My week of sowing 1 - Stocks, snapdragons, panicum elegans and the staircase plant

It was all very well buying 50 packets of seed, but now I have to get them all in the ground.  This is going to have to be like a military assault; planned to the last degree.  Somehow I have to schedule at least one sowing of all the varieties so that the sowing falls in the brief window particularly favourable to each variety, without running out of space on my garage windowsill.  For the moment I have one small windowsill and one washing up bowls-worth of space to play with.  Glamorous life that I lead.  No greenhouses for me!  I am going to have to use the garage strictly for germination, and at the first sign of green chuck them out to fend for themselves on the patio in the cold.  I will of course try and protect them with my usual rather homespun solution of bubble wrap and fleece.

This being the case I will have to make use of every weekend pretty much to sow various bits.  Rather than lots of individual posts, for the meantime I will just do a weekly round-up of how my sowing is going, what I have sown, what's germinated, what's annoying me, what Im crying over, that kind of thing.

So this week I will cover anything I have sown in the past two weeks that hasn't already appeared in a blog.

Panicum Elegans - 'frosted explosion' I fell in love with this grass when I saw it in a garden last year surrounding bright orange dahlias with a golden halo.  Im a big fan of grass after the verges in my village were left to their own devices for months.

I sowed the seeds of this at the same time as the aquilegia, so on a freezing cold day.  Again, just like aquilegia these seeds were miniature and it was difficult to tell if I had even got them in the pot or just dusted them gently all over the patio instead.  I attempted to put five seeds in each pot, but we will see what comes up!

Panicum elegans- I just love this combination of flowers caught up in faintly
pinkish clouds of texture

Antirrhinum - 'bizarre hybrids'  I have never grown snapdragons before.  In fact, possibly shockingly, Im not even sure I could identify one, and that is why I have decided to grow some this year.  These really appealed as they are all marbled colours.  Im not a hundred percent sure what these will end up looking like but they might be stripey purple with some pink?

When a packet gives you 300 hundred seeds, I figure you can afford to toss quite a few in.  I am never going to sow them all before they get old so I might as well.  If all thirty come up I will just have to give them away!  I sowed these this weekend in two pots, 15 or so in each.  Not that I had any real chance of actually counting, these seeds are miniature!  They make the frosted explosion ones look huge.  Instead I sprinkled them on and we can only hope they don't all germinate in the same place.  Apparently snapdragons can take quite a while to germinate so Im thinking these could be quite a space hogger.

Leonotis Leonurus - I don't get how this is even possible but Im looking
forward to seeing how this actually grows

Stocks - the only one of these four plants that I have grown before, although this is a brand new packet.  I have never got on terribly well with growing them myself which is annoying because they are my favourite cut flower.  This is probably due to not getting on with it early enough in previous years and not planting them out with enough time for them to actually flower.  Well not this year!  I may sow more than one batch depending on what germinates as I love them so.

Again a packet of 300 so I bunged in lots.  Two pots of 15 seeds.  These seeds are slightly more visible being small flat disks.  Still fiddly but countable and its possible to see these in the pots.

Leonotis leonurus - 'Staircase plant'.  This plant is truly strange.  Each orange flower appears atop a stem out of the centre of the previous flower until there is a tower.  Im not sure what Im going to do with these tall plants, but I couldn't resist growing something so bizarre.

Numbers are a little more limited with this one, with only 20 seeds in total to play with.  That being the case, and the fact that I don't actually want hundreds I only planted 3 seeds in each of two pots.  These, unlike the last two actually wanted burying a bit and the seeds were quite long.

Gardening at this time of year really does take some commitment.  Both weekends were perfect examples of hideous weather.  The first freezing and the second absolutely tipping it down with rain.  While Friday was a beautiful day, on Saturday I virtually had to put my waders on to get out there to put compost in my pots.

In germinating news the first little green snout of my second batch of sweet peas is up!

Buying and Planting Aquilegias: Touchwood Aquilegias

The aquilegia currently self-seeding itself around the damp patch in my
garden; very pretty pale pink, but a devil beneath ground.

