Wiggly blog and podcasts

Nice to see a gardening resource\retailer making use of the web in different ways. The Wiggly team not only have a blog but also are podcasts, here is hoping that more folks from the gardening world join in.

Three months on and Jack Frost is here

My last post was the end of August and now we are almost in December. How the garden has changed shape. Almost all of the plants from the pots, baskets and bedding plants went into the compost bin (which is now full to the brim). The Fuschia plants were cut back hard and are living the winter out in the greenhouse. Fuschias living in my borders were also dug up and given the same treatment.

I have added winter bedding to the baskets and front border, this is largely winter pansies, wall flowers, heather and a sliver leafed plant (who's name escapes me but looks great). I have cleared up the front border of weeds and threw in some chicken muck. I have added some Garlic cloves to grow over winter\spring. I read that Garlic is a great natural way of warding off slugs as they hate the taste, I am tempted to buy more to see if I can use it else where. I finished off the front garden with a lawn circle of crocus.

A lawn circle is where you slice through the turf with your spade and ease it back slightly. You then add the bulb to the right depth and firm the turf back. You can choose a pattern, at the front its a square to match our hidden drain cover that the torby palm lives on. With a different crocus set I did on this back lawn also, this time using three sets of circles. Its important too do this after your last cut for the year as the bulbs will come up through the lawn and will need to have finished before you cut the lawn (and not be too late that you can't see them for your rapidly growing lawn). If the ground is not too soggy and the bulbs have not started to grow you can trim the lawn with the blade set on high but I will leave mine alone.

The back garden has had more work. I added a new half moon border that I double dug 5 weeks ok and again this weekend. I also extended one side border in width slightly and this needs a redig. I also added another half moon border and double dug with out manure, I am going to create a wild flower border from this. Mid september I did this and added the seeds at that point, some have come through others have not. I will get a true idea of results by spring and if its looking like a failure I may redig the border and replan. I am adding for next year 60 new plants to my garden. Time is against me though with snow expected on Friday, I really need to get them in the ground. If the ground is not frozen I very may have to clear the snow to get them in.

My greenhouse now has heater, temps are running down daily to -5 so I am backing this up with bubble wrap for the glass and fleech for the pots. In the greenhouse I have a few tenders from the pots that are living the winter out under cover. My pineapple sage is also living in the greenhouse and has flowered some amazing purple color (and late in the year), I will hopefully try and get a pic of that.

I had some great success with the toms and the remaining crop I made into chuchney with the reaming sweet basil. I am planning on more veg for next year and I am looking into growing some old types of toms. I also want to grow the mini type peas and sweet and hot peppers. I also want to take another go at potatoes but with a new plan of action this year. I am planning on growing all my own bedding for next year and I am stocked in seed for that. I have my seed kits ready, its just a question of getting my remaining seeds and waiting for spring. Finally I have a some spring sweet peas 'borderline' growing well. To help keep them warm I have them sat in a plastic container filled with straw.