Hope Springs Eternal
Mornin’ Ptolemy..
It’s THAT time of year. When a male pheasant stakes out his territory and then aggressively defends it. The sound of a rival always elicits the same response. The bird will raise himself up to full height and state of alert, sticking out the tufts behind each ear. To reinforce his claim he’ll squawk loudly with much flapping of wings from a standing position. Or should I say.. almost standing. Wing flapping can be executed with so much enthusiasm I’ve witnessed Mr P almost topple over. Tricky if you happen to be perched on a precipice at the time. As here. I was quite pleased with the photo though, given that it was taken on full zoom through a (very) dirty window and in poor light.
The landscaping is complete.
During the last couple of sunny days the soil has even started to dry out. Over the next few weeks we’ll start to break up the larger clods of earth. Once it has settled and the tilth is fine enough it can be seeded to grass.
The Digger Man managed to haul himself out in the end. It was touch and go but it’s truly amazing what these machines can do. He rammed the long arm and its bucket into the ground behind him and used it as an extra lever to force himself up the hill. All went well until the digger reached the house. The kitchen is in a single storey extension and the gutters are particularly low. It was clear he wasn’t going to make it. We’d tried building up the ground to one side of the path with concrete blocks but it still wasn’t enough room for him to swing around. The only way left to go? Take the roof off the digger. Well of course. It took all three of us to lift it.
The new terraced walls, complete but for a short return at the near end to border a set of steps down to the lower level.
And behold!
Planting has occurred.
There is a little more digging over and mulch spreading to be done but, importantly, there is a lot we can now progress with on our own.
It seems increasingly likely that the UK, alongside many other European nations, will be put into lockdown. To be honest we’ve elected to do this chez duck ahead of the game, given the prevailing spirit of official procrastination. Neither of us can claim to be a spring chicken any more and there really is no point in taking risks. Shopping is still delivered to the gate albeit the process isn’t as smooth as once it was. Hopefully we won’t have shot ourselves in the foot for refusing to panic buy. Well OK then, apart from the compost..
Clematis alpina ‘Frances Rivis’
As gardeners most of us are fortunate to have our own private green space to relax in and, of course, for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, it is Spring. Last year this clematis had been engulfed by an overly rampant honeysuckle. This year the honeysuckle is gone and I’ve been suitably rewarded. The clematis is covered in blooms.
Some of the hellebores planted years ago are bulking up nicely too.
The problem I have currently, the one that I can at least control in some respects, is the perennial one of undercover space. The Great Spring Pot Migration has begun.
It all has to take place in a particular order:
1. Mike removes the scaffolding boards and other assorted building related detritus from the dumping ground in front of the shed.
2. Hardier plants that have overwintered in a sheltered sunken area at the side of the house are moved to the cleared area in front of the shed (above). These will get planted as soon as I have the right spot available.
3. Plants previously nestled in two cold frames in that same sheltered area are evicted out into the cold, into the space occupied by those aforementioned in 2. Tough love. But I’m sure they’ll cope.
4. The more tender plants which overwintered in the cold frame attached to the greenhouse move into one or other of the cold frames mentioned in 3.
5. From the greenhouse, cuttings and strongly growing seedlings move into the newly vacant space in the integral cold frame. This can borrow off some of the greenhouse heat via a flap in the wall thus starting the process of hardening off.
6. And thus, at last, I have space to prick out more seedlings and sow more seeds on the greenhouse staging. Albeit not a lot of space.
Phew. Until next week when the pot shuffle will have to start over again. Oh to have room for a polytunnel.
Helleborus ‘Penny’s Pink’
My precious Banksia blechnifolia.
It has survived the winter and is putting up baby leaves. To me they look like something straight out of ‘Alien’. It would be fantastic to get a bloom off this some day in the distant future but in the meantime the foliage alone makes me smile.
Arisaema sikokianum
And finally, another of my more extravagant purchases from a Spring plant fair last year. (Remember them?) Now soaring out of the ground like a middle finger punching the air. Defiance. Hope.
Please keep safe x
Those pictures are a vast improvement over the quagmire! You’ve had quite a year of transformations inside and out, though none of it has been easy. Glad the digger man got out safely.