There are many things I hate about aquilegia, mainly revolving around their shocking ability to reproduce.  Talk about fertile, I swear wherever these seeds fall they grow.  Despite being an annual, as far as Im concerned once you have them that's it your stuck with them for life.  This is because aquilegia have some of the biggest and strongest roots ever.  They may be all dainty on top but underneath they have the dirtiest great roots.  I have heaved and sweated and sworn like a trooper and still they will not be freed from their soily foothold.  So best not to plant them.

However, there are also many things I like about aquilegia, such as there incredible structure.  Really as flowers go they are rather incredible, and they will also grow in the dark damp part of our garden where very little else is willing.  These two facts together almost make up for the roots, almost.

This picture really shows off their structure well with the five petals leading back to the long spurs at the back, as shown on the far left.  There's a lot going on in this little flower.

Despite their incredible structural composition, and yes I do think this is a plant worthy of such a phrase, I refused to be won over until one week on Gardener's World (a weekly gardening show in the UK) they featured the UK's national aquilegia collection.  The plants in that lady's collection were simply incredible.  She had singles of every colour, and doubles with frills and layers and constructions you would think were impossible in a flower without the assistance of ground plans and scaffolding.

So impressed by her display was I that when at Hampton Court flower show last year I stumbled across a packet of aquilegia 'Pom-poms', I bought them without a second thought.  The name implies frills and layers galore and I am all over that.  I planned on getting round the problem of its spreadability by growing them in pots.  I don't know if thats recommended, but since one seed found its way in with a fuchsia last year and grew more than happily, I know they can.

I had forgotten until I came back across the picture how interesting the seed heads are, holding all those troublesome little seeds.  I think they look like little jester hats, probably because I only saw one in a film the other day

When I decided to completely chuck my entire fuchsia collection at the end of last year a whole lot of pot space suddenly became available and my thoughts turned to what to fill this new space with.  My mind wandered back to that national collection.  Turns out the lady - Carrie Thomas - has a website called Touchwoodplants where she sells a variety of seeds, and of course aquilegia seeds from her collection.  While the site's graphics burn my ex-designer's eyes, the sheer number of possible varieties to buy is just unbelievable - we are talking like 500 varieties here!

Of course I had to have some, so emailed Carrie with a list of 6 to check availability at like 9 on a Friday night and received a response within the hour.  That lady is on it!  I wanted them all but bought Touchwoods Dreamtime, white double 2553, Black and Brownies - mix, Denim and Ice - mix, fancies - mix, and marbled blue 1246.  I went for quite a few mixed packets because then there is more chance of a nice bit of variety.  I don't think there's much point getting too precious about what they will flower like because they all cross pollinate.  The seeds were with me in like three days, I can not recommend Touchwoodplants enough for service!

I think the packaging is really sweet- little envelopes made of almost like baking parchment type paper with little sticky labels holding them shut.  Sweet but fiddly when fingers are cold.

So to planting.  On her website Carrie says bung them in whenever really after Christmas.  So to get ahead of the game I started sowing last weekend.  I put between 6-9 seeds of each variety in quite small individual pots, small because Carrie says they need transplanting on early before those monstrous roots appear.

Planting these seeds really questioned my love of gardening.  There I was, crouched, freezing with numb fingers trying to fiddle with delicate packaging and miniature seeds.  I believe the seeds prefer to be dusted with a little soil, but my soil was too damp to be dusted so I just left that part out.

Depending on how well they germinate I might plant more as I have plenty of seeds left, theoretically you get 25 of each but I think there's a few more there myself.  How she counts them out I don't know but if she wants to maintain her eyesight she should not worry about being so precise!

I bought more sweet peas

A little flashback to last year's sweet peas, because the seeds are hardly visually interesting

It's now two months since I sowed my first sweet peas for this year, and somewhat surprisingly given my track record with these tricksy plants, a fair few are still alive.  Last time they featured on here my seedlings had just had their growing tips, who were happily growing away, ripped mercilessly out by moi.  It felt very wrong and even though I know this is the done thing, I did expect what was left to wither and die in protest.  But the barbarity of my activities had the desired effect; we have bushiness.

