Magazine style - all inclusive

[Perki]

Yes you be wasting your money trying to grow the blue meconopsis down south, they need damp atmosphere / conditions in part shade and it can't be to warm . I already have one but its annoyingly purple when its supposed to be blue .

The echinops is a giant upto 6ft with tennis ball size flowers . I pot cannas up to wet and cold here over winter , I wouldn't give up hope on yours yet one of mine just started sprouting and that's in the GH . I am after a penstemon a dark red / purple maybe raven or plum jerkum

 

[alp]

Sounds nice, giant echinops! I will only grow mine in pots now. Might have to dig up the tiny bit left on the central patch.

Yes, the late Beth Chatto gave up on meconopsis .. no hope for me!

Very grey and miserable here, but dry.

Grey, grey, grey!

 

[alp]

Ultra-rare Super Worm Moon wows stargazers as it puts on display around the world on the spring equinox

• A rare Super Worm Moon will rise across the world tonight coinciding with the spring equinox
• A Worm Moon is the first full moon in March and this is the first time since 1905 it has risen on March 20
• In addition this Worm Moon is a supermoon, a brighter than usual full moon - a rare occurrence in itself
• Native Americans dubbed it the Worm Moon, seeing spring as the time when worms crawled from the ground
• Send your pictures of tonight's phenomenal moon to (e-mail address removed)

Hopefully, it heralds a year of clement weather!

 

[alp]

Good morning to another grey. Friend was here and warned that he could only stay for 5 minutes and end up 2 hours. Such a chatterbox!

Yesterday, I dug up most of the the dahlia pots and some had out grown the pot by a half. I will leave them in the lean to so that I can force some cuttings.

The above is the most ridiculous one!

Here is the latest camellia.

Planted out all the Ashfield seedlings from one pot and I am going to plant out another one. Move a gooseberry to the back of the garden.

Going to sow more seeds now that some salad leaves are more than an inch tall.

 

[alp]

Tate becomes latest institution to give up funds from controversial Sackler family who run pharmaceutical firm at centre of US opioid crisis row

• The Sackler family runs Purdue Pharma LP which produces OxyContin drug
• It is now currently facing lawsuits over its alleged role in the US opioid crisis
• On Wednesday it emerged National Portrait Gallery had cancelled a donation
• Now Tate has said it is 'not minded' to accept any donations from the family

Tate has done the right thing!

Opioid Addiction is wreaking havoc amongst people!

 

[alp]

I wonder when I should add epsom salt to my watering, do you know, Zenj?

 

[Zenj]

Morning alp I give my plants a first drench early may here ,probably April way you are ,I also give the lawns a good watering with it too,Just got a bag delivered this week as I was out of it.

 

[alp]

@Zenj Thank you for the advice. Will mark in the calendar. Need to go to the allotment shop to buy some decent feed and weed grass thingummy this Sunday. Can't wait for the sun to come out. Too late for lawn mowing this morning. Must do it tomorrow.

irises have 3 to 4 buds and one tip has already shown its colour!

 

[alp]

Good morning to another grey day. Mowing lawn will have to be done tomorrow.

Yesterday, one of my legs was caught by a low wire fence which was supposed to stop flowers going to the lawn. They are pretty useless as all flowers lean towards the east/south to enjoy the sun. So instead of stopping them leaning onto the lawn, the hellebores flowers grew in between the gaps in the lawn onto the lawn, albeit a bit higher! . I fell totally flat on my back and straight away, I counted my blessing as falling onto my back was no big deal, all for the love of my flowers! I thanked heavens that my eyes were OK. Picked myself up and carried on and son got a bit of a scare!

Repotted most of the bamboos and gained some new ones - 4 in troughs and 3 in new pots! They are so slow growing. All the time I thought I had a Phyllostachys Nigra. I have only one and the other one is called Phyllostachys Bisettii - green stems stained with purple!

When the sun is out, I will take photos of my camellia families. Only one sulker - a pink and white striped one Camellia Princess Lavinia! Well, it's her fault as she has missed the fun!

Really enjoyed the small garden screened on Gardeners' World last night. Very beautifully and the lady is very knowledgeable. I wouldn't know half of the names.

 

[alp]

Our BMW caught fire with baby and toddler in the back: Family reveal how 'death trap' car burst into flames on a dual carriageway

• Nine-month-old Eleanor and three-month-old Adam were in the 'death trap' car
• Sara Longley and husband Stuart said the car lost power and smoke poured in
• They were driving along the A1 to visit relatives in Grantham, Lincolnshire
• They grabbed their children and scrambled out the BMW 3-Series
• Around 268,000 UK BMWs have potentially lethal fault with exhaust cooler system near the engine

***********************

1) BMW knew that their cars carry such fire risks and thank heavens nobody was killed, but the powers-that-be should do something (I wonder who???)
2) 3 years ago, a double-glazed surveyor told me that his car was stolen off his driveway. He said that everybody knew that any thief could point to a device and go home with the car! Even now, I reckon people are still crying over their stolen BMW ..

