Wednesday 31 May 2017

Happy Birthday to you

Morning all,
A bright start to the day with the promise of rain later, my perfect summers day. Sorry if it messes up your plant sales but I struggle under endless sun. Had a fun time on the hottest day last week when we had to cover the structure over the lab buildings. With a leaky black flat roof we set up a shelter over it in the winter, but the sun on the dark roof was overheating the rooms inside and the air con couldn’t cope on the warmest of days (a problem for many years). On one day a few weeks ago when it wasn’t hot but the sun was out we measured the temperature of the roof surface, it was 47C, that’s apparently what you get on a dark coloured roof. Anyway this week we put a white/black total blackout cover over the new structure, it was very hot, sweaty and dusty work getting it on and fixed down, but the effects are amazing, I can’t get over how much cooler it is having a white light reflecting outer colour, it’s so much more than just a shadowing effect and should reduce our cooling bill substantially. Live and learn.
We had an uneventful Green Impact assessment last week. I think we put in so much evidence in our case that there weren’t many questions to find. In a way it was a shame they did it over the phone, I’m sure we could both have got more out of it by being on site and getting to grips with some practical applications and improvements, but perhaps I’m being a bit over obsessive about getting greener. This week we are going with a few of the crew to the local business awards dinner to see who might win the green business award this year. Fingers crossed, judging seemed to go ok but you never know.
Must go, it’s Caroline’s birthday so I ought to make the coffee this morning, it will help her get through more plant preparation for her big microprop order going out on Tuesday. Sounds like a fun day to me.

Availability highlights
Buds are appearing on many of the very popular Sage Hot Lips which is back on the list for the summer, while stocks last. Don’t forget that this variety does produce pure red and pure white flowers on occasions but the ‘proper’ red and white lippy ones will prevail throughout most of the summer.
Echinacea are selling well, We have good stocks of strong plants of this increasingly popular border plant of which many are leaping into bud. The newer more compact varieties are proving a great seller, although for me the taller varieties still have the edge on flower size and dramatic effect. Loads of Leucanthemum in bud now. Lacrosse looks great, the odd opening flower with loads more to follow on bushy plants. The Polemoniums are coming into colour now, there are only a few of the delightful Heaven Scent left and the compact upright Bambino Blue looks great. Rhodanthemum is deservedly proving very popular. Low growing silver foliage with the promise of pretty flowers all summer long. Two varieties on the list so far with more to come later. Coreopsis Sunfire are flying out at the moment, and there is a new one on the list this week, Illico a really compact form with masses of sunshine yellow blooms over a long period. Loads of bud already and the odd flash of colour.
On the more subtle end of the flower colour scale is Tiarella wherrii, the foam flower. Loads of short creamy flower spikes make a delightful display and are doing their thing now in a fresh batch of stock on the nursery.
Catananche just coming into bud now, a lovely delicate looking border plant with papery sky blue flowers, one of my favourites. This will be the last batch for this year so don’t hold back, only a few left. The gold leaved Tradescantia Blue and Gold is in bud and flower. A standout plant if ever I saw one. Classic Alchemilla mollis looking great at the moment, fresh green foliage with the first flower showing. A fantastic range of foliage sizes and colours in our Hosta range, all showing off well. To see the colours check out the hostapages in our flip book catalogue. Dinky Erodium varieties are back again, low growing and flowering for ages. The ever popular Dianthus Doris showing their first buds. The scented compact range (Scent First (SF)) are also coming into their own. We have also extended the range this summer to broaden the colour palette.
A mass of fresh foliage and buds all appear in a rush with many of the Astilbes, early tight bud is visible now. The ever popular Erysimum Bowles Mauve are showing bud and colour. A real long term performer with flowers all summer long. Fresh young stock of Red Jep and Fragrant Sunshine looking good too (in bud). The Rudbeckia Goldsturm is looking great, very strong bushy plants, always a really popular plant. Also a fresh batch of the more usual Green Wizard is back on the list. We have two Strawberry varieties which have coloured flowers now showing bud, Roman are pretty pink preceding delicious fruit and Toscana is a strong red. Vibrant are now carrying fruit, very tasty.
Have a good week from all at Kirton Farm Nurseries.

