December 2018
Greetings gardening friends!
The winter solstice has just passed and the year is moving towards its close. It´s been so dark, and the weather so bleak that one would really wish to be elsewhere in the world. Thankfully, the worst is now over and the days are slowy becoming longer, but nothing noticeable as yet. But soon the change will accelerate and we´ll be seeing a real difference, so talk of "winter darkness" will soon be a thing of the past. But it will still be winter, and the road before us feels long...
Looking back, I´ve managed to get several thousand bulbs into the ground - crocus, tulips, alliums, camassia, hyacinths. The results will show themselves in 3-4 months as regards crocuses, and up to 6-7 months in the case of the alliums. This time of year there´s not a great deal to do in the garden. All of the pots with agapanthus plants, bay leaf bushes, the olive tree and small palms are safely indoors, away from the elements. So it´s merely a question of going inside, lighting a fire and as many candles as possibel, and browsing through gardening books and magazines in order to get tips and ideas for the coming spring. Who isn´t longing for the spring?
I have just completed making my choisce of seeds and bulbs and I know what I am going to concentrate on in 2019. I intend to pre-plant sweet peas, which should be allowed to soak the evening before. In addition, I´ll be focusing on lilies and dhalias, which we import directly from Holland through our bulb club. A Gentleman´s Gardens Bulb Club. Talking of bulbs at the moment we´re completing the list of bulbs for spring planting, which will be sent out in the beginning of January.
The major event in our small garden in Tumba this year was that we took down an emormously high decorative pear tree which gave no edible fruit and cast its shadow over other trees and plants. Each year the ground has been covered with masses of tiny pears, which has been a nightmare to rake up and take away. This year the "harvest" was esceptionally large with tousands of inedible pears. That was the drop that caused the cup to run over. Despite the tree´s age and beautiful flowering (for two weeks!) each year, we decided that it was time to say goodbye. In it´s place we have planted a medium-large self-fertile chery tree called Stella, which is meant to give an ample harvest of large, sweet dark read cherries in August. We´re keeping our fingers crossed.
We wish everyone a Happy New Year
Stefan, A Gentleman Gardener
