier pot that would not fall over with the weight of the Opuntia . It had grown out sideways ,meanwhile another Opuntia that was in another pot next to it had leant over and taken root in with it . It was the strong roothold from the invading smaller Opuntia that was keeping the big Opuntia from falling over . Are you still with me ?

 So I found this beautiful , really heavy terracotta pot and it was all going so well ......

                          ............ only it didn't fit !

So I ended up bunging it into a horrible ugly big plastic tub and it served it right for slapping me across my cheek in the process . I'm o.k. miraculously no spines got me . 

 So here they all are after hauling them into their corner at the back of the greenhouse . 

Everybody happy and peaceful again !

They all got some fresh compost and when the roots have had some time to settle  I'll water them with some good rain water .......that's when the water-butt is fixed up again . 

                                                 Happy and peaceful  .

  🌵   That is all I can handle today . 

Tomorrow I'l begin bringing in the Epies .  🌿🌿🌿

                                             🌿💚🌿  

I sow the seeds of faith . The good actions that I perform are the rain that waters the seeds . Buddha 🌿