April Jobs

I'm taking a break from my Cornwall posts to share what I've been up to in my garden. I've been lucky enough to have three and a half weeks off work for Easter - back to school this Wednesday (boo!). So I've been able to catch up on a few tasks around the plot. One job was to dig up seven Erisimum from the front garden, which we are hoping to have re-landscaped soon, and move them to the back garden to fill some gaps. Thanks to the rain we've had it was a good time to do this, and so far they seem quite happy in their new homes. I am making sure I keep watering them daily for the time being.

Now where shall I put you?

Settling in to their new homes.

This Erysimum looks like it's always been there.

I am very fond of these plants, which last perhaps three years before going leggy and giving up the ghost. Still, it's a wonderful three years, and in my garden they flower from March until at least November with regular deadheading. Some plants don't even stop flowering at all - as you cut spent flower spikes away, there always seem to be new flowers coming. What great value! And they love my chalky soil, which is a bonus because not a lot does!

I've also been keeping a close eye on my seed trays. Most things seem to be germinating, except for some unusual varieties of Kniphofia which may take a long time to germinate, if at all!

I had a great day out with mum on Tuesday, on one of our Nursery Cruises. We started off at Mark Cross, north of Heathfield, a venue chosen for its quality plants and even better quality scones! We then headed down to Staverton Nurseries at Halland, near Lewes. This is a fantastic garden centre with a huge range, and everything is really competitively priced. We then had a picnic of some rather messy egg sandwiches, then headed into Lewes. We shared a yummy piece of carrot cake in Bill's, and got starstruck when we saw Jason Hughes (Ben Jones in Midsomer Murders) at the next table with his family. Then we visited a little nursery right in the heart of the town, which has cleverly obtained this busy site as a sales point for their out of town nursery. We picked up some lovely Verbascums here. What made the day even more fun was that I had a large wad of garden vouchers, saved from recent kind gifts. Guilt-free spending - what could be better!

This is not all of the haul - there was also a late-flowering clematis and various other bits and pieces that wouldn't fit into the greenhouse. And today I managed to plant the fully hardy plants, together with around thirty lilies and gladioli that I already had in stock. So it's been a very productive week here. Hope you've been having fun in your garden too!