Busy in the garden

Martyn has planted out strawberries in one of the raised beds, and I’ve potted up the first of the tomatoes.  We got the usual six Sweet Olive seeds in the packet, and all have germinated.  The four I sowed in old compost are barely forming true leaves, but the two I put in new stuff are over two feet tall and forming their first trusses of flowers.  Lesson clear.  Annie, meanwhile, has sent some Sweet Apéritif seeds, and the three that germinated are now growing well and potted up.  From the first two Sweet Olives, I’ve taken out some side shoots and put them in water to root.

Ben has top-dressed most of the new bed at the top of the garden, leaving a second bag of muck with which to complete the job.  I’ve taken a couple of buckets of the same and top dressed most of the roses, which were already doing pretty well.  We’re still waiting for flowers on the three roses we planted last back end in memory of Michael, Rowena and Tim.  Michael’s rose looks like leading the field, which is unsurprising given his tendency to use the accelerator as an on-off switch.  

The hanging baskets at the front of the house are planted up and growing well: some geraniums, trailing fuchsias and lobelias.  I’ll need to remember to feed them, since they are rather too tightly packed in. We bought a bunch of new plants last year, including some oriental poppies.  We already have orange and pale pink varieties, and today have the first flower on a blood red one.