Hairy procrastinating is productive

Hi

It's definitely autumnal now with temperatures very close to freezing this morning and still very damp underfoot. The start of the week was wet and nasty but it did improve significantly and resulted in the last two tunnels getting their new covers installed today. The cooler temperatures meant the skin was not quite as stretchy as we would have liked but there wasn't a breath of wind all day, so it was a relatively relaxed performance this time and the covers look tight enough.

It was another week for getting stuff done with our excellent tree/hedge surgeons back again early in the week, to have a go at some unruly hedges that had got away from us and to lift the crowns of the beach trees that overshadow the office. They did a brilliant job, the crown lifting was so well done you could hardly tell they had been here at all, and the hedges were done in double quick time. They make quite a din with their shredder munching through the off cuts, the donkeys were pretty jumpy while they cut one of their bordering hedges but settled down again once all the excitement had passed. They quite like a change of visitor and some different activity, it gives them an excuse to lark about bit more.

We collected a substantial new roof for the electric metering shed which currently leaks a bit. With more control kit and battery storage going in there we felt keeping the water out might be sensible. Now I just have to find a specialist to safely remove and dispose of the old roof which is likely to have low grade asbestos in it and we will be a bit closer to being ready for that solar installation.

I have started my biggest annual brain exercise with the main young plant ordering, which is always a bit of a wet finger in the air moment. I have all the figures in front of me to aid in my guesswork, an up to date stock-take with all the potting and sales more or less completed, a list of all the total sales over 2024 for each of the 550 varieties and lists of plants bought last year from each of 8 or so suppliers over multiple deliveries throughout the season. It's a massive juggle of what, how many and when, with a healthy dollop of wondering, how many customers we will have next year? what will the weather be like? and will the gardening hoards be in the mood for letting those purse string loose? I find it quite daunting to get stuck into this chore and it's astonishing how many important things pop up to distract me. I spent a couple of afternoons with a mattock chopping out brambles on the solar site, emptied part of the barn where some logs had got parked so we could fit in some more of our returning wooden trays and helping out the heating engineer to fix our central heating. I have managed to do some planning, honest, but not enough. Holiday time is rushing up and it needs to be done before then so I can then also order the colour labels to go with the plants. Still not enough days in the week and we aren't even busy!

Very exciting events in the house with the central heating back in full operation after probably at least 18 months with only the bathroom and loo radiators working together with the hot water. We had been manually moving a valve controller to get the main radiators on for several years prior to that, so when the valve was eventually 'fixed' last year we were expecting great things, only to be disappointed with failure and unable to get the engineer back. Well he made it this week and on investigation found that not only had the valve been faulty but the main pump had seized. All the heat we had in the hot water system was created by convection currents not the circulation pump. With the whole system drained and new pump and isolation valves purchased the next challenge was getting the old kit off. Naturally nothing would budge, but in the end gas torches and mega spanners plus the two of us heaving and cussing, it all came apart and miraculously went back together. Instant and gratifying success with heat radiating from all over the place. It feels really decadent to have the potential of heat from radiators, I'm quite excited at the thought of some cold enough weather arriving, and turning them on. Feeling slightly worried that these thoughts are getting close to the highlight of my autumn.

End of season wooden Box returns

We have already collected a lot of our empty wooden boxes from many sites and will continue to do so over the next few weeks. If you have empty boxes ready to go please do drop us a line and we will pop in when next in the area.

Availability list.

Unfortunately after a poor seed harvest we only have one Cyclamen coum variety this winter (Silver Leaved) and they are just beginning to produce the very occasional flower. They will go on right through until April so no rush!

Premium variety Tiarella Pink Skyrocket are ready with attractive foliage and now also in bud and flower. Last few left. The other winter star is the Helleborus range, a few varieties already showing signs of flowering but a bit early for most. Good strong plants with plenty of potential.

Summer colour is still there with Gaura Rosy Jane and its bicolour flowers plus the lovely delicate white Whirling Butterflies.

Best wishes from all at Kirton Farm Nurseries.