Tearoom, with food...........

Hello Jean and everyone, I thought as I was taking a teabreak, I'd share it with you, so here is a lovely strawberry shortcake to go with your cuppa.........

I've had the loveliest couple of days, planting masses of gladdy bulbs that I bought on Ebay, all of the ferns that I got from the closing down sale, transplanting all the aqueligias that have come up in inappropriate places, and putting them throughout the garden. DH Joe has installed three more water tanks, all ready to collect the - what was that word again - Oh I know rain!!!! I vaguely remember what THAT is like.....maybe we'll get some more soon (sigh)

Some sort of monster has eaten most of my basil plants. They are in pots on the deck where I can keep an eye on them, there is snail bait, so it must be something else...GGRRRRRRR!!!!

The plumbers had to dig up a maple when they put the sewerage through a couple of weeks ago, then kindly planted it back again. Unfortunately being dumped back any old how into a dry hole, didn't thrill it very much, and has been slowly curling up its toes ever since. So today I pulled/dragged/heaved it out of the hole, cut it back, trimmed the roots and sat it for most of the day in the wheelbarrow full of a seaweed solution to get a good drink and tonic.Have replanted it at the edge of the fernery which has become very exposed after the fallen tree brought down two of mine that were sheltering that area. I'm sure (wishful thinking??) that this evening, some of the leaves seemed less droopy and limp than they did before. I gave the tree a hug, reassured it that it would soon be even more beautiful than before, so I'm sure it will be OK..
Going to have a cuppa now, so eat up, the shortcake won't keep.........

Margaret

And here is one of beautiful Aquilegias, snuggling up to a young maple....

Margaret

Some of the first things to flower for me in the Spring....
Clematis Montana Reubens, and Lilac....

Margaret

Wow, this sending pictures is fun!!!!!!! here are a couple of the planters DH Joe made for me, so I could grow my lettuces easily on the deck, without having to go down to the veggie garden all the time to keep the bugs away. The one on the left was originally for mint. Those lettuces have since grown huge!! and will be having one for lunch tomorrow. I have two more of these, and they are for chinese vegetables......

Margaret

I will have a salad roll thanks ...mmmm fresh from the garden ...I'm loving that ...I think grasshoppers could be the problem with your basil Margaret ...there are lots of tiny ones about ...love your patio pots ...your hubby is a dear.

lurking----lee

Margaret your garden looks lovely. Feel free to bring your yummy food over to the Tea Room anytime too , we will all help you demolish any goodies. off out now . Plants are waiting for me at the Trash & Treasure. Jean

Hullo Margaret it"s nice to meet you at last and over a strawberry shortcake as well. May I have a coffee with it please as I have just had 2 cuppas at Jeans and am feeling a bit water logged:-) I like your planter boxes if you ever get too many let me know, I could use a couple. My vege garden is far too small and at the moment I am wondering where I am going to fit a punnet of lettuce in. The problem is I hate to pull other plants out to make way. I think I just hate to waste them. also I am still getting used to gardening in a warmer climate, in my old garden I wouldn't have even been able to plant any veges yet as they would have been hammered by frosts and any seedlings would have been struggling for a foot hold where as now all the seed dropped by the Italian parsley have grown already and look so lush and tender. I have put in a row of pak choy which are starting to go to seed and I really have no idea how to use it, have you got any ideas, they are quite big and healthy.
There you go Chrissy you could put planter boxes around your blue monsters to disguise them as it looks as if Margaret has blue liners in her planters, lol just an idea. On that note I must away, thanks for the coffee break and we'll meet again.
Lesley

They have made great mulch ...you should see the blood orange! ha ha ha ...love the pictures ...I am dying of the heat here about 33C or more whew ...the plants are gasping and so am I.
lettuce grow very well in pots ...oops the phone see ya later everyone

The lettuce was YUM!! I had an extra munch for you too Chrissy100 (your'e not REALLY 100 are you??) VBG.

The blue "liners" in my planters are actually the blue barrels that so called safe chemicals like sodium laureth sulfate (the stuff that makes shampoos, soaps etc lather) come in, we just cut off the bottom of them to the depth I wanted. Any deeper would have been cost prohibitive as far as potting mix was concerned. and Joe made the planters from old fence palings that had originally been painted a dark reddish brown. It had started to wear off and he wanted to sand them clean, but I liked the weathered look. So easy! so if you have a handyman around, or if YOU are handy with a ruler and hammer and nails, you could have them too....

You may have coffee Lesley, only instant here, I hope thats OK.. and just reading about your lack of vegie space, why not use lettuces etc as border plants in your flower garden. No reason why vegies should be segregated....I sometimes have parsley as a border, and silverbeet, specially the rainbow chard, looks great amongst the flowers..
As for your pakchoy, why not make stirfries, or steam lightly, and eat as side veggie, or when I make lasagne, I use chinese veggies, or spinach etc, as another layer with the meat and cheese sauce etc.

Off now to browse Ebay plants again, and I notice there's another couple of 1000 litre water tanks on offer again. Bit of a pain having all these tanks installed now, and no water to go in them.....

Margaret

No I am not 100 ...I live at number 100 ha ha ha ...Lesley the rainbow chard look lovely interplanted with flowers ...a lot of vegs are very pretty.Throw passionfruit over a fence ...stuff like that ...consider it a challenge it's worth it.