Gardens Home & Garden

Thought I’d just show you an update on the garden as I’ve been busy trying to sort it out, yes it’s got fencing around most of it as Beau would stamp in it if it wasn’t.

these at the top picture are all the plants I had on the table waiting to plant I spread them across this raised bed

You have been busy! I love your different Hostas - they seem to be very popular this year. A friend came back from the big Food and Garden Show with a good selection of them yesterday. I have two of the standard blue flowering ones, in pots. I really neglect them but they bounce back every year regardless.
Is that a Yucca in the last picture? I've always been too worried about damaged dog eyes to have one, but they are spectacular. My neighbour has one which appears above the 6 foot fence, so I do get to enjoy seeing that one in flower.

Thank you so much, yes I do like my hostas, but you have to get the slug pellets out as soon as you see them shooting otherwise the slugs and snails will eat big chunks in them, they come back bigger and better every year, in the garden the nicotine plants keep multiplying and I’m not sure where they actually came from as I didn’t plant them but the flowers close in the day and open at night for moths and nocturnal bugs. The yukka well that must be a good over 20 years old now and every new side shoot that grows will flower too, I did want to cut it down as it stabs me when I walk by it, but beau likes to hide under it as it’s cool under there in the summer so I left it alone, I will now and again snip the ends off to stop the stabbing, but as more flowers open up I’ll try and remember to show you

Very nice!! A great variety of foliage and color. Hostas are very popular here too.

@CaroleC if you like the look of the yuccas but not the potential pain, look for hesperaloe (false yucca or coral yucca). They have a very similar look but don't have spines or the stiff poky ends. They are also not toxic to dogs and cats like the yuccas are so no worries if you have a plant chewer.

The hesperaloe parviflora is the one in my photos with the giant bloom stalks. One had a stalk at least 8 foot tall this year plus an additional shorter stalk. The other's stalk went sideways on me.

I also just got the hesperaloe funifera (giant hesperaloe). It is a night bloomer.

Both can go down to zone 6 so should be OK for you.

Thank you so much @Toedtoes i did plant a lot more but they’re not doing much at the minute so I’ll wait until they come in to bloom but they done better this year than last, only problem I have found this year is damn aphid,s they devoured my lupins and I ended up going and buying bug killer as washing up liquid and water wasn’t touching them, so got rid of them and now they have new flowers coming up again. saying that they then moved into my strawberry plants so now I’ve sprayed them aswell, luckily the spray is for fruit and veg

Ugh. So far I haven't had bug issues (knock on wood).

Today, my yard guy came over and we pressure washed the pavers and bistro set that got covered in mulberries. Then we did the bird baths, bbq and rolling counter. Blew off the patio and walkway. Did some general clean up and moved the plants of the walkway to the patio. I did leave the pomegranates and cane's hybrid by the back door. After the pressure washing, I went to let the dogs out. Tornado-dog had been really patient waiting at the door. When I opened it, he was so excited to come out that he forgot he was carrying kangaroo. So kangaroo came outside for a visit.

While out there, I saw a pretty Painted Lady. I used my phone to try and get a photo knowing it probably wouldn't turn out due to the digital zoom, etc.

I was right and I was wrong. The digital blur came out looking like a watercolor.

Still very nice @Toedtoes and funnily enough I did exactly the same yesterday albeit it was only a bogstandard tortoiseshell one and small at that but it was just sat there, nothing spectacular.

That would look good, framed and hanging on a wall!

Thanks. I'll play a bit with it today on the computer and see if I can bring out the colors a bit more. If I can find a printing source that offer metallic paper, I may do just that.

@Toedtoes I will look out for a Hesperaloe on my travels.
@Tone I don't want to sound smug but my Hostas don't get eaten. Plenty of slugs on the ground, but they must find enough to eat without climbing into the pots.

@CaroleC lol no way do i take it that way I’m pleased that you don’t, I have kept on top of mine early this year and they fingers crossed haven’t been as bad, the ones I do find I throw away. But I have noticed there isn’t so much cuckoo spit about this year too. Not sure if it’s because it’s been drier than usual.

