A cacophony of colours on steroids!

The stunning beauty of colour.

A cacophony of colour

I stopped trying to make all my colours match in every bed and this little square bed by the pool is the fruit of that. Red roses, orange Gazania, light purple Digitalis purpurea - Foxglove, red Gerbera.

Harvest time

My gorgeous child holding the harvest.
What fun - harvesting my own veggies. Beetroots, leeks, red onions and loads of new baby potatoes. Am going to boil the potatoes and serve them with butter and herbs and will roast the beetroots and leeks and serve with balsamic vinegar.

More and more .....

I planted the leeks in winter and due to the few weeks of icy cold they took a long time to mature. Some of the crop is too hard even though the leeks are quite small but some are delicious. Made my Mom's Leek and Potato soup when I harvested these - this is my daughter's favourite soup.
These red onions are just beautiful in colour, smell and flavour.

Veggies galore!

The veggie patch in full swing. Beans on the wall, cabbages in a patch and in a tyre, potatoes in the ground and in 2 tyres, melons, leeks, onions. And of course the errant gem squash trying to get out of control!

Challenges

No pictures this time round. I am being challenged by Telkom!
The sweetpeas are finished and I will gather some of the seeds for next year. I am planning and drawing the design for the purple garden. I am going for more perennials and fewer annuals.
I have bought some stunning Dhalia bulbs and look forward to those audacious flowers in about 2 months time.
My Canterbury Bells are absolutely beautiful - some blues and some whites.
I ate a coleslaw for lunch yesterday with home grown carrots and cabbage. Tonight I made Bolognaise and used a homegrown red onion. Love it - makes me all mushy and keeps me inspired.
This week I MUST feed my Mimulas and Violas as well as the hydrangeas and roses. In fact the whole garden.
I am still be very challenged by my not so lucious grass.
Please excuse the higglety pigglety blog and jumping around of topics - this is what happens when I have a lot to say!

Precious petunias

You know I can't get enough of these little stunners. I planted mine in about July and they flowered very shyly then as the temperatures warmed up they really let loose! They don't like wet feet and love the heat!









These are a new variety from Keith Kirsten called Supertunias.
"Petunia Supertunia TM Pretty Much Picasso This Petunia plant is a must have flower that is sure to turn heads and strike up a conversation in your garden. The unique colours make this unlike any other Petunia plant. This first of a kind Petunia with bright pink blooms edged in lime-green can grow up to 24 inches accross and lasts weeks longer than any other Petunia. Performs great in baskets, containers and in the landscape. Attracts butterflies; low maintenance requirements." ex www.keithkirsten.com

Angel wings

I discovered this Schizanthus wisetonesis "Angel wings" - this spring and what a find. I planted some in full sun and they are a stunning show of flowers - this picture does not justice. They like to be moist and to be fed once a month with a liquid fertilizer.
Feeding plants really does enable to reach their magnificent best.

Gracious and gorgeous

Mimulas (Monkey Flower). Yellow and reds on one flower, deep reds, oranges, ivory. It is low growing and is growing in a semi shaded area.
The ever faithful Violas - a lovely happy little flower.

All things bright and beautiful

The stunning vibrance of Calendula officinalis - English marigold. It flowers in winter and spring and is a cheerful wonderful healing plant. I normally plant it with Namaqualand daisies and when they appear I know spring is following right behind.
I make tinctures from the petals and mix it with Vitamin E oil and aqueous cream for a healing cream that I use on sores or dry skin. I use to use it as a nappy rash cream for Kayla.

Spring is sprung now if only I can upload the photos!

Bare canvas - well not totally the Cymbopogon citratus (lemon grass) and Capiscum annuum (green pepper bush) already live in the bed with a variety of herbs in pots.





Hard at work digging up weeds and digging in compost and fertilizer. I used a small amount of bone meal and Talbourne Organics seedling food.











Herbs in motion .... pineapple sage, basil, coriander, spanish lavender, sage, tri-colour sage, thyme, lemon thyme, lemon grass, oreganum, standard floribunda rose. Out of picture is catnip, rosemary and strawberries. I also planted 2 rows of carrots and 2 rows of beetroot as well as 2 lettuces. Yummy....

I am up and running....

New business, new beginnings and hallelujah a new season! I am the GardenGodmother and ready to transform dull spots in gardens into beautiful vibrant colours with seedlings. I am also designing herbs and veggie gardens. So watch this space....