Working on my tan again!

When I arrived at the garden this morning, the rain was falling and the outlook wasn't that brilliant but within an hour we had blue skies and the fleece came off and the Jungle Formula went on - have you ever seen what that stuff does to plastic? No wonder it keeps the midges at bay, I just don't want to think what it might do to my skin!
To begin with, here is this weeks shot of the border from the potting shed

First off I potted up three spare aubergines that I had at home into five litre pots and puit them down in the greenhouse, then it was back to the weeding - I weeded both beds either side of the summerhouse and then re-weeded the rose bed. I know I weeded it last week but that was with the hoe (or to be more exact with the soil miller), but given the wet weather that arrived later, the darn things had started to grow again before the roots had a chance to dry up and shrivel! Anyway I redid it and here is how it looks now. Before you all wonder why it's called the rosebed when there aren't too many roses in it, it was historically the rosebed and it will be again - slowly slowly catchy monkey etc etc.

After finishing these three smaller beds, I decided to take the bull by the horns and start on the fruit bed - and here is a picture of it before I started

I shall update this pic when I have dug over a bit more of it, but as you can see, it may take a while. The plan now is to remove the box hedging which is more or less dead anyway for large stretches of this border, and replace it with a wire fence using the old metal posts that have been gathered from all over the garden, along which we will grow cordon gooseberries. In the meantime, this border will be home to the leeks and PSB that will need planting out soon.

On the veg front, the veg in the west facing border have all enjoyed the warm wet weather we have been having and are still growing away strongly.

I have sussed why the drill of Belle De Fontenay doesn't seem to have as many plants as the Charlotte and Rooster drills - there weren't as many seed tubers in the net!! And there was me last week imagining that all sorts of wierd and wonderful things were going on underground, when the real explanation was that I was suffering a memory lapse (it's my age you know!!) As for what's new - some of the dahlias tubers that I mentioned planting previously have put up shoots, and as for the rest, here is a photgraphic round up - some of these may have featured previously, so forgive me for any repeats

These pokers featured last week but they are now showing both their colours so I thought it was worthy of another pic



Peony Sarah Bernhardt about to open



The white Campanula that was planted a few weeks back

Geranium Splish Splash



Astrantia





On the rose front, some of the shrub roses in the borders are flowering this year whereas they did nothing last year so were given a hard prune and told that if they didn't flower this year they were for the chop - this threat seems to worked a treat with some of them

Also on the rose front, the white climber that was mildewed last week has improved and is now in full flower mode

And the yellow rose by the potting shed is now out too

What else is happening? There are fruits on the plum tree ( this didn't produce any blossom or fruit last year so it may actually be a greengage - we shall wait and see), the sweet peas are beginning to make their climb upwards and onwards, the runner beans that are to grow over the potting shed arch are doing likewise, the tomatoes have the first signs of their first flowers, there are currants on some of the redcurrant and blackcurrant bushes, the Achillea is on the point of flowering and I sowed some more lettuce (Red Iceberg)

That's about it for this week  - see you next week................