While I have taken a rest from writing about my garden and gardening in general due to visitors, my plants have laboured on left to the mercy under the watchful eye of the OH. The abundance of sea mist offered no compensation for the much-needed rain to deep water the shrubs and plants. Even the cacti and succulents are looking a little distressed and we’ve had a couple of casualties!
Herb Garden
One of my New Year’s resolutions was to revamp the herb garden. After several falsestarts, we have (so far) more herbs alive than dead or dying. I still have a few such as dill, chocoalte mint and curly parsley to conquer but I will keep trying.
The normal mint decided it did not like the herb bed so took up residence in a strawberry tray which I cover with a plastic tray to offer shade from the full sun.
Kumquat trees grow well in pots
The Kumquat tree we planted in the SPring of 2018 continues to grow well but as yet none of the fruit has set. Note to self: spray to protect fom cirus leef miners.
Lime tree
This poor tree was doing well until the leaf miners took up residence. I need to remove the infected leaves by hand and then spray remaining leaves with diluted neem oil and washing up liquid.
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Brussel Sprouts – Planning our Christmas dinner in August
We planted these in early July in the hope there will be some sporuts ready to pick by Christmas day. Last year I only planted three, this year we have fifteen plants so we can dabble in the Brussel sprout future’s market.
Tomatoes
We are so disappointed with these tomatoes. So say they are a blight resistent F1 hybrid variety. All I see is a sprawling mess with no central stem. At £3.50 for just six seeds I will not be repeating the experience next year.
These are the Cacho tomato variety we bought as seedlings from the market in July. Hopefully, they will provide tomatoes until Christmas.
Tayberry
I am told Tayberries are a cross between raspberries and blackberries. The stems are not covered in prickles and you eat them once they turn black. This was planted as a twig last year so, while we only have a few berries so far, I will be patient.
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That’s my six for this Saturday. Check out Mr. P’s blog to catch up with more Six on Saturday bloggers
Piglet in Portugal 
Well at least you have lots of tomatoes on your sprawling plants! Mine grew too tall for the supports and have collapsed upon themselves, but there is still a lot of fruit to ripen (and probably not a lot more heat!). I have found my mint – chocolate and a ginger – have done badly this year. Both suffered from rust as have many plants. I do hope that doesn’t occur next year.
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Oh, the dreaded citrus leaf miner. I was not aware that it was established there. It arrived here only a few years ago. It really bummed me out because citrus had always been so carefree here.
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Yayberries are very tasty. Good choice. Hope you manage your plant hospital projects.
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Good name for them!
My plant hospital is still there but I am not taking in any more casulaities
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I’ve had no luck with chocolate mint either. Will try again this spring I think.
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Mint will either grow crazy and grow like a weed or it just withers and dies. It is SO frustrating!
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I often have leafminers on my citrus leaves and every year it’s at this season (late summer) I remove the leaves and burn them. As I give them fertilizer twice a month, they produce many new leaves to renew the tree. Neem oil is also a solution.
Is it a flower bud that I see on your photo of kumquat (top right)? Otherwise, interesting the tayberry … Did you buy it or did you cross it yourself ?
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Hi Fred, unfortunately that is not a flower on the kumquat. Your comment has reminded me i need to fertilise to encourage new growth. What do you feed your trees? as for the tayberry, they are common here and I can plants either at the market or in most local garden centres. I also grow one in a pot…although saying that the roots have escaped into the ground
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Tayberry shrubs start to develop here and seeing you blog, it makes me want to try a purchase next year. About the fertilizer I use a special citrus liquid fertilizer ( 4-4-8 NPK + Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn…. ) every 2 weeks
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Good luck with your brussel sprouts. Your poor lime tree – there’s always something that will attack something. I hope it recovers.
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Sigh.. the lime tree was doing so well. I take my eye off the plants for a few weeks and… hmmm. Tomorrow i go feed it, cut off the leaves and spray it with neem and soap.
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