August 09

[ideasguy]

Weather very variable. Showers every day so far in August, but good sunny spells. Giid enough to get out and get gardening.

When I get a chance, the far corner in this photo needs a redesign.

It has a large Syringa vulgaris (common lilac) which has been there for over 30 years. Also a Clematis montana. Both nice in spring.
The old hedge (Crataegus monogyna, known as Common Hawthorn and Symphoricarpos albus- Snowberry) is being ripped out when I get time. The hawthorn was killed off by common Ivy - I hate the stuff.

Ive planted poppies all around the base of the tree, all grown froim Chiltern Seeds.
Heres a close up of the poppies:

You'll recognise the Ladybird poppies (Papaver commutatum)
The others are Papaver rhoeas Angels' Choir Group - mixed colours.   
I'm planning to do a WPG (Web site) project on Papaver rhoeas Angels' Choir Group to illustrate how many different colours can be grown from one packet of seed, then add the photos to the Chiltern Catalog. Theres four different colours in the above pic.
 

[ideasguy]

Today was beautiful. Sunny all day. Julian (my son) went golfing and we had James (our grandson) for the morning and part afternoon. I took a break from the software and went gardening. James and I had a great time -weeding, digging and some pruning.
I think that boy has potential!

[NightHawk]

We're getting mixed weather conditions here at the moment.

A bit of sunshine, clouds over, slight rainfall, dries up, sun out again, clouds again, strong winds at times, etc., etc.

The temperature is remaining quite high throughout though, around 20°C (70°F), ideal conditions for our plants  but also for the dreaded weeds.  Ho-hum 

Laurie.
 

[ideasguy]

Beautiful again today. I'm going to have some lunch and - hey ho, hey ho

[Eric Hardy]

Beautiful again today.

At the very moment you were posting this we were entering Salisbury and the rain was so heavy the roads were awash and my wipers were hardly coping! However by the time we reached Winchester the roads were dry. I can't resist telling you this. We paid a visit to Winchester Cathedral and Benji went ahead of us. We found him east of the chancel lying on a tomb with his hands together and eyes closed. I simply had to take a picture before telling him that it wasn't quite the thing to do. The thing that amused me most was that a man was taking a large conducted tour and they all walked past him with slightly glazed expressions and I am not at all sure whether any of them noticed that there was anything out of the ordinary 


We arrived home to find the weeds had flourished and the lawn was inches high. It has taken two sessions, yesterday and today, to cut the back lawn because once up and down filled the bag and yesterday in particular the grass was clogging the machine. It was a bit easier today because it had dried off a bit. It is quite humid and my outdoor thermometer says exactly 20 degrees C in the shade. After a nice hot shower I feel I can relax at the computer for a while.

Our neighbours simply will not do as they are told, that is to take as many runner beans as they would like. A lot have grown too big and it would have been much better if they had been picked. The indoor and outdoor tomatoes have good crops. Those in the greenhouse are ripening already. We only grow Marmande and little cherry tomatoes which are so sweet I can never resist popping one in my mouth when I visit the greenhouse. The Victoria plum is laden and has kindly awaited our return. There was one ripe today which I sampled.

The garden has acquired a rather shaggy look in our absence, quite unlike the neat look that George's garden has in the pictures he posted earlier on. (lovely poppies, by the way, George). August is not our best month.

Eric H

[ideasguy]

Welcome home Eric. As always, you have a photo for us to look at to share your experiences.
Benji has a sense of humour, thats for sure I can imagine your initial reactions, before the thoughts of getting that snap entered your head

Again you are a couple of weeks ahead of us here in Ireland. We've had 3 lovely days, Wed, Thu and Fri. Today is dry (although we had one big shower midday) but only a little quick glimmer of sun all day. Cool this morning, warm afternoon.
With this kind of weather and since you in southerly parts of England are usually a few degrees warmer than us, the Victoria plums are not ready for sampling yet. Like you, we've a good crop though 
We've a good crop of Cambridge Greengage this year, relatively speaking. Yummee! A good crop of Oulins Greengage as well! They are bigger than the Cambridge variety, good plum size!

The poppies were very cheery, Eric. They make a nice display when its sunny
Like the office, I do a little tidy up before the photo shoot

I know its a chore cutting the grass, but its great when it actually grows and looks lush!
It sets the garden off.

Its been quiet in the forum without you! I suspect you have a few more photos taken during your hols.

[ideasguy]

Not much sun, and the weather is better than the daily forecasts as we havent had much rain during daylight hours.
A great opportunity to get the garden into shape,and to plant out the things Ive grown from seed this year.
Penstemons never cease to perform - great plants. They seem to take a few years to establish, but when they do they make it well worth the wait.

[Eric Hardy]

I have been a bit quiet because I have been immersed in the design project again. I have come up for air for a few days so I concentrated on grass cutting this morning. You can almost see the grass grow at the moment. I had to run the lawnmower over some grass cut one day previously to get to an unmown bit and you could see the difference in length already.

The tall old Bramley is giving us some windfalls and Anthea has made some lovely apple strudels. The Victoria plum is laden, they are hanging there like giant bunches of grapes. I haven't supported the branches so I hope one doesn't snap. Surprisingly there are few wasps. By now a lot of them are normally half eaten!

The weather here has improved since we were on holiday and is pleasantly warm.

Eric H

[ideasguy]

After a grey and dismal week last week, its sunshine today! (with the occasional Irish shower, of course)

Need wasps? I can supply 
Found a strange hole in an old compost heap, and a steady flow in and out of what is obviously a nest.
Ive pulled a few plums and they taste great. I like them best before they are fully ripe. If they have good colour and pass the squeeze test, they are perfect for my palate. James (wee grandson) likes them!

Hope your branches don't break. Ive had that happen in the past. Crop isn't unduly heavy this year so hope they will be OK.

I hear you are having lovely weather in England (daughter - Manchester, sister in law - Northampton). Enjoy!

[ideasguy]

Torrential rain overnight on Wednesday. More downpours yesterday (Thursday) and now I know what a bog garden feel like - squish, squelch. Welly boots are essential. The garden was totally waterlogged with surface water in pools at the edge of borders.

In spite of all that, the garden is looking good in general. The Dahlias don't seem to mind - in fact they seem to like it. The Indian corn glows. Phlox paniculata are standing up well and giving a great show. New snapdragons from seed are providing lots of colour. The perennial Asters are woody stemmed so they just laugh it all off (no flowers yet though). Surprisingly, the Argyranthemums and Osteospermums are performing very well.
Hanging baskets? Well they just hang - and the poor little Californian poppies in the borders must wonder how on earth the ended up in wet old Ireland

Wheres the sun shining folk?

Good news is dry and sunny this morning. I'll better get out soon and get the grass cut.

[NightHawk]

After a cloudy start the sun is now shining here in the northeast.

Last few days have been very unsettled with cloud, a little rain, sunshine and strong winds.

Much cooler today though (17°C) and strong wind.

At the moment our grass-cutting is getting done as and when we have a little spare time.  It's not looking too bad right now though, but it is fast growing in the back garden. 

We'll see what the weekend brings.

Laurie.