The Blossom is Out. So are the Contents of my Compost Bin

Photo1 Emptying the compost

Photo 2 . Salix caprea 'Kilmarnock'

I half emptied one of my two compost bins this week. I’ve been putting it off all winter but after walking around the garden with a bowl of kitchen scraps and nowhere to put them I thought it was time. 

Compost Bin

The two plastic bins were so full the lids wouldn’t fit on, and the small hatch at the bottom had burst open and given the dogs something else smelly to roll in as it cascaded onto the path. 

Last year it was just emptied by tipping the whole thing up spreading around the immediate area. This did work and we grew some lovely, healthy courgettes and broccoli in it. It would of course be easier if I moved the bin around the garden every year as it was emptied so I could just tip it over in a new patch, but I don’t like emptying the bin totally as it means building up the worm population again.

The rest of the garden needs a bit of fortification this season so instead of throwing it around, I have got the spade in and put the black gold in old composts bags. 

Lovely Stuff

The material I got from the bin is a lovely colour and texture. Because it’s well-rotted there are very few worms in it as they have moved higher up the pile to fresher things to digest so there’s very little disturbance to their colony. 

It’s not that easy getting a spade into the bins as you really have to stretch to get to the back of the pile and twist the edges free. There comes a time when all the less rotted material decides to drop down, hopefully not trapping the spade in the process. This is OK as this tells me that I have extracted all of the usable compost for now. The worms will now do their work to give me another batch later in the year. Things move at a far greater rate in summer as the pile gets a lot hotter.

So for the time being I have one bin empty enough to add the weekly vegetable kitchen scraps into without the need for digging a trench and burying it to grow peas and beans on. In the big clear out I was lucky enough not to come across any mice in the bin. For some reason they decided not to take up residence this winter. 

They are probably in the garage, but clearing that out is for another day.

Blossom

The blossom is out and a lovely sight it is too. Some seems to have come early after that warm spell a couple of weeks ago.

Hazel or Lamb’s tails, gives us a good show from January to April, especially in hedges. They appear on bare twigs in spring. Old coppices, cut on a 7-10 year rotation for harvesting small wood, produce fine catkins displays.

Blackthorn. Another hedgerow favourite from March to April. Blackthorn flowers are densely clustered, so hedges covered in its blossom sometimes seem from a distance to be covered in a light fall of snow. It often blooms at the time when northerly winds bring bitterly cold weather with real snow, a period known as a ‘blackthorn winter’. 

Silver birch. Female trees have spiky green catkins but both sexes produce nectar, attracting bees, butterflies and blue tits. In early Celtic mythology, the birch symbolised renewal and purification. Bundles of birch twigs were used to drive out the spirits of the old year, and gardeners still use the birch besom, or broom, to 'purify' their gardens. It is also used as a symbol of love and fertility.

Wild pears. Not as common as other trees but worth a mention. Probably introduced by the Romans, wild pear has small, inedible fruits. Its fragrant blossom opens before the leaves expand and is carried in upright clusters, attracting bee pollinators. Ash See it: March to May

Wild cherry. Wild cherry is thought to be the most ornamental of our native broadleaf woodland trees.The spring flowers provide an early source of nectar and pollen for bees, while the cherries are eaten by birds including the blackbird and song thrush, as well as mammals such as the badger, wood mouse, yellow necked mouse and dormouse.

Hawthorn . Prolific in hedgerows which have formed enclosure boundaries since Roman times and the species has gathered millennia of folklore and superstition. Winter-flowering Glastonbury Thorn is said to be descended from Joseph of Arimathea’s staff, which rooted and burst into flower on the Isle of Avalon. 

Goat Willow: goat willow is dioecious, meaning male and female flowers grow on separate trees, in early spring. Male catkins are grey, stout and oval, which become yellow when ripe with pollen. Female catkins are longer and green.

Rowan. Few trees are so richly endowed with folklore. Flowering rowans were planted beside cottage doors on May Day to prevent visits by witches, while crosses made from twigs were hung over doors on the Isle of Man.

Jobs to Do in the Garden - March

Photo: The bees were out in force last week

I found the garden photos on social media interesting last week.  They compared February gardens from 2018 to 1019 and the differences were startling. Temperatures were double that of previous years since records began.

 One image shows three feet of snow on the ground and then an image taken from the same spot was a garden full of spring bloom and colour. The warm spell we had did jolt me into action and I found myself doing clean up jobs I wouldn’t normally do until the end of April, even May.  Washing down, planting up, clearing, planting, weeding and at one stage I was actually sat outside on a sunbed drinking my cup of tea (I did have a hat on still) I think I was as confused as the plants, shrubs, trees and wildlife, the bees were out in force getting their nectar from open dandelions.  

Thankfully things are back to a more regular and predictable pattern which is dodging inside and out in between the hail showers and gusts of wind.

Let’s just say that you do get outside for a while. I’ve compiled a pretty exhaustive list of things to do this month. Think of it as a checklist and all of the things you don’t get around to can simply be added to next month’s list , we have time on our side.

