Sunday 22 April 2012

Growing things

 Look at my growing things (herbs), mini-plugs bought at the supermarket and potted on. 



Now look at what they're in!  My mini-greenhouse!


I used to have a cheap metal-tube-frame/pvc-cover mini-greenhouse but the pvc-cover never zipped up properly (it ended up stuck together with duct tape naturally!) and then it got wrecked in a gale last June.  It was okay but not the least bit sturdy. So since then I've been dreaming of a real greenhouse.  Our garden is really just too small to cram in a proper greenhouse though - however this is the perfect compromise. I'm so excited about this! And it smells nice - I love the smell of wood...

The plan for the garden this year is to make it as bee-friendly as possible - that's one reason for the herbs. I've been looking up bee-friendly gardening online and finding contradictory lists  - for example, one recommends sunflowers, another says they're no good, though I'll be growing them anyway because the birds like them and the kids enjoy watching them grow. So that's keeping me amused at the moment (in both senses of the word).

I'm also planning more dye-plants - the dyer's chamomile is looking okay and I'm trying to decide what other things to try. I'm also going for nepeta (catmint) to please the cats as the garden has to be cat-friendly as well as bee-friendly, and plenty of colourful flowers to please the kids!

I love this time of year!

4 comments:

Mrs. Micawber said...

I love this time of year too. We made a short trip to the garden center today, where I wandered happily around looking at all the flowers I'd love to have if only I had a garden to hold them. Then we came home with a few packs of lettuce, a pack of pansies, and a peppermint plant (this is beginning to sound like Peter Piper and his pickled peppers). It's too cold to plant anything else just yet.

Your greenhouse looks wonderful.

andamento said...

Oooh, I like your greenhouse. Can I be nosey and ask where you got it?

Peeriemoot said...

Anne, it was from Next, but Tesco have the same (or a similar) one on their website. I just chose Next because the delivery time was slightly shorter at that point. And I was in Homebase the other day and they had something similar (but cheaper, story of my life!) too. It's a bit of a faff to put together - but fortunately my husband is the sort of man that just loves playing with power-tools!

Sue, I can spend ages in a garden centre too :-D - it's one of my favourite things to do, just wandering around, imagining what I'd plant if I had a big garden!

scarletti said...

Don't forget to talk to your bees, and they like an environment of 'love and harmony'. Best get out those peace beads too then :)