Plant Shuffle

The last few weeks have blown by at a furious pace, there was plenty of cooking, people, and fire as we have finished the fire pit perfectly.  The freezer is full to the brim, there is no need for me to cook this weekend, instead we spent all day Saturday in the garden, tidying up some loose ends.

There was a few very pretty, yellow, climbing roses  just outside our front door that have been disappointing me for the last few years, no matter what I did it always looked straggly and worn out.  I finally decided to give up and try something new.  It was rather sad to remove the old roses, they were there when we bought the house, B and I have always loved the idea of a thick rose walk, however it never really became reality.  We painstakingly dug the four of them out to transplant them.  The front of our house transformed immediately with new light, and less of a tired feel.  It did also make it glaring obvious we need to repaint the front though! (another project to add to the list for the future).    We moved the roses to a fence that is in front of our water tank, where I hope they will take off.  

At least this way I will no longer catch a stray thorn as I walk from the car to the house in the dark.  B did the heavy lifting and digging, quickly we made short work of it.  There were some grapes growing here, but they too just weren't at their optimum,  had a bit of a plant shuffle.  We put the grapes in some large pots while we find a new and improved location for them during the winter, I'm thinking this might work out best for everybody.

In place of the rose by the entry pathway we have chosen some more camellia's, a pretty scented red.  They should be hardy enough to withstand lack of attention, and provide us with the privacy we would like at the front of the house. Already the white ones I planted nearby are growing happily along the path,

In the dwindling light we took care of some bonsai that were looking a little sad, all this rain and good weather has made them grow unbelievably quick, they are all needing a trim and some TLC.

 We potted up some cuttings in preparation for them going into the ground at the end of winter when the weather just starts warming up.  We are both forever taking cuttings and always looking for new plants for the gardens to fill up some space.
We finally have reached our limit I think for large trees and possible even for fruiting trees, and these guys in the pots now will be the last major plants to go into the ground.  From here on we will concentrate on our perimeter hedges and flowering shrubs.

Our Poinciana has really taken off this Summer, at the beginning of the season it was barely taller than me(5 ft). Now we are waiting in anticipation of the first flush of flowers and some long wanted shade.

This afternoon we shall be resurrecting our veg patch which has suffered neglect the last few weeks while we were concentrating on the fire pit.  The basil has grown like crazy and is slowly taking over. Today we will plant some peas, carrots, parsnip, and beetroot, in the 2 vacant squares.  Next week I will learn to make Basil pesto so we can clear the 2 squares on the left that have been over run.  B and I are thinking more potatoes are in order for that spot.

 Manny has been very helpful all weekend and is plum tuckered out, he found the only peice of shade and curled up with no intention of moving for the next few hours it seems.