Costa de la Luz Gardening

blooming December

2011-12-29T14:26:00.000+01:00

We went out looking for a couple of Euphorbias (Poinsettias) to plant in the ground as we so admire a distant neighbour's tree, which is in full bloom at the moment. But, not a one to be seen - all sold before Christmas. But, lo, how about these jewels! Hundreds of cyclamen, kalanchoes, glossinias, all rushed down from Holland, no doubt. And in another, covered, area, hundreds of bromeliads of all shapes and sizes.

Camelias seem to be the in thing. I tried them one year as I had wonderful camelia bushes in Cornwall. Sad to say, they died on me one winter.

So sad to see this long line of palms near the Bahia Sur shopping mall. All victims of the palm weevil. I don't understand why they haven't been removed and destroyed instead of being allowed to nourish the weevils, who then fly on to healthy palms to set about them.

Tree diseases - very worrying

2011-10-23T09:44:00.000+02:00

In the 20 years, the Red Palm Weevil has swept from S.E. Asia through the Mediterranean and whole areas have been denuded of their palm trees. The long branches collapse like a pancake, a sure sign that the weevil has infested the tree and munching away to its heart's content. All over Spain and Portugal it's the same story - see below for our experience.

So it was doubly sad to read that other imported tree pests are rampant in the UK. Here's an extract from The Guardian's article....

A young horse chestnut tree in a west London garden was bleeding a rust-coloured liquid down its bark last week. As it dried, it left a black, tar-like stain several feet long. Two streets away, another horse chestnut had prematurely shed its leaves in July. A fungal pathogen known as bleeding canker was killing the first tree from the inside, while the horse chestnut leaf miner moth was destroying the second. Neither tree will survive the winter.
Meanwhile, in Plymouth last week, parts of a mature cypress hedge were turning a lighter olive-grey than similar trees around it. It was a sure but ominous sign that a fungus-like pathogen known as Phytophthora lateralis was attacking its roots and working its way up the inner bark. The disease has left a swath of destruction in the western states of the US and Canada, but its arrival in England for the first time has struck fear in gardeners' hearts.
In scenes reminiscent of foot and mouth disease 10 years ago, the trees were quickly felled, and their roots burnt because the infection can spread through soil.
Plant pathogens are on the rise globally and Britain is susceptible because of our increasingly warm, wet winters and the globalisation of trade, which has enabled us to fuel our love of gardens by importing millions of exotic plants, many of which can arrive diseased.

SPECIES AT RISK

HORSE CHESTNUT At risk from both the 'alien' leaf miner moth, which causes them to shed their leaves early, and the fatal bleeding canker disease.
CYPRESS/YEW The deadly Phytophthora lateralis pathogen attacks both the trunk and roots, withering the evergreen host's leaves and resulting in death.
OAK Acute oak decline causes the tree to suffer stem bleeding from cracks in the bark. Has resulted in the deaths of oaks throughout the Midlands and south.
LARCH A fungus-like pathogen, Phytophthora ramorum, causes extensive damage. Recently found on larch and conifer species across the north-west and Scotland.
PLANE Recent cases in north London confirm the arrival of deadly fungus, Ceratocystis platani, which attacks and weakens plane tree trunks and branches.

So take care if you're tempted to import from another country. I don't know if buying from a reputable source can prevent the spread, as stock may be sold unknowing that disease is present until it's too late.

Sundial mosaic instead of Palm tree.

2011-10-15T18:00:00.000+02:00

And here's the finished area, with fresh gravel and the sundial pot. We're beginning to feel the advantage of not having two large palms to worry about maintaining several times of year - a lot of work, especially in disposing of the fronds.

Red palm weevil saga

2011-10-14T16:03:00.000+02:00

And another one bit the dust. We had 2 young Spanish guys working all day yesterday with an axe and chain saw to remove the remaining palm at the front of the house. Cor, did it stink! I had to drench the area in Jeyes Fluid. We have bought fresh gravel today but the area needs a serious clean-up. We have another of D's wonderful pots with a sundial on top to bring over to this space.

On a happier note, look at this amazing bourganvillea in our one and only English neighbour in the area. This two-colour plant is very unusual. When they planted it 8 years ago it was totally magenta. Does anyone know how this bourganvillea can suddenly produce another colour?

