The Spring Equinox

The Spring Equinox, the official beginning of spring... I love it, new beginnings and all that, but for us it marks the start of a great season for our business. This is the time when people venture outside a bit more than they have been able to recently, take a look around and start making arrangements to get all those garden jobs done. So, there will be many busy days ahead and i'm sure there will be blood sweat and tears! But it is all worth it in the end.

Since the last blog, we have been really busy. It has all gone a bit crazy with juggling getting the work done, visiting new customers and getting all the quotes put together. But we've managed to pull it off so far! Also, we have a new labourer in our team! A big welcome to Steve, thanks for all your hard work . We have completed work on a load of fences very recently, the most popular style remains to be the feather edge (close board) fencing - I'm assuming this is for the privacy it offers. Garden maintenance has of course picked up now that all that rain we had has subsided and the ground in our area is no longer water logged. We have also had a healthy gain in maintenance customers too, so welcome to you and here's to helping make your garden enjoyable for you this year.

If you're growing any veg this year, you still have time to start planting those seedlings. At the moment we just have tomato plants, lettuce and cabbage filling up the window sills. It will soon be time for them to be planted out and then we'll get planting some carrots and peas. I must say, a very small part of what we grow actually makes it to the dinner table due to our daughter picking and eating most of it. Oh well, that's one way to get little ones to eat their veg!

Although it seems a little way off, it is now the time to get planting bulbs in your garden for your summer flowering plants. My favourites are alliums, gladioli and the iris - all quite showy but perfect in cottage borders.

The end of March also marks a good time to apply a high nitrogen fertiliser to your lawn and generally put some time and effort into your lawn to help it recover from the wet winter months. Our lawn at home needs a lot of care and attention, due to the high traffic volume from our four dogs! But we wouldn't be without them. So we will be sorting out aeration in the next few days to relieve some of that compaction. We also have some wildflower seed that we're going to try out in one area of the garden this year, i'll keep you posted as to how that goes.

Thanks for reading and I hope you have a fantastic start to the spring season, whatever you're planning.

Summer has just begun...

The northern hemisphere celebrated the longest day of the year this week on 21^st June, here in the UK. We’ve all seen the pictures of the celebrations at Stonehenge! And yes, technically it’s true that from now on, our day light hours will be getting shorter. I have heard some people making negative comments about this and looking on the grim side. So I just want to say, stay positive peeps! Summer has only just begun.

This week has been filled with more fencing, garden maintenance and quotes to do! The fence job that Richard did this week included cutting down a number of conifers at the back of the garden, disposing of all the greens waste, and replacing them with a six foot high feather edge fence and kickboard. Our customers were lovely people and were very happy with the job.  Maintenance was thirsty work on Wednesday, since we had a really hot day that probably wasn’t THAT hot, we’re just not used to it! And the rest of the week was business as usual.

One thing that was noted this week, was there seem to be a few more bees about the place, which is great news. So, if you don’t have many flowers in your garden, maybe you could consider doing some planting this weekend? You don’t need to have huge borders full of plants and flowers, although that would be nice. Even just a few pots here and there, after all the bees need pollen and nectar to survive and at the same time you can brighten up your home.

Here are some planting tips:

Always make sure your pot has holes in the bottom, if it hasn’t, make some to avoid water-logging

Place a layer of stones in the bottom of the pot to help with drainage

Choose a suitable compost for your plant, often a multi-purpose compost will do

Now, loosen the roots of your plant, place it in your pot and fill with compost

Water well and enjoy

Of course if you do want that border full of beautiful flowers, you could always call us! Have a great weekend everyone and thanks for reading.

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Consider your garden well watered

Yes, we all know it’s been raining. It’s such a disappointment in June, when it persists the way it has this week.  Just imagine, you’re sat out in the garden with friends and family of an evening. Some music is playing gently in the background, the tea lights are lit and hang in their coloured glass holders in the trees. You’ve enjoyed a glass of wine or two and that soft, warm summer breeze drifts across your face. Feeling relaxed? I can dream! So, this week I’ve been making plans for my own pergola, with a roof! I think something like this is essential for all garden lovers in this country, or of course you could always go for the more traditional summer house. But for me the pergola will suit just fine, I will sit out and listen to the pitter patter raindrops whilst reading my book. I'll warm things up a bit as I watch the flames dance in the chiminea and i'll listen to the birds singing. I WILL enjoy this year’s summer evenings, even if it pours!

Has that given you some ideas for your own garden? It’s all about making the most of the space you have, we can help you to do that. If you want to chat about ideas just drop us a line or give us a call and we’ll see how we can help.

This week, despite the rain, Richard has been busy with garden maintenance (as usual) and he’s also been doing a fair bit of hedge cutting. Now that everything has had a good watering, it’s all shot up. And that’s what you can expect, especially for your grass. It’s best to cut it regularly, preferably once a week at this time of year. After cutting, apply a granular weed and feed in order to avoid weeds taking over. If we do get a dry spell, make sure you water your lawn in the evening to keep it looking tip top!

I am hopeful for next week as it seems the temperatures are set to improve slightly. So, stay happy and have a great week. And a big ‘Happy Father’s Day’ to all those fab, hard working Dads out there.