What are we doing in the garden 2026

Old thread What are we doing in the Garden 2025

I bought a plant Pulmonaria officinalis (Common Lungwort) on donation basis from the garden in Avebury. I’m now thinking about where to plant both Astrantia Rose, the new one from today, and 4 Helenium and 7 Echinacea.
Decided to take out the Johnsons’ Blue and move both Hardy Geraniums from the Japanese bed and plant the Pulmonaria instead.

 

Be warned @simone_in_wiltshire, both geranium Johnson's Blue and Pulmonaria have deep running roots so they may come back and haunt you!

 

Thanks @lizzie27 for the warning. Very much appreciated.
Where currently the Johnsons Blue is, I will dig it through carefully.
Both Hardy Geraniums in the ‘Japanese’ bed with the newly planted multi-stem Birch and 3 ferns, they are too high and big for it.
Maybe I plant the Pulmonaria into the bed where the tree fern pot is. This bed gets the bindweed from the neighbour. If that comes through again, I can dig it out and the Pulmonaria comes back again. Worth thinking about it. Anyway, thanks for warning me.

 

Soaking Tetrapanax seeds. Hard labour, but needs to be done.

 

Nothing for the past week, apart from Christmas, too much frost and ice around to do anything. I might get a manure delivery at the Allotments next week, that will keep me busy for a while.

 

Something to sit round and keep warm perhaps.
Cant beat a steaming manure heap this weather.

 

I sort of like "central heating"

 

Let us know if the tetrapanax rewards the hard labour @Selleri - I got zero germination with it.

 

Mine sends up suckers, never tried seed, I've got black berries forming for the first time in over 20 yrs.
Not sure they will contain viable seed.

 

I'm not doing anything in the garden because it's too cold, frozen and wet, and my garden is square and north facing and doesn't dry out easily, so walking all over it causes damage.

But also, because I've decided to leave it all alone this winter for the benefit of wildlife. So no clearing up for me until spring arrives.

In the mean time I'm making plans for spring. I have a new Medlar tree, for which I will cut out a new island bed in early spring. I'll also move the bird feeder over there once its done as I'll be able to reach the feeder from the patio, something I can't do in its current location and the pigeons are ruining the lawn beneath it.

I've bought new seeds I can begin sowing from March, and I'm researching whether it's a good idea to sow self heal into the lawn too. It already has clover that I did a couple of years ago, but I'd like to add more flowers to it.

 

Not much today I've done everything I could do over the past few days . Seen as I can't build the wall ( mortar will freeze ) I've been knocking one down instead along with the fence which took all of 10 seconds of leaning on it . Looks like a wrecking ball been in so could do with some warmer weather so I can crack on with it .
I seem to acquired quite a bit of stone now its everywhere. Whether I have enough I am not sure .

Its defiantly changed a bit

 

Not a lot at the moment; however after several cold bright days the Ricinus is unhappy as the Salvia confertiflora, but the S guaranatica are still flowering happily as are some calendula.
No snowdrops yet though.