In the Garden

This is a rose on a bush currently overrun by ants and aphids. I thought I had dug it up, but apparently I was wrong. It's been there for years, since I bought it when it was marked down and half dead at the garden centre. It's next to the fuschia that grows like a thug and has to get hacked back when it reaches the size of my car. I'm not sure whether I need a machete or a flamethrower.

The bedding plants are now in. I'm sort of hoping that they just keep coming back. If I wasn't so ashamed of the rest of the garden I'd take a pic. There's alyssum on the outside, which will keep coming back if you give it half a chance, and verbena with some marigolds. I'm hoping to be able to just ignore the bed for a few years apart from watering, food and weeding. Father always put in winter pansies, and I suppose if I do that then perhaps next year can be veggies, but the thought of not having to do much is very tempting. The next thing to tackle is planting the two chilli plants in bigger pots and dealing with the bed under the study window, the one that used to have the lavender. I may see if I can get some more alyssum plants to fill in. I love alyssum and you don't see the plants very often.

I also have a small sort of tub thing to plant spinach seeds, but I'll need to have netting. The woodpigeons around here are fierce. Or I suppose I can look into a charity shop for net curtains. When I was a kid, my grandmother grew redcurrants, white currants and blackcurrants. All of these are extremely attractive to birds. Her solution was to hang net curtains over the bushes when the fruit was set, but the blackbirds used to get under the net curtains and help themselves. They had a stand of cob nuts as well, but the squirrels always got them first. I don't remember eating many nuts. 

Bear went to climbing again today. I think that he's had an okay half term. Tomorrow he's decided to work on revision. I'll wait and see.

Hugs and good health to all.