November 2019: Planting bare root crab apple trees

In November our order of crab apple trees ‘Evereste‘ arrived. They came bare root via the post so we had to soak them prior to planting. We ordered 12 so we could plant 3 around each quarter of the wall – the picture below gives you an impression. We chose this variety since they are disease resistant and the blossom

Continue reading

September & October 2019: Late summer flowers and planting for spring 2020

In September I began studying a RHS horticultural qualification at Merrist Wood college – here’s a link to my programme. We visited Wisley and particularly enjoyed the tropical garden; I really liked the contrasting foliage textures and colour combinations. I was particularly pleased with Helianthus ‘Lemon Queen‘  which we planted into the back of the mixed border in spring- the

Continue reading

November 2018: Installing a nest box and clearing the garden for winter

I forgot to mention in last month’s post that we installed a bird box that Luke made from scratch (he got the build instructions from the RSPB). The guidance suggests that you put these up towards the end of winter; however, they also say that some birds will use these to roost in during the colder months so we thought

Continue reading

October 2018: Autumn colours, bulb planting and a garden visit

In reflection of the things we’ve done in the garden this year, I’ve gotten so much pleasure from the hanging baskets we planted back in April. Every time we leave the house (especially in the mornings before the commute) I look at them and they’ve changed and grown so much over the months. I particularly enjoy the red tinge the

Continue reading