LOOSING THE PLOT........beneath the snow.

HO ! HO ! HO! SANTA IS VERY EXCITED,IT APPEARS THAT EVERYTHING THAT HE WANTED FOR CHRISTMAS ARRIVED THIS YEAR. HE'S EVEN PLANNED THE BED.......... THE QUESTION IS WHO DELIVERED HIS PRESENT ?

We know who is delivering ours,we just need the temperature to lift enough to get them out of Scotland.

I am going to sow a few Kelsae onions tomorrow and then settle down with glass of whiskey and a good seed catalogue.

WE ARE FLOATING IN THE AIR ?

The weather outside may have been frightful,but it does not seen to have deterred the 'tree folk' and trade has been quite boisterous. I would love to plant a microphone in amongst the Christmas trees. I could capture some wonderful commentary as families air their differences over the shapes and sizes. One family spent well over an hour selecting.Having experienced a Christmas with a twig, I have already bagged a 'big un' and hidden it. I am just hoping to avoid domestic repercussion.




IN THE PINK !


There has also been good interest in the last minute gift items too and particularly in our collection of retro pink (well,that's what the packet said) accessories. The wheelbarrows in particular,are amazing and are also offered in burgundy and purple.

Bench mark of a good gardener

Here we are in the second week of the freeze, the days dominated by Christmas tree wrapping and repairs. I am amazed at the early interest in trees. Its probably all down to the resolved needle drop issue.

We are in the process of cleaning up around the site and the troops today have been engaged in 'bench painting' .............what a pity that radio volume doesn't have an impact on paint drying, the benches could have been back out by lunch time.

The slightly frustrating thing about this chill,has been the collapse of soft fruit and bare root hedging sales. We have it all bundled up ready to go,but frankly you need a pneumatic drill to get the things into the ground.

All good things must..........and do

How quickly the days have raced away,in just six months moving from Chilli to very,very chilly and Christmas knocking at the door.

It has been an amazing Autumn, with the best colour in years, but it all is forgotten with the cutting swipe of an east wind and the arrival of Christmas trees and Poinsettias.

We hold back to the last with our celebrations,trading only in the festive perishables (avoiding the tinsel and trinkets trade).All the signs are good for a lively run in. Particularly pleasing is the early interest in flowers for Christmas. We have taken quite a few early telephone orders too and will be delivering into the darkness on Christmas Eve I suspect.

The Heat Is On

Want some spice in your life? Then head across to our shop for our much anticipated Chilli Fiesta. Starting next weekend (22nd May) we will be selling a host of different chilli plants. We will have over 30 varieties ranging from mild to the hottest chilli in the world! As well as chillies we'll also be selling spicy sauces, jams and chilli chocolate. And our hombres will be laden with chilli related information. Ole!

What A Wash Out!

So, it looks like May is threatening to deliver the April showers! The weather is hardly cause for gardening inspiration but don't let that stop you from tackling a few jobs.

Now is the time to plant up hanging baskets. Once planted, leave in the greenhouse so they can develop and fill out, before hanging out at the end of the month.

Talking of greenhouses, you can also plant your tomato plants, courgettes, and cucumbers into beds or growbags under glass. Be careful with cucumber plants though. If they are overly wet and get chilled they will rot off at the base. It's best to water away from the plant and to do so sparingly.

Our advice on a cold weekend like this is to get settled in the greenhouse and set to it! Or pay us a visit. It'll get you out if the house.

Our next post will be on ideas for your hanging baskets.

Jobs For April

With the lovely warm weather there is now no excuse for getting out in the garden and tackling a few jobs. Here are some things that can be done this month.

• Feed rose bushes using Toprose plant food.
• Plant out onion sets. Push them into the ground so the top is just poking through the soil, leaving about 6 inches between the sets.
• Sow salad crops, like Rocket, Salad Bowl Lettuce or mixed leaf. Sow successional plantings so that there is a continued supply throughout the summer.
• Weed paths and drives. As the weather warms up, and the April showers kick in, weeds can appear as if from nowhere overnight. As soon as they start to grow use a weedkiller like Weedol or Roundup to get on top of the problem. Or remove them by hand, which can be quite therapeutic.
• Continue to earth up your potatoes. By pulling earth up over the emerging shoots you will help to increase your yield. So it's worth doing.
• Protect apple and plum trees against maggots by using Codling Moth Traps. One trap hanging in a tree will treat several. The traps contain a pheromone which entices the moth, they then become stuck to the sticky insert.
• Sow new lawns from seed. As the weather warms up, and the soil is still damp, it creates the perfect environment for sowing or patching up a lawn. Sow seed at a rate of 35 - 50 grams per square metre. If the weather remains dry then water regularly, and continue to do so until the lawn is established.
• Feed existing lawns using Feed, Weed and Mosskill to ensure a strong lawn throughout the growing season.

Easter Traditions

Happy Easter!

While the kids, and big kids alike, tuck into their chocolate Easter eggs the gardener knows that Easter marks the start of the season proper. And today, being Good Friday, is the day that seed potatoes are traditionally planted. So if you haven't got yours planted yet, or haven't even thought about it yet, then it's not too late!

We still have a few seed spuds left, mostly main crops, but among these varieties there are some superb choices. A few of our favourites include Juliette (a delicious, buttery late salad), Opera (a main crop with excellent blight resistance) and Romano (a red bred from Desiree with the same all round uses but with none of the scab associated with its parent.)

So, a bit of planning now can result in an excellent crop later and a great deal of satisfaction.

Open As Usual

We are open every day throughout the Easter weekend, including Easter Sunday. Our opening times are 9am to 5pm at the weekend and 9am to 5.30pm during the week. We look forward to welcoming you this Easter.

Production Line

It may still be early in the year, and the weather may still be wintry, but all that doesn't stop the production on the nursery.

Its full steam ahead as the nursery staff, under the guidance of Nursery Manager Steve, prepare for a busy season to come. Seeds are being pricked out, plugs potted on and baskets planted.

And as Easter weekend approaches a few varieties of bedding will be available for sale in the shop, along with the first of our home grown tomato plants. But if you are buying any of these don't forget that they will need protecting from the cold weather, as winter leaves us with a sting in its tail.

Spring Has Sprung!

At last spring is finally in the air and we are finally back with our Blog!

Check in regularly for all the latest from Dundry Nurseries here. We will be telling you all about new stock, plant availability, seasonal offers and top tips for each month.

We'll be back soon with more, so watch this space!