Spring! Gardens!

[Claire]

I'm desperately waiting with bated breath for spring to spring (yes, I know, it did yesterday). Here the old wives' tale is that you plant before mothers' day at your own peril, and I've found it to be true. I'll put out onion sets in the next week or so, but right now am wondering what everyone will plant, what succeedes where, what size is your garden.

 

[Claire]

I'll go first. I have a 3x8 patch next to my porch that is herbs, a 3 or 4 foot square near the kitchen door that is greens/lettuce, a little patch near there as well that is tomatoes. Further down the yard I have a 3x8 bed for other veggies. Every year I cut a little more out of the lawn and plant a few more vegs or flowers (who needs grass anyway?). I love that this house has the place for a lettuce, herb, and tomato patch right by the kitchen door.

 

[Ishbel]

As we've already had our Mother's Day (properly known as Mothering Sunday, 4th Sunday in Lent, on this side of the pond) - that wouldn't hold good!

However, our spring flowers are all out and the blossom trees are attempting to unfurl their flowers.

I've got quite a big garden, and I have a number of fruit trees at the end of the garden including apple, pear and cherry - and a cage for soft fruits, including rapsberries, gooseberries, blackcurrants, white currants, blackberries and loganberries. I grow tomatoes, green peppers (? are they the ones you call bell peppers in the USA), courgette and beans - runner, french and dwarf. I also have a herb garden (laid out as a formal knot garden with box hedges) with lovage, sage, various types of thyme, rosemary, mint and others - and I always grow flat leaf parsley, and basil.

But it's flowers that I love - and I have an abundance of trees, flowers and shrubs - including azaleas, rhododenrons, roses and at the last count - almost 30 different clematis.

My husband is the gardener, I'm merely the supervising overseer!

I am so glad that spring has 'sprung'. Mind you, I've known us to have snow in May!

 

[AllenOK]

I, too, am anxiously awaiting the arrival of Spring-time warm weather. It's been slowly warming up the past couple of weeks. We're still not where it stays above freezing during the night. From what I've seen, it won't get that warm anytime soon.

I just started my seeds for an herb garden a few days ago. Nothing's germinated yet.

My DW wants to plant some Lilac suckers this spring. Once I get the front yard cleaned out, I may plant some Daffodils this fall for next year.

 

[Claire]

Ishbel, I'd be jealous if it wasn't for the work involved. I have all I can do to keep up with my little patches! You're right about bell peppers -- in their green stage (where most people here buy them) they are called "green peppers". Courgettes are zucchini, Aubergines are eggplant. Don't ask me why American English doesn't use the French words, yet British English does. Herb garden is easy, about half is perennial, and I let it run rampant, just adding maybe a half dozen perrenial or bianuals every spring, and a couple of plants I bring in to overwinter (rosemary and bay). I don't have a good place to grow herbs inside, so mostly just do without or buy them during the winter (the local grocery carries a decent selection of fresh herbs). My lilac -- the year before last I had to bite the bullet and trim the heck out of them. So last year I never got a good set of blooms going. I'm hoping they've recovered sufficiently this year, because I sorely missed the flowers.

Our mushrooming freind is already planning our first foray out for morels, and it won't be long before "wild" asparagus pops up. But ... still a long time. As I write I'm wearing a heavy pullover and thick jeans, but have gotten out to trim my mint patch back so I have plenty for juleps in May. The chives (two kinds) have already started in and will be harvest-able in a week or so. The only thing I know about Scotland's climate is cold and wet, and that Michigan makes us look mild in comparison and I've got over a month to go before planting. But it's fun to dream at this point.

 

[lindatooo]

I'm with you guys - just holding myself back but we've had such an unusually warm dry spring this year my palms are really getting itchy.

We have raised beds for veggies and we'll do tomatoes in one and zucchini and cucumbers in the other. But this year I think I'll do the yellow variety of Zucchini so the little devils can't hide from me so easily and turn themselves into big demons!

 

[Maidrite]

Barbara and I want to do tomotoes and I want to do some peach trees. perhaps some sweet corn, onions and carrots if we can keep the Fire ants off them I wish I could fire those ants Have a Nice Day.

 

[Claire]

My little gardens are mostly raised beds as well. And zucchini! Last year was the first year I'd successfully grown it (it didn't do well in Hawaii or Florida). All these years I wondered why people sell these oversized zucchini when small ones are so much better. I didn't know the darned things could turn from cute little squash to monsters in hours!! I don't care for crookneck nearly as much (seeds too big), so think I, too, will look into yellow zucchini!

 

[Ishbel]

This is where I admit the truth - we have a gardener who comes in one day a week - but in reality he just about keeps it in check for us to be able to cope with the rest of the required work!

Although our climate is cold - I have stone walls round my garden, very thick and they retain any heat. I am able to grow espaliered peaches on one wall of the conservatory attached to the side of the house. The terrace is a real sun-trap and that's where I start the courgettes, peppers and beans!