Hairy 4 day week?

Hi

Looks like a bit of an Indian summer coming with a pleasant start to September on the cards. Fingers crossed that all the old folk with no kids are out and about over the next few weeks, credit cards open for a pounding, as we hit the cheaper holiday breaks with the schools all back to work. We are not too bad for staffing next week but probably half the gang are off during week after as they make the most off the end of summer bargains. Hoping we can juggle everything to cope, should be ok as I think that although van driver availability is low it, is well spread out. The potting rush I was hoping to ride on might well stutter, but Caroline tells me it will all work out fine!

Although it feels like it's been a long week we did have the bank holiday break at the start which hopefully refreshed everyone. In theory we should have made up for the hours shortfall by being more rested and productive over the other four days. That is one of the theories behind the move to promoting the four day working week. I'm not entirely sure how true that is myself, as soon as everyone gets used to 4 days being the full time norm, then any extra vim and vigour found during the initial period is likely to wane without some serious focus and commitment. As someone who, in theory, is supposed to be running a small nursery, the thought of working a five day week is already a huge novelty and is something reserved for the winter period only. With a following wind we might get down to 6 days for some of the summer, but for 5 or 6 months it's 7. I feel I'm not really selling the idyll of working the land, in my apron, wellies and with trug in hand, but it's what it takes us to get it all working right and keep costs in check.

A good week for getting stuff mended with a new control panel put in the emergency generator to overcome last week's breakdown and a new capacitor/switch on one of the wind turbines which burnt out last Sunday. We have a brilliant small maintenance company to look after our turbines (Natural Energy) and a simple Whatsapp photo of the charred part and broken wire, with a short message, was all that was needed for an instant response and action on the next working day. Every hour saved to get the turbine up and running again helps cover the bill, and there's nothing quite like watching the blades turning in the breeze and generating cash to make you feel it's not all a slog.

An early start on Thursday to get all my chores sorted and the plants all ready for the potting team before departing for Beaulieu, for a welcome pub lunch and our first NBIS meeting for a very long time. We were a bit thin on the ground with a couple of absentees and even more retirements, but there was a big push from the HTA contingent that they really want to get the group re-launched and thriving again. There were some tough questions for us to deal with and it looks like we are going to have to take a slightly more professional approach to how we approach these meetings, including a fairly hefty potential bill that will follow once the group is running properly again. There was a sticky moment part way through the meeting when it became apparent that non HTA members are unlikely to be invited to be in the group, which potentially knocks out two or three of the existing members including ourselves. The HTA was sure that they could convince the doubters that they are missing out on lots of things that the HTA are now doing for their grower members, although I remain to be convinced. There was talk of show discounts and access to more press coverage for unique products like ours, but compared to membership of the NFU it is an expensive option. The other problem for us is that more exposure means having to promote ourselves and we prefer our lower profile approach where you just have to be 'in the know' and on the 'H list'! 

Availability list.

Lovely compact and well branched batch of Verbena Lollipop now available.

Summer is rushing by and the Autumn flowering Cyclamen hederifolium are well ready with the bud and flower. Premium variety Tiarella Pink Skyrocket are ready with attractive foliage and now also in bud and flower.

Fresh batches of the summer and autumn flowering mini garden Chrysanthemums are coming into bud and colour. Lovely foliage plants on show with Ajuga and Euphorbia displaying nicely.

The more classic Aster varieties are coming on strong now, after all the new early Alpha range has sold out. Most are now coming into bud ready for their late summer and autumn display. Anemone japonica back on the list as summer slips by.

Some Bergenia varieties have a late flower flush as is the case with Fire and Ice with its white flowers and red stems. Summer colour is still there with the Gaura Rosy Jane with its bicolour flowers and the lovely delicate white of Whirling Butterfies, .

New range for this year is the Helenium Hayday series, Strong and compact and still showing good colour and bud. Armeria Dreameria series of long season flowering Armerias are still showing plenty of colour with loads more to come. No white this year but a series of three pretty different pinks making a delightful show.