Jobs to Do in March

Keep hoeing to keep emerging weeds under control whilst still small. You’ll find chickweed will grow a lot faster than your prized seedlings.

Mow the lawn on a high setting in mild weather and rake out thatch. I did mine last week and it’s an instant makeover for the garden which gives a real feeling of progress and achievement.

Tidy the borders and cover with 5-10cm of organic mulch

Hard prune buddlejas, hardy fuchsias and caryopteris to encourage lower, bushier growth. I’ve hacked back our bay tree so it forms a tighter bush too as they can get too big sometimes.

Cut back shrubby cornus and willow to two buds to encourage new stem colour next year.

Prune roses to encourage strong new growth and stop them rocking about in the wind.

Prune clematis - prune early-flowering varieties once their flowers have finished and summer-flowering ones before they start into active growth. 

Finish cutting back cornus and salix cultivars, and other shrubs grown for their colourful winter stems. Cut them right back to their bases, they will reward you with stronger colours next year.

Cut out the top rosette of leaves from mahonia shrubs after they have flowered, to encourage 

branching.

Finish cutting back dead foliage from perennials and ornamental grasses to make way for new growth. Leave them lying a day or two so the insects can find new homes.

Prune overwintered fuchsias back to one or two buds on each shoot.

Prune winter-flowering jasmine (Jasminum nudiflorum) after flowering, to encourage new growth for next year's blooms. Cut back the previous year’s growth to 5cm from the old wood.

Trim winter-flowering heathers as the flowers disappear, to prevent the plants becoming leggy.

Keep an eye out for slugs as the weather warms. Pay special attention to soft, new growth, which slugs love. 

Cut the old leaves off hellebores to remove any foliar diseases and make spring flowers more visible.

Continue to deadhead winter pansies to stop them setting seed. This will encourage flushes of new flowers throughout the spring.

Deadhead daffodils as the flowers finish and let the foliage die back naturally.

Deadhead hydrangeas before new growth appears. Cut to about one third of last season's growth.

In the Veggie Garden

Plant out chitted early potatoes towards the end of the month

Sow salads in cold frames or under cloches

Put supports in. If any of your garden plants need supporting this year, put them in now, so plants can grow up through them. Adding supports afterwards is trickier and often looks unattractive.

Cover strawberries with a cloche to encourage earlier fruiting.

Mulch rhubarb with a thick layer of well-rotted manure 

Here are the other jobs to be getting on with this month:

Get rid of slimy patches on patios and paving by scrubbing with a broom or blasting with a pressure washer.

Install water butts for the season ahead. Position them under a downpipe to make the most of rainfall.

Scrub watering cans to prevent fungal diseases.

Check compost bins to see if there is any compost ready to use, ours are full to the brim.

Bring bags of compost into the greenhouse to warm up for a week or two before you start sowing.

What Reasons for Cutting Down Trees in Ireland? and Boomtree Bees Want Your Trunks

Do you believe the increasing number of trees being cut down in Ireland by local councils is because it’ll improve 5G coverage?

If so it could mean faster phones and the ability do have driverless cars when it’s introduced, but it’s hard to see how a tree in a town could slow down the signal. 

I still think that the world works by valves warming up so I can’t really comment. 

Felling Trees

There are also rumours that trees are being felled because of claims from insurance companies, they are messy, can increase a house value if removed or they are being sold off for pulp to raise money for struggling councils. 

The Green Party are trying to stop the spate of tree felling that is being reported around the country. They also reported that a number of Gardaí were deployed to oversee tree felling in one housing estate in Waterford as it was being protested by locals. This has been done without consultation and against the will of local people and has generated substantial local anger.

Reports of significant tree felling are coming from Waterford, Cork City, Tipperary, Limerick, Westmeath, Mayo, and a few parts of Dublin. There don’t seem to be any reports of Donegal County Council taking part in the cull though so a big hand for our town planners. The more trees we can keep the better.

There does come a time though when trees need to be removed.  Maybe they are old, diseased or pose a real hazard to life. It’s inevitable they go and with careful management something suitable can be planted in its place. Do you have any thoughts about the situation or have you had first hand experiences at the hands of over zealous council workers?

For every one tree felled, plant three more is the way to go.

Homes for the Bees

There are a few uses for old felled trees. Burning them of course, but that will release carbon back into the atmosphere. Shredding them to use as mulch, and my favourite way to reuse them is to get Michiel Verspuij from Boomtree Bees in Buncrana to come along in his pick-up truck (If it’s not too far away) , take the trunk back to his workshop and turn it into a natural log bee hive. These are a true work of art, especially when topped off with a thatched roof.

Michiel is looking for trunks of 20” (50cm) diameter or more to convert to hives. Any dead, fallen or hollow trunks will do.  Ash, oak, beech, Scots pine, larch all preferred but other types are also welcome. Generally for durability for the hives, hardwoods have more durability.

Michiel is running a couple of workshops very soon if you would like to learn a bit more about how these natural hives work and replicate the bees natural habitat which reduces the need for human intervention.

