My Six on Saturday this week is another mixed bag of the joys of growing vegetables. We still have not had rain (apart from mizzle and sea mist) and I confess this is a cause for concern as I read unless we have rain soon there will not be enough water to see the Algarve... Continue Reading →
Tomato Blight: Is Gardening a Green Science … ?
I am curious. While removing and disposing of some tomato plants that had contracted the dreaded blight I wondered if I should dispose of the remaining soil in the pots or would the UV rays from the sun kill any blight bacteria? Apparently, high UV kills COVID-19 virus on surfaces so why not blight, especially... Continue Reading →
Garden Diary: Three Bin Composter
My Gnome has been SUPER busy with a new project. After seeing a friend's three-bin composting system, Gnome kindly agreed to construct something similar to replace my old single bin plastic composter. I try to recycle/upcycle everything so what we will use this for I'm not sure. At the moment I am leaning towards... Continue Reading →
Garden Diary: May – Garden Colour
This week I have mainly focused on creating colour in the living areas of the garden. aka, the terraces, pool and in the Gin garden. Although, if am honest, I have not had much time for 'chillaxing' in said Gin garden as there is always some area of the garden screaming for attention, especially as... Continue Reading →
Garden Diary: Fruit and Vegetable Seedlings – 24th -25th April
In these uncertain times we all need an anchor in our lives to help keep us sane, so the commitment to grow all my fruit and veg from seeds is mine. The seeds and compost may have cost a small fortune, which will make the produce gold-plated if and when it grows, but this is... Continue Reading →
Garden Diary: January – Vegetables
For my Six on Saturday this week I will focus on my vegetable and strawberry challenges. This week has brought another mixed bag of weather with temperatures ranging from 3C at night to 20C in the day on our sunny sheltered terrace. Northerly icy winds followed by heavy rain confirmed it was still winter rather... Continue Reading →
Garden Diary: My Garden in January
A new year brings a plethora of resolutions one of which is to actively participate in the Six on Saturday garden challenge once again. I am sad to say I have neglected my garden for several months due to a persistent knee injury, so on hobbling around my plot the number of flowering plants came... Continue Reading →
Six on Saturday: Petunia Seeds, Poorly Plumbago and Curry etc.
Although we've had some spits and spots of rain this week it was not enough to water the garden which is becoming crisper day-by-day. Our water is metered so it's always a good reminder to be frugal and use sparingly, or at least try and reuse shower and washing-up water. This week we set ourselves... Continue Reading →
SoS: Growing Hibiscus in Containers
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 →
SoS: A Busy Week – The Garlic Experiment
My SoS (Six on Saturday) for this week is a bit of a mixed bag. I've been more active in the garden and we are more or less back on track planting vegetables, clearing weeds etc. I've yet to scratch the itch of walking around a garden centre so perhaps we can add that to... Continue Reading →