I have high hopes that at least some will survive being transferred from the relative luxury of the garage into the cold harsh world of outside.  Unfortunately that time will come to them all, the question is when.  I am aware that you are meant to treat your sweet peas like your men: treat them mean, keep them growing... or something like that.  However Im not sure they would enjoy a good frost so I can see myself having to nip out there every night to tuck them up in bubblewrap.  How tedious.

The time has come I feel for my second sowing, and the moment to admit that I have bought more since my last sweet pea post.  Yes more sweet peas, because eleven varieties are not enough apparently.  Doing my previous sweet pea posts it occurred to me that what was sorely lacking amongst my chosen mix was a nice dark berry shade to really round out the colour combinations.  Well of course this schoolboy error had to be rectified immediately so straight onto Sarah Raven's website I went.

One variety would have done, but no, I bought four.  Its a case of once I start I just don't seem to be able to stop.  In my defence they are all distinctly different colours, although it is still unjustifiable.
So from Sarah Raven I bought 'Black knight' and 'Almost Black'.  Spot the theme going on here.  Im pretty sure I have another plant called Black Night, might be a scabious... Anyways Almost Black is the darker of the two being like a blackened purple, like the purple of a bruise.  It should contrast nicely against all my shockingly pink and frilly varieties. Black Knight isn't remotely black, I would describe it as a dark claret, or the colour of red wine.

The third new variety isn't technically new.... more displaced, shall we say.  I have so many seeds that I actually forgot I had bought some.  It was only while sorting through them about a week ago that it came to me that I had definitely bought seeds from Sarah Raven in the past.  Not a clue where they might be though.  An hour's search later revealed them to have been sitting about four feet from me when I had the revelation.  Amongst this bonus hoard was Barry Dare; an absolute shocking pink.  Wouldn't believe Im not much of a fan of pink from my sweet pea choices would you?!  But a nice surprise even still.

One of my current seedlings, alive, not in focus admittedly, but alive

Lastly I bought Cupani; a mix of claret and purple.  Small flowers, big smell has this one apparently, and the most closely related variety to the original wild sweet pea of sicily.  Completely 100 per cent did not need this one but was having an 'oh throw it in' moment.
I sowed them in exactly the same way as I did previously, soaked them overnight and then two to a pot.  Although think I got a little confused so may have sown four Barry Dares and none of another variety!

50 packets of seeds

Thompson and Morgan, Mr Fothergills, Suttons, Eagle Sweet Peas, Sarah Raven, and this is not even all of them!

I named this blog 'basically its growing' because that essentially is what plants do.  Except in February, when basically nothing is growing.  I haven't shared what I have been up to for the last couple of weeks because my gardening activities have ground to an absolute halt.  I have no indoor bulbs, my narcissi are resolutely refusing to appear yet (not that I blame them, its freezing) and it’s still a bit early for sowing seeds on any great scale.  So I thought I would take a little blogging break to get my life in order.  I did use the time wisely though to book a little city-break so it was worthwhile.

I have also used the time for another activity; preparation.  Can never be too prepared for the growing season ahead I think, otherwise it catches me unawares and while im considering getting my seed packets out my neighbour is already potting up seedlings.

My main method of preparation has involved just one activity; buying seed.  Oh have I bought seed!  I need to be held back, pinned down, my debit card plucked from my hand and a seed catalogue smacked around the face (I would have said Thompson and Morgan's but Sarah Raven sent me hers the other day because I signed up to get money off an order and boy, is it thick).  I counted the other day; 50 packets.  That’s 50 packets not including the seed I collected myself last year, or the numerous packets left over from last year that are still good to be sown.

