Bogs and my nemesis

Last week I had a very lovely group of friends over to help with the garden. Everyone if offering to help which is great although I do feel a bit guilty getting people to do some hard labour.

Observing the scene....such hard work watching others work

I have gone back to work for a rest as the bank holiday was a hard core gardening weekend, although perhaps it was just using up the excitement and energy around the Royal Wedding?

I began by fighting my nemesis...something which had defeated me since day one and been cruelly mocking me ever since.... the hole with corrugated iron and a steel bar. This was the first ever hole I dug on the land, and one where as I pulled out brick after brick I realised that I had bought a very expensive bramble patch. After a few hours I hit a large piece of corrugated iron with a big wire pole sticking out and gave up as there was no way I could dig that out. It has sat there ever since, collecting rubbish and becoming overgrown with hops, but on Friday I approached it and won. It did give a mean fight....the corrugated iron came up, but the wire was hooked over a plastic drainpipe which Steven followed...all 6ft of it, where it was wrapped under a 5ft concrete post which was then hooked over another iron bar....arg! we were strong...we were victorious!



Laurence in the Laurence Richard memorial bog....2 days to dig a hole, half a day to fill it in again



So on Saturday when people came we had a new hole which we then kept digging to become a bog garden....I thought it wouldn’t take that long, but we dug it all day, and then rushed to fill it with thunder overhead. Helen got excited by the pond again which is now sparkling (apart from when that duck comes back to visit). Sue was on re-potting and pricking out duty which was done with pananche and expertise. So all is now fabulous, and after another day on Sunday I feel I have broken the back of planting..it was especially exciting to plant lots of stuff on Sunday and be surrounded by empty pots...I may have been a little premature but I have planted out some Ricinus, Cerinthe (which look odd and I am trying) and some salvias....Dahlias are next as they are growing like the clappers.

Wig wham bam, going to make you my man (well no as you are a lady and i have a man already): Helen and Lucy get creative putting up wig wams..

Sue planting out Asters and Nigella on the cutting flowers part of the productive area

It is very exciting to now have a bog garden...it’s about 3x2m and about a spades depth...one end is higher, and drier than the other. I love water gardens, and would probably have a huge space if I could. So far in the space I have Petasities, Astibollies, Thalia, a water canna, Angelica Gigas and Damera peltata .

So lots still to do, and great to have another Bank holiday, but this weekend I will be fishing out my grandmas old Empire day flag and enjoying the wedding!



Pretty things....Iris confusa flowering



Allium and forget me nots... at the moment the main garden is a sea of blue. I love forget me nots as they seed everywhere and fill a big gap as Im waiting for the exotics to emerge

My very full greenhouse! its got to the point of putting things on the floor...Dahlias have grown about a foot in a week!