A Garden Update

We're over half way through October and in the garden ... 

... there's still plenty of colour to be enjoyed. The roses have pretty much finished for this year but there is still the occasional bloom to be seen. The annuals are starting to look a bit tired and M cleared out some of the cosmos last time she was here but the marguerites, nemesia and dwarf sunflowers are still putting on a show. The terracotta coloured troughs in the centre of the photo (above) are waiting to be planted up with the cyclamen (below) that I bought yesterday.  

I still have to decide where I want the spring bulb display to be - they're dotted all over the place at the moment and I am trying to decide whether to leave it like that or group them all together. The spring bulbs are all planted in blue pots, just to add a bit more colour during the winter months. M will finish planting the rest of them when she's here on Friday. I've also bought some winter pansies to add to the aluminium wall planters outside the dining room French doors.

I showed M my ideas about adding height (and hiding some of the garage) using these arches and she's on board straight away! This won't happen until next year but the next step is to see what large planters are available as whatever grows over the arches will need to be container grown. M suggested lifting some of the patio slabs and building a brick walled bed instead of using containers but I don't know that I want to do that. For one thing, it won't be that straight forward as there is a huge concrete slab in the original garden below that part of the patio but mainly that a brick walled bed as she described adds a solidity to that side of the patio which I am trying to avoid. I'll ask my nephew to help measure up so I can at least work out the width and height of each arch and determine how many arches will be best for the available space.  

I haven't made the final decision on which climbers to grow over the arches but at the moment am thinking of a Solanum laxum 'Album' (potato vine) and a New Dawn climbing rose. I used to have a potato vine growing in the front garden and I loved it, but it had to go as it kept growing over the vent for the gas boiler ... it will be lovely to have one again and it was very easy to manage which will be a plus for a tall arch (M is shorter than me!). There's plenty of time to decide on the plants as I doubt the arches will be purchased this side of Easter ... the replacement fencing takes priority. 

I have a price for the fencing but we haven't agreed dates yet. As some of the pots will need to be moved and possibly some plants lifted temporarily when they're doing the fencing, M will take the opportunity to power wash the patio to save having to move all of the pots again at a later date. Weather permitting, she'll also sort out the grouting at the same time but that may be a job for drier, warmer days. This also means that once the patio is washed it'll be a good time to move some of the heavier pots to their new positions.

The area of the patio between the living room French doors and the new arches will be used as another seating area. It's in shade for a good part of the morning so it's where I like to have breakfast on the days I choose to eat outside. The pots that'll end up in this area will be the ones with interesting foliage. M has suggested adding some bamboo and I'm interested in adding some feathery grasses but no decisions have been made yet ... I have all winter to search out all the possibilities!