The Cold Moon is on the wane and Imbolc has passed by. It is cold and damp and raw, but there is new life appearing as we hurtle toward Spring! Here are Six new growths on a Saturday. And some Free Plants! See more Sixes in the comments section of the Host http://www.thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com.
- The appropriately named Cornus sericea ‘Midwinter Fire’ twigs that I added to my holiday greens have all rooted. One of them even has a flower bud! I will gradually add potting compost to their water until they are sturdy enough to plant out. I’m undecided whether to pot them individually or as a clump. Less Space vs. More Free Plants!?!
- Sticking with the Free Plants theme, Crystal Palace lobelia seeded itself into every plant potted up for the winter. I’ve been pricking the seedlings out into modules where they are doing famously. A much more efficient propagation method than starting from scratch – although they may not turn out to be true CPs….
- Alliums are appearing. The leeks were from older seed so I was anxious. The onions are a new variety to me so again, anxious… however all seems to be well, so far. But Alliums clearly make me anxious.
- Lettuce seedlings that were saved from rabbits at the end of last year have sulked all winter, but are suddenly in full speed ahead mode. These are Really Red Deer Tongue and are usually quite burgundy. Low light levels perhaps. Or more likely getting ready to make seed. There are some pelargonium cuttings in the same pot.
- These Cherry Bomb Chillies were sown mid January. I probably will only grow on a few of them. But for now they don’t take up too much space.
- My dear old Lemon Verbena is back, after a very hard prune and the passing of mid winter. This is a very old plant, probably 25-30 years old. Every year that it comes back to life is a bonus.
It will be another 6 weeks or so before I see any actual outside flowers. I must admit I am a little envious of all your snowdrops and crocus. Didn’t think I could drum up a post this week but there you have it! Six things, new life and re-awakened optimism. Have a happy week and be safe!
1. State Fair apple. My first apple from the latest work in progress at the long neglected back of the property. I’m hoping for a very low maintenance orchard/ food forest. Time will tell…
2. Cornelian Cherries. Gleaming jewels of the food forest. Mostly enjoyed by the birds, I should add. It makes the few they overlook seem more precious.
3. Onion Harvest. Alisa Craig has done me proud this year. I’ll definitely be going the no-dig route again next year. Now comes the challenge of winter storage.
4. 4. Ramial chips. Free mulch from a heavily pruned recalcitrant crab-apple. Note the abandoned robin’s nest right at the top of what’s left of the tree.
5. Soft Lighting. I just love the way the sun, lower now on the horizon, peeks through this magnolia, highlights the lime green of new rose growth beyond the shade and scatters tiny sun puddles on the bricks below.
6. ‘Endless Summer’ Hydrangea, aging gracefully. I’m fond of the mop-heads but have way too many. I like to use the dried flowers in holiday bouquets and wreaths. My little demi-lune table is also aging, not so gracefully! That’s all for this week. Lots of pruning, planting and sowing to do before the 4 letter word beginning with S arrives.
These are tied in bunches using lengths of raffia that in a former life I scrounged from a fish vendor in Hong Kong.
The bunches hang in my warm, dark basement until dry, before being crumbled for use in cooking, as teas and as gifts for work.
A really good haul this year. I planted only 24 cloves to harvest a whole muck-bucket full. 
Unusual in that quite a few of the singly planted cloves have sprouted 3 or 4 very large heads of garlic. I couldn’t say what variety, as I haven’t bought seed garlic in years. I just plant the biggest and best cloves around October 15th.
The Alisa Craigs are still putting on weight so I’ll leave them to grow for now. 
It’s all about netting. I use plain net curtains from Ikea. The birds can’t get tangled in the very fine mesh. There’s nothing worse than trying to rescue a furious grackle!
And it is tomato time at last! They will have their own Six!
1. Anemone japonica ‘robustissima’. As the name suggests this is a very hardy individual, taking over the marsh-front border with gusto. It throws up its tall flower heads in late summer, and will flower prolifically from now until frost. For me it is the first floral harbinger of fall. In a couple of weeks it will be infiltrated by wild jerusalem artichokes, causing me to chunter on about ‘clearing out’, ‘redesigning’, ‘no more pink and yellow combos’ and so on. But it will still be August, too hot & humid for such intense activity. By the time the weather co-operates I will be ‘over it’ for another year. 
2. Germander. Teuchrium Chamaedrys. This one is also a sign of summer’s end. A lovely edging in the sunny border. Some years I clip it. This does not feel like a formal edging year. In a normal climate it would be evergreen. It is a nice alternative to boxwood, which is not really hardy through our winters.
3. Phlox. Another harbinger. I don’t know which one this is but it is medium height and hides all kinds of ugly rose stems and burned out clematis vines.
4. White lace-cap hydrangea. This was an element in my first white garden. It is the nicest hydrangea, first to flower and repeating until frost. The white flower is so clear and clean. Sadly it is now being thirsty-ed out by the thuggish redbud tree and will have to be moved to another part of the garden. Another job for the Fall. I’ll take cuttings as soon as the current heatwave is over….I’d hate to lose it as I’ve never seen a prettier one.
5. Crookneck Squash. One plant, still too many squashes!
6. Onions! I have at last grown a decent crop. They are not show quality by any means, but they are big enough to slice rather than pickle! It’s only taken 30 years…..these are no-dig which I am turning to more and more.