The Balloon Flower Platycodon Twinkle Blue and Twinkle White are now well into bud with the odd flash of colour.

Best wishes from all at Kirton Farm

Hairy Wind

Hi

An autumnal blast this week with cooler temperatures, stormy winds and a bit of dampness too, and it's bank holiday time again. Sends me into a slight panic again with the amount of potting to do, but the nursery seems quite full so maybe it's not as bad as my mind is telling me. A blast of sun and very warm temperatures next week will hopefully get the sap running and potting machine flying so we can get properly back on track.

Frustrating day today with our second full days power cut within 3 weeks. We have a big old generator, so with a lot of juggling we can get most of the single phase stuff running, luckily that includes the phone, computer systems and the tea urn as well as the microprop lab. Unfortunately the potting machine is 3 phase so won't run off the generator and today was supposed to be the second of two full potting days, boo-hoo. The generator we have runs off a very old diesel tractor engine, it does the job but it is pretty noisy in comparison to the new ones. It is a constant thundering which you sort of get used to, but when it turns off you realise how incessant it is and how tense it makes everyone! We have a small gang in over the bank holiday to try and make up the potting shortfall so not the end of the world.

Slightly frustrating that it is so windy today and the wind turbines are off. They have a safety device in the system that stops them running when the mains power goes off, so that they don't export any power back down the cables while the power company is working on the line. Fair enough really.

Cleared out the electric meter shed last weekend to make space for the new solar panel control kit and battery storage. It had turned into a bit of a long term store, so there was plenty to clear out including multiple tarantula's and mouse nests.

Managed to re-home a few useful bits and pieces but most ended up in the recycling as it had been moved in there when we knocked down the old office which was over 5 years ago, and never used since. Lovely big clear wall space now to mount the new kit against, but a rather large crack in the corrugated roof was revealed which will now need replacing. Rainfall and electrics are not a great mix so a good opportunity to get that sorted properly.

Next week sees the return of our HTA run NBIS group meetings, after the group almost came to grief with retiring members and a lull in organising effective leadership. It looks like we might be on the road to recovery now after the HTA managed to find a coordinator/consultant to take the helm and get us up and running again. I know I have benefitted hugely from the quarterly meetings in the past, it turned out to be great personal therapy as well as an excellent business tool to do what it says on the tin and improve our nursery business. It took a while for everyone to open up and admit that they too were growers who made mistakes along the way, worked too many hours and took precious little return for their efforts, but once that hurdle was cleared we learnt so much from each other and our experiences along the way. It always surprises me when businesses, that from the outside may look very different, often have many of the same challenges and solutions.

Electric update: 'Famous last words' as the generator packed up, wing tip deployed on one turbine when it was stopped in breezy conditions, and the potting machine and air compressor tripped out. Power luckily returned early, so an afternoons potting was eventually achieved and Caroline got to see the view from the top of the turbine again. Nice evening for it! 

Availability list.

Lovely compact and well branched batch of Verbena Lollipop now available. Summer is rushing by and the Autumn flowering Cyclamen hederifolium are just about ready with the some bud and flower already on show. Lots more growth and flower to come.

Premium variety Tiarella Pink Skyrocket are ready with attractive foliage and now also in bud and flower. Fresh batches of the summer and autumn flowering mini garden Chrysanthemums are coming into bud. Lovely foliage plants on show with Ajuga and Euphorbia displaying nicely. The more classic Aster varieties are coming on strong now, after all the new early Alpha range has sold out. Most are now coming into bud ready for their late summer and autumn display.

Anemone japonica back on the list as summer slips by. Some Bergenia varieties have a late flower flush as is the case with Fire and Ice with its white flowers and red stems. Summer colour is still there with the Gaura Rosy Jane with it's bicolour flowers and the lovely delicate white of Whirling Butterflies. New range for this year is the Helenium Hayday series, Strong and compact and still showing good colour and bud.

