well last year I had so many things that I wanted to improve my life. Most of them I achieved. I wanted chickens...I have chickens. I have Miss Pecky Bock-Bock. She is the garden mafia queen. She brokers no nonsense. She is followed around by her girls Snoopy and Woodstock. Both now bigger than her but still insist on trying to sit under her. Then there is Byron, my boy and a true gent. Shelly, Byron's aloof woman; Violet, my darling girl; Keats, out on loan at the moment. I have also provided Byron with three beautiful new gold partridge pekins; Rosie, Iris and Lily. There is the rather manic looking teenage faverolle, Daffy dilly. The light sussex cross, Snowdrop and two silly silkies. Daft and Dope. So hell yes I have chickens....they seem to have taken over the whole garden and this must be rectified before the month is out. I want my garden to function in many ways. I want a successful veg patch. It sprang into life last year with Gusto. However I found myself sharing much of my produce with both Pecky and co. and the caterpillars. I will net better this year. I don't know what to plant yet. Carrots and parsnips are a must as I love them. Swede as the chillun love them. Calibres and purple sprouting are also in my personal top ten.
I also have an abundance of fruit tree that have established well. My theory is that they will not grow overly tall before I find more space/land and can move them. I have two apples, two pears, three plumbs and a rowan. (I think the rowan may be dead).
In the front of the house I planted a larger opal plum on the recommendation of a fellow tree lover. I also have pretty flowers out there. A very large and freakish looking Californian lilac (I love the colour) a feral wisteria and a clematis.. Then dotted with bluebells and poppies, and later on montbretia.
I have a garden swing out the back where I sit on warm mornings to drink my tea. In the corner I have decking. I have never sat on here and enjoyed it. As soon as it was built, building work started on the conservatory and now it is in need of TLC. I will have this the way I want it this year. Want the fences trellised at the back and to grow peas up it. I have seen a wonderful way of growing a vine over a free standing support and would like to give this a whirl also. and of course around the conservatory in full view while sitting either on the swing or on the decking there are all my favorite flowers. Roses, peonies, iris's, lilies, under planted with creeping jenny and periwinkle.
I also planted a variety of fruit bushes last year but found that having someone else cut you grass will often lead to the loss of young shrubs and bushes. I will replace them this year. It would be nice if i could get a small crop for preserves and cordials but I also love to see the butterflies, bees and birds so cannot bring myself to net them from the wildlife. They bring joy in there own way by bringing nature to my door. I can live with less jam ;)
I would love to keep bees but fear this is not the place for bees.
one for the future.
so a list of things to do...
dig over the veg beds,
tidy the flower beds
tidy the garden of untidy corners
sort out the compost corner
plant bulbs/corms
sit and enjoy it more often....
fence off the bottom corner for the girls. Oh and Byron of course.
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