So my new flower lupins have began to bloom now which hopefully I can show you in a couple of days when they are all open fully,
The side patch is mostly out now just a few things trying to catch up
My lambs ears haven’t faired as good as last year and the lavender is in full bloom and the bees are busy with it and the bedding plants are starting to bloom now

Your lavender looks lovely, really strong. My early flowering plants have passed their best now. I've watered every day but I think they dry out too quickly in pots. The pinks, the lavender and the rosemary are looking the best at present. All but one of the heathers look strong but no signs of flowering yet.
We went to a dog show this weekend and it turned out to be a long day. I took sunglasses but no hat, and I now look like a beetroot, and have a very sore face and scalp. Tal was 2nd in Hound Veteran so at least my suffering wasn't in vain.

Thank you @CaroleC, yeah my bedding plants are just beginning to open now some are in full bloom but others like my begonias are just starting , I watered twice yesterday with it being so warm, my garden is south east facing, so come dinner time we’re cooking in the back before it move to the front about 5ish in the summer.
I do carry a cap in my car and my sunglasses on the visor, as with a brolly in the boot. Then if I haven’t got a cap use the brolly as shade. Always improvised me hahaha I’m not bothered what others think.
But well done Tally, you clever girl, you deserve an extra carrot for that

Good job Tally!!!! Although Hound Veteran sounds like some sort of boozing war buddy party.

Very nice looking Toni! Those blooms are gonna be gorgeous when they go all in.

I lost two of my lavenders this spring. I suspect it was because Tornado-dog discovered he could lift his leg and aim his pee directly onto the pretty smelling plants (it did take four years for him to figure that out so I won't complain). I replaced those with some christmas cheer poker plants (I didn't have any in the back yard) and put fencing around them to minimize the pee stream.

Our weather has been pretty mild. We are getting the very desireable delta breeze coming in to keep things a bit cooler. But the back still gets the harsh sun all day. I did move my plants onto the patio this weekend. So far they seem to be doing OK. The rosemarys are still happy. I have to order the extra large pots and up-pot them soon.

I've been watering the potted plants every two to three days. I have to refill the bird baths every other day, so I check the potted plants then - if they don't need water then, then I water them the next day. I have a few that aren't looking great, but most are doing well so far.

Thank you @Toedtoes, I did give them a spray yesterday to keep the aphids off these ones so hopefully I can have a full bloom at least once this year, I know the fence round borders don’t look good but at least it’s saved my plants from both dogs sitting in them or running through them (Beau) when he’s playing with his ball, so they can’t pee up them either but I know if I take them down now he’ll be sniffing in them all and break them down, so I’ll just have to leave it there.

I have similar fencing around many of my plants. It keeps Tornado-dog from running over them. Once theplant is big enough for him to see it as something to go around, I remove the fencing. The fencing also helps keep the yard guy on track with what is a plant and what is a weed.

I ordered my big pots yesterday and did some planting today.

I bought two pots advertised as 22.5 inches with a capacity of 49 quarts. I calculated that to be 12.25 gallon capacity.

The label on the pots is this:


I also ordered two pots advertised as 22 inches and 13.5 gallon capacity.

The label on these pots is this:


I think the label makers at Vigoro were sniffing the glue at bit too much...

Meanwhile my first blackberries are coming. I got a few for eating. Should have more soon. I forgot just how blah the store bought ones taste. These are tart with just the right amount of sweetness.

Those blackberries look tasty, they’ve had a good start as the brambles here are only just in bud and won’t be ready until late summer and the birds will get them before anyone, we used to go blackberry picking when we were kids and walk around all the hedgerows picking them and eating majority of them,
I have got strawberries, tomatoes and peppers growing but the only ones that are beginning to ripe are the strawberries slowly. I’ve been round and watered this
Morning as they say it’s going to be into the 30s here over the weekend, so my blooms are coming out slowly now
The clematis is a mini flower, but you get a lot more flowers on it than a normal big one

My raspberries are ripening now. They are a thornless variety, very big and full of flavour.
The clematis isn't in flower yet, not surprising as I tried to get rid of it last year. It is a lovely flower but won't cling to the fence. It falls forward and gets very untidy. I have to keep tying it back.