Comings and Goings

It has been another interesting month. Not anything like as dramatic as last month but still facinating.

The biggest news has been that gardener Richard has decided to start up gardening self employed. He is now working for himself doing the gardens of the local Worcester populus. We wish him all the best in his new venture. We also expect him to pop in from time to time, to let us know how he is getting along.

The other news is that coincidentally, we have had several people come forward as volunteers, offering a half day a week. This has made a huge diference as we will now be rather short staffed for a few weeks until we employ Richard’s replacement.

In the gardens the plants are beginning to catch up with the season after being about 4 weeks behind. The wisteria have been stunning and the iris border is very colourful. The Fountain Beds have a stunning show of aquilegia and tulipa sprengeri and the borders are looking lovely. (The picture this month is of a seedling astrantia major). However, we are having a terrible problem with ground elder, bind weed and especially cleavers. Husband, who works at Worcester University, told me that these specific weeds are rampant there too. It must be the weather, but it is driving me to distraction.

June Tasks

It should now be safe to plant out remaining bedding, including those cannas and dahlias.
Water hanging baskets every day
Shade and ventilate greenhouses
Feed plants in borders, and start dead heading flowers.
Thin out hardy annuals and veg sown in the garden.
Ensure net cages over soft fruit, peas and any other vulnerable veg are secure, without access holes for mice or pigeons.
Removed reverted branches of variegated shrubs.
Remove suckers (growth from the roots) from roses, lilac and other suckering shrubs.
Remove spring bulb foliage when it can be lifted easily.
Remove alge and blanket weed from ponds etc before it becomes a problem.

Debbie and The Furtive Man....

This must be the latest I have written the monthly diary for quite a while. I went to Devon to attend a baptism for the Bank Holiday and have yet to catch up with all the work.

We had an incident in the middle of last week: I had just finished lunch and was about to return to the yard when I received a strange phonecall from Debbie. She sounded very quiet, but was furious and indignant, whispering that she had just spotted someone stealing plants from ‘her’ Fountain Beds. I couldn’t believe her; I didn’t think people really did that sort of thing. Debbie was insistent and said she’d seen a man with a satchel, looking suspicious. Then she said she’d seen him walking back to his car with paeony leaves sticking out of the satchel. Then she rang to tell me to go and look in the footwell of his car, which I promptly did. Sure enough there were a couple of bare rooted plants in plastic bags. I was still not sure, they could have been there before he arrived at Spetchley.

Debbie continued to ring me with updates, the man repeatedly returned to particular places in the garden, and was constantly watching the other visitors around him. Finally he realised that we were watching him and started to make his way back to his car.

I phoned the gamekeeper for moral support, and when he arrived Debbie confronted the man. After a little waffling he was very embarrassed and admitted everything. His satchel contained a digging tool and plastic bags; he had come equipped! We recovered the plants and cuttings and felt very pleased with ourselves.

Taking plants, cuttings or seeds is theft.

A few days later I received a hand written apology,a promise never to return and an amount of money for buying more plants.

On a more upbeat note, the paeonies are showing their buds, the daffs are almost over but the rhododendrons are just beginning. There is always something new to see at Spetchley.

We have just planted up a new bed in Smokey Hollow called imaginatively ‘Bed 9 copse’, under the wispering pines. It is now full of rhododendrons, lilies and hydrangeas. Rhododendrons particularly like it as they like the needle fall from the pines which turns the soil acidic. The picture is Rhododendron Percy Wiseman.

Best wishes

Kate

May Tasks

Plant extra rows of veg for continuous cropping in the Kitchen Garden.
Remove the faded flower heads from daffodils but do not cut down or tie the leaves.
Water greenhouse plants and install shade netting if necessary.
Bedding plants be planted out towards the end of the month, after the last frosts have passed. Ensure they are gently acclimatised to the change in temperature outside the greenhouse or cold frame.
Prune winter flowering heathers before the end of May
Earth up early and maincrop potatoes
prune spring flowering clematis after flowering
Keep hoeing and weeding
Pinch out the growing tips of bush fuchsias
Continuously picking rhubarb and removing any flowering stems will ensure a longer crop.
Protect vulnerable plants such as young seedlings, or hostas from slugs. We use crushed egg shells as a barrier.
Trim back spreading alpines such as aubrietia and arabis after flowering.