Hairy Sunshine

Hi

Wow, what a lot of sunshine, both we and the plants have loved it. The is a sudden flush of growth and bud production which is great to see and for the first time this year it doesn't seem too much of a risk to remove ones vest, stringy or otherwise. A lot of the Winter/spring potting has jumped onto the availability, with a few nice early surprises like the Salvia Amistad which is such a summer favourite these days and already looking great. The lack of overnight frosts has benefited this rather risky first batch for us (no heat protection here) and growth looks clean and fresh. I also gambled on an earlier sowing of Basils of various sorts too, which are also looking good although won't be ready for another week, maybe two.

Bedding sales are obviously in full swing as our sales didn't benefit from quite the upswing we had hoped for after a mostly fair bank holiday weekend. Not too worried yet, our peak sales weeks last year were not for another week or two, after the weather turned from cold to hot almost overnight and again the bedding sold through its early/mid May flush.

We have been making the most of a little extra time by moving some more of the munched crops into more protected tunnels and calling on the services again of our night time caretaker who has taken care of a few of the culprits. The re-growth is quite dramatic so hopefully we will still get some fab plants out of them, just a few weeks later than expected.

Potting stuttered this week with the shortage of days and we are a bit tight for space too, but there are loads of lovely plants coming on stream over the next few weeks, with a few new ones amongst them. The is a new range of Helenium and new series of sturdier compact Gaillardia, both of which are looking very promising. Euphorbia Miner's Merlot is another newbie that has appeared on the list this season, as a replacement for E. am. Rubra which has been suffering from a lack of vigour for a while. This variety has a really strong deep colour which fades to a greener hue as it ages, very pleased with its performance so far.

New suspension pump on the oldest van has worked a treat and was well tested this week as it is still covering the missing FFFFFiat. I am beginning to wonder if it will ever come back. Well timed compost delivery on Tuesday this week, just as we ran out and an equally well timed container of pots due in on Monday as we get down to our last couple of pallets (two days worth!). We usually have 20 of so in stock as a back up, so this was a bit tight with delays thanks to the Gulf shipping chaos. Each week we get a Riverford veg delivery which we love, although the best bit as far as I am concerned is the notes that comes with it from either Guy, who started the whole thing, or one of his growers. There are so many levels where we connect with their trials and tribulations yet Guy always seems to find something positive to bring out the other side. This week's was a bit more troubling as he described the difficulties of finding sources for his early organic spuds. Most of his expert growers have given up their farms, either down to old age, poor returns and now because of a lack of people willing to harvest the crops. The tricky part apparently is finding the harvesters for the winter cauliflower crop which rotate with the spuds. The Eastern Europeans did it for years and now they have all but disappeared. Guy is also losing a couple of his long standing European staff to either return home or take up warmer, drier and better paid jobs, a worrying time for the future of the industry as a whole, especially the fruit and veg boys and girls.

Availability list.

Summer stars the Agapanthus are now making strong growth after the winter. Lapis Lazuli is already producing buds. Salvia's of all sorts are now growing strongly and producing the first of many flowers.

The earliest batches of Dianthus are now producing flower stems and tight bud. All are scented varieties and very bushy. The highly scented Nemesia Wisley Vanilla are already in flower and will keep going until the first frosts. I have the first few trays ready of the new Gaillardia Guapa series we are trying out. Strong and compact the first buds are already there. There will be more colours to come later.

The scrambling Campanula posharskyana is chunky and now producing plenty of bud. Rhodanthemum's are also in bud, although I don't have huge numbers just yet so don't get carried away. Intense blue flowers on Lithodora Compact Blue are now open. We have some fresh batches of several short bushy Erysimums in bud, just the flash of colour here and there.

Phlox subulata varieites are all producing bud and colour, a great early performer in a nice range of colours. Multiple Hosta varieties are looking great. All propagated in our own micro-prop lab, we have  a super selection. Favourite border classic Verbena bonariensis are back on line. I have several batches on the way so we can keep the plant size in the pot managable. Fresh crops of Erigeron karv. Stallone with its tiny multicolour daisy flowers that come all summer long are back on the list. No bud just yet but they will only be a week or two away. Loads more to come.

Best wishes from all at Kirton Farm Nurseries.