Yes, a bit of enforced peace and quiet now. It’s glorious weather here too at the moment, so plenty of time to potter around the garden. At some point I need to get down to some serious digging and clearing!
Your property really looks lovely. And your house is so darling. We are on lockdown in California. It hasn’t been too bad as I stocked up right before the S#$t hit the fan so to speak. Although the TP raids are still happening. I’m hoping to get thru to next week without going to the store. We have a market at the bottom of our hill but it’s still busy with the ‘hoarders’. We’ve been doing some gardening, or I should say my daughter has, as she is the gardener and I am the ‘director’. Anyway she makes our yard pretty nice. We did lose quite a few of the lovely purple sage plants I bought last year to a Vole.
Anyhoo, we are well and hopefully will stay that way.
I’m relieved to hear you’re all well, stay home and stay safe. It’s a worrying time.
Oh those voles. I dread to think how many we must have here and they do so much damage. I have pretty much given up planting any bulbs other than in pots. Although this year I discovered steep slopes give them a bit more of a challenge. An experiment in waiting come the autumn!
I’m pleased for you that you’ve reached a planting stage in time to take advantage of spring and (hopefully) good growing weather. You’ll certainly have plenty to keep you busy during lockdown. Thank goodness that we have our gardens to help keep us sane.
You’ve introduced me to a new plant…that Jack in the Pulpit has plenty to say for himself.
Your banksia is looking wonderfully healthy.
I’m so pleased with the banksia. It will have to stay in a container given our very wet winters, I hope that won’t restrict it too much.
It’s been stunning weather this week although cold at night. We are making the most of it while it lasts!
Kevin and I are in lockdown for 12 weeks as he is one of the unfortunate ones with severe asthma (severe enough, clearly, to get That Letter though it hasn’t arrived as yet). Thank you so much, Jessica, for keeping up your blog – the posts are a bright spot in what has been a rather discouraging (and anxiety-provoking) day. Our grocery delivery arrived this afternoon, all packed up in plastic bags and with the stern admonition for us not to touch the crates themselves.
The village is doing what little villages do best – those who are not locked in are volunteering to pick up prescriptions and the local agricultural feed company is offering work to those who have lost their jobs as well as acting as a point of contact for farmers who may need to recruit staff themselves.
As for the garden – my word, hasn’t the weather brightened up. Your photos are always a source of joy and inspiration and my Wish List is growing longer by the minute.
Take care of yourselves, this too shall pass xxx
All of my days seem to be anxiety provoking at the moment. I never envisaged a situation which would make me feel so vulnerable in my own home. The idea was to develop a home that would make a relaxing place to retire and take life at an easier pace. But, as you say, this too shall pass.
It’s lovely that the village are rallying round. And the weather is just what we need to lift the spirits. Except that everything has suddenly started growing at a frantic pace and I can’t keep up!
Looking really good with your usual splendid photography.
Thanks Derrick.
You had me at that Banksia blechnifolia photo… total plant envy!
I admire your terraces as well, with all that lovely masonry, plus lots of planting opportunity! What’s not to love?!
We are in voluntary lockdown too, here in rural Missouri, though I’ll have to go out for hay this afternoon as it’s been far too wet for my regular bulk delivery. In spots, it’s hard to know whether one is stepping into a shallow puddle or foot-deep sludge. Till one steps…
I’ve begun freezing any veggies I couldn’t use immediately. Also milk and fruit juice. We went into this fairly cavalierly, as they were talking two to three weeks. No problem, said my sister and I! We did that regularly in Arizona. But three months will require some additional shopping we haven’t done yet!
Stay safe and enjoy spring! Your hellebores are beautiful… as always!
I’m glad it isn’t just me who has been trudging through mud for the last few weeks!
Great to hear from you Amy and I’m glad you’re both well. It must feel so different gardening there after Arizona. You’ll have a lot more scope though. I’m seeing billowing clouds of prairie grasses and perennials softly waving in the breeze..
Yay for gardening! Yay for Springtime!! Yay for the completion of a truly wonderful Chez Duck transformation!!! Loving the hellebores. I’m going to get some to go in my new rose border. I’m still digging up crocosmia…sigh…and aquilegia….sigh…ivy….tree roots…..
