End of month view, March 2017

There’s quite a bit flowering now, bulbs and bushes. I’m not sure how but we still have three magnolias, used to have five. The one behind the polytunnel is Vulcan and it’s slowly falling over. It might be possible to push it back up and prop it, I hope so. The plum tree on its right is flowering well this year. Need to prune that a bit in the next few weeks.

The weather has taken a turn for the worse again, it was quite good earlier, now the wind and rain are back. It’s that time of year. If I’d been more organised I’d have put an entry into the Cornwall Spring Show, it being just up the road from here. I just popped out and took pictures of my various camellias, I think I would have managed to enter a few classes. Too late now.

Lots of things are pushing through the ground and confirming that they survived the winter. Some are not and the worrying begins. Ginger family things are always late, Roscoeas, Hedychium and Zingiber in my case. I’ve seen a rapid increase in slugs just in the past week or so, bane of my life. The torch and secateurs evening routine needs to get started.

Slugs are very selective, some very delicate looking plants are untouched. You’d think someone could work out what deters the little buggers and bottle it. Adiantum venustum is a very delicate looking but remarkably tough fern that is never eaten. The white flowers are of Pachyphragma macrophyllum, good in shade and seeds about somewhat.

Crûg Farm Nursery will be at Boconnoc for the Cornwall Spring Show, last year’s purchases included Chrysoplenium davidianum, which has grown remarkably well considering it looked like it was dying of drought most of last summer. I have a few blue wood anemones, labels long since vanished.

I follow a few allotment blogs and I cannot understand how at this time of year people have loads of empty space for all their seedlings. Every bit of covered space I have is stuffed with overwintering fuchsias, sprouting dahlias, tender camellias and much else. There is never enough room for growing and spacing seedlings. So they get put outside wherever possible. This lot will have to go back in though, before the weather trashes them.

As ever, I am spurred into monthly action in order to be part of Patient Gardener Helens end of month meme. Check out hers and everyone else’s contributions at https://patientgardener.wordpress.com/2017/03/31/end-of-month-view-march-2017/