Tuesday 23 May 2017

Damp and Hairy

Morning all,

What a relief to get a nice drop of rain, well it was for us anyway. I heard that some of you got it a bit heavy at times and there were some pretty major hail storms too. Not good news for the outdoor plants in the garden, on the benches or outside on the nurseries. Hopefully there isn’t too much damage around, we were lucky and just got a really good steady soak on and off for most of the week. Wednesday was the main day it pissistantly fell, finding all those spots we thought were weather-tight. The office sprang an alarming leak through a light fitting, just missing the computer and keyboard. Coat on and up the ladder to find the flat roof main drain blocked and a lake covering the whole thing. The leak dried up after an hour or two draining so no harm done.
Bit of a reminder of ‘times past’ this week with the sad announcement of the Royal National Rose Society Gardens going into administration. The gardens near St Albans were the venue for my first proper job in horticulture, I spent a happy 6 months there as part of my college pre-entry year, now that was a while ago. Hopefully someone will step in and save the day and re-launch or repurpose the site in a groovy horticultural way.
We have our first Green Impact assessment this coming week, it will be interesting to see how positive and excited my student assessors will be. We are assured it will be fun, it will certainly be interesting to have their feedback, I’m quite looking forward to it.
Lessons of the week. Don’t forget to back up. Don’t be tempted into eating a whole tin of beans in one session. Drinking a pint of Chilli beer doesn’t help either.

Availability highlights
Although not in bud yet the very popular Sage Hot Lips is back on the list. Nice busy plants and now the light levels have improved the growth is pretty rampant and buds can’t be far off. Don’t forget that this variety does produce pure red and pure white flowers on occasions but the ‘proper’ red and white lippy ones will prevail throughout most of the summer. We have another small fresh batch of Catananche just coming into bud, a lovely delicate looking border plant with papery sky blue flowers, one of my favourites. This will be the last batch for this year so don’t hold back.
We gambled on a bigger range and quantity of Echinacea this year and they look great and are luckily selling well, We have good stocks of strong plants of this increasingly popular border plant. The newer more compact varieties are proving a great seller, although for me the taller varieties still have the edge on flower size and dramatic effect. Flower shoots and buds are beginning to appear. The gold leaved Tradescantia Blue and Gold is in bud and flower. A standout plant if ever I saw one.
Many of the Leucanthemum are either in bud already or very close to it. Lovely strong plants and very popular.The classic Alchemilla mollis looks great at the moment, fresh green foliage with the first flower shoots just starting.
A fantastic range of foliage sizes and colours in our Hosta range all showing off well. To see the colours check out the hosta pages in our flip book catalogue. The classic garden pinks are looking great, Dianthus Doris and Grans Favourite are both showing their first buds. The scented compact range (Scent First (SF)) are also coming into their own. We should these coming into flower most of the summer if all goes to plan. We have also extended the range a bit this summer to broaden the colour palette.
There is plenty of bud coming on the Achillea range. Just a few of the Cloth of Gold left and a nice batch of Summer Pastels rushing into bud. Desert Eve Red are showing good bud and the odd splash of colour. A mass of fresh foliage and buds all appear in a rush with many of the Astilbes, early tight bud is visible now.
We have a few Geranium sanguineum Vision Violet and Vision Pink in stock and there is bud just beginning to show. The blue Geranium in bud at the moment is a nice batch of Geranium magnificum. Just a few left.
The next candelabra primula types into flower are Primula x bullesiana and Primula beesiana which are both showing their buds and the occasion flash of colour. Just a few left so don’t delay.
The ever popular Erysimum Bowles Mauve are showing bud and colour. A real long term performer with flowers all summer long. Fresh young stock of other varieties looking good too (in bud). The Rudbeckia Goldsturm is looking great, very strong bushy plants, always a really popular plant. Also a fresh batch of the more usual Green Wizard is back on the list. We have two Strawberry varieties which have coloured flowers now showing bud, Roman are pretty pink preceding delicious fruit and Toscana is a strong red. Vibrant are now carrying swelling fruit, nothing to pick yet but it won’t be long.
Have a good week from all at Kirton Farm Nurseries.