But yay for the freedom to garden in these testing times!
It keeps one sane does it not. And at least we don’t have to worry about getting too sedentary. Crocosmia digging is especially beneficial, physically anyway. I couldn’t say it is therapeutic. Maybe the first year. But not the following year. Or the year after that..
I’m entirely envious of all that space you have available to plant! (Even if I already have more area than I’m finding it easy to take care of.) I love the new terraced beds and that greenhouse. Spring is further along here but as Mother Nature finally graced us with some rain this month, a trend she appears to be continuing, working in the garden has been somewhat cooler and damper than I’d like, although I suspect you’d find things downright balmy. We’ve officially been in sheltering-at-home here in Southern California for 4 days now but it feels like longer as events were already being canceled in late February and simple common sense dictated “social distancing” a week or more before “social distancing” became a dictate. Take care.
I’m so glad, for both of us, that we completed major work on our homes at the end of last year. Now at least we don’t have to worry about disruption at a critical time and can sit back and enjoy all that we’ve achieved. Enjoy the extra time in the garden too, with the benefit of rain. I bet you can see the colour and lushness from space!
Would you believe last night as I was drifting off, I suddenly thought of you. Decided I should email and check on the two of you given the mess we are all in. So I was particularly glad to see this post. We are hunkering down here as well. Our city/county/state govt. are all responsible and stepping up to the plate; lucky for us since our national leaders are a disgrace. Well, more than a disgrace but I won’t go there. Loved the photo of Mr. P and the Banksia is stunning. Looked like a classic botanical illustration. Cool and grey here but warmer days are coming along with some rain. Snowdrops are up and I see tips of Iris reticulata, so the garden is keeping my spirits up.
If this had to happen at all, which I mightily wish it hadn’t, at least we have an emerging garden as a temporary distraction. Government is more centralised here than in the US. A pity since our national leadership seems to be taking most of its lessons from yours. They haven’t gone as far as saying it will all be over by Easter though, so that’s something. Social distancing from reality, as I heard it described today!
Beautiful. Happy planting. Amazing what 3 days of sun can do. The dark hellebore is beautiful and your alien looks so fluffy! Planting here too, but not quite so pretty – the winter onions that were demanding to be free of the greenhouse and some garlic. More garlic, weather permitting, tomorrow and perhaps some broad beans and spuds. 8 days to go before the ducklings may emerge. We’ve just bought another duck house which has arrived in time as Cooter is getting very grumpy and wants to be alone in the current house! I’ve looked and think we have at least 17 possibles, one has already formed an eye! So exciting – takes the mind off the current affairs.
Stay safe also, and for everyone else around the world, take care. xx
17 new ducklings! Oh what fun that will be! I’d so love to have ducks here. Sadly we are still visited by Mr Fox, even in broad daylight, so it would need a lot of infrastructure to keep them safe. I’m regretting now that I didn’t resume veg growing this year. I briefly filled a shopping basket with seeds the other day but in reality I don’t have the space having requisitioned it last autumn for my stock of ornamentals in transit. I’ve sown lots of salad leaves though, tomatoes and cucumbers. And melons! So we’ll have something to eat if needs must.
Oh tomatoes are so versatile – I got fed up with the piles of them so ended up washing and freezing whole – they’ve been terrific as a base for home made baked beans and lentils (pity we can’t grow lentils here!) – husband has a new recipe for Boston baked beans and they are so much better than out of a tin! First time I’ve enjoyed eating them. But here everything is slow as the weather had been too bad. 5 days of sunshine in a row and the ground is cracking! Garlic is in and so are the winter onions. Another bed covered ready for parsnips. I’ve got celeriac (no-show) and turnips on the go. Pricking calabrese out like no tomorrow! No room! Yikes! And I haven’t even finished February’s sowings yet!
As for mummy ducky – she’s getting antsy and fidgety. Came out this evening in a right old huff. LOL! New duck house arrived – smaller than the first one – I think 24 ducks (or 20 muscovies) is pushing it a bit. Call ducks perhaps! Do the others like it? Nope. Sheesh!
That’s the trouble with clay.. cracks here too. And already in places rock hard for digging. I usually reckon I get three days between quagmire and concrete.
