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What to do in the Garden in December

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Greetings fellow Gardeners,

Because of some building work, being carried  out in the garden, I am unable to host a Christmas Workshop this year, which I really will miss as it is our way of a small Christmas celebration.

Also I would really would like to thank my Garden visitors, my Garden Volunteers, and my amazing inspiring Students. All of you are the reason why I do what I do. Appreciating our tenderer and gentle environment, really appreciating what is happening beneath our feet, what it gives us, is so fantastic, thank you.

Have a very Happy and Holy Christmas, see you next Year .

Annmarie 

What to do in December

  1. Harvest your Brussells sprouts for your Chridtmas Dinner.
  2. Make a wreathe using Willow or Cornus alba as a base. Cover it with moss or lots of ivy, old mans beard – Clematis vitalba. String cranberries, dried roses using fine wire, bright ribbons, dried fruit, pine cones sprayed white or gold or silver.Poppy seed heads, tiny Poinsettia, twigs covered in lichens
  3. Clear out your shed, clean your tools. Buy an Osslating hoe – I have some in stock, great gift.
  4. Choose 3 annual flowers you love, order the seeds.
  5. List the veg you eat, order their seeds.
  6. Check your tree ties.
  7. Tender plants check they are protected.
  8. Water available for visitng creatures.
  9. Plant all those bulbs you have now, make sure you include tulips.
  10. Collect and compost your leaves, you will be glad to have them  later in the year.

What to do in September

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Lots to do, just some ideas for your September list.

  1. Start your compost heap — compost is garden gold. Compost seals in the moisture of the soil, protects soil surface during heavy rain, feeds all the creatures, micro organisms, bacteria, fungi which is the essence of and basics of a healthy growing garden.It is free resource, and you are returning to the soil what you have taken from it.You can make a liquid feed from your compost. Place some compost into a porous bag — soak for a couple of days, liquids now a feed for your Camellia, Rhododendrons and Magnolias, as they are busy producing flower buds for next spring.
  1. Empty vegetable beds,  either plant spring cabbage or sow a green manure Phacelia Tanacetifolia, Clover,White mustard or buckwheat.  Green manures  fertilise the soil for the following crop mainly through the intake of nitrogen, which is then dug back into the soil (cabbage likes lots of nitrogen).Nitrogen on e of the 3 primary nutrients is essential for the production of amino acid,without amino acids, plants cannot make the special proteins that the plant cells need to grow.
  1. Sow seeds of perpetual spinach, baby leaf kale, lettuce such as Mizuna red Emperor as you can also use this in stir fries. Sow seeds into best quality compost, err on having it warm as this also helps with germination.
  1. What ever herbs that still look fresh, clip and freeze . Also if you have lots of tomatoes ,broad beans all these can be frozen for later use.Broad beans make a great soup with mint.
  1. Flowers are setting seeds, collect when ripe on dry days  (damp will cause mould). Sweet pea, garden peas, broad beans all very easy( pods should be brown) for collection. Place into a paper bag, store in a dry dark consistently cool place in a plastic, metal or glass container. This can be a very interesting activity.
  1. You can start dividing some of your herbaceous perennials, such as Astrantia,Pulmoniara, Ophiopogan.You can also take cuttings of Verbena bonariensis.  If you have too many pot them up and share with friends. Be gentle with cutting back and autumn clean up of the garden as it is still providing food and shelter for many creatures.To prepare for their hibernation, hedgehogs eat as much as they can during autumn, munching on beetles, caterpillars and earthworms to build up good fat reserves. They will then seek out a quiet spot to rest for the coming months, usually in piles of dead leaves, stacks of logs, compost heaps or under garden sheds.The exact time they retire to this spot will depend on how mild the weather is. Hibernation can take place any time from October to April, but in a warmer winter you may still see hedgehogs out and about in December.
  1. Keep dead heading your Dahalia’s, as this prolongs flowering, food again for visiting pollinators.
  1. Bulbs ,start getting them into the ground.Tulips are the last and generally are planted in Winter  November, December and even January. If you can consider planting organic bulbs.
  1. The lawn, re-seed patches and also perfect for a new lawn. Scarifying or raking will really help with moss removal (moss is very useful for birds in spring for their nests not a total villain}. When I am collecting leaves or even planting and have made a mess on the grass, simply raking hard often is sufficient. Lawns are getting bad press now, but they act as an anchor for a garden, they absorb carbon dioxide, water soakage and give off oxygen. There is never a need to water it during droughts, leaving your grass cuttings feeds the soil, which brings us back task no 1. Biodiversity in your lawn is very welcome.
  2. Fruit trees, apples, pears, plumbs, all can be give a tidy up now. Plumbs are members of the prunus family so only prune gently and do it now before dormancy sets in. Pruning now is for shape. Hedges could also be cut now for winter structure.