I would buy a Skoda Yeti if I had money!

 

[alp]

Ordered Epsom salt 2kg and got 36 nectar points! Yes!

Last night, I watched The secrets of the zoo and saw this beauty - Javan Green magpie. Life is so unfair as we only have black and noisy magpie. There were reportedly only 52 of these beauties in the world. Such lovely colours.

Been a big spender and bought a double yellow freckled hellebore. Went to Wyevale and alas I was too late. All the goodies hellebores have been sold. 50% off and I used my £2.50 voucher! Went back again to get the Apricot double. I blamed @Perki for this as he mentioned it. I really have to have the pure white double one with red / pink edge. Such a beauty.

Wyevale - a lovely tree peony

Beautiful erythronium Pagoda! What has happened to mine? Sob....

Tutu

Freckled anemone

Such a lovely one - but the price was just tooooo much!

Camellia Williamsii E G Waterhouse!

I bought the last two - yellow double freckled Harvington. The last one free with aphid could be a Mary Lou Spring Promise ..

Spent too much money!

 

[Perki]

My fault . The yellow Double Harvington nice but it looks more like a cream than yellow , the one above the camellia is lovely very similar to what I want , I haven't come across any like it around here how much were the hellbore ? Double Picotee what I am really after .

I visited a garden centre today but they didn't have anything I fancied so left with nothing. took bike for MOT today which passed nearly left without paying opps, I do that when I go barbers get talking and totally forget to pay . Another chap come in to take his bike home he only got a mile down the road and ran out of petrol, I had my rucksack on me cause I were going GC so went to the rescue and took him some fuel down

You'll have to watch your step in future , if the wire doesn't do its job might as well get rid better than tripping over it. I had a accident on Monday , one of the pins broke on the scaffold tower ( only small 5-6ft ) which I were using while taking the top off a conifer hedge , I tried doing that extra little bit but the scaffold tower collapsed and I ended up smashing my head off the top of the scaffold ladder quite a bit of blood with a nice cut/ gash in my head, just stuck a plaster on and carried on, be told it need some stitches but its healed over now .

 

[alp]

Next time I go to Hillmess, I will buy that one. I haven't got that one. She is dearer than Summerhill!

Yes, all old hellerbores look like green in colour and the yellow one I have already checked. Now, I am after a green one with this kind of spots.

Well done, Perki! Hero yesterday!

Oh, dear! That's serious. You really should check for concussion. I hope you are 100% OK. That's so serious.

Yes, I was very lucky. I just fell flat on the lawn which was soft and it was more a shock than anything else. Well, I have to wait for my hellebores to seed before I can remove them.

Talking about hellebores, they really can display such a lot of mutations that you always want to buy the next one. Just slightly different, not a lot. But I just keep buying.

Well, it's rather cold outside. The kettle is making dodgy noise. I dashed inside just in case it exploded.

The erythroniums in Wyevale were so beautiful, but there was only one type. Wish there were a bit more sun to enhance the feeling of buzz and fun!

I planted the hellebores and split quite a few of them. Waiting to see Zenj's Nomocharis!

 

[alp]

Camellia families

I believe this is Camellia Turandot, but I could be wrong!

The poor thing has been most susceptible to frost, as you can see!

My favorite, apart from Brushfield, Williamsii Debbie!

Brushfield - a bit scared of the frost as well!

Pink, a bargain at £2.99 or £1.99! Was a baby when I bought it.

A shame that EG Waterhouse is not flowering now!

 

[alp]

Mother, 73, wins child support for her 52-YEAR-OLD daughter after her 'deadbeat ex' who fled to Canada when their child was just three years old finally returns to the US

• Toni Anderson has won child support from her ex-husband for their now 52-year-old daughter, Lane Lenhart
• Anderson says her ex chose to go to Canada rather than pay court ordered child support in the early 1970s
• Anderson realized there is no statute of limitations on child support
• Her lawyer says a settlement of $150,000 has been reached

This is hilarious! Chlld support for a 52 year old!

The weather has been glorious! Sunny, bright and warm! Just lovely and all the magnolias responded in their full splendour - hundreds of flowers - pink, white and even purple .. All in front of people's houses! I felt so left out. It's just sooooo nice to travel in car along country road flanked by green ..

Finally, got to talk to the new neighbours - nice couple. The lady said she needed to go back to the house to tend to her dinner and gave her hubby a kiss! Awwwwww! So sweet!

Any way, he assured me that he wouldn't be cooking big - not that kind of people! Hehe! And he would like to stay for a few years! What a relief!

Most of my seeds have germinated and I bought yet more hellebores. £5.99 for a pot. So cheap. We went to Chelmsford and I loved the place called Chinbrook gc .. Things were much cheaper.

On the way to Wyevale, we saw 3 pheasants and the last one is in my fridge as my son killed it by driving over it. So we picked it up and I have removed all the feathers .. Tomorrow's dinner! Bought about 6 plants and ended up with about 12 to 15 plants. So excited buying them, but planting them up is a nightmare!

Going to watch Baptiste tonight.