Happy Hebes

This is a shot of my Hebe plants. I know it doesn't look too exciting, but it means the world to me. This area of the garden is just in front of my wife's greenhouse (it is also where our Blackbird visitor from yesterday, has its nest).

You'll notice that we have black weed sheets. This stuff is absolutely crucial to the way we garden here. Our garden is riddled with ground elder weed ... this stuff is vicious. If you have no clue as to what it is, consider yourself very lucky indeed. There are chemicals to kill it (Roundup for example), but I try to avoid using chemicals as much as I can, and also, the only way to use the chemical, without killing all our other chosen plants, is to dig up all the good plants first, and then spray the ground. I simply don't want to do that. Some of the mature bushes, shrubs and trees are not going anywhere.

Instead, I cut down the weeds as best as I can, then I dig over the earth (add some compost etc if available), and lay the black sheet over the ground. I then cut a hole in the black sheet, dig out some earth, and place the plant in the hole. The weeds might not all die (but 99% will, as they are deprived of sunlight), but they are severely restricted. Some nasty little ones will keep going under ground until they see some sunlight elsewhere (persistent little buggers), but so be it ... when they pop up elsewhere, I'll be ready for them!

The black sheet also warms up the soil, and is useful for planting out vegetables etc, ahead of season.

After a year or so, once the plants are well established, I cut back the black sheet, and eventually do away with it all together (then I use it elsewhere, using the same technique).

These Hebes are tough little guys and they'll fill this gap nicely.

The tall plant here is a Dracunculus vulgaris, sometimes called the "Dragon's female" or "snake plant" They are all over my garden. They are herbaceous (dies down in winter, pops up in spring), and are "interesting" ... in a pre-historic kind of way. They have spotted stems like leopards.

Had enough of gardening for the day. Also created one more island border in the orchard area, and my wife has just completed planting out yet more flowers there under our apple tree.

Bath time x