Other People's Gardens - March 2019

I've been lucky enough to work in a number of different gardens recently which is fab because I can never get bored!

I love working on these beds - they are so full that I can dig stuff up, divide it, and then move it around the garden.

I've even split babies away from parent plants and popped them into gaps in the paving slabs, to try and deter grass and weeds.

This garden gave me a real crisis of confidence half way through - I hadn't had specific instructions to clear this fence but I could see that it needed doing, so I took matters in hand and took down all the old dead wood.   But then got scared that the garden owners might not have wanted me to do it!   As they weren't actually there that day, I couldn't even go and find them to ask.  Luckily, they absolutely loved it and were excited to start planning what to plant.

Sam and Simon are moving house soon so needed some help with clearing their garden down in Sussex, so I popped down for a weekend to help.  I wish I'd taken some "before" and "after" photos rather than just "during"!

While staying with Sam and Simon that weekend, we went over to Tim and Sara's for Sunday lunch and I very cheekily talked Tim out of a chimney pot - they still had another three though!   I was allowed to have it on the promise of sending a photo every year on Tim's birthday of what the chimney pot was being used for.  Also, I had to promise NEVER to let it go outside of the family, so I took the decision to let Mum and Dad have it for now, but to have it back once they no longer wanted it, or, more likely, check if Shannon or Amy wanted it next.

Mum found a "plant-mover-around-the-garden-thing" on castors - I have no idea what it's really called but it's jolly useful for the chimney pot!  

So much colour in Mum and Dad's garden.

And this photo sums up the after effects of working in any of my other gardens - I usually end up having a little sofa snooze with my boy after all the fresh air and exercise!

Seeds and Stuff - March 2019

I've been struggling a bit with health issues lately - and, as a consequence, motivation.   There is so much to do in the garden at this time of year, but I just cannot work up the energy or enthusiasm to get out there and get on with it.  Hormones and health are rubbish!

Out of the seeds I've sown so far - admittedly not too many - the best results I've had is with my grass seeds - I seen to be growing seed trays full of turf!   Actually, that's not as daft as it sounds, as I can take this seed tray out and about with me on my gardening jobs and where I need to dig up weeds from a lawn, I can then plant a mini plug of grass and fingers crossed it will take and spread and deter any more weeds.  Genius!

I have actually cleared a load of brambles and nettles from along the fencing on the right hand side of my garden although I've had to stop now because the birds are already nesting out there.   At least it's looking better than it did.

Although Finn doesn't seem to think so as it's looking a bit bare out there and no places for him to bury his biscuits, bless him!

Odds and Sods - March 2019

March (and April) have been a couple of strange old months - mainly it's all been about hunkering down and dealing with some health issues, which I won't go into here.   Suffice it to say that I've been doing not an awful lot of anything, except reading, sleeping, knitting and generally relaxing and chilling out. All of which has been lovely actually.

I've been learning some new stitches and making quite a lot of birthday presents.

I've also been cracking on with my temperature blanket.

I've had a few weekends away - one of them down to stay with Sam and Simon in Sussex, helping to get their garden tamed before they move to a new house.

It wasn't all about gardening and working though - we spent quite a bit of time being blown about on beaches!

I've been documenting my daily walk to work for Instagram - mainly flowers and shrubs in other people's gardens as I walk to work, but recently I've spotted some rather exotic birdlife just off the Ipswich Road - jays!

On one morning I spotted four of them in a single tree!

But, as always, it's all about Finn!

Made or Grown - March 2019

I think I've made an executive decision to not write any more Made or Grown posts - I'm clearly succeeding in this project, especially with my knitwear at this time of year, and the garden produce kicks in during the summer months.   I just don't always take the photos so it looks like I'm failing.  I wish to categorically state .... I'm not!

And as my rate of writing blog posts is dire, if I have one less to write a month, then I might finally start to catch up with all the others I haven't posted yet.  We will see!  So here is my final Made or Grown post - I will incorporate anything I need to shout about in my other posts and, if I'm REALLY thrilled with something, then it may very well have a post of its own!

3 March 2019 - while having a clear out of my planters in the front garden, I found some spuds I hadn't yet harvested - yum!

7 March 2019 - this outfit really isn't the best, but our office gets so cold that I need as many layers as I can physically get on!

14 March 2019 - God, it's been cold.  (In fact, it's only 7 degrees today and my fingers froze while putting the washing out this morning.  Which isn't going to dry anyway today as it's since started raining too.  Marvellous!)

15 March 2019 - had a lovely jaunt down to West Sussex to stay with Sam and Simon and I insisted I MUST go and look at the sea on the Friday evening.  It was blowing a hooley!

16 March 2019 - ditto on the Saturday afternoon.  Thank God for my feral hat!