Out in the cold

Finally, this week we experienced frost and cold, what we need. The Dahlias at Heale are happily entombed in frozen compost layering and we took some precautions to save some other plants too.

HG and I wrapped up some Figs and some Geraniums to try and protect them from the colder frosty weather (and potential snow laying on the foliage). HG also showed me how to use Yew as insulation. Very clever and a beautiful rustic, natural way of using plants to look after other plants. We used the Yew on a Melianthus major which would suffer if the foliage is hit by hard frost. We placed the Yew branches upright in and amongst the stems and gave the Plant a 'skirt' to protect its roots. Fantastic craft garden skills in action thanks to HG!

Surprisingly time consuming this business so to all those who wonder what we get up to over Winter, these jobs took a good few hours alone!

Onto other work and the Hybrid Musk Rose border contains many shrubs (55 according to HG) and each one needs a lot of attention to prune it well. Frosty fingers and hours later, we had pruned and weeded and turned the soil. How gorgeous the border looks now and every cut we took of the stems left a swelling bud. You just have to remind yourself of every single Rose that will be produced from every single bud you come across. Ground work which we can appreciate further down the line when the fluffy flowers fill the border.

We had more bulbs to lift (a part of the garden that is being re-designed) and more bulbs to plant, Saxatilis and Persian Pearl. 1,000 bulbs in the ground in under an hour. Phew!

More pruning required at Heale, more Wisterias to do and Vines, and more digging to get under way. Lots to do and all varied, this and that, every part of the garden. Love it!

In other gardens this week, I continued to prune Vines and cut back a big border, cutting down Japanese Anemones, removing the over zealous Forget me not and catching the missed leaves of the flowering Hellebores. Patient, steady work which is not a sprint but a marathon. Slow and steady.

I managed to plan my veg in another garden, preparing ground for the next season, composting Rhubarb, Peonies along the way. I even used straw from the Christmas crib to mulch the Strawberries! Now that is what you call recycling!