Why Me?

Why is it that my life seems to revolve around animals and birds? I had a couple of really challenging experiences on the same day last month which turned me all of a dither! Firstly, I went round to the back of the lake to check mole traps and re set them. I have been singularly unsuccessful at this venture. Now I know why... the moles are watching. I had dug out a large, deep sod of turf to reveal both ends of a tunnel. As I stood looking into the hole, one of the tunnel ends started to fill with soil. The soil fell out into the hole closely followed by a long, snuffly pink nose. I was rather taken aback and could only watch in wonder as the mole turned round and stuck its tail out, then pushed the remaining soil out before scarpering back down its newly cleaned tunnel. I then felt really mean and had to admit defeat.

I decided to try elsewhere and went into the peacock pen where there was more mole activity. After realising this was a battle I was not going to win, I turned back to the cage door... only to see the white peahen taking advantage of a loose latch and making a bid for freedom, closely watched by her 2 remaining chicks. Panicking, I managed to manoeuvre between the chicks and the door whilst the white mum walked round the outside of the cage. I then rang Debbie, who must have thought I was having a turn, but did arrive very swiftly, and slowly walked round the cage encouraging the mum back to the door where, thankfully, the call of her chicks was just too strong for her to ignore. She had been a free bird for all of 6 minutes!

Now, less of my adventures and more of the gardens. It has been a difficult month: lovely weather to start the month and terrible weather to end. We managed to mulch most of the main borders and the gardens looked really lovely for opening, although it had been so cold that all the daffodils and crocus have been very late. This is the first year that I can remember us having such a spectacular show of crocus when the gardens have been open. (see pic). Although the rain has been a bit of a nuisance we have done our best to make sure that the gardens are at their best for the Easter Bank Holiday weekend....

Best Wishes

Kate

April Tasks

plant those early potatoes as soon as the weather allows
Check and cllean garden pool pumps
Cut grass regularly when the ground is not wet
Feed camellias and rhododendron if looking a bit yellow. They require a special sequestered iron food.
Feed herbaceous borders with a good quality granular feed, e.g. Growmore.
Sow broad and French beans, carrots and winter brassicas.
Prune hydrangea and cut down hardy fuchsia

Pests, Pests, Everywhere....

We have had an interesting, if irritating month for pests. There were rabbit tracks in the snow, all over the kitchen garden. Even in the vinery there was evidence of rabbit digging. I set a humane trap on the outside of one of the gates and made a channel under the gate for access. Annoyingly, it has yet to trap the little beast, but did trap a squirrel over the weekend.

Then, as I was in the kitchen garden, explaining a task to Richard, he suddenly pointed to what he thought was a fox running across Miss Berkeley’s patch. I looked up to see the back end of a white tail flashing against the shrubs: a roe deer. I am still puzzled as to how it got into the kitchen garden, which is walled and gated.

Richard went one way and I went another, opening all the gates and hoping that the deer would find one and leave. However, it suddenly rushed behind me before I got to one of the gates, crashed into it, then turned round and went down the border. Richard tried to chase it back but it suddenly disappeared. We can only assume it went through the hedge into the Millennium Garden. We left all the gates open all day, hoping that it would find its own way out. We haven’t seen it since so we can only assume it left.

Then there are the moles.... everywhere. I was setting a trap bahind the lake this morning and a mole started to lift a hill right next to me! I tried to catch it but it was too fast. If you drive by the gardens, have a look on the other side of the road at the lawn of the village hall. It is full of molehills. This is just a small indication of all the hills that are appearing at the back of the lake, up the drive, in my garden, by the peacock pen.....

Speaking of peacocks, 3 of the peacocks left to go to a new home at the beginning of the month. Two of the female chicks and the older female all went together to a farm where there are already other peacocks. We were very pleased to see them go to such a good home as there was just too little space for 7 fully grown birds in the pen.

The weather has been frustrating. Beautiful,(see pic.) but becoming rather tiresome. We are unable to do so many of the normal early spring tasks due to the snow. It feels as if spring is about a month late. I have yet to start the leeks and parsnips in the kitchen garden, and I am getting a little concerned.

We were remarkably lucky to escape the worst of the snow though. The only damage we sustained was a couple of cedar branches that came down next to the rose lawn due to weight of snow.

Don’t forget that the Gardens open for the new season on 21st March. See you all soon....

March Tasks

Pot up dahlias and cannas in the greenhouse to give them a head start.
Dig up and divide congested clumps of snowdrops etc as the flowers fade.
Prepare the vegetable patch, clearing and digging over or rotovating on fine dry days.
Plant the early varieties of potatoes that you prepared (chitted) last month.
Cut down ( pollard) willows and cornus that are grown for their winter colour.
Cut down autumn fruiting raspberries.
Finish pruning roses, wisteria and campsis.
Start to cut grass on a high cut, when the lawn is dry enough and the weather is sunny. and don't forget to browse those seed and plant catalogues for your summer bedding and baskets before its too late.