WHAT ARE WE DOING IN THE GARDEN TODAY 2023

Sifted some more compost and prepared more enclosed pots ready for the start of seed sowing.

Divided and re-potted one of our Peace Lillys.

Made a start on cleaning up another border.

 

Cut the old leaves off some of the hellebores.

 

Took a lot of cuttings of coleus to try to start a full crop. Some for me and some for friends.

 

I picked up a small pot of crocus Ruby Giant and a small pot of crocus Romance, for a pound each from Morrisons, and planted them in the garden. I had already planted 40 crocus Prince Claus last autumn, and whatever crocuses and other bulbs I had planted in previous years that might still come up.

I also bought 3 small Cyclamen coum plants from Kew gardens on Saturday, having bought a few elsewhere, online in December, some of which seem to be losing their flower buds and leaves to rot, probably because I didn't plant them properly. The Kew ones seem good so far, they came topped with small pieces of wood chips which I kept around the plants when I planted them in the garden, and I also added some dried up leaves to lift the cyclamen leaves off the ground better. The Kew ones are in full bloom whereas the December online bought ones were only in bud and some of their flowers have since opened and some have rotted.

It is that time of year when there just aren't enough flowers. The only thing that is flowering abundantly is my Cyclamen persicum, that is in its third winter and also originally came from Morrisons. Lots of shoots from bulbs, especially crocus, but no flowers yet. The Cylamen coum are like little jewels, just fingers crossed that they survive as well as the persicum.

The photographs below are the 3 Cyclamen coum I bought from Kew Gardens on Saturday.





And this is one of the Kew Cyclamen coum planted out, next to one that I bought in December whose buds have flowered. (Kew's idea of using wood chips to protect the flowers and leaves from rotting seems good).




And shown together with the Cyclamen persicum in its third winter.




And a little garden helper. Recently I hear a rush of wings and he appears.

 

Not and easy job @shiney and time consuming. Could you not cover all those pots leading up to 'leaf drop' with fine netting or something similar? Then all you have to do is lift it off.

 

If that's the one that's been recently pollarded it shouldn't be a problem for a while.

 

@shiney, those willow leaves sound perfect for your cyclamen. Dried leaves or small wood chips seem to be what cyclamen need to stop them rotting. I read that after they go dormant in summer they like a covering of leaves too.

 

I've only got C hederafolium the coum I had died out.
I do absolutely nuffink with them, some even get walked on occasionally in summer and they do literally grow like weeds.

 

Cut some more old leaves off the hellebores.

 

Mixing seed compost: equal parts JI no.1, own compost & Coir.
Plenty of stones and twigs in the JI no.1
Still nice and warm in the shed with the Sun shining.