Sunday 14 May 2017

Hairy Hat Fitz

Morning all,

At last some damp weather, still need more but quite a relief after what seems like weeks of dry. Hopefully the wetter weather is boosting sales rather than the opposite which seems a strange thing to say as we are usually wishing for dry at this time of year.
I’m sending this slightly later than planned as the computers were busy being backed up again. I can’t think what prompted that, but feeling virtuous none the less. It’s getting that multi layer robustness that is such a challenge. The auto back up goes to a remote computer so if we burn down we should be ok, but it is attached to the network so could be vulnerable to attack, so an extra backup onto rotating sets of memory sticks is our backup back-up. I suppose the cloud is another option but being a bit behind the times I just don’t like the idea of putting stuff up there.
Nursery life flies by, potting is back on schedule after the late pot delivery and the next batch of predators have been released to do there pest control work. This weekend I will be unleashing another 1,000 million nematodes onto the nursery. It’s an evening-nighttime job as they are very sensitive to UV light but luckily it is a fairly automated operation so I don’t have to stand over them too long. I make up a stock solution in a big plastic drum, washing them through a fine sieve to get them well spread out and mixed up, then I keep them aerated and stirred up using a special compressed air bubbling device of my own making. The stock solution is them irrigated onto the crops using a specific irrigation programme that puts on two short applications (to spread the risk of dosing irregularities) and then another two clear runs to wash the nematodes off the foliage into the compost. Once set up it is fairly simple to do and we are finding that half dose applications of a mix of nematode species, put on monthly through the growing season, is really knocking back the vine weevil and hopefully a few of the other pests too.
Don’t forget to get out there and support live music, there is nothing quite like it. We saw Hat Fitz and Cara last weekend and they were brilliant, very funny, very talented and just the right side of ‘on the edge’, real life affirming stuff. We have the odd occasion when an evening out doesn’t work for us but it is so worth it when an evening like last Saturday happens.

Availability highlights
The next candelabra primula types into flower are Primula x bullesiana and Primula bessiana which are both showing their buds and the occasion flash of colour. Many of the Leucanthemum are either in bud already or very close to it. Lovely strong plants and very popular. The classic Alchemilla mollis looks great at the moment, fresh green foliage with the first flower shoots just starting. Erigeron Sea Breeze Mauve and Sea Breeze Pink are bursting with fresh growth and early buds. We also have a variety called E. karvensianus Wayne Roderick on trial this spring it is bigger leaved and flowered than the more traditionally flowering varieties so we will see how that one goes. It looks promising as there is plenty of bud on strong chunky plants. A fantastic range of foliage sizes and colours in our Hosta range all showing off well. To see the colours check out the hosta pages in our flip book catalogue.
We have a small range of five different colours with our Anemone coronaria plants. Growth is rapid and buds are appearing quickly. We don’t do many of these so don’t hang about if you want some.
The ever popular Geum Lady Stratheden and Mrs Bradshaw are flushing into growth nicely, and have flower buds too. We have a nice range of Campanula rushing into bud but selling fast. Both the C. glomerata types are showing colour (superba and alba).  There is plenty of bud coming on the Achillea range. Desert Eve Red and Rose are both showing good colour and bud. A mass of fresh foliage and buds all appear in a rush with many of the Astilbes, early tight bud is visible now. The blue Geranium coming into bud at the moment is a nice batch of Geranium magnificum. A fresh batch of Achillea Paprika is now in bud and looking good, a hot plant but only a few left.
The ever popular Erysimum Bowles Mauve are showing bud and colour. A real long term performer with flowers all summer long. Fresh young stock of other varieties looking good too (in bud). The Rudbeckia Goldsturm is looking great, very strong bushy plants, always a really popular plant. We gambled on a bigger range and quantity of Echinacea this year and they look great and are luckily selling well, We have good stocks of strong plants of this increasingly popular border plant. The newer more compact varieties are proving a great seller, although for me the taller varieties still have the edge on flower size and dramatic effect.
Have a good week from all at Kirton Farm Nurseries.

