More from the garden

We got another of those little pots of miniature roses last Christmas, and as usual separated, pruned and potted up the individual plants.  Most of them came on well in the conservatory, and after a week or so hardening off outside in their pots they’re now planted by the front door.  Some of the older ones had died or failed to thrive, so have been replaced: the rest got a good prune, some top dressing and a word or two of encouragement.

In the new bed at the back, the top dressing has pretty much disappeared, so a lot of the newly planted subjects have rather exposed roots.  I’ve treated each to a shovel or two of muck, and hope they respond.  It’s that nice time of year when most days bring something else into flower.  Today it’s the daphne odora and the ornamental cherry.

For years we didn’t realise we had a flowering cherry, since its flowering season is very brief, and must have coincided with our spring trips to France.  Margaret and John gave us two daphnes some years ago as tiny plants, and they each proceeded to grow to a good metre in diameter.  They are not specially long-lived, and indeed one of them packed up last year.  But the survivor is threatening to block the path to the little greenhouse, and is starting to produce its richly scented flowers.

I’ll try again to propagate from it: previous attempts didn’t succeed, so I’ll consult the RHS before I try again.  Other candidates for propagation are the potentillas, which are getting a bit unruly, and the cistus, which have become, variously, very leggy or dead.

The tomatoes are growing fast: some of the Sweet Olive plants already have flower trusses, so I’ve taken out the side shoots with a view to propagation.  We have rather more San Marzano plants, so I’ve contented myself with taking out and discarding the side shoots.  In the propagator, the runner beans are starting to germinate, and we have a few tagetes seedlings from some oldish seed I found in the garage.  No sign of life from the rudbeckias so far: I may be forced, believe it or not, to put my hand in my pocket and get some plug plants.