I do not need 50 packets, I certainly do not have room!  Im thinking either the lawn is going to have to make way or a little subtle gardening in a neighbours patch may have to happen.  I wonder how the council would feel if I stuck a few sunflowers in the verge outside my house?..   Being as I have no greenhouse either the car may have to give up its space in the garage for the cause.  Not that Im suggesting I will be planting in there, but it is required for mass germination.

I think I have continued to frivolously purchase packets with scant regard for space and time constraints as an outlet for the frustrated gardener in me, cooped up indoors with nothing to do but exercise my flexible friend.  Definitely when it comes to potting up and planting I will regret my decisions, just like I know im going to regret those 40 gladiolus when they turn up soon.  Such a nice idea but in reality a whole world of pain is packaged in those 40 corms.

I know life would be considerably easier, albeit more expensive if I bought plants rather than seed, but for me growing from seed, or do I mean exterminating, is half the fun.  I won’t go into where I bought them and the individual varieties now as that would be information overload, but it is safe to say there will be a lot of seed sowing round these parts over the next few months so stay tuned for that.  I plan to start stuffing them in with earnest from now on as I went and got my seed compost last weekend, exciting times!

A sunny walk with a Robin

A camellia.  A little dog-eared but still beautiful.  I just love that crown of yellow stamen balls of pollen

Last weekend somebody put a plug in the rain and stoked up the fires to produce a beautiful day, cleaving its way unexpectedly through the endless misery that has been the British winter so far.  When you hear that the weather in the UK is bad, they aren't lying.  Misery.  Three solid months of mornings when you wake up and look out the window and think 'eugh'.  Needless to say on this one glorious day I was out of that door like a shot, no second invitation needed.  I planted a few seeds and then set out for a little walk round my nearest National Trust property Wakehurst Place.

Seed heads in the light 

While it felt like Spring was in the air, it most certainly hadn't sprung as the trees were bare and the scenery a tad bleak.  Nice, but bare.  Even still the golden sun warmed the cockles of my little heart, and I managed to get a picture of this little guy!

What a breast.  Very impressive

Isn't he gorgeous?!  I spotted him in the middle of a bush hopping about and immediately whipped out my camera for a snap.  Almost as if in response to me stuffing my camera in the bush he sat nice and still, giving me the perfect photo opportunity.  Only the camera wouldn't focus and the panic was creeping in as the inevitable moment that he got bored drew nearer, and still it wouldn't focus.  But at the last moment I got him in all his glory!

Imagine this heading towards you and you don't have any bread to give them...

There were a fair few birds about actually.  Down by the bottom lake people were being accosted by flocks of ducks that powered across the water like mini speed boats towards any likely suspect who might have a pocket full of bread.  I did enjoy watching a pack of 25 ducks like a little pack of billed bullies muddling around a lady's legs.  She was stuck like an island surrounded by a sea of webbed feet and feathers.

There were of course a few flowers here and there, including this crazy number.  This is a Hamamelis, or a witch hazel in lay-man terms.  I just love the way this plant flowers.  Middle of winter, bare branches and then these luminous yellow explosions like zizzy legged spiders clinging to the branches. I love anything that doesn't flower in a too ordered way. untidy is good in my book.

I thought these were rather pretty as well.  There is a whole field of crocus right next to the entrance that doesn't appeal to me particularly, but these were covering a bank above a pond on either side of a set of stairs.  With the light in the distance I thought they looked as pretty as a picture.  It is lovely being able to put up pictures of bright colours like purple, rather than onions and soil for months.

Colour! 

I will definitely be returning to Wakehurst before long as it has such great spring plants that mainly aren't out yet, but this little taste of Spring was a welcome glimpse of the end of this misery.

Narcissi bulb roots

Its pictures like this that make me long for summer, colour, intrigue, delight...

