Rising Borlotto Beans and Water levels

It was a little bit cold today and after I've been to the ususal farmers auction in the village did I do some indoor photography.

I had put some Borlotto Beans from Gourmet Garage in Pots to come ahead in the growth outside. They have started to sprout.

The stylish growth procedure fascinates me:

I'm happy with the result and made it to a Logo for this blog and are going to use it for my website as well

After four more or less rainy days have the waterlevels rised and it is dry no more.

At the end of my property have the wetland got back it's water, I suspect I will call this the Mosquito Coast when it gets warm next!

 Here grows Waterlilies and other natural waterplants.

As I wrote before, the area in front of it is covered with Nettles and Thistles, over a meter high when I came here. 

I covered large areas with Tarpaulin/Presenning and so it will be for one-two years before I plant something here.

I put earth covers down in the middle for isle and put grass turf over it.

 On the edge towards the water did I put down a Weaping Willow/Hängpil today

One of the "Half-Shadow" flowerbeds behind the barn is ready for now

I put a isle of rocks between the two large beds for easy access.

The rocks coming from all the digging of the new hedges

In this part do I have two different kinds of Rhododenron; "Grandiflora Alpenrose" &  Yakushimanun "Fantastica".

Besides that a small Birch Dalecarlia/Ornäsbjörk, Daylilies ("Joan Senior", "Happy Return" & "Mauna Loa"), Toad Lily "Blue Wonder, Blue Bugle/Revsuga, Bergenia and other.

In the lowest part of the garden where it's usually most moist did I make a Iris flowerbed with a braided Danish Willow and a smaller Dalecarlia Birch/Ornäsbjörk (that got beaten up at the last frost).

There is space to the left in case I hopefully need to make it larger.

The Iris there just now are; "Gusto", "Double Standard", "Concord Cruch", "Gulls Wing", "Ruffled Velvet" & "Dance Ballerina"

Even if the weather have been cold the last week is the sensitive Zon 3 rose "Ilse Krohn" thriving against the south rock wall of the barn, so well that I dared to put a Lavendel there as well

The spring is loooooong this year, love it!

The Narcisssus still looking great and smells fantastic

Some of the Grape Hyacinths start to get brown from below

And some of them look fantastic, still

Even if it's raining, there is so much beauty around, some of it just then

Warmest Regards, Per!

Old trees and little new ones

Living in such a old village as Lövstabruk with parks and gardens there are some really intresting trees around and it's going to be fun to discover them and learn more.

My favorite, so far, is the Chestnut/Kastanj by the bus stop, I love to follow the dramatic development of leaves and flowers on it

Elegant season opening of the Common Lime/Parkolvon

This is a very rare one for Sweden: Caucasus Buckthorn/Kaukasisk Getapel

There are some I don't know what they are, so help me if You can:

Today it has been a brilliant sunny day and I planted some small trees myself, some rooted by me and some I bought small (to save money)

A Larch tree/Lärkträd to expand the meadow & a Weaping Willow/Hängpil in a wet area

My favortie Birch, the Swedish Ornäs Dalecarlia, small but still with the beautiful leaves & my Magnolia "George Henry Kern" is still in a pot, have not made up my mind yet, dig it down or keep it in a pot (a larger one). It has one flower (upper left) and more coming :D

Other things happens in my garden, like that my favorite Tulips start to bloom: Tarda Tulip/Flocktulpan!

I love the low flowers and that usually have 5-7 flowers on each bulb, the Roe deers don't eat them and the colouring is like a beautiful aquarell

And the Grape Hyacinths/Pärlhyacint I got from my parents last fall start to bloom as well

And OHHH the excitement, soon it's Rhubarb/Rabarber time, yum yum!

The Heavy wet snowfall the other night disappeared quickly, but brooke branches on young trees and flattened hedges, in my case only my beautiful fragant Narcissus (bought cheap in a pot at IKEA) where all flattened :(

But I cut them off and put them in my Finnish seven armed vase to enjoy

Have a great weekend all!

