Hello everyone! Wow, it’s definitely starting to feel a little autumnal out there… I’d better start knitting faster to make sure the Beasties and I have enough woollies to see us through the cooler days that are coming! And before the weather turns, I also thought it might be a good idea to sort out my sad and unruly balcony garden.
I thought. I didn’t actually do anything.
Regular BeastieBlog readers may remember that we bumped into Gardener Beastie at the Botanic Gardens a couple of weeks ago.
Clearly embarrassed by the state of our little patch of urban green space, Explorer Beastie must have made a call… Because yesterday morning, as I sat down at my craft table, I overheard this…
“Wow, there’s a lot to do here, isn’t there?”
And then,
“Did you say there was a human around somewhere who could help?”
Ears burning, I made the mistake of stepping out onto the balcony.
“Yes! Here she is now!”
So much for sitting back and letting the Beasties sort it out! It’s lucky I had my old clothes on, because the rest of my day was looking a bit like this:
Explorer Beastie and I started with some weeding…
… While Gardener Beastie planned our next move.
As the only one with hands big enough to manage the secateurs, I was on pruning duty.
These chives might even bounce back if we trim away the dead flower heads and repot the rest.
But some things in the balcony garden were very much alive.
“These strawberry runners can all go into pots to become new plants!”
And to make sure the wind doesn’t blow the baby plants out of their pots before they have a chance to grow real roots, we put some of the squillions of wire twisty ties that come free with any electronics purchase to use.
“Bend each one into an arch, and pin the plant to the soil. That’ll keep them in place!”
Thanks, Gardener Beastie!
Now, what can we do with this big pot, which I found down by the recycling bins earlier? (How lucky!)
“How about pairing up one of the little trees with some cyclamen? Cyclamen loves shade and doesn’t take much from the soil… Should work out nicely!”
So, I moved the two plants in together, and added another cyclamen from indoors that seemed to be finding it a bit warm. I also discovered some seeds in the pot with the white-flowered plant, which I spread around over the extra “blank space” in the new container.
Are we done now? Not quite.
“Is there anything in here?”
“Ohhh, yes! This basket has bulbs in it! They still flower every spring, no matter what the weather’s doing…”
“…But the basket might have seen better days.”
“Okay! Let’s get them out of there…”
“… And into something bigger. You should have a great display to look forward to this spring!”
And speaking of the future…
“Don’t forget to pick those up and plant them! They’re nasturtium seeds. Nasturtiums mean free salad leaves for you, and a feast for your local bees too!”
And now we’re finished!
“Much better. Time for a cup of tea!”
Oh yes, I think we’ve earned it!
If you’ve any extra garden tips and tricks, please share them with us in the comments… And I’ll send Explorer Beastie outside to put them into action.
We’ll be back next Tuesday to catch up with Paddy and Plunkett, so be sure to join us then!
“I’m going in for a closer look – give me a leg up, will you?”
Poor Plunkett! He didn’t think “leg up” meant “I’m going to stand on your head”.
“Lovely! Hey, Plunkett – we could fry these up in batter like they do in fancy restaurants!”
“Hmmm, better leave that for a bit. But I’m STARVING now!”
“Oh, that’s a beauty! Stand back, Plunkett – I’ll take it from here.”
“HEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAVE!”
“Nice one – a successful first harvest, Plunkett! Now, let’s get it to the kitchen.”
“Y’okay back there, Plunkett?”
Aha! Looks like they’ve hopped on the gardening bandwagon and are getting into growing their own veggies.
“Check it out, Plunkett! Sustainable jewellery!”
“… Like this. Now, courgettes grow quickly – you might want to stand back a bit!”
“I think we’re going to need a bigger pot, Plunkett!”
The plant looks much happier in its new home, doesn’t it? Plenty of space there to spread out its roots and keep on growing!
“Ah, it’s a bit early for that yet, Paddy. But if you look veeeery closely…”
“… You can see the first flowers starting to appear under the leaves. We won’t have long to wait!”
But then Paddy popped up, and suggested that it might be nice to take a wander outside.
Turns out he’s pretty persuasive.
… Although some of these places are easier to get to than others.
Still, if it’s winter colour you’re after, this cheerful display of berries certainly fits the bill!
The view’s not bad either. Look how green everything is!
And when the boys spotted some long grass on the other side of the hedge, they knew exactly what to do next…
There’s always time for a quick game of hide and seek!
Uh-oh! Looks like they’ve momentarily given me the slip. Hopefully I’ll be able to track them down before next week’s post!