Monday 8 May 2017

Hairy Birds

Morning all,
On and on goes the dry bright weather, great for keeping the customers in the stores but we desperately need some rain down here. At least the nights were a bit warmer, last week’s hard frost on one morning has really knocked back quite a few plants in the hedgerows. The fresh new shoots on the laurel hedge have gone brown and the ash trees lining the road at the bottom of the valley look pretty beaten up. Even nature can’t always get it right.
Masses of young birds about now. The despatch robins have fledged and you can’t move in there without disturbing the under-your-feet feeding. Some of the girls in despatch have been sneaking in mealworms to help them along, but on the days they aren’t in the robins are sitting on the bench shouting at us for the poor service. I’m not sure if it is the lack of standing water around the place or the over feeding going on but the garden is awash with big birds. We have had the usual pigeons and collared doves but there is a male pheasant and his harem of 6 or 7 ladies, a family of jackdaws, a lone young crow (which keeps tapping on an upstairs window at first light) and even a pair of moorhens which I’m pretty sure are setting up home somewhere close by.
The pair of swallows have started nest building in the donkey shed after a couple of weeks of refuelling after their migration. Caroline’s puddle edge in the yard, which keeps needing refilling at the moment, is providing the building material and we hope it will get taken over by the house martins when they make it back. They are usually 2 or 3 weeks after the swallows so should be due any day now. Another summer is about to get under way.
So busy on the nursery all I can highlight is that we are really busy! Brain strain and fatigue are beginning to take their toll, well that’s my excuse anyway.

Availability highlights
Growth is bursting forth despite the cool wind,
The next candelabra primula types into flower will be Primula x bullesiana and Primula bessiana which are both showing their early bud stage at the moment and the occasion flash of colour.
The classic Alchemilla mollis looks great at the moment, fresh green mounds of foliage with the first flower shoots just starting. We have a small range of five different colours with our Anemone coronaria plants. Growth is rapid and buds are appearing quickly. We don’t do many of these so don’t hang about if you want some. The ever popular Geum Lady Stratheden and Mrs Bradshaw are flushing into growth nicely, and have flower buds too. We have a nice range of Campanula rushing into bud but selling fast. Both the C. glomerata types are showing colour (superba and alba). There is plenty of bud coming on the Achillea range. Desert Eve Red and Rose are both showing good colour and bud. A mass of fresh foliage and buds all appear in a rush with many of the Astilbes, early tight bud is visible now. The blue Geranium coming into bud at the moment is a nice batch of Geranium magnificum. A fresh batch of Achillea Paprika is now in bud and looking good, a hot plant. The ever popular Erysimum Bowles Mauve are showing bud and colour. A real long term performer with flowers all summer long. Fresh young stock of the other varieties looking good too (in bud). Subtle white flowers with a blue flush are still opening on the Symphytum Wisley Blue, lovely strong plants.
The Rudbeckia Goldsturm is looking great, very strong bushy plants, always a very popular plant.We gambled on a bigger range and quantity of Echinacea this year and they look great and are luckily selling well, We have good stocks of strong plants of this increasingly popular border plant. The newer more compact varieties are proving a great seller, although for me the taller varieties still have the edge on flower size and beauty. A lovely range of foliage sizes and colours in our Hosta range all showing off well. Erigeron Sea Breeze Mauve and Sea Breeze Pink are in there too. The big selling Erigeron karvenskianus has now made it onto the list, this one just goes on and on. We also have a variety called Wayne Roderick on trial this spring it is much bigger leaved and flowered than the more traditionally flowering Stallone so we will see how that one goes. Many of the Leucanthemum are either in bud already or close to it. Lovely strong plants and very popular.
Have a good week from all at Kirton Farm Nurseries.

