It is the time of year that I find that I start to get very itchy to strip out the borders and start lifting and dividing.  It is dark now by 9pm and there is most definitely a nip in the air first thing in the morning and last thing at night and I noticed that the weather lady talked of an early Autumn.  We cannot complain about the summer this year, the garden has been very rewarding but next year.......................

There has been a heron lurking by the pond in the sunken garden and it appears has removed some of the fish in the afor mentioned pond.  The under gardener is very upset especially as his favorite and largest fish Goldy locks appears to have been taken for lunch.  We had just finished supper this evening when he returned for desert.  What a sight we much of looked to anyone passing with the under gardener hanging out of the dining room window shouting at the bird, the Doberman running round in circles shouting at what she did not know and me running after the poor bird with a rubber rake.  As a type this up the husband is patrolling the garden. 

This part of the garden was not good last year but this spring we dug in a vast amount of well rotted horse manure and some chicken pellets.  Over kill I hear you ask but no, the crops have been wonderful and I think that we shall be up for a repeat performance this autumn.  I took much more interest in this venture this year and added more colour to the garden by adding nasturtiums and pot marigold and the effect has been very good on the eye.  We had a lot of interest in this part of the garden during all our open days proving I think, that visitors like to see beauty and productivity going hand in hand.

Now that opening the garden to the public is over we can relax a little and enjoy it for ourselves.  I always find that August is a more relaxed month in the garden.  It is a time when I start to plan for next year, take cuttings and start sowing seeds.  We have visitors all week this week but I am sure I can squeeze a bit of gardening in.  In fact I think I shall go and start now!

There was a need to re-plant a line of lavender earlier this year.  I spotted some lavender planted with what looked like petunias(hard to spot as I was driving at the time) so I thought that I would give it a go.  The new plants were very small when I planted them in April so adding a petunia plant between each lavender fill the space quite well.  As I type this I can see the plants and they are really doing their stuff and look just wonderful.  The colours of the petunias work so well with the blue of the lavender.  The under gardener wants to do the same again next year but I think it will not work .  I can now see how people with plenty of money to spend could rip it all out and do it just the same again next year.  I, on the other hand, cannot so next year it will just be a line of now larger lavender plants.