Log Hive Workshop March 30^th -Drumnaph Nature Reserve/ An Carn Maghera Co Derry

Throughout the workshop you will learn about the life of the honeybee and its colony. You will be actively involved in the making and erecting of the hive.

Cost: £50 (lunch included)

April the 13^th Honeybee Conservation in Inishowen- Boomtreebees, Westbrook, Buncrana

Learn about how to help the honeybees in Inishowen.  An afternoon packed with information about honeybees, their natural habitat, what their needs are and tips on how to help with their preservation/conservation. Find out about housing that mimics their natural abode and see honeybees up close. It will be an informative afternoon for the whole family. It’s just €5 entry  with tea and coffee provided.  1pm - 4pm

For more information about the courses or if you have an old tree stump to donate, check out www.boomtreebees.com or you can contact Michiel on (00353) 0862698474 or on Facebook @boomtreebees.

Tree Care in March

As we are on the subject of trees, here are a couple of tips to look after your own.

• Feed trees, shrubs and hedges with a slow-release fertiliser by lightly forking it into the soil surface.
• Move smaller deciduous trees or shrubs. Now is the time to do this task, provided the soil isn’t frozen or waterlogged.
• Mulch fruit trees with well-rotted manure or garden compost. Take care not to mound mulch up around tree trunks.
• Weed, feed and mulch fruit trees and bushes

Make Your Own Plant Labels

 Pre-glazed ceramic plant labels

How many times have you forgotten where you planted something or have rows and rows of mystery seedlings come up every year?

Those of us who don’t bother with planting plans start off with the best of intentions but generally forget what’s planted where. 

Labelling rows of seedlings is quite an important step in spring and some of us also like to put labels on almost anything else that grows. Not always because we want to be able to identify them but because labels can look pretty too.

Be it for decoration or necessity I have had a look at loads of different methods of label making, some fancier and more reliable than others. I’ll let you decide.

Plant Labelling Tips

Ask yourself a couple of questions before starting:

Would you prefer a decorative marker for a special plant that doubles as garden art?  Or like me just something functional and cheap? No fuss and no frills.

Do you need a temporary or permanent solution? Is the label only needed for the short term? (e.g. if you are raising seeds, using indoors or just one season)  Or would you want it to last long term? (e.g. multiple seasons, outdoors, or for a particular species in your garden) 

Decorative Labels

For indoor try laminating seed packets or design your own labels and put them on lolly sticks. Another good indoor idea is to paint the pots with blackboard paint and then chalk the plant names on these. You can change the names along with the plants if they are short lived.

Metal Spoons. These can be used to hold labels in the tines or you could flatten the bowl end and stamp the names of the plants on them with a letter punch.

Terracotta/Clay Pots and China. Sometimes pots and crockery break. This is a perfect opportunity to reuse and not discard the broken pieces. 

Plastic corrugated signs.  This is the material local politicians use to show their faces to the world come election time (estate agent s use them too) The white areas can be cut into strips and written on with an indelible marker before pushing into the ground.  Plastic containers, milk, ice cream lids, yogurt etc. can be cut into strips too and used in the same way.

Seed Packet and Jar. Secure used seed packets to lolly sticks, stick these in the ground and cover with a clear glass jar to weather proof, or just lock the labels in the jar. Like old carpets with nylon backing, glass is becoming very unpopular in the garden as the jars can easily break.

Bricks. For larger, easier-to-read plant labels that can’t be easily knocked over or broken use bricks — either intact or broken — work well as garden markers. Simply paint, let dry, and put into place.

Window Blinds. Just one accordion-style (Venetian) window blinds would be enough for a lifetime of plant labels. The individual pieces can be cut into stakes of varying lengths and labelled with the names of your growing veggies.

River Rocks & Beach Stones. For a natural look, collect smooth, medium-sized stones from rivers and beaches and label them with the names of your plants using weatherproof paint. Seal with a clear coat to avoid fading.

Wine Corks. Save wine corks and label them with permanent marker. Use wooden skewers as stakes for the corks.

Aluminium Duct Tape. This can be stuck onto most surfaces and written on, it will compress the tape and show the wording all year.

Ceramic Tiles. Use up old tiles to make weather-proof markers. Most tiling shops have a throw away bin with odds and ends. These can be painted or stencilled with plant names and pictures. I’m making some stoneware ones myself which I can glaze lettering onto.

Painted Wood. Reuse timber off cuts from fencing or joinery and use up leftover external paint to fashion some simple plant labels.

Twig Labels. Prune some straight twigs or thin branches. Use a vegetable peeler or sharp knife to slice a flat surface. As the wood will decompose in the weather, use it as a temporary label.

 Shell Labels. Save your shells after a walk on the lovely Inishowen beaches and add a little creative flair. Cover with a clear gloss after painting if you like.

Plastic knives. These will last for years too, the marker ink can be removed at the end of the season and the knife reused.

In my experience I find any label only lasts a year, regardless of the material it is. For some unexplained reason they always turn up the following year when I empty out the compost bin. I might be a bit enthusiastic come tidy up time.