It's so exciting....

...squealed Leah as she ran in from the garden...

Seven spot Ladybird

...with two little ladybirds crawling along her fingers.   Seven spot ladybirds are one of the 'signs' of spring.  So yes, it is exciting!

Things are so busy in the garden.   I confess, I am way behind my own schedule.  I expect gardeners all over the country are saying the same thing.  We are like Alice in Wonderland's White Rabbit...always late....always rushing.  At this time of year there is an extraordinary amount to do.

Thank you to Alec who sent me a generous gift voucher recently for Mother's Day.   I spent it on the weekend on garden tools.  An edge spade - or edge iron - and a Dutch hoe.   These will save me bending double for hours on end.   At the moment most the digging in my garden is done by ...

...you guessed it...SEREN!   She, also in cahoots with Jonah, is good at nipping, or picking, off flower heads.  I told them both they would get into a great deal of trouble if I caught them -or saw evidence of them - doing this.

In spite of my tardiness and Seren's destructiveness, the garden is beginning to look pretty.   The pots and containers I planted up just after JP died in October were in full bloom over the Easter weekend.   The weather for the last week or more has been wonderful.

CLICK ON THE PHOTOS THEY WILL ENLARGE

Camillia

Tulips and little daffodils

Mainly blues and yellows,
the hyacinths smell divine

Nodding in the sunshine

Violas and pansies are always look good.

New bench resplendent in the spring sunshine

I honestly think if you want an easy show of spring colour the best way to do this is bulbs, bulbs and more bulbs planted in the autumn.   In pots where you can place them to their best advantage, but also in the ground too.

All the plants growing mean that they will get bigger and bigger quite quickly and then they flop over.   My big poppies, Papaver, and the Peonies are the worst culprits for falling over.  I needed some plant supports to put in now before they get big in order to manage their 'flop'.  I found a link on the internet on how to make supports inexpensively.  Good old Gardener's World Monty Don on You Tube.  To buy the equivalent is at least £6.00 each, usually more.

Here are mine, step by step.   The bendy iron I bought locally.   The very helpful guys were happy to cut the super-long lengths into the size I wanted - 2.5m long for each.  They even loaded them in the little Polo, being careful not to stab the children.

6mm mild steel rods, 2.5m long

Bend the rods into a nice 'U' shape.
I used this planter to bend round,
you could use a dustbin, anything you like,
the iron bends easily.

Nicely bent (like me!)

Place a board at a strategic point,
wherever you think best for purpose.
Bend the 'legs at right angles to the board,
which you are standing on to keep steady.
Look at my little helper!

It takes about 15 seconds only to make one! And the cost of each one is £3.00 - So easy.   Then just put them in place round the plants that will need the support later.   The iron rusts and blends in you won't notice it...and best thing of all...it is not something Seren will pull up and chew!

Round the peony - the reddish
plant just pushing through the ground.

Round the big poppies

I need to make another 6 or so of these. Next week...on the list!  You can adjust the size of the 'u' hoop and the height to suit the plants.

And yes, of course I have been planting both seeds and plug plants.

Chili planted from seed 

Tomato plug plants potted up,
they have since 'stood' up straight and are
looking wonderful.

This is how the tomato plug plants arrived in the post.
Efficient isn't it? They arrive in perfect condition.

Seeds too - here they are. Sweet pea, marigold and delphinium so far.   The vegetable seed mostly goes straight into the ground as I plant peas mostly ...and potatoes of course.   But first the ground intended needs fencing off from Deathly Jaws and Paws aka Seren.

Seeds planted, some for propagator and
some for greenhouse.

But, oh the long list of things to do!   A mound of bags to take to the tip...maybe Friday.   Many more seeds to plant.   Pelargonium propagating essentially has to be done.   The fencing of veg-plot.  Planting of spuds, peas and any other veg I want this year...probably courgettes.   I want kale again too and chard and oh,  AND cucumbers....

Today the delivery of pond plants arrived.   It was very exciting.   Leah and I planted them up before lunch.  The planting is pretty temporary until the plants get a little bigger.   I didn't have the right sort of compost but I'm hoping, that since these are such little pots, the leeching of nutrients into the pond won't be disastrous.  When I replant permanently I will use the proper pots/baskets and compost.

Pond marginals and oxygenaters planted 

The plants include Pennyroyal (or pond mint) Marsh marigold, both of these I had in my pond in Dorset and they are great once they get going.   Then there is Creeping Jenny and another one I just can't remember the name of it right now...and it is dark so I can't go out and look!   It is also a creeping plant.. The oxygenater is Horned Pondweed.  It just floats on the top.  So far so good.  Young Jonah has been warned about fiddling with the pond plants too....hmmm...better keep a close eye on him.   Two and a bit doesn't always remember long-term the careful instructions I give...usually the instructions start with 'DON'T...'   Hopefully he is not left with a negative feeling about gardening ever after as a result of my long list of 'don'ts'.

So, tomorrow is another glorious day.   I do hope we have lots of opportunity to work in the garden.   I can rely on Leah to help.   She is so responsible about putting on the sun-block and her little sun hat. That child is a born gardener.   I think Jonah has potential too when he learns to stop destroying the pretty flowers...I know he loves them but just hasn't got the hang of leaving them to grow yet!  Seren too.

I will leave you with this last picture of the Hibiscus flower that flowered especially for Easter Sunday.   Maybe a seasonal Easter garden symbol - blood red?  You decide, it is lovely whatever you believe.

Red as blood,
Hibiscus, this one originally
a rooted cutting from Sweden.

Chat to you again...hopefully soon but it is a busy time of year so might not be quite as soon as I plan if digging gets in the way.