What to Do Now in the Garden October

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Top 10 things to do in
your garden now

1 Photograph your garden- it is amazing how we forget.

2 Visit garden centres to see what plants/shrubs  are flowering now to fill in gaps

3 Divide large clumps of perennials – we get more plants, free up space and allow for better growth next year.

4 Take hardwood cuttings – this is when this year’s growth has become harder – firmer in other words not soft.

Take care to choose a healthy parent plant free from pests or disease and use a sharp, sterilised secateurs or knife. Careful labelling is key and should include the date the cuttings were taken, along with the name of the parent plant, use a compost 50 / 50 sand in a pot. Plant around the edges of the pot. Also, there can be a low rate of success so take lots. Unlike soft and semi-ripe cuttings, hardwood cuttings do not require bottom heat or a moist atmosphere. If you have space you can also simply dig a slit trench half the height of the cuttings and fill the bottom with sharp sand or grit.

Insert the cuttings vertically, to a third to half of their length and back-fill the soil, firming them in. You can use a hormone rooting powder, but this is generally felt to be unnecessary. Water well and label the cuttings so you know what they are. A cold frame can be placed over the top to encourage faster rooting if required.

Hardwood cuttings are very slow to form roots, so don’t expect them to root fully until at least the next spring. If rooted well the cuttings will sprout strong shoots and grow away.

Ideal shrubs for hardwood cuttings are Buddleia, weigela, privet (Ligustrum), Philadelphus, forsythia and willow, but you can experiment with any woody shrub that takes your fancy. Taking cuttings is free, and if they don’t succeed, no harm will have been done. Others plants eminently suited to being propagated from semi-hardwood cuttings include many shrubby evergreens such as rosemary, sage, lavender, box, escallonia, holly, viburnum, hebe, camellia, ceanothus, cistus and choisya. Good luck.

5 Plant bulbs for spring – wait till November to plant tulips. Think also of indoor bulbs for Christmas such as Hyacinths, plant NOW for Christmas. Narcissi Paper White take 6 weeks from planting to flowering and have an amazing scent to fill your home at Christmas when they are finished flowering plant them out into your garden the same with your Hyacinths.

6 Plan your flower borders for next summer — look at midsummer magazines etc for ideas also include spring as it will help you choose bulbs. Come to Patricia’s Workshop on Saturday, November 3.

7 Get your leaf pile organised — you can’t buy leaf mould.

8 Trim lawn edges, scarify and repair lawn, use a low nitrogen law feed.

9 Cut your hedges before frosts – pruning at this time of year is for shape.

10 Veg garden plant garlic, onions, broad beans and green manures.

It is very nice to have a neat tidy garden with good structure but don’t forget to leave some areas for all the little creatures to hibernate in – so don’t be too tidy. Leaf and wood piles make great places for hibernation and shelter. I take down my hanging baskets and replace with bird feeders. Birds are essential for our gardens and they do need a helping hand. Containers with water can act as little ponds for frogs and of course sources of drinking water for our little visitors.

There are lots of other jobs to do as well, but try and get as much done now before it gets too cold to venture out.

Sunday, September 30.Gardening Workshop covering the basics.

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The garden is now going to sleep, and now is also the time to plan your beautiful garden for next year.
Seed sowing at this time of year can give you a head start on Spring, roots develop and are stronger. Division of plants- making more, moving plants to better positions, planting bulbs for spring and summer. Feeding your soil, protecting it for the weather ahead- drought, are a few of what we will be covering.

Arranging Garden Flowers for Winter Interest

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Sunday, October 7 10- 1 pm

Sally Horn florist extraordinaire.

