A Creative Spirit
We are still waiting for rain. While the Ventusky weather App promises rain for Sunday morning, I won't hold my breath. The surrounding countryside is burned to a crisp due to a lack of water, and it's only thanks to the weather Gods that last week's winds blew from the north, making the massive wildfire... Continue Reading →
For this week's gardening post and coffee share, I decided to focus on how I use containers to create an inviting illusion, particularly when approaching our entrance door. I have been told that it feels like you're walking into a secret garden. I will add that, unlike the UK, we do not have a traditional... Continue Reading →
The temperatures this week have still been so intense that I've struggled with the fierce heat, and so have some of the plants. With temperatures regularly reaching the high thirties at times and indoor temperatures in the high twenties and no air conditioning, I've sadly not had the energy. I have given up on some... Continue Reading →
The temperatures over the last week have soared above 30 °C. We don't have air conditioning, so not only were some of our plants suffering, but we were as well. I barely had enough energy to refill the bird baths I had scattered around the garden yet alone hump extra water for the plants. The... Continue Reading →
Despite the unseasonable weather, our vegetables are putting their best foot forward, and the seed plugs I bought at the end of March continue to thrive. This week's six is an update on fruit and vegetable progress. https://pigletinportugal.com/2025/03/29/march-garden-diary-chores-and-challenges-seeds-or-vegetable-plugs/ Zucchini Growing in Containers The Zucchini plugs I bought at the monthly market at the end of... Continue Reading →
I love Hibiscuses. Here in our corner of the Western Algarve in Portugal, most of my Hibiscus Plants, which grow in pots, flower all year. Apparently, you can buy varieties specifically for pots. Who knew? I've only ever seen the plant labelled as 'Hibiscus' at the garden centres and not had the luxury of choosing... Continue Reading →
Thanks to the weather, I lost my momentum in the garden this week. I now understand how the UK gardeners struggle when they experience weeks of rain. The drought here continues, and I have just been alerted that we are in an area of maximum fire risk. In fact, there was a fire very close... Continue Reading →
Vertical planters are a great way to grow a lot of fruit and veg in a limited space. The perfect solution for small suburban gardens and apartments with a small balcony. After checking out vertical strawberry planters for sale on Amazon and further research on YouTube, we decided to make our own. We'd bought the... Continue Reading →
This week, while I've been busy in my vegetable garden, I decided to focus on flowers for my Six on Saturday gardening update. One carrot looks the same as the next, as does spinach and kale, yes? We've had a mixed bag of temperatures ranging from 6C at night to 18C during the day. Sun... Continue Reading →
With the escalating price of food, especially fresh fruit and vegetables, I decided to get creative, experiment and attempt to grow some courgettes, plum tomatoes and cucumber through the autumn and winter months - a first! Okay, according to the seed packets I am out of time to plant seeds so I won't hold my... Continue Reading →
For this Week's SoS (Six on Saturday) I 'dug deep' and selected some of my more unusual specimens. I grow most of my plants in pots as they are easier to manage - especially plants that need to be moved to a more sheltered position in the winter. Thankfully, it's been much cooler this week... Continue Reading →
The temperatures this week have dropped dramatically as the autumn breeze brings an icy chill. Although our weather station still records temperatures in the low twenties during the day, step away from the shelter of the terrace then shorts and sleeveless tops are quicky replaced for warmer clothes. Night temperatures have also plummeted as low... Continue Reading →
My six on Saturday this week focuses on some of my vegetable success stories which makes a change from my usual woes regarding blight, grey/white mold, and the rogue blackbird. While growing fruit and vegetables in containers are more challenging than growing in raised beds or directly in the ground it does have some advantages... Continue Reading →
My garden diary this week focuses on my efforts, given the COVID-19 lockdown, to grow as many fruit and vegetables as possible in an assortment of pots, containers and plastic crates as I can lay my hands on. The only problem is that I normally buy established seedling plugs from the plant guy at local... Continue Reading →
What a week! I won't mention the dreaded C word as it has already taken over our lives. Thank God we have been enjoying wonderful weather with temperatures as high as the mid-twenties during the day and a minimum of 13C at night. Time to hunker down in the garden and tackle all the outstanding... Continue Reading →
While we've been enjoying beautiful weather we have followed storm Denis, which is ravaging parts of the UK, with horror. It certainly helps to put life into perspective when you see the devastation it has left in its wake. My thoughts are with you. This week's SOS focusses on the progress of my little horta... Continue Reading →
YaY! We had some rain this week. Only a couple of heavy showers for about an hour but better than nothing. Here is my Six on Saturday (SoS) for this week. 1. New Hibiscus I ONLY popped into the garden centre to buy some strawberry plants (see post 3 below) but I could not resist... Continue Reading →
Unlike the UK we've not had any rain other than the odd shower to quench the thirst of the scorched countryside. Unfortunately, this means we are on high alert for fires. Consequently, we try to conserve and reuse every drop of water when feasible. So far my plants in pots are holding up well as... Continue Reading →
For my six this Saturday, I decided to focus on hibiscus growing in containers. For some reason, they thrive in our humid climate and reward us with beautiful flowers throughout the year. I do prune hard to contain growth and feed regularly which probably helps. Very occasionally (if the plant is distressed) I water with... Continue Reading →
We first discovered the terracotta tippy pot display at the Oasis Restaurant near Milfontes in the Alentejo. How unusual, we thought, so I took a photograph. A couple of months later we decided to make our own version. The height of our display was governed by the length of the rebar we already had, a... Continue Reading →
Piglet in Portugal 