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We woke to minus 5C this morning in a bedroom not a lot warmer. On the downside this means praying that my heath-robinson insulation efforts in the middle polytunnel have kept my exotics alive. It also means I can't do much outside until the thaw sets in. But
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Once again we are waking to frosts each morning. But with the sun a little higher each day, by early afternoon it is warm enough to strip to a t-shirt if you're working in the sun. Construction work continues apace in the nursery, but I'm stuck
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Last summer, despite all the rain, the biggest headache in the nursery was keeping plants properly watered. The problem was that the entire nursery was gravelled, meaning that water either slipped straight through or was trapped in the pot for lack of capillary contact to draw it out. So a
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It's appropriate that vine weevil rhymes with evil. Peter did a spot of weeding in one of the polytunnels late last week and showed me a dozen or so Saxifrages and Heucheras with the top growth falling off - he knew exactly what it was. Sure enough there
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Funny that the subject of meadows should come up here (see comments on previous thread by Skye and Brian). I was discussing our meadow last week and a piece of it might be used in another garden at Tatton Show this year - more on which later when things are
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Last year I didn't start thinking seriously about Tatton Show until May (the show is in July). It may only be January but I know I need to start much earlier this year. The plants I need will be harder to find, and I want to produce better,
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With cold weather forecast for the rest of the week we took the opportunity to get out for a New Year walk along the river. This valley truly is a lovely place and it's good to step out on a quiet, still day and appreciate it. Back in
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Another bright day brought a chance to tackle the big Bramley at the top of the garden. This one is much taller than the others and strong enough to climb which is great fun, if a little precarious. From there the view of the garden sloping away is quite lovely,
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More for the tree pruning archive. I managed to squeeze an hour in before the Lane's Christmas outing to Man City v. Liverpool - just enough to finish an unnamed cooker that I started yesterday and start on the Bramley. The cooker produced a few wonderful large fruit
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With six days of very enjoyable eating, drinking and socialising behind us, it was good to get outside today. Though still mild and bright, a stiff wind and scudding grey clouds gave a clear sense that it wouldn't last, and it didn't. But there was enough
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6.08am this morning marked the exact moment of midwinter in the northern hemisphere. The days will start to lengthen - imperceptibly at first, but visibly by mid January. Many plants will know before we do. In my old garden there was, and still is, a lovely old Hamamellis mollis
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This cold spell has shifted from being statistically interesting to plain frustrating. What a joy it was to wake today to a frost-free morning for the first time in over a week. I was up early, all set to make some proper progress outdoors for once and enjoy the comparative