Armeria Dreameria series of long season flowering Armerias are still showing plenty of colour with loads more to come. No white this year but a series of three pretty different pinks making a delightful show. Leucanthemum La Creme and La Grande are in strong bud now with flowers open on many. The Balloon Flower Platycodon Twinkle Blue and Twinkle White are now well into bud with the odd flash of colour.

 Best wishes from all at Kirton Farm Nurseries.

Hairy Lights

Hi

A very pleasant batch of weather coming up, warm, sunny with the odd shower, just right for a spot of garden shopping. It certainly seems to be helping sales roll along with another busy week behind us and next week already looks ok with the pre- bank holiday build up and a few advanced orders already. I know it's not like the spring should have been, but it's still a day off (for some) and credit cards usually take a pounding, especially if the weather is fine.

Slightly scary that the football season seems well underway already but I have to put that to the back of my mind as we try and push on with the potting. Another week passes with not enough done. A lack of prepared space, too many other distractions and some days with next to no one in work due to allsorts very valid reasons. It was Wednesday when I counted 10 here out of the 22 that it could have been, it was just coincidence that it all happened on one day, but we made it through so no worries really. I'm not bitter!

Anyway that's not the main excitement, that came with the arrival of an expert pump plumber on Tuesday who repaired a very expensive seal on one of our irrigation pressure pumps motors. These should give us enough woomf in the irrigation system to run multiple spray-lines at the same time, without losing performance in the nozzles. In theory we run two pumps in tandem, with the second one kicking in when water demand is high and pressure falls back. They are super efficient and ramp up their work rate as needed, rather than just turning on or off, so using far less energy. The trouble we have had for several years is that we had undiagnosed malfunctioning non-return valves on both pumps, which meant the pumps could work against each other and mess up the whole system. The result was that we could only pressurise the system with one pump running and the other turned off. This worked ok as long as we didn't have too many spray-lines on at the same time, making things difficult to manage in the hotter weather. Running the one pump did dry out the seal in the second one, which then failed when we eventually sorted out the valve issues. In a nutshell the main man replaced the seal and got the new motors on the pumps talking to each other again, so we are back to full pressure. What a joy, I can't believe we struggled for so long with only half a pump system. Now there is just the newly leaking storage tank liner to replace and sand filter to fit. 

Stunning natural wonders this week with unusually good views in the south of both the Aurora and Perseid meteor shower. We don't usually see much of the Northern Lights way down here but they peaked a couple of times through Sunday and Monday nights and after getting back from dancing late on Monday we saw a pretty, but short, rosy and green show (see attached image taken from the farm garden). The shooting stars were great too, but impossible to photo on the phone. 

Availability list.

Lovely compact and well branched batch of Verbena Lollipop now available. Summer is rushing by and the Autumn flowering Cyclamen hederifolium are just about ready with the some bud and flower already on show. Lots more growth and flower to come.

Tiarella wherrii are back on the list and in flower again, and the premium variety Pink Skyrocket are also ready with attractive foliage and now also in bud. Lovely foliage plants on show with Ajuga and Euphorbia displaying nicely.

The more classic Aster varieties are coming on strong now, after most of the new early Alpha range has all but sold out. Most are now coming into bud ready for their late summer and autumn display. Anemone japonica back on the list as summer slips by.

Some Bergenia varieties have a late flower flush as is the case with Fire and Ice with its white flowers and red stems. Fresh batches of the summer and autumn flowering mini garden Chrysanthemums are coming into bud.

Exotic Oxalis Iron Cross in flower now. Summer flowering Crocosmia are now throwing up bud and flower, Summer colour is there with the Gaura Rosy Jane and it's bicolour flowers. New range for this year is the Helenium Hayday series, Strong and compact and showing good colour and bud.

Salvia's of all sorts are now growing strongly. The hardy Osteospermum Tresco Purple are in bud and flower. Excellent bushy stock but not many left. Armeria Dreameria series of long season flowering Armerias are still showing plenty of colour with loads more to come. No white this year but a series of three pretty different pinks making a delightful show.