Your story reminds me of the ministerial duck house, remember the one that became the icon of the MPs expenses row? Thousands it cost apparently and the ducks never used it!
LOL! Or is it more grrr! I don’t remember that at all! Must be getting old.
Now another duck is going broody. They look more like Quasimodo with their feathers floofed up, whereas broody chickens all look like turkeys!
We actually got blueberries in our last delivery. Husband was chomping them and I said have you washed them? “No?” They were from Spain – arghhh! So now he’s washing them. I think I’ll pass on that – stick with bananas while we can still get them!
I used to have several blueberry plants. It proved impossible to keep the squirrels off them, they even chewed through the fruit cage! The little blighters always waited until the fruits were just about ripe, leaving the green ones for another day. I dug the plants up in the end. Now I wish I hadn’t.
Oh what a shame! Blooming squirrels. We left our pots of blueberries at our old house – the soil here would be ideal for them (well, what soil is left!) and where the veg patch is, any squizzies would likely be prime munching for the buzzards before they could get to the berries! LOL. Voles are the little demons at the moment though.
Yep. A whole patch of tulip bulbs, gone.
🙁 I remember my mother-in-law had that issue for several years with her tulips – she put a wire mesh over the top, but just below the level of the ground before covering it over. Guessing chicken wire – the stems grow through the holes and only bulk up above ground. Squirrels gave up after a couple of years – unless they were “sorted”! Worth a try if you have any wire.
It is the voles as well as the squirrels. As a last resort I buried the bulbs in wire mesh cages, with a lid of chicken wire big enough for the stems of the bulbs to poke through. Even that didn’t work. When I dug up a cage to investigate it had a hole chewed in the side! Through wire!
Oh my goodness! You need a pet barn owl!
Funnily enough we do have a few owls, tawny owls.. but they can’t keep up!
I think there must be a surplus of rodents – the winter didn’t reduce numbers. The tawnys, buzzards, foxes and the neighbour’s cat doesn’t seem to manage the food supplies – I’m hoping with the eggs hatching they’ll be more keen with lots of mouths to feed, although the buzzards go for the abundant rabbit colonies – more meat and less likely to escape!
The terraced walls are so beautiful – as is the Banksia. What is your clematis trellis made out of? I had some willow ones, but eventually they break, not helped by the neighbour’s cat who uses one to get a leg up over the fence 😕 Nice to see your garden again Jessica. At least you’ll have plenty of time to get it all sorted.
It’s a metal trellis and came from Harrod a few years ago. They still make the same model. We’ve had to re-seat screws that popped out of the wall occasionally but other than that all three that I bought still look brand new.
Ah so beautiful….we just returned from two months in Florida (early unfortunately due to the virus). We have new snow of course but I can’t wait to get out in the garden. be safe and well. I can’t wait to see what you will plant in those terraces.
Brrr. It must seem rather chilly after Florida. I’m sorry you had to cut the trip short. The virus has completely changed life as we know it and in such a short space of time. Keep safe and keep warm. It will soon be gardening season again.
It’s good to see progress being made with the help of the machinery. All the past work planting for the Spring season is demonstrated in your delightful flowers, as always beautifully photographed.
Thanks Linda. And now the hard work for me starts again with a whole load of new planting. Not that it ever ends. But it will be fun to do. And luckily the rest of the garden is now mature enough for me to divide perennials and stock the new terraces without too many trips to the garden centre.
It’s going to look fabulous when it’s planted up – the bare walls are exciting enough already! Thank goodness that spring is here and will make the lockdown a little more bearable. If this had happened in October or November, it would have been so depressing.
The sunshine we’ve had these last few days has certainly been enough to lift the spirits. I shall miss the inspirational trips out to other gardens and plant nurseries but at least I’ll have no excuses and no distractions. And all that bare earth needs covering. It is sprouting weed seedlings already.
I can see why you call the Banksia blechnifolia your precious one (hope the other plants weren’t listening). Your great photo do its leaves justice. So glad Digger Man is safely off the property–imagine that was gut-twisting to watch. Looking forward to seeing the Spring transformation of your bloomin’ garden and your choice of plants for all that lovely new tiered space. Stay safe.
