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| February 2015 |
For once the End of Month seems to have come round rather slowly. I'm not sure if that's because February came and went in a flash or because the month of March continues to be a cold one and little time has been spend outdoors. All day today we had sleet, hail and rain. Interspersed with glorious bouts of sunshine. On days like this, you can almost hear the garden grow. I love it! The lion that roared at the beginning of the month hasn't quite let up yet.
I forked in a couple of bags of manure along the hedge line in an attempt to give the hedge a bit of a boost earlier this month. It is not the best specimen and for reasons I've touched on in previous posts - it stays for now. I'm hoping it will benefit from all that goodness I have added. I know it would probably benefit from a good prune, possibly to within an inch of it's life but I feel that if I do that, then the whole garden will be open and what little shelter from the wind I currently provides would be lost. I had 2 jobs marked down to get down since last post, one was to move the mat of Campanula persicifolia that seemed to have made it's way around the base of the hedge, that's now gone but I've still done nothing about moving the Podocarpus. I did however move the small Taxus baccata x media a few feet towards the corner, it looks better there, I think. It will get tall but as it is a narrow upright specimen, it should fill that corner just fine. In the four years I've had this shrub it's been moved from pillar to post and I hope now I can be happy with it where it is.
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| Looking West - End of March 2015 after a hail storm |
A neighbourhood cat or possibly one of my own, I've yet to catch the culprit, has taken to using the freshly forked over soil as a toilet. I've positioned a few large stones in those spots in the hope to deter who ever it is. I've made a small bird bath feature out of a couple of them. 
Speaking of birds, the bird feeder has proved a great success this winter and I am attracting far more goldfinches into the garden than have ever been before. This of course will also be a reflection on how cold our weather has been but it's been in constant use and I'd be loathe to withdraw it now. I had originally put a feeder there to attract the bullfinches that perched on those nearby trees. They did not come in their droves and a lone female has been seen in the garden only once - here she is foraging around. A rather fuzzy picture taken through the living room window a couple of weeks back. Kindly posing for a few snaps are some of the now regular visitors to the front garden. Thankfully, the squabbling starlings and sparrows tend to stay round the back and these little ones get their fill in peace!
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| Greenfinch, Great Tit, Goldfinch and Blue Tits |
Most of the perennials are now raring to go and whilst it's been difficult not to focus on the lack of blooms throughout February and March, there is little I can do about that now. It will be remedied come autumn and I will introduce some Hellebores and yet more early bulbs.
Looking back toward the house, the bearded Iris, which are dotted around, came from round the back where they struggled for years, rarely blooming. They seem to be enjoying the better drainage round here. Many I have never seen flower as they were brought along from my brother's house when he moved in there 3 years ago. It will be interesting too see just what turns up and whether or not they will be worth keeping. Other Iris that should hopefully make a good show this year are the Juno Iris I previously grew in containers and the Dutch Iris Bronze Beauty that were planted last autumn.
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| End of Month View March 2015 towards the house |
Mixed behaviour from the roses, some are really going strong, whilst others are still tight in bud. Those that are tight in bud are the ones that chose to flower very late in the year. I have no idea if this is the norm or just a coincidence. Any ideas?
Apart from the Roses (which had time to settle in all summer) and one or two others, I am seeing how all these plants will look together for the first time this year. Last year's End of Month View was one where I chose to fill the border as the seasons progressed, which to be honest is my usual method of gardening, I am very poor at planning. Doing things this way is a whole new ball game for me and I am filled with both excitement and apprehension on how it will look come summer time.
The End of Month View meme hosted by Helen over at The Patient Gardner's Weblog is an extremely useful one. It helps to give me focus, it gives me something to work towards and also provides a means to get my thoughts down without the need for hand written notes. A reference to look back on and to compare successes and failures, what works and what doesn't. I can thoroughly recommend taking part. If you haven't already done so that is.
Just as I was about to come indoors, I spotted this wee beauty getting ready to bloom. Primula Elizabeth Killelay is one of my favourites. I've had it quite a few years now and last year was recovering in a pot after being divided to give away to a few friends. She seems delighted to get her feet back in the ground and has put on quite a bit of growth. She should, all things going well, look great come bloom day on the 15th of the month.
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| Primula Elizabeth Killelay just coming into bloom |