Leucanthemum La Creme and La Grande are in strong bud now with flowers open on many. The Balloon Flower Platycodon Twinkle Blue and Twinkle White are now well into bud with the odd flash of colour. So many other lines doing their thing at the moment including; Penstemon, Astilbe and Achillea don't hold back make the most of them while they are here.

Best wishes from all at Kirton Farm Nurseries.

Hairy plumbing

Hi

Looks like a mini heat wave is on the way for Sunday and Monday and then back to more manageable temperatures from then on. Hoping this great growing weather continues as our potting schedule is struggling to keep up with the plan and we could do with all the help we can get. I'm not worried about the plants we pot over the next three weeks or so but as we move towards the end of the month and into September growth rates crash for most plants and we will need a bit of luck to see them through the winter and whatever that throws at us. We are moving small modules into bigger ones to keep them moving so that should give us another couple of weeks grace.

Sales have been bowling along which does help make it all work out economically, but summer holidays and several other unplanned absences have added to the workload and with only just over one day working at the potting machine we didn't catch up much this week. Must try harder.

I had a great weekend with a family get together here, with all the older generations having a jolly good time. Conversations zipped along as we animatedly discussed various soft furnishing options and distant memories triggered by thumbing through old holiday snaps. Oh to be a fly on the wall I hear you thinking!

Sunday morning brought the need for a project to keep everyone occupied before yet another meal pitched up, so it was down to the nursery to glue together the complicated pipe-work associated with a pressurised sand filter I bought a couple of months ago. With two water engineers in the group there were plenty of chiefs to advise on the best way forward which, of course, included adapting/improving the master plan provided with the filter. What could go wrong? We did run out of parts due to the design improvement, but the bulk of the job was completed and I now also understand how it works, so that was two big steps forward for me. Just need to clear the ground near the sump pump, cut the main delivery pipe and plumb it in. That should give us super clean water rather than the muddy soup we currently collect and the system will be fully operational. We replaced the main leaking underground pipe connector we found last week with a special repair joint which worked perfectly without having to uncover too much pipe. It's all quite exciting if you don't get out much.

Availability list.

Lovely compact and well branched batch of Verbena Lollipop now available. Summer is rushing by and the Autumn flowering Cyclamen hederifolium are just about ready with the some bud and flower already on show. Lots more growth and flower to come.

Tiarella wherrii are back on the list and in flower again, and the premium variety Pink Skyrocket are also ready with attractive foliage and now also in bud. Lovely foliage plants on show with Ajuga, and Euphorbia displaying nicely. The more classic Aster varieties are coming on strong now, after most of the new early Alpha range has all but sold out. Most are now coming into bud ready for their late summer and autumn display.

Anemone japonica back on the list as summer slips by. Some Bergenia varieties have a late flower flush as is the case with Fire and Ice with its white flowers and red stems. Fresh batches of Scabiosa in bud, green and bushy with masses of bud on the way. Fresh batches of the summer and autumn flowering mini garden Chrysanthemums are coming into bud.

Exotic Oxalis Iron Cross in flower now. Summer flowering Crocosmia are now throwing up bud and flower, Summer colour is there with the Gaura range doing it's thing. Just a couple of varieties left The really good bi-coloured Rosy Jane and lovely white Whirling Butterflies, New range for this year is the Helenium Hayday series, Strong and compact and showing good colour and bud.

Salvia's of all sorts are now growing strongly. The hardy Osteospermum Tresco Purple are in bud and flower. Excellent bushy stock. Armeria Dreameria series of long season flowering Armerias are still showing plenty of colour with loads more to come. No white this year but a series of three pretty different pinks making a delightful show. The more standard classic Sea Thrift (Armeria maritima) are also in flower and bud but with a shorter flowering period.

Leucanthemum La Creme and La Grande are in strong bud now with flowers open on many. The Balloon Flower Platycodon Twinkle Blue and Twinkle White are now well into bud with the odd flash of colour, So many other lines doing their thing at the moment, Penstemon, Astilbe, Achillea don't hold back make the most of them while they are here.

Best wishes from all at Kirton Farm Nurseries.