I would have to confess to quite a few precious ones. And even more prospective precious ones on the wish list, but don’t let’s go there. The banksia leaves are stunning and I just adore all the fluff on the baby ones. No doubt, like on a pony’s tail, they soon grow out.
The walling looks great. You’ll now have lots of fun planting although no doubt garden centre visits will be on hold.
Sadly yes. With saved plants and this year’s divisions I’ll have enough to keep me going for a while. I’ll just have to fill gaps later in the year, or use online suppliers depending on how long they can keep operating.
Looking good. Obviously progress is being made.
Slow but sure. Thanks Dorothy.
Lovely to see your garden in early spring, I will enjoy watching things grow in your garden as we go through autumn. I’m very impressed with your Banksia, and your photos do it justice, as someone has commented. Makes me think I should trying growing one again…
…must go, the Kookaburras are calling the dawn chorus…wish I could pass it on to you…
I so wish you could pass it on to me. Waking to the sound of the Kookaburras cackling was one of the great pleasures of our trip. That and the cockatoos of course..
Gosh you are busy. Spent a lovely afternoon weeding around the raised beds, looking very smart, compost heap has been fed. Gorgeous weather, skylarks singing their heads off. Your pot shuffle reminds me of the exodus from the greenhouse that should happen soon.
We won’t be short of time for the garden this year. I am trying to build up the energy, and the enthusiasm, for turning one of our compost bins. It might take a couple more days.
Oh my it looks so much more promising than your last post. Even some plants into position which is such a milestone. I hope work can continue as the situation develops.
I’m afraid that here in the US we are setting ourselves up for a terrible time by ignoring the incoming tsunami.
All the best to you.
It was quite a milestone. I stopped for a mini celebration after I’d done the first one. A cistus if I remember rightly.
We are not doing much better here Frank, actions seem to be taken extremely slowly and time will tell whether or not it has been enough. It will be an anxious wait.
Sensible of you to go into isolation early, Until there is a cure for thesis is DANGEROUS. Not that there is a consistent message coming through in a number of parts of the world! New Zealand went into total lockdown as of midnight last night, expected to last a month (at least, longer would be my bet). My husband and I went into isolation a week ago – I have lung and immune diseases, so I really don’t want to test fate! I read this in the Guardian this morning. (The Guardian is my first choice for sensible reporting in any depth, our papers are pretty lightweight)
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/mar/25/how-long-coronavirus-lasts-on-surfaces-packages-groceries
Rather safe than sorry! We will be wiping downfall packages, and giving fruit a bath from now on!
Keep well, both of you.
Thanks for this link Virginia, really useful.
I wish the UK were doing more. I can’t help feeling that until and unless we too go into total lockdown we’re just keeping this thing going for much longer than we need. I dread to think how long Mike and I are going to be isolating. Like you we won’t be choosing to go out unless it’s safe to do so. I only hope that we can continue to order grocery deliveries online. And we are also washing everything that’s coming in. Takes a while to get through a large order doesn’t it! But far better safe than sorry. You keep well too. And please keep dropping in, I shall worry otherwise!
Hi Jessica
The one thing we can say about this awful time is that we do have more time on our hands and a chance to read some of the blogs I enjoy. Your groundwork is certainly paying dividends. I am going to get back into more frequent blogs now. Like you we are taking a high degree of care although neither of us fall into the shielded category. Look after yourselves and I will look forward to seeing the beds planted up.
Hi Steve
I have high hopes for catching up this spring and summer, with the garden and blogs! It’s frustrating in some ways because the work on the walls has now stopped, but I also have more time to spend in the garden and that can only be good.
How wonderful everything is looking! Well worth all the strife. I have a pot shuffle too….sighs. Some stunning plants here. Looking forward to seeing the terraces planted up and thriving.xxx
But hasn’t it got so dry already and so quickly. I seem to be spending half of every day watering all the pots. The sooner they get in the ground the better!
You have been so busy inside and outside in the last few months. Your new planting area looks fantastic,I will look forward to seeing it develop. Fantastic picture of Ptolemy too. Stay safe. Sarah x
You too Sarah. You have some lovely places to walk close to home. I hope you’re managing to get some time to relax as well as working hard on the garden!
The new walls look stunning, a credit to the builder and will look even more so when it is all planted.