June in the garden

The weather continues to be cooler than usual with several days of prolonged drizzle and low cloud. Sunny days have been few and far between but never-the-less the garden is looking colourful and filling out at a pace; sadly, the flowers do not last long enough when they get saturated in the persistent drizzle. We tend to wander around the garden daily to spot what is happening, to see what's in flower, prioritise weeding and spot any potential problems such as infestations and damage. We noticed several heavy infestations of aphids on the fruit trees. We had been told about a soap based product (soft potash soap) that is supposed to help eradicate such infestations so we bought some and have sprayed all the fruit trees to see if it works (50g/litre of water). We will let you know how efficient it is.

There are several spectacular flowers and plants in bloom at the moment including: The bird of paradise which we rescued from a house in the next village. It was constantly on the floor, dry and in a bad way so we knocked on the door and asked if we could take care of it. The lady said yes and with a bit of tender, loving care, it is back in great shape. It just needs re-potting now in something appropriately splendid.

The bee orchid is common in these parts but we have found some in the garden amongst the flowers -  We are not sure if it is a bee orchid or a woodcock ophry (thanks Nigel) as they are almost indistinguishable, they are truly lovely and we will encourage their spread. We now have at least four types of wild orchids that grow in the garden.

The Alliums are in full spectacle. As you approach they appear like miniature galaxies suspended in green space. Their structure and form are fascinating and a wonderful distraction.

A few years ago we planted a series of terracotta roof tiles with succulents. These were easy to make by blocking off the ends with pebbles and cement, filling with soil, adding plants and a few decorative pebbles and topping off with fine gravel. We have lined the steps down into the garden with them and they make a lovely addition and need very little attention.

Luis has been busy making mosaics in between all the other things we get up to. He has just completed two column bases for a mosaic table he made some time ago. They are designed so that they can be used independently but we will use them with the top as intended. The are a lovely addition to the terrace. We will feature them in-situ once fully dry (currently sealed and awaiting positioning).

Elsewhere the garden continues to keep us occupied with lots of fruit and vegetables to sow, maintain and harvest as appropriate. The lawns need regular cutting and the flower borders need dead-heading to prolong the flowering season. There is always something to do but it brings with it the opportunity to savour the beautiful colours, shapes and structures that nature provides. What do you enjoy in your garden?

Winter flowers showing Spring is on its way.....

A few flowers from the garden, hedgerow and mountains....

Thinning and pruning

We don't have a massive piece of land, about 1500 sq m in total but what we have is certainly enough to keep us busy throughout the year and especially in winter. When we bought La Pasera we asked the builder to leave in situ, the existing orchard trees and any trees and shrubs that were on our borders. One of the first tasks we accomplished was bringing plants from our garden in Yorkshire to Asturias, some of which were successful and others not. After creating various planting beds, rockeries and borders, adding our UK stock and planting more plants, trees and bushes over the years, we have learnt a valuable lesson: living in a temperate climate makes things grow, spread and multiply with such vigour. This week we have been cutting back, pruning, thinning and disposing of many plants and shrubs that had become just too big or cumbersome for their allocated space.

The two dying apple trees - leafless

Sadly, two of the old apple trees have also come to the end of their life after hardly any leaf and no fruit last year. The woodpeckers have been visiting daily and stripping the bark and feasting on the grubs that have taken up residence in these dying trees. Fungus has claimed their bases and it will be sad but necessary to chop them down and replace them with young apple trees that will provide us with lots of fruit.

I have been trying to prune lots of our bushes that over the time have been cut back and have subsequently grown in not-so-pleasing shapes. It'll take a couple of seasons but with time they will grow into better shaped and more pleasing to the eye specimens. We need to tackle the north border of our land that has hazel, blackthorn, hawthorn and pyracanthus, all of which grow with great gusto and apart from the useful coppiced hazel, are difficult to handle and dispose of due to very sharp thorns. We will probably burn this in the garden as it is almost impossible to process into useful firewood. In Spain, it is recommended that you apply for a license to burn even the smallest amount of garden rubbish. If you burn without one, if your fire spreads you can be held liable for costs and fines so a (free) license is advisable... I'm really not sure as to why a free license and registering protects you but if nothing else it raises the issue of the dangers of fires in rural and wooded areas. You can only use the license between October and May which makes sense due to the cooler and wetter weather.

We will process the wood for kindling and firewood which will take up to a year to dry sufficiently. The plants, weeds and leafy off-cuts will be composted and provided us with much needed nutrients to add back into the beds in a few months time. Working in the garden is therapeutic on many levels and helps us fine-tune our ideas. It is now nine years since we bought La Pasera and looking back at old photographs certainly reminds us of how much has been achieved over the years.

2006

July in bloom

Flowers are an important aspect of any garden, from the insignificant to the big, bright and bold, flowers are special.

Flowers attract insects, aid pollination, create scent, display colour and provide structure and form and, they are beautiful to look at.

The flowers at La Pasera change throughout the months but July is certainly a time when the brightest, boldest and showiest blooms arrive. So much so, the smaller, delicate flowers often get overlooked.

The next time you are in the borders, look a little closer, stare a little deeper and you just might see a diamond amongst many other gems, a bit like life really...

A Hawkmoth emerges from its cocoon in the ground.

Those of you who follow our blog know that we are keen observers of nature in all its forms including insects. We try and maintain a broad variety of natural habitats to encourage biodiversity and to maintain the natural balance of our plot. We have areas that we leave wild, wood piles, rockeries, ponds and a bog garden, amongst others, to create natural habitats for a range of insects, birds, mammals, amphibians, molluscs and reptiles. Many of our inhabitants can be found on our other blog: Smaller Tales from Toriello.

Smaller Tales from Toriello

We often inspect these areas to see what has taken up residence. One natural resource we rarely think about are the large areas of lawn (grass meadow cut and maintained short). It came as quite a surprise this week to stumble across a Hawkmoth emerging from its cocoon in the ground just near the tool shed. Luis' brother spotted it, just a dark brown head emerging from between blades of grass. By the time I had retrieved the camera from the house the moth was almost out.

A few minutes later, the moth started to expand its wings in the warmth of the afternoon sun. It was about 5cm in length and 3cm across at the base of its wings. We think it was a privet hawkmoth due to the stripes on the base of its body. They feed on, amongst other things, Ash of which we have several surrounding La Pasera.

Gawber the cat (increasingly bored) was curious: what are these humans looking at and is it worth eating?

We protected the moth with a rake and watched from a distance only to find the moth clambering on the rake and resting. We placed the rake in a safe position away from feline eyes and left it alone expecting that it probably would not take flight until dusk or nightfall. Sure enough, the next morning it was gone.

We retrieved the cocoon from the ground out of curiosity and wondered how many more would be emerging around our plot that we will never spot.

We will certainly look out for the caterpillar this coming year and keep our eyes open for other signs of life in all areas of the garden.