Spring has finally arrived! We have had many sunny days and snow is starting to melt away. Nothing is growing outside yet but not that long wait anymore.
Managed to spent a long weekend in the Netherlands and visit Keukenhof. Spent few hours in the garden and returned back home my bags full of bulbs.
Bought yet another daffodil, Accent, to brighten my day.
Enjoying the long Easter weekend and the beautiful weather we have. Days are now bright and full of light because of the snow cover and increasing day light time.
Have had time to take long walks and see friends. To cook good food and enjoy peaceful dinners.
Inside the Easter flowers are blooming. Daffodils are my favorites during this time of the year. Still more than a month before we can see any of them outside.
No signs of spring yet up here in the north. Days are getting longer and I am getting more and more impatient. Still two more months to go before you can plant something outside.
That does not seem to stop me from planting everything possible inside. Chilies have germinated and so have the coleus seeds. Yesterday found some herb seedlings and failed to resist the temptation. Hope that did not buy them too early. There is simply not enough daylight available yet.
A pot of crocuses found its way to my flat today. Usually do not buy them because the central heating makes them bloom in seconds. Now I am storing them between the window glasses where it is cooler. Hopefully not too cold, already managed to freeze to death a pot of daffodils.
Slowly running out off space inside. Planted some ornamental brassicas to day and now trying to figure out a where to put them and hoping for an early spring this year.
October is here but I am harvesting strawberries. This is the first time I am able to taste the Alpine Strawberry Alexandria and are they sweet and tasty! The size of a berry is larger than the wild strawberries have but much smaller than in the cultivated varieties.
I have newer tried to grow strawberries from seed. Two years ago decided to give it a try expecting to fail miserably. To my big surprise the seeds germinated and grew well. I was sure that this variety would not make it through the winter up here in the north but it did it with flying colors.
The only thing it seems to be confused about is timing. Alexandria tried to bloom early in the spring but failed. Not sure if it was the cold weather we have had. Everything is about a month late this summer and farmers are going to loose most of the grain they have grown. Definitely not an ideal summer for gardening.
But when I think about this I would not mind having a late harvest. All the other strawberries are long gone and it is nice to have a taste of summer in your mouth when the days are getting darker and darker. Let’s see if Alexandria continues to be confused and lost or align with the others in the years to come.
Time to harvest! Peas did well this year. Sawed the seeds already in April which is early up here. Normally peas are planted few weeks later.
I tried a new variety called Douce Provence and it did surprisingly well even though we had the coldest summer in twenty years. Spring was dry and cold and summer months cool and rainy.
The variety is not that sweet tough. I was expecting a bit sweeter peas.
The first hints of autumn are here. Ornamental brassicas are starting to display their colors.
The Red Pigeon is yet another newcomer to my garden. It has succeeded well and I like the colors it has.
If I am right it will tolerate the cold well and continue to grow two more months. Getting even brighter and larger. Standing out even better when nearly all the other plants are gone.
This far there has been no pests to ruin its leaves which has surprised me. I expected to loose some of them to hungry visitors. Must have more of them next year.
A new variety I tried for the fist time this year. Everything started slowly. My original idea was to have new potatoes after the mid summer and now it is mid-August.
Planted the potatoes already late April but nothing happened for weeks. Spring was simply too cold.
The end result was good though. Beautiful white potatoes and the size of them is just right.
I might have found a new variety for me. Just need to see how well they will do in the storage and of course I need to taste them first. Cannot wait, must hurry to the kitchen.
The first dahlia just started to bloom. I have been waiting for this. They always add color to the autumn garden.
It has been rainy but it seems to suite the dahlias well. They are growing strong after a slow start.
Do not have that many varieties this year. There is always a limit how much you can and have time to plant each year.
It is time for the marigolds to start blooming. Only have color orange this year.
Up here in the north marigolds are one of the most reliable annual bloomers. Not that sensitive to cold and can take different kind of weather without suffering too much.
I think I will have yellow ones next year just for a change.
First cosmos flowers are starting to bloom. The ones I have gotten from my mom always go first. The others follow a month later in August.
I have been trying to find an early blooming variety with no luck. Simply because the summers are so short up here in the north.
This far I have not had any luck. My luck might change this year. A new variety is already making buds. We will see.
If I have no success then I just give up and continue with the one from mom. One variety is enough if it is a good one like I now have.
Gardening in the North 