Wild Iris & Trouble in Paradise

Over the road from my frontgarden is a smaller stream. 

Everybody that has been following my blog know that I'm maintaining the area on the other side and that I've discovered and taking care of Rhubarbs, Black Currant, a White Lilac and cutting the grass there.

For a few weeks I felt a strange smell while being over there picking Rhubarbs! I thought it was some small dead animal somewhere and thought it would disappear sooner or later.

The other day when I was suppose to take photos of a Duck family in the stream did I to my horror discover what the stench came from: In the stream was a dead Wild Boar/Vildsvin laying :p

I called the police, that called the community service and next morning they came to take away the cadaver!

Wild Boar doesn't belong in Sweden, but was taken here for hunting pleasure by the landlords in Castles and Manor houses for many years ago. Now they are totally out of control and destroy parks and gardens, so one down!

Paradise restored

Here by the footbridge do I take all the water for my garden, it's very clean, again!

On the other side and along the stream does the Wild Iris Siberica grow and now it's their time to perform

I always liked them, seeing them at my aunt May's summerplace and our own cottage by the Baltic.

And now I have them in my own Paradise, a lot :D

Other Yellow Flowers spreading quickly now as well, the Dandelions/Maskrosor

And with this do I wish You a great day/night!

Per!

Rhubarbs and Rain, Excellent!

Today, at last, two good things happened!

I did harvest my first Rhubarb & it's raining!

We definately needed the rain after a very dry spring, and personally I definately needed to feel the taste of Rhubarbs after greedily looking at them growing.

First out is the Rhubarbs (of unknown kind) I found together with Black Currants in the old abandoned kitchen garden on the other side of the stream.

Hard labour digging and weeding payed off!

My first harvest :D

I did melt the sliced Rhubarbs on low heat with chopped fresh Ginger and a little bit of Ecological Cane Sugar and water

YUM, perfect to use on real full fat yoghurt like Turkish or Greek, but today I had it on my Oatmeal, soooooo gooood :9

Rain at last, my stream where I get all my water for my flower beds and veggie paths start to fill up again and all new plants get the water they need from above.

I got the "Lady's Mantle"/Jättedaggkåpa just for my photography, always been fascinated how the water stays on the leaves, and she did not disapoint today

At the Manor house the Apple Orchard shows promising beauty to come, can hardly wait

Have a fantastic day, Per!

Giving in on the Potatoes

Still hot weather here, but we need rain now, we only had it one day the last month.

The water in my stream getting lower and I take all water to my flower and veggies from there (nothing from the communal water).

The Kingcup/Kabbeleka coloring the edges of my stream and the Lilly leaves start to come up like small swords.

Everybody tell me I need to have Potatoes in my veggie patch. It wasn't in my plan, then I visited my friends Evy & Roine here in the village and they had just put down potatoes in the soil and talked about how good new potatoes taste.

Well home I looked at the bag with local grown potatoes "Maritema" from Hållnäs, and they had sprouts! The Swede in me where convinced, a potatoe bed had to to be digged.

The Potatoes are to the left, together with red Onions. The round bed is for a Red Currant. To the right did I put the two beds together to get some symetri and there I have a Black Currant, and a red Rhubarb "Elmlitz" in the new part in the middle and Evy's Rhubarbs to the right.

The formal veggie garden start to take shape and I can start to see how my vision working out, fun.

Inside my house do I have a little special plant I got from Lövstabruks Trädgårdsmästeri: A Physalis/Kapkrusbär

When they renovated the old Greenhouse from 1735 did they found a small plant of Physalis growing in the soil on the floor after they took away 10cm soil at the renovation 2009, and now they have multiply it and I have one :D

Today my first flower came

With that do I wish You a splendid day

Per!

Geraniums and Spring cleaning of the Stream garden

What a productive Saturday, the weather where mild and nice so it was perfect for some gardening.

But first in the morning did I take cuttings from all the Geraniums/Pelargoner, turn out to be over 100 of them, a lot!