I long for summer, or even spring, that would be fine too.  How I wish I could be picking armfuls of flowers and wandering around barefoot, dirt between my toes.   Instead its February and its snowing, loathsome.  I was of the opinion until Sunday that January was the worst month of the year, but I have since changed my mind; February is foul.  Im filling my evenings with online shopping, not clothes or shoes thankfully, but seeds.  I think I am under the illusion Im going into production come the summer with the volume I keep buying.  But they haven't turned up yet, so lets talk roots.
Im not intending this to be an earth shattering post.  I was merely interested to see what the roots had got up to on my narcissi bulbs, especially as the narcissi were so firmly anchored in that pot.  Plus one of the main advantages as far as Im concerned of growing in pebbles rather than bulb fibre is that it is a lot cleaner, so I had to have a little dig around and see if that was true.

On pulling up the narcissus a whole knot ball of roots appeared, pebbles gently cradled in their pasty arms.  Even though I have now seen them I still don't understand how they held so firm.   A good shake and all those pebbles were freed.  However the clear downside of this method is that all the pebbles then needed gathering up, which was fine, and it was freezing outside, which wasn't.  Absolutely bone shatteringly cold.  The pebbles were a little grimey, but not covered in mould or anything.  Funnily enough I didn't choose to wash them right at that moment, instead stuffing them in a bag and losing them in the shed for a month or two until I can wash them in comfort.  So yes, this is a cleaner method than bulb fibre and if I can find a clear glass vase and nicer narcissi I will be repeating it again next year!
Hopefully I will be able to get out into the garden tomorrow and get some seed sown, or look at bulb noses peeping through or something!

Fuchsia round up 6: Checkerboard and Hawaain Sunset

Checkerboard: Checkerboard is an absolute favourite of mine and one of those that I am sure to miss now that I am outing with my vast collection.  If you have read my previous fuchsia roundups something may have occurred to you.  Checkerboard is not my usual type of girl as there is not a frill or a ruffle in sight.  You'd have been forgiven for thinking that I may find Checkerboards' skinny blooms uninteresting having favoured a slightly fuller figure in the past.  But as with anything over time, tastes change and where as my attention was once captured by ample frills, in the last year or two its colour that has been doing it for me.

If you are looking for intense colour, then Checkerboard is one of the finest in my opinion.  It is also the only fuchsia I can think of that actually looks better in bud before it comes properly into flower.  The buds hang like gem coloured pendulums, bright, simple and sophisticated.  The buds have a really long 'tube', yes its the technical term apparently, which is bright red with an absolute pristine white bud end (not the technical term).  The red tubes actually rather remind me of strawberry laces.  Thats a rather plastic looking dark pinky red sweet for anybody not in the know.  Even buried amongst my masses, these buds sing out.

When these little buds of joy do open, they are still little lookers, even if I personally think their best moment is over.  There is no explosion of ruffles, no sudden pouf of petals, the sepals merely peel back to form a white star around a very small skirt of bright red petals.  This is a perfect mixture of refined form and refined colour, I love it.  Maybe it might survive the cold after all?....

Hawaiian Sunset: Its funny, looking back at a little note I made when I took photos I was rather surprised to see it said "Hawaiian Sunset: chuck".  I had just been admiring how nice it was and yet my judgement on its' future was swift and un resolving.  This unoffending dark pinky red fuchsia had to go.  Why? I ask myself.  The answer lies in the adjective I used to describe it above: nice.  Hawaiian Sunset is nice; it isn't amazing, its not the best thing ever, its just perfectly ok.

Unfortunately for Hawaiian, nice just isn't enough to cut it in my garden.  Space in the borders is at an all time premium, the lawn is already under threat from my spade and thats without taking into account the forty gladiolus bulbs that will shortly be wending their way to my doorstep.  Even if I wasn't throwing out my entire collection I would be disposing of Hawaiian.  I only have room for plants that grab the eyeballs with both hands and say 'hey! look at me, am I not wonderful?" or give the nose a solid honk while on your way past.

There are things about Hawaiian that I do rather like.  I enjoy the fact that the stamen are exactly the same shade as the petals and remain encased within their frilly caocoon, refraining from poking their heads out as other varieties do.  The colour is also very pleasing, but other than that I find it unremarkable in size or structure and could possibly, if asked, list ten others I prefer.