Meanwhile........

Geranium Frank Headly

......Our seriously wet June has of course made little difference to the lush and burgeoning contents of the new greenhouse. We now have cucumbers coming out of our ears - well nearly! A little more sun would probably help ripen the tomatoes. All tops have been pinched out leaving between 5 and 6 trusses of ever growing fruits. Outside the greenhouse, our new drainage arrangements have well and truly been put to a severe test. Thanks to Chris, excess water no longer floods into the greenhouse beneath the door and, there's no standing water anywhere at all! I

The new gravelled staging is a huge improvement on the previous wooden slatted staging. Pots no longer tip on the slat edges and it's easy to elevate the humidity by damping down the gravel.

Excess rainfall - pros & cons!

Alchemilla mollis (alias Ladies' Mantle)

Mile a minute grass!

Hardly a day without rain and the grass is growing a mile a minute! As much as I enjoy mowing and edging, I HATE mowing wet grass! It sticks, clogs and looks such a mess. Quite the opposite of alchemilla mollis which, if anything looks better for a few (notice I said few!) raindrops. As for the roses, they've taken a bit of a beating and I'm glad not have put many Geraniums out yet. We all know how much they hate rain!

Just a common old Campanula

Making the best of some rare sunshine!

Greenhouse Way.

It may be common but how pretty is this Campanula? It's a joy to pass en route to the greenhouse. Sadly going over now but it bravely withstood several downpours of equatorial rain and obviously enjoys the warmth of the bricks behind as well as their support. I think this one is probably Poscharskyana but don't hold me to it.

Less Space = More Room!

Looking from the potting bench through to the tool shed

Exterior pot storage

Who wouldn't be pleased with their very own potting shed and all the new shelving facilities in the tool shed? I'm not sure which was/is more fun. Building it or using it? The weird thing is -  less space equals more room!  The extra storage is a BIG bonus. Canopies & guttering mean less algae, fewer puddles and less standing water. As for the little oriel window with its lead roof and new views across the orchard and the garden - it's just so lovely! Thanks Chris for all your help.  It was lots of fun and it's perfect to use. More photos

Looking from the tool shed through to the potting shed

New shelving & hanging

Slug Alert!

Back on sentry duty from his favourite look out post this morning! Let's hope he's feasting on slugs!

The great escape!

A good to fly our flag!

Flood defences

Just a video of all the excavation work on drainage behind the greenhouse.