Look - no palm

2011-10-01T10:30:00.000+02:00

You can see the damage that's been done by the Red Palm Beetle in the first picture - and in the distance how we have transformed the area since taking down the other diseased palm.

D's salamander pot is in pride of place in this gravelled area.   More pots, probably with herbs to add to our collection of thyme, chives, parsley and sage, willl be added.

We have a strong Levante blowing at the moment and it's even more apparent that the damage to the remaining front palm is extensive.   The leaves usually bend with the wind, but these have no purchase any longer. It will have to be radically cut back and shaved, the innards examined for beetles and grubs and, eventually, the whole lot taken down.   D has drilled holes around the trunk and injected an insecticide and poured gallons of the stuff from the top of the tree.   Hopefully, this will have destroyed the beetles etc. preventing further contamination in the area.

Red Palm Weevil

2011-09-24T08:21:00.000+02:00

One of our palm trees is no more....the red palm beetle/weevil has taken its toll and the other - taller of the two in our front garden - is going the same way.

These balls of coir are what you find hidden in the tree. The grubs and/or beetle are found in there.

I had no idea the problem had spread to so many countries nor that so many species of palm were affected until I came across this website

Thanks to whoever in Portugal who provided this information.

We have three palms left in other parts of the garden and hope we can save these by regular treatment. One of them is the first thing we planted when we arrived 8 years ago, before we tackled the wasteland around us.

Mathilde's pots

2011-09-18T12:37:00.000+02:00

Remember this a couple of years ago? Mathilde turned up with a clapped out "antigua" pot that needed repair, with the request that mariposas be mosaiced on it. It was a true labour of love as this is not the sort of design that D likes to do. In fact, he finds it less satisfying to do any that are not out of his own head (usually abstract).

Mathilde was so delighted that she turned up with the pot's mate! Again, it needed repair as it was falling to bits. Again it was a labour of love with a rustic theme. Here is the result .....we hope that is the last! But, I have spotted two giant antigua pots in her garden and I just hope she doesn't get ideas!

Cresta de Gallo - mystery plant

2011-09-17T22:50:00.001+02:00

This is in my Spanish neighbour, Mathilde's garden. She calls it Cresta de Gallo - Coxcomb - but in my Mediterranean Garden Plants book (which comes in Latin, English and Spanish), the Cresta de Gallos is a tree with a very different blossom. I saw this plant first in Portugal about 10 years ago. It's very distinctive because of the texture of the flower: solid and like hard velvet. It's a deep magenta and very striking but it's Latin or English name is a mystery.

Erethrina Christa-Galli, the Coral Tree or Cresta de Gallo in my book has a flame red flower, as shown above.....very beautiful.

mosaic lizards

2011-07-11T12:40:00.002+02:00

We found these little mosaic lizards in Ronda. They're sold as fridge magnets, which I love collecting. But D had other ideas ......he drilled two holes in the new sculpture plinth, inserted nails and attached the lizards to them.

Now Yang, our male Siamese, has taken a great dislike to them - whether he thinks they're real and to be chased and divested of their tails (evidence of previous forays with the real thing abound around the house) I do not know. But we found them on the pine chips and replaced them on the plinth. Next morning, they're back on the pine chips......and so on, every day. It's quite funny, isn't it!

Garden sculpture

2011-06-22T20:02:00.001+02:00

It's taken me days to get this up on blogger: and it's touch and go whether it'll get published as our internet connection has decided it doesn't want to play - for hours on end. Then it'll reappear and go like the wind. Also, have had trouble getting pictures posted on the blog.

Well, we finally got the sculpture we'd reserved at Chipiona. D. made a lovely green-tiled plinth for it and it looks very at home on the pine chips.

To the right is the cylindrical pot inspired by Renee Mackintosh's designs.

Petrea (Queen's Wreath)

2011-05-29T12:57:00.000+02:00

Queen's Wreath. I'd never seen this before - it was a present from the Women's Breakfast Group when I gave up the Treasureship after 2 years. The leaves are thick and rough-feeling. It's only been in the ground a month and look at it go!

