Mindful Gardening Newsletter No 35

Mindful Gardening Newsletter No 35

Given that the gardening season is ending for the autumn and winter the publication of this Newsletter may be more sporadic.  I will share with you some of the activities that are going on in the garden but I am not sure people want information about how I am intending to go about constructing the lean to at the back of the garden shed or the re-designed greenhouse on the base of what was the old apple shed.

Taking in Tender Plants

Repotting the Passionflower which now sits in the corner of the cottage living room.

It’s that time of year when we begin to take in those plants that would succumb to the frosts that are now showing up.  This week we planted up the passionflower and the half-hardy fuchsia called “Barbara.”  The fuchsia has been repotted and is now in the window of the back north facing bedroom.  It will now go dormant for the winter.

“Barbara” now settled in her new safe space on the windowsill of the back bedroom.

When repotting we got to use the compost from the one ton bags mixed with perlite and a bit of slow release feed.  This gives a good free draining medium which means that the plant will not find itself struggling in compacted soil.

Cordressagagh Garden Compost

Cordressagagh Compost in one ton bags

Over the years I have spent a lot on buying compost.  It was with delight that when harvesting some of the main crop of potatoes that I saw the soil had become a real compost medium.  I know its great compost because it looks and smells right.  I will buy a sieve with a fine mesh so that I can use this compost for potting on plantlets.  The less fine compost that has bark and lumps in it can be used around trees and to mulch the garden beds and raised beds over winter.

This compost is a mixture of twigs from the hedge cutting of the summer with autumn leaves from our neighbor David together with comfrey and nettles.  I think it must have been there for about 18 months.  The other one ton bags next to this one appear to have a similar kind of medium so I am pleased to find that I have a lot of material to test grow next year’s flowers and vegetables.

The Vegetable Garden

Last of the carrots and the first of the main crop of potatoes

A lot of my gardening friends have said that they did not have a good crop of potatoes this year.  This hasn’t been my experience of the seed potatoes that I planted in the one ton bags of composting material.  There is still a lot to harvest, and I am having to buy another wire basket for the cupboard in the kitchen on which to store these.

It’s that time of year when we start to put many of the raised beds to sleep for the winter.  I have found that for root vegetables such as carrots that the harvest is great if we add perlite.  This aerates the soil and prevents it compacting with the rain.  So, it is now a practice I use on all the raised beds.  It will be of interest to see if we get larger beetroot (so small didn’t use it this year).  I love parsnip and turnip so again I think these will benefit from free draining soil.

Putting the raised beds to sleep for the winter and adding perlite before covering.

Stewart’s Grove Garden

Bamboo growing at the back of Stewart’s Garden

Last year I planted some bamboo that I wanted to use to form into an arch heading toward that a rear of the garden in the Southwest where there is a natural wildlife pond forming. I thought it would really take off, but it has been slow growing.  It may take a full year to get established before it begins to spring up.  I hope that it will give me bamboo stems that I might then use for the frames that I use to surround the various garden walls.

Dealing with Himalayan Knotweed

Tee dressed to kill.

I purchased a professional Knotweed injector system in order to deal with the Himalayan Knotweed issue that we found in the garden.  When I first used it, the product didn’t work. I returned it and asked if it could be tested.  It was returned to me and worked but only for 10 minutes.  It’s not really fit for purpose.  So, I have returned it to the seller and hope that I get my money back.

Professional Knotweed Injector System from eBay

So, we have sprayed the area of Knotweed with glyphosate and hope that this goes some way to dealing with the problem.  I have then covered the area with black plastic and weighed this down.  In the spring we will take the plastic off and see if the problem is solved. It may take two to three years to finally eradicate this issue.

Friend of the Garden

One of the things I love about creating this garden of grace is the way in which the animals appear in it.  This includes our three cats (Felix, Sparkle and Toffee) who absolutely love the space especially when the sun is shining.

I found this photo of our cat Felix.  He came to us as a feral cat.  I call him our “Street Fighting Man” who according to Bee has morphed into a lover.  I’m still not so sure about that but what I am sure of is that he has lost most of his “Street Fighting” attitude.

Felix practicing Kittie Yoga

I have lived with several Zen masters -- all of them cats. Eckhart Tolle - The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment.

Conclusion

Yesterday there was an orange alert for high winds all over Ireland.  Woke up this morning to find another willow tree blown down.  It is the one that holds one of the bird feeders so will have to find another place for that.  Will likely need a chainsaw to shift this poor tree.  I hate seeing trees blown down. It makes me sad.  Let me leave you with a mindful reflection about tree branches by way of some Haiku.

A pruned branch

By Shiki (Masaoka Tsunenori)

(1867 - 1902)

English version by Hart Larrabee

A pruned branch

And dawn comes easily

To my little window

Let this be a reminder that sometimes we are required to prune away that which restricts the way in which the light can come into our lives through the window of the heart.  Have a good week until next time.