I prepared all the trays with soil

The put in the cuttings with namesticks

There is a lot, I will not keep all of them, will probably exchange with others or give as gifts!

The weather was perfect to work outside and I decided to clean up around the stream and the front of the house towards the street.

The Snowdrops are everywhere

Clean and nice, ready for the green grass to come up and what I guess a few surprises :D

Here against the South wall towards the street will I plant Hollyhocks/Stockrosor, I planted one in the fall already

Over the street, the foot bridge over the stream and to what in the old days where kitchen gardens for all these homes. 

I have decided to keep 2-3 meters on the side of the stream clean. That land is now a days owned by a forresting company, but I still want it to look nice from my house.

 These two Black Currant bushes/Svartvinbärsbuskar I discovered in the fall and will take care of them with cleaning up and cut them

The nice surprice in the grass this time was 3 Rhubarb plants/Rabarberplantor, I guess I have to sort them out as well, cannot get enough of Rhubarbs :9

And what better end of a nice day in the garden isn't a Fika (coffee break) with some new and fresh garden magazines, a Perfect Saturday in my mind!

Have a great weekend, Per

Snow´s gone and it's Spring again

The mini winter is over and with +10C the snow quickly disappear!

Time to start up the garden slowly but surely, and it's all so fun this the 1st spring in my garden :D

Up in the Geranium Hotel on the top floor it's soon time to take cuttings, but I will wait another week!

The little garden gnome I bought in Chile for 15years ago posing amoung the Geraniums!

A little Maple tree I digged out from the Lilac hedge at the cottage survived the winter indoors and shooting beautiful lime green leafs

My 1 meter high Mårbacka Geranium will give a lot of cuttings this year

Down in the kitchen it was time to put the 1st seeds in soil and I started with Franchis Peperone "Padron" from Gourmet Garage, Chilipepper "Piment dÉspelette" that is supposed to be able to grown outside, Hollyhock/Stockros "Chaters Double" for the south facade towards the road, Eryngium "Miss Willmott's Ghost" and Large Verbena.

Plus some seeds I got from my red Amaryllis and also from the Flock Tulips/Flocktulpan at the cottage

Out in the garden I discover more and more Snow Drops everywhere, in the Woodland, in the hedges and here and there in the lawns, so beautiful.

On the other side of the stream is the 1st bud on the Lilac showing

 And the water is on full power with all the melting snow.

Time to take away the protecting leafs from the new flowerbeds and make space for all the bulbs to see the daylight.

I cheated and bought some ready flowers in a flowershop to get a teaser of what's coming, here some Narcissus put together with some moss and branches from the forrest. I put it in a big pot for outside.

In my livingroom I have some colourful Tulips to match the art on the walls

And today I found some funky shaped Birch/Björk branches that I put in my favorite vase from Finland, for my diningroom!

Until next time, enjoy!

Per!

A White Surpise in my village of Leufstabruk

This morning when I woke up I had a feeling that something was different with the light, it was very bright!

And wow, the whole landscape was covered in white beautiful snow.

I know, it's February and it should be snow, but after the last weeks of no snow and spring weather it was a surprise.

I know it will not last for long, it will be warmer than usual in a couple of days, so it was just to quickly down a cup of coffee, put on warm clothing and get out there with my camera!

Enjoy, I did :D

My future Woodland/Lund in the end of my garden

My Barn, Woodland and the Perennial bed in the front

 Luckily I covered the New Dawn Rose properly before

 My beautiful barn

My stream and footbridge

My house and entrance to my property

My village Leufstabruk / Lövstabruk looks like a winter wonderland!

The South gate to the village

The Manor House

The Brewery: Leufstabruk Bryggeri

The South gate to the Manor house

The Greenhouse: Lövstabruks Trädgårdmästeri

The Orangerie

 The Archive of Natural History

The Church with the famous Baroque Cahman Organ from 1728

Hope You enjoyed my walk as much as I did, Per!