Hot and Hairy

Hi,
We seem to be fitting so much into a week at the moment. It used to be spring that was manic but know it seems to have spread to fit in summertime too. I can't believe it was only Monday that we had the crane in to replace our little borehole pump. It may be small but it was a long way down! All went well (nice pun). Unfortunately as soon as that was sorted out, one of the irrigation pumps started tripping out the electric supply and stopping the watering. After a lot of to-ing and fro-ing we
think we have got to the bottom of it and a man is coming on Monday to replace the inverter controls and relieve us of another several thousand pounds! Meanwhile I rigged up the text alert socket we got during the winter which tells us when the power drops out, so no matter what time of day or night I can pop out and reset all the trips to restart the irrigation programme. Luckily the programme remembers where it was and just continues on. Good job it hasn't been too hot this week.
A replacement telephone system is part-way to being installed (the wires are up) and the system goes in on Saturday so if we are unavailable over the next few days you will know the likely reason why. New control systems went into the buggies on Monday to allow them to charge properly which worked very well. I can't remember the buggies going this well for a long time. The electrics in the tool-shed was all beautifully moved and reinstalled onto a dry wall which makes us much safer, slightly more efficient, but sadly a lot poorer. One of the vans had a puncture on Thursday and the big one flashed lots of lights and had to be interrogated at the garage (going in for a small repair very soon).
So a quiet week really. It was so busy we nearly didn't notice the heat wave, but we are delighted to have come out the other end unscathed. Must go now as we have to set up a 'Chelsea-like' plant display in Kings Somborne village hall for the annual plant show and fete. Luckily we have all the plants ready so it should only take an hour or two to set out, which is about how long it takes to set up a Chelsea display! Good job we aren't judged on it.

Availability highlights
I have just a few of the more compact and bushier Cosmos Chocamocha left. Buds are visible on most and the odd dark velvety flower is open giving off that famous chocolate scent. Several Coreopsis varieties are showing great colour. A bright show with lots more flower to come.
The first batches of our mini Chrysanthemum (Garden Mums) are growing away well. Lovely bushy plants with lots of bud already showing and more to come. The odd splash of colour so far, but they will soon be showing off nicely. Geum Lady Stratheden and Mrs Bradshaw are putting up a nice flush of fresh bud.
Fresh batches of the Monarda Barmy series are looking good, nice and bushy with bud in evidence, colour just a week away. We have another batch of Nepeta Junior Walker coming into bud and ready to roll. A great compact and neater habit when compared with its larger more spreading relatives. Six Hills Giant are also tidy plants and in bud. Rudbeckia Little Goldstar is now coming into bud We still sell lots of the taller classic Goldsturm which is a fabulous garden plant but Goldstar is dramatically shorter and neater. The flowers are bold but not quite as big but it carries a lot of them. Autumn must be coming soon, with a few Sedum in bud. We have trimmed them short to flower low, but the flowers are still going to make a good show. Autumn Joy is the most popular and looking full of promise.
Just for a couple more weeks we will have Verbena bonariensis in bud. I know it will romp away in height in a minute and we will have to cut them back but at the moment they are manageable.
The classic summer flowering Montbretia (Crocosmia) are fast approaching flowering with the bold Emberglow the first in showing its young flower buds, Carmine Brilliant and George Davidson are now showing too. The neat little Erodiums are flowering well. Neat and tidy, they will flower for ages. Our summer crop of Oxalis are up and running. Both are in bud and looking perky. Iron Cross has dramatic green and black foliage under deep pink flowers while triangularis is equally showy with its purple leaves under pretty pale pink flowers. Salvia Hot Lips is now in bud with the some flower open. The full red and white petal display is now showing.
Another popular summer special are the Platycodon which are on available this week for the first time. A new variety to us is Twinkle Blue, it is slightly more compact than the Astra Blue, both are now showing buds. Rhodanthemum Casablanca are showing well with bushy grey foliage and lots of bud and flower on show. Lots of fab Salvia nemerosa varieties now back on line with most in bud and showing flashes of colour. We have short Campanula currently in bud, the prolific scrambler posharskyana with its smaller lilac blue bell flowers, and a new one for us Clockwise is another scrambler but neater growth habit and strongly coloured violet-blue flowers.
We have gone to town on Scabiosa this season, Lots potted ready for summer flowering, Butterfly Blue and Mariposa Blue are budding up nicely now in good numbers, these beauties will keep flowering all summer.
Have a great week from all at Kirton Farm Nurseries.