Compact Composter

This handy sized composting bag is ideal for people who don't have the space for compost bins but still feel that that they should recycle and reuse their horticultural waste. It's made from tough material and will probably last up to five seasons,it works on the principle that you roll it around when it starts getting full and it looks to hold a 100 litres of compost, lets face it a composter for under 3 POUNDS got to be with a try hasn't it.

A Religious Story told by a Plant

One of the plants that we've had success with this year is the Passion Flower(passiflora caerulea). Legend has it that Roman Catholic priests used the passion flower to illustrate the story of the Crucifixion, I'll try and explain
  The pointed tip on the leaves represented the Holy Lance
  The tendrils represent the whips used in the flagellation of Christ.
  The ten petals(sepals) represent the ten faithful apostles(Peter and Judas omitted)
  The flowers radial filaments which can number 100 represent the crown of thorns
  The chalice shaped ovary with its receptacle represents a hammer or the Holy Grail
  The 3 stigmata represent the 3 nails and the 5 anthers below them the represent the 5 wounds

Elecampagne

I don't know if you remember me talking about the plant Elecampagne, the wild sunflower I call it, it has numerous other common names, well getting to the point it's well into its flowering period now and boy does it attract the wildlife, you will have to excuse my photos but on the flowers we have had numerous bees, hoverflies, and butterflies ranging from the Whites to Peacocks, honestly a plant I would recommend in any garden to attract wildlife. REMEMBER PLANT THEM AND THEY WILL COME.

I like this plant

I was just takin 5 from the chores, you know whats it like and I was just looking at one of our Bamboos, now I know a lot of gardeners don't like them, well they don't look at the plant carefully enough because if you do and the time is right you will see pandas,hard to believe isn't it,well that'

s the problem you don't believe..........................oh and by the way you can see them better with 2 friends who go by the names of Jack Daniels and Arthur Guiness

A little plant sometimes overlooked

A little plant sometimes overlooked in the scheme of things is Lady's Mantle also known as "Womans Herb" because of its health benefits uses include using it as a poultice on cuts and wounds as well as giving relief from insect bites,it seems that it was well used shall we say in the pre chemist days

Propagating a prickly customer

A little time out from growing foodie plants took me into the fly-away and a prickly task of propagating this cactus. Quite an easy job but these cacti can bite. Some people leave the young cacti to callous over befor putting it into a pot but this way works for me, straight into the pot as soon as I've cut them. Admittingly this compost that I've used could have been of a greater sandy mix but these will be fine at this time of year, later on definately a sandy compost.

Not Everyone's Cup of Tea

I know Bonsai are not everyone's cup of tea but what the hell in our world it's still growing plants. These particular plants are outdoor bonsai, indoor bonsai are a bit fiddly to look after or is it that I don't have great success with them. The plants in the photo are buxus and chamaecyparis -nana, the buxus are in their formative years, while chamaecyparis is taking on a nice shape, well I like them anyway.

Summer Residence

Finally got our collection of cacti into our flyaway greenhouse, here hopefully they will stay and be well watered and fed. The lace cactus 2nd from right front row has already flowered in the house, I feel that when a cactus flowers then it is happy with its lot, so come on you others!

Little bit of Alpine magic

Yeah these are our alpines which are going strong now, they have been in this pot for 2-3 years now and have put on this nice show of flowers today for the camera. The species on show include Fairy Foxglove, Pansy,Lewisia,Wooly Thyme, Potentilla and one that is missing from this photo shoot but seeded itself in a neighbouring pot was the Alpine Ragged Robin.

Glad you're Hanging around

Just a few of the baskets hanging around our estate, Petunias looking fantastic thanks to my wife (she shys away from publicity) unlike me  I'll take anything except blows, and the spring onions and strawberries (weird combination) I usually like spring onions with ice cream, are getting their act together for the second year ,growing well

Fly away

We've been busy this morning between us we've put up a fly away walk in greenhouse that at the time of blogging was still in position, no seriously well as serious as we can be it will be an asset to our growing and I intend to keep it going for at least 3 seasons or until October.
     And now feast your eyes on our bench lovingly restored by Sue,so its al fresco from Tesco and a resting place from potting in the fly away.

Going posh

Just trying out a new toy, it's a dehydrator, so we've put some sliced banana and apple to dry,I'm a bit apprehensive but we'll give it a go.

One little seedling

One little seedling on its own (well it isn't ,I only took 1 picture),this healthy seedling(at the moment it is) is one of our cuccumbers which I've decided to grow up our fence where it should get enough sun to grow well but until then it and its sisters have their own incubators

Rain has brought the Leeks

The last few days of showers have kick-started the leeks after it looked like nothing was going to happen, I get a bit of rust on the leaves (no not from all the rain) but that does not spoil the eating or the growing of the plants, worthwhile growing leeks you can get quite a few in a small area,these have a bit of growing to do before being transplanted.

