Sunday evening update

I have got stuck in on the garden since posting last and managed to weed and dig one half of the herb border.  I have to tie my grape vine up I have got some string for this purpose but that will have to wait until tomorrow evening.  I have also given my bay tree a partial haircut one third done another two thirds to go.  

From some of the branches removed from the bay tree I have taken off the good leaves and they are to go into the dehydrator  ready to be dried and then stored for use in the winter months this batch are for use in the kitchen either as leaves in the whole or to be turned into bay leaf powder.  I am not wasting them.  The next batch will be dried and then turned into garlands eventually with the aid of needle and thread and also dried oranges and lemons and other bits and bobs like fir cones.

The rubbishy bits from the bay tree have been decanted into a bin liner and popped into the bin.  I have done quite a bit of pruning back but there is still a way to go.

I still have a way to go with the herb border but I am hoping tomorrow evening to get some of the herbs into the garden and also do up some mixed pots of herbs.  I saw some in B & Q and also in Waitrose today£10 a tub.  As I have a lot of the herbs anyway I thought it would be cheaper and more fun to do my own.  I have two thymes lemon ones that I have potted up and have hung off the fence and I think they will come quite good in the end.

I bought more hanging brackets yesterday so when OH returns from his fishing trip I will get him to put some more brackets up.  I have the two Ivy baskets to hang plus two hanging strawberry planters.  I also need to put some hooks up to pop some strawberry hangers up I have four of these to do plus some hanging baskets with flowers to do.  I normally do all these in the Greenhouse myself at the start of the year but as the Greenhouse is out of bounds at the moment until I get cleared a bit more its a case of doing what I can when I can.

I saw four lovely hydrangeas yesterday in unusual colours but did not buy them one was a lilac and white variegated and the other was a plum colour.  I am hoping the stall is there again midweek and if they still have them I will buy them.  My Nan always had Hydrangeas and so did I up until a few years ago.

I also saw some lovely coloured Geraniums at B & Q today and I am going to need some more lavenders so I hope OH will take me mid week I do need some more compost anyway.  I am trying to get my garden looking nice for once although it is going to take a little while.  I used to have some lovely wooden window boxes on the front and out the back of the house but they have disintegrated.  I have some long troughs which if OH will put some brackets on and then put a wooden board on then they could go under the windows in the back which will be more room for some of my plants and more decorative for the herb garden.  I have quite a few Ivy plants and some trailing Geraniums to do something with still and this would be an ideal project.  I am quite enjoying the gardening it is very calming but will enjoy it more next year when I can get to grips with growing from seed again.  This is my real love.  I have been looking at a couple of pergolas for further down the garden and I would quite like a rose arch but that might be later in the year.

And yesterday I was really naughty.  In the Queensgate shopping centre in Peterborough they have all sorts of stalls selling different bits and bobs and yesterday there was a lady selling macarons and massive meringues they were a little pricy but pretty stunning.  I treated myself to two.  One is Lemon and the other summer fruits and they are lovely and flavoured and quite large.

That's one for tomorrow and one for Tuesday.  Naughty girl that I am.

Take care.

Pattypan

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