Warm regards, Per!

Mid Easter Report from my garden

It's amazing weather and Art weekend (Konst på väg) at the opening of the season here in our village this Easter!

Great to see all galleries, Inn, Café, Garden Nursery, church, Orangerie and the village full of strolling people. There is 8 galleries open here this weekend.

Besides being busy with that, there is still a lot of time for the garden now when the sun going up at 5.14 and down 20.20. Last afternoon we had as most +22C in our microclimate here in Lövstabruk.

Here is whats going on just now:

It rained on Friday, much needed, it will kickstart the growth, so I had to burn of the dead grass in the rough area

After the rain I could start to see whats going on in my woodland, and see a lot of Lillies coming up. I will not bother to much about this area this year, just check whats going on.

The Climbing Rose "New Dawn" coming quickly with small delicate leaves

 Close to "New Dawn" by the South west house wall have I now also planted the Chinese Peony "Hong Zhu Ying Yu" (Jade with Red Pearl)

And in the Half Shadow flower bed the Black Snake Root/Höstsilverax "Brunette" found a home

Next to my favorite Birch/Björk: Ornäs

I loooove the leaves on this Swedish Birch

My belowed apple "Signe Tillisch" are crowning the garden on the highest point. Already after being in the soil for a few days the Flowerbuds start to show.

(I did not have poles to put down around her, but will fix that today)

I don't really know why I got this fast growing Danish braided Willow, but anyway, I planted it in the lowest point of the garden where the water was staying last this spring, since it love wet around it's roots.

Around it I put two Bergenias that hopefully will cover the area around the tree pretty quick.

There is 2 more days of this 4 day holiday (in Sweden) and I will enjoy both gardening and art gallery visits.

In the Orangerie there is some amazing artists having their exhibits, in my dreams this beautiful building would be a permanent Gallery & Café.

Enjoy the rest of your Easter weekend, Per!

Slow sunny sunday & Favorite Pelargoniums

Today it was sunny and bright, but still pretty cold, so in order to take care of my own cold I decided not to dig vegetable beds as planned, but prepare the pallet collars for them instead.

Sunny view over to the neighbor, they have the same little barn building as I, and two beautiful Larch trees/Lärkträd that hasn't got their needles yet.

At my one and only vegetable bed, so far, have the Red Garlic Rossi di Sulmona survived 3 surprise snowstorms so far this spring

On the top floor in my little barn did I prepare 4 more pallet collars with Cold pressed Linseed oil for the coming vegetable beds

Inside my house, up in the flower room with skylights, does it grow rapidly of seeds, bulbs, cuttings and others, such a pleasure to check in there every day. I still keeping the heat pretty low up there.

On the photo under supervision of my Chilean Tomte; Fuchsias, Pelargoniums, Hollyhocks, Ornäs Birches, Maple, Peones,.......

Can not help experiment with Bonsais, a remain from compact living with a balcony.

These are Maples, the "larger" one from the Lilac hedge at our cottage and the new small ones from Maple seeds I found around the garden a couple of weeks ago.

I have a few favorites among my many Pelargoniums

This is a "Pelargonium Carnosium"

When it comes to my favorites, I also make sure they get special pots that fits their peronality, to this one I got a cool black pot with spikes around the adge from Turbin Konsthantverk in Wij Gardens Ockelbo

Well I also got the Pelargonium from very special people a few years ago, the Pelargonuim experts Margareta & Mats Asplund at Pelargonfönstret in Örbyhus, very close to here. Love them and their personalities :D

My other favorite is this Suckulent "Pelargonium Cotyledonis" from ERA gardens, I have two from them

The personal pot for this one I found here in the village Lövstabruk at Hantverkets Hus by Susanne Thurfjell, in nice matte black with the old "L", that in the old days where stamped on the Iron made here.

Since it was sunny, even if coolish, did I grab my camera and ventured out in our village (to get the pot above), found that the Snowdrops still going since a month!

Hope You all had a great Sunday!

Per!