Tuesday 2 May 2017

Hairy Judgement

Morning all,

Another holiday weekend, loads of time to put our feet up and take a breather. Just a container load of pots to get filled, the boxes to clean and tunnels to prepare then we’ll take a break. Mum is here for the weekend which is great, I was wondering how we were going to get those seedlings pricked out!
The week shot by, even with five days in it. The container of pots arrived at last, together with more plants to pot, a lovely plug and play storage tank was delivered and installed and the judges came round for the Winchester Green Business awards. All that on top of a hectic week sending out loads of plants and juggling the van lottery. Our older little van spent all week in the garage as they tried to get the engine management system to play ball after fitting a very expensive bit to the exhaust system. It seems to be running great now but I have asked them to put a note on the invoice envelope to make sure we are sitting down before we open it. It has to go back on Thursday for a final computer debrief after a few runs out and hopefully that will be it for a while. Meanwhile we are really pleased with the new van, mpg is good, the payload is much bigger and it is really comfy to drive. The new mod cons like the reversing camera are great for improving safety and driver confidence and the adjustable air suspension helps reduce the loading effort on the ramp. It’s always nice to feel like you are progressing when you make a new purchase.
The green award judging went really well although there was just too much to show them in the time we had. Everything from big things like the products we supply, the LED lights in the growth room and the wind turbines to the little things like the cupboard in the new mess room made out of the scrap wood left from building it and the subtle design changes we made to the bamboo labels skewers to make them work for us. There was a heap of things I forgot to mention which you always remember as they drive out of the gate but hopefully we made the right impression. We’ll find out in a few weeks.

Availability highlights
Growth is bursting forth despite the nip in the air this past week, so just hoping we don’t run out! A fresh batch of Achillea Paprika is now in bud and looking good, a hot plant. We have a nice range of Campanula rushing into bud but selling fast. Both the C. glomerata types are showing colour (superba and alba).
The ever popular Geum Lady Stratheden and Mrs Bradshaw are flushing into growth nicely, and have flower buds too. The blue Geranium coming into bud at the moment is a nice batch of Geranium magnificum.
Still a few Primula japonica Apple Blossom and Alba coming into flower if you are quick. The next candelabra primula types into flower will be Primula x bullesiana and Primula bessiana which are both showing their early bud stage at the moment and the occasion flash of colour.The ever popular Erysimum Bowles Mauve are showing bud and colour. A real long term performer with flowers all summer long. Fresh young stock of the other varieties looking good too (in bud).
Subtle white flowers with a blue flush are opening on the Symphytum Wisley Blue, lovely strong plants. A mass of foliage and buds all appear in a rush with many of the Astilbes, early tight bud is visible now.
Camassia Maybelle are showing strong buds. Blue flowers, strong and upright and often with multiple flower stems. The Rudbeckia Goldsturm is looking great, very strong bushy plants, always a very popular plant.
We gambled on a bigger range and quantity of Echinacea this year and they look great and are luckily selling well, We have good stocks of strong plants of this increasingly popular border plant. The newer more compact varieties are proving a great seller, although for me the taller varieties still have the edge on flower size and beauty. Plenty of bud on show on the Ajuga Burgundy Glow and Sugar Plum but only a few left.
Thalictrum flower stems really do thrust up, eventually getting quite tall, producing delightful delicate flowers. In bud now. Spring must be here, the Hostas have all suddenly shot out of the compost. A lovely range and all showing off their wide variety of leaf designs.We have a few Erigeron Azure Beauty coming into bud and the very compact but big flowered Sea Breeze Mauve and Sea Breeze Pink are there too. The big selling E. karvenskianus will be ready in a couple of weeks. We have a variety called Wayne Roderick on trial this spring but it is much bigger leaved and flowered than the more traditionally flowering Stallone so we will see how that one goes. The dwarf Veronica Inspire Blue are budding up well now.
Many of the Leucanthemum are either in bud already or close to it. Lovely strong plants and very popular. Have a good week from all at Kirton Farm Nurseries.