Free Garlic

One of my favourite plants(though there isn't any I dislike) in flower at the moment is Ramsons commonly known here as wild garlic, the aroma is so powerful. The beautiful star shaped white flowers are lovely in salads, just grow it in semi-shade and the plant is easily propagated by dividing the smallish bulbs after flowering or waiting for the seeds to form and sowing them in Autumn/Spring.

Peaping through

As I expected the peas are now making an appearance in the hanging baskets, this is one of the few that we have dotted about the garden growing peas. The peas are folia fed with an organic seaweed feed every few days, but to get a crop with the roots only having a small depth might be a problem but we'll see

A Plant I've only seen growing in our garden

This plant is a fantastic structural plant, it is known by many names, Elecampane,Wild sunflower,Horse heal and in Welsh it is known as Marchalan. I believe nowadays as a drug it is seldom used except in veterinary practice. Folklore says that its name botanically Inula helenium derives from Helen of Troy, it is said to have to have sprung up from where her tears fell.It is great to see in the summer all these 3-4" sun flower heads on 6-7ft stems and so easy to establish from seed if any one wants any get in touch in the autumn, anyway as a wilflower I've only seen it in flower in our garden.As you can see the plant is only just starting to  grow.

A Herbal Groundcover

Sweet Woodruff(Galium odoratum) is plant to have if you want ground cover in a shady area. The agreeable odour of Sweet Woodruff is due to a crystalline chemical principle called Coumarin, which is used in perfumery not only on account of its own fragrance but for its properties of fixing other odours hence the use in pot pourii.

One terrific plant

What I want everyone to do right now after reading this, is to go out into your garden and make sure that you've got enough DANDELIONS, if not plant some roots as quickly as possible.What a plant not only does it contribute to a salad, it makes great coffee,and many numerous uses in our lives, I haven't got the space to mention them all here,oh alright I'll mention 2 more of my favourites,its roots make a plant tonic eqiualent to comfrey so if you don't want the roots for a coffee give it to your plants (potassium feed) and yes the plant flower is good for bees,moths,butterflies looking for early nectar. HELP THE WILDLIFE, HELP YOUSELF,GET THE DANDELION DUDES!!!!!

A helping hand from Nature

A season or two ago I planted at the bottom of the garden an apple tree, raspberry canes and a gooseberry bush and while I did not neglect them I could have given them more, anyway Nature comes along with her helping hand and says here are your plants time for you to look after them and healthier plants you would not find any where. The raspberries will fruit this year and the canes for next yeat are just showing through.

Radish Box

We used these window boxes no not on the window sill but on a patch of ground at the back of the garden, the radish seem happy again these need to be grown quickly plenty of feed/water they are covered at night at the moment with a cloche. In the second photo I have put nettles around them to protect from slugs and the nettle work in another way by rotting into the compost/soil adding nitrogen and humus, fantastic plant the nettle.

Bags of Spuds (we hope)

This is one of our potato bags and you can see the potato haulm just popping through so it's time to add more compost. I had success growing spuds using this growing method last year so try it again. Using this method you have to water the potatoes more than we would if they were in the ground but hey when you're short of ground you improvise and if you don't sow you will not reap.

Lady(black)bird

This is a female blackbird who has adopted us and doesn't stray too far from our front and back gardens, we have called her Ladybird, and at the moment she is recovering from an attack from either a cat or magpie or something else we know not what. Anyway her tail feathers are missing and she has lost a lot of back feathers,she can fly and she is eating,drinking and foraging in the garden and is getting stronger everyday. We are confident that all her feather will regrow and she will be as good as new.

IN OUR PLOT

These are just a few pictures of our plants growing in our topsy turvy climate, one shows the gooseberries growing under our orchard ( do you know if you have 5 fruit trees it is classified as an orchard). One shows strawberries  growing with blue berries and a sweet violet. An empty hanging basket I hear you say ? no  that's one way we use to grow our peas. And the last photo of a monkey puzzle tree growing with an acer and a tub of alpines CRAZY but they're happy, as we are Happy Gardening.

Back Again

It has been forced on me to try and go freelance in my work which is horticulture, which I eat, drink and breath. Where I am I coming from, well I can give talks/practical demonstrations to groups ranging from schools to not so young gardeners.Secondly I can give practical help in your garden,if your new to gardening or a veteran I can solve your problems.
     With schoools gardening is becoming more and more important I am here to help,maybe to start your first vegetable growing area.Remember this in, HORTICULTURE the HAIRYGARDENER'S done it(or knows how to)
      SO DON'T LET THE GRASS UNDER YOUR FEET GET IN TOUCH
     

gardening info-redundancy

I haven't blogged for quite a while but I'm starting again unfortunately this particular blog hurts as sadly I'm being made redundant from my job but the Hairygardener will continue blogging passing on my knowledge of plants because that's what I do ,oh yeah if any one knows of groups who would like myself to give a talk on anything to do with Horticulture I'd be grateful and they can contact me through this blog,facebook, twitter, Cheers, Good gardening