Sally will show us how to use Seed heads, fresh flowers, greenery to make pleasing Winter displays. How to condition your flowers and greenery to get the longest life from them.

If you have a container you would like to use bring it, and we will also have some for you to use also.

All materials will be provided.

 

Fermented Foods

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Fermented Foods

on some of my fliers, the date is wrong Sorry !!!

Saturday 20 October 2018

10am – 1pm

Ever wanted to try making your own fermented food but don’t know where to start? Come along to this demo and learn all about fermenting food and drinks, nature’s probiotics! Learn how to make milk and water Kefir, fermented vegetables, sourdough bread, labneh cheesecake and more. It is a fantastic way to introduce natural probiotics into the body. Walk away with your very own sourdough starter, recipes and a confidence to make them all at home.

Fiona Staunton is a  Ballymaloe trained Chef and has a Degree in Education from Trinity.
Having worked as a chef at Ballymaloe House she started her own successful catering business in Dublin in the late 1990s, catering for Private and Corporate functions.

Plein Air Oil Painting

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Plein Air Oil Painting

25 August 2018

10am – 4pm

Orlagh Murphy

Orlagh Murphy is based in Co Cavan and started concentrating in 2010 on her studio practice after working freelance as an interior decorative artist in the US, Italy, Japan, UK and Ireland.  Orlagh now lives in a very rural area of Co Cavan and this has formed the basis for her work to date. The inspiration comes from an area of about 4-8sq kilometres comprising of farmland, river, lake and bogland which surround her home, she also produces work from Sligo, Mayo and West Cork always in a direct response to the seasons. book now

Ants in the Garden

Are Ants Bad for the Garden ?

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Are ants in the garden bad?

The good and bad news about ants and plants. Just as a weed is a plant growing in the wrong place, insects in the wrong place are pests.

Ants play a very important role in the ecology of your garden for good and for not so good. …

Ants are predator and prey since they eat the eggs of many insects and serve as food for birds, lizards, and other beneficial. Their tunnels aerate the soil and allow water and nutrients to flow directly to the plant roots. They also distribute seeds by storing them in their tunnels.

The caterpillars of some butter­fly groups produce a sweet substance known as honey­dew to attract protectors. The ants “farm” the caterpillars, sometimes even carrying them into the ant nests to complete development. This interaction can add more butterflies and birds to your garden as they become attracted to the greater insect activity.

The bad news is that ants can protect honeydew-producing, sucking insects that do a great deal of damage, such as aphids — white, green and black fly also scale and mealybug, populations in the garden.

They actually will drag their eggs into their nests and protect them.

Wasps eat aphids. Aphids produce honeydew which ants love.

Controls of ants in your garden

Planting aromatic herbs around the perimeter of your home can also discourage ants. The added benefit is that other insects and vermin are also put off by the aroma. Any mint plant – mint needs to be planted in a container as it will become too common in your garden, also Tansy and Sage can also be effective repellents.

You can reduce their numbers by pouring boiling hot water on their nests. This technique will help you control population numbers at source.

Ants don’t like citrus. Squeeze a citrus fruit in the direction of your plant so that the juice spritzes out. This should help to repel the ants.

  • To make a more heavy-duty citrus repellent, boil the rinds of half a dozen oranges in water for fifteen minutes. Also, you could use citrus drops.
  • Blend the rinds and water in a food processor and pour the mixture around your plants.
  • Make your own soap solution with 1 teaspoon of liquid dish soap in 1 pint of warm water  or you could use washing up liquid diluted
  • Spray it on and around your plant. Soaps containing peppermint oil are particularly effective.

Spices such as cinnamon, cloves, chilli powder, coffee grounds, or dried mint tea leaves can be scattered around the base of the plant to deter ants too.

Spray the flying ants ( which are mature mating creatures) with dishwashing soap 

Diluted dishwashing soap is an effective agent against flying ants as it attaches to their bodies and dehydrates them.

Get yourself a spray bottle to catch the little creatures in flight and mix two generous squirts of dishwashing liquid with water. This is also effective on aphids on your plants. My mother would have used the water from the basin of washing up water to do this.

Using pesticides can damage beneficial insects and also the balance in your garden is really important to allow nature to do its job.