Hello, and welcome to our small corner. D and I are glad you are visiting us today.
Another week has flown by, and I am trying hard not to think about the festivities that will be upon us in just over ten weeks!
Last Monday morning turned out to be bright and sunny—no rain! It was the day to pick the last of the tomato crop. To be honest, tomatoes have not done well in this small corner in 2024, and those that did ripen were very small. However, as D had suggested a Tuna pasta bake for our evening meal, I harvested these last bright jewels and made a small amount of sauce. It made our meal delicious.
I was looking for plants that could have a double life, first in pots and later in the ground behind the raised bed. This is the semi-shade side of our garden, and all these plants should be fine. The bright pink of the Heuchera really caught my eye first. I love the foliage as well as the flowers, and they will come back next year. This one is called 'Paris,' and next year, it will start to form the edging of a path.
The other new plant was this one. It is a Lophomyrtus, an evergreen shrub of the Myrtle family. It grows into a large shrub of about 4/5 ft over time but will need little looking after once it settles. After using its rather tongue-twisting family name, I rather like its personal variety name, 'Magic Dragon'. I can now say I have a dragon living in our garden! 😂
I also bought a pack of orange violas and added them to a small Acer
to brighten the raised bed.
As you can see, everything has been planted up into pots for this year. They are standing on a raised bed emptied of Summer plants and covered with weed-suppressant material until Spring. I know the pots are mismatched, but I don't mind that, really. I have also covered the weed material with some bark to make it a little prettier—just for aesthetics.
While wandering around the garden centre, I found these gardening gloves—so bright and cheery, with a yellow and red hot chilli design to remind me of Summer heat. They also joined my shopping basket.
Looking at the week ahead, it looks like more rain is forecasted, so crafting and baking are more likely for D and me this week. We hope you all have a good week and enjoy whatever you have planned.
Bev and D x
You may not have had many but those look delicious.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Chris. Most of the tiny ones were from the greenhouse. I wonder what they will be like next year !
DeleteThe last of your tomatoes look good.
ReplyDeleteI like your purchases for the garden and love the thought that you have a 'Magic Dragon' in the garden :)
Enjoy the coming week, it looks like the weather will be a little mixed!
All the best Jan
It was raining earlier but appears to have stopped for now. Mixed weather is probably how it is going to be this week.
DeleteThank you, Jan. It felt good to get outside to do a bit of planting for Autumn. I can see the pots from the window. It will be fun to drop the idea of us having a dragon into conversations won't it :-)
Your tomatoes are beautiful and I'm sure they taste delicious! I love your new plants, especially the pink Heuchera. Your outdoor garden looks lovely and inviting. It would be the perfect spot for afternoon tea on a sunny day. I love violas and picked up some purple and lavender ones last week. They are one of the happiest little flowers. Hope you have a wonderful week ahead!
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to hearing what you bake this week!
Thank you, Julia. The flowers on the Heuchera really caught my eye. They are so bright and colourful. Violas are lovely plants too and they seem to survive through the harshest days of Winter and still be beautiful. A cup of tea in that small corner would be lovely as it is very sheltered there. Enjoy your week x
DeleteThe heuchera is so pretty and I like the idea of having a dragon in the garden.
ReplyDeleteIt makes a change from fairies at the bottom of the garden. Then again, maybe there are some of those hiding in the woodland area at the bottom of our garden. Who knows!
DeleteMaking pasta sauces is a good way of using up the last of the tomatoes. Your plants are lovely and I like the new ones you bought and the colourful gloves too:)
ReplyDeleteI do prefer to wear these sort of gloves in the garden because they give sufficient protection but I can still feel enough to do the weeding jobs. Having the plants in pots for now gives me time to prepare more permanent places for them next year.
DeleteThe sauce made the pasta bake even more delicious and I had no waste which is good news.
Your tomatoes look lovely, my crop was pretty none existent this year, so disappointing. It's quite a challenge to find plants with winter interest, I love planting spring bulbs in pots and just cover the surface with tree bark. I like the sound of your garden purchases, I still have a lot of summer bedding that's still looking lovely but will soon die off with the first frosts I'm sure. Have a great week. 🙂
DeleteI don't think it has been a good year for tomatoes but we can try again next year. I always try to have some evergreens in the garden so that at least I have some interesting shapes and shades of green through the Winter. A few pots of hardy bedding plants just add some colour to the view. Your Spring bulbs will be something to look forward to as well. Hope you have a lovely peaceful week.
DeleteI think it's wonderful that you can make a meal using your own tomatoes. I liked your new plants also. I'm hoping to pick up some mums this week, a last hurrah before all the plants and flowers go to sleep for the winter. Thanks so much for your comment which I found very interesting because my sister and brother-in-law lived several years not too far from Worcester, in a village called Bishampton and another called Naunton Beachamp. We visited them many, many times over the years and became very familiar with that area. Beautiful part of the country. Wishing you a great week :)
ReplyDeleteIt's a small world when we can make connections like that with each other. I'm glad it brought back fond memories for you.
DeleteThe tomatoes although few in number did make a tasty sauce. Have a good week, Denise x
Ha ha... your garden dragon is great :-))
ReplyDeleteJust like your last tomato harvest.
We had the first little night frost... I have to put the tulip bulbs in the ground, I brought them from the National Trust Shop :-))
I wish you a happy week.
Hug from Viola
Glad you enjoyed meeting our new garden dragon, Viola. It will grow into quite a large shrub eventually. It is getting much colder now in October and I think we have had one tiny frost so far. The tulips will be lovely when they come up in the Spring.
DeleteHope the week is going well for you too.
The magic dragon. I love that - the name and the pretty plant. I wonder if I could find that here? Looks like you have had a lovely time in the garden. So glad the weather has been lovely. As you mentioned on my blog, the storms here have been terrible. Hurricane season is, prayerfully, just about over. Here's to a nice week ahead. (And thanks for stopping by - )!
ReplyDeleteI had decided on buying the plant before I read the name but when I realised it was a magic dragon how could I resist? I do hope that you have seen the last of the hurricanes in the US for now. I can't imagine how awful it must be for everyone. I am thinking of you.
DeleteWishing you a peaceful and safe rest of the week x
Heuchera seem to love our garden too and their flowers last for ages. Definitely a good doer especially in a shady damp space. B x
ReplyDeleteYes, the Heucheras grow on the north side of our house which is semi shaded but also quite sheltered. There are so many different colours of foliage as well now. The variety I bought has really shocking pink flowers. I love it.
DeleteMy goodness, is it only ten weeks? It doesn't seem long when you say it like that. My tomatoes didn't do well this year either, but it does make you appreciate the smaller crop you do get. I love to see an assortment of plants in different pots, they always look so nice when grouped together. I tend to grow my spring bulbs in pots and then plant them in the ground once they're done, most will appear again in subsequent years.
ReplyDeleteAnd counting down unfortunately, Jo.
DeleteI'm very happy with my new Autumn pots especially when I can still enjoy from the conservatory. I can't remember what bulbs I already have in pots so it will be a surprise in the Spring! Hope it's not too wet where you are but have a lovely rest of the week x
I bet those home grown tomatoes taste far more delicious than store bought ones. Xx
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jules. I think homegrown tomatoes always taste better than shop bought ones and at least I know how they have been grown x
DeleteI love how private the garden space is. Tuna bake sounds excellent. Wishing you all a yummy week. Cheers, Ivy.
ReplyDeleteWith a little more work it will be a good spot to sit and enjoy a cuppa before continuing with any garden tasks. I love Tuna pasta bake- so quick and tasty too.
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