Egyptian Papyrus. Another plant, given by a friend, which we were able to split into two. It likes its feet very wet so we've reoganised the irrigation to give it a daily soak. The mop heads of grass look fabulous waving in the breeze.

Hibiscus corner. I've shown these before, when they were tiny. They love this spot, south facing behind a wall where their roots can remain cool and they stretch up to the sun - almost all year round.

La Rivera Sculpture

2011-05-04T16:51:00.000+02:00

We have been watching Monty Don's "Gardeners World" on BBC and have admired his stainl.ess steel garden tools. D. has a dream that the s.s. spade will slip through our soil like butter, just like Monty's (fat chance: ours is either concrete or porridge, depending on the weather!) I blogged about our favourite garden centre in Chipiona some time ago, where we'd last seen such indulgent tools, so we set off today and got totally sidetracked at the luscious display of shrubs, trees, flowers and this stunning sculpture. We'd already spent our budget but fell in love with this, so put a deposit on it to collect another time. We are now wandering round the garden trying to find the ideal spot for all our purchases.

We already have magenta, white and golden ice plants, so were delighted to find a deep purple and pale lilac to add to ours, plus a fabulous nemesia (picture another time). What a great day it's been.

Easter Monday dew-sodden garden

2011-04-25T18:05:00.000+02:00

After a few days of constant rain this is what we looked like this morning. Everything has been blooming since January but some stuff, like lantana and the lilies have burgeoned, whilst the nasturutiums are just going over.

I came across this, taken about 4 years ago, when we'd just done the pine chipped central space and before we created paths along the back. How bare it looks.....contrasted with above. This garden has grown without rhyme or reason - we've just put in what we thought would be at home and somehow it's worked. As a friend recently described, it's a cosy, intimate space.

Bird of Paradise and Laburnum

2011-04-02T22:22:00.000+02:00

I blogged about the Strelitzia about 5 years ago when our new shrub gave us one bloom, then three the following year and increasing every year since. Here we are currently. Isn't it gorgeous. The nasturtiums around the palm tree self seed every year. Gonzalo, our critical neighbour, approves of these as the leaves are edible... they really spice up a salad. D. took a notion to have a laburnum. I thought there was no chance of finding one in Spain but our local vivero had 5. They're called lluvia de oro (rain of gold). We look forward to having the beautiful trailing flowers, if not next month, then next May.

Physalis - Cape gooseberry

2011-02-27T09:52:00.000+01:00

Earlier this year we puzzled over some tiny blue and yellow flowrers on a shrub we thought was one of four datura or brugmansia. What a surprise to find these strange objects hanging down recently.

A bit of research revealed that they are Cape gooseberries. Originating in Brazil then sent to South Africa and Australia, they are not commonly seen for sale. I do remember them in Sainsbury's years ago and they were an horrendous price. Said to be great for jam, or just to toss into a fruit or veg salad.

Our shrub is not that abundant to make jam, but we will save seed to start more plants off.

But where did this come from? And then I remembered: about a year ago a friend asked if we'd like a little seedling of Cape gooseberry. As usual, we forgot to label it up and blithely planted it out as a datura. What a lovely surprise to find another fruit in our garden.

January in Spain

2011-01-11T10:22:00.000+01:00

Rain, the grandma of storms and winds and daytime temperatures around 20C. This is the result in the garden - everything burdgeoning and blooming: geraniums, hibiscus, abutilon, hardenbergia and the beautiful succulents.

We're waiting for a cold snap to be able to prune the fruit trees and realise that the abundant new growth could be at risk. There are weeds galore too.

We've both had flu-like symptoms since New Year and have lost our mojo to get out there and get stuck in. I think we'll have to buy in some help to get on top of it.

Citrus trees Fruiting - at last

2010-12-22T16:51:00.001+01:00

All trees put in 5 years ago and only the lemons and grapefruit showed any sign of fruit last year.

But look what's peeping out - 2 oranges which are the juice-giving variety

And one Seville orange - very small - from which marmalade is made.

Not to mention one lone lime.

Now that they're on the move, we expect a good crop of the last three for next year.

Angelo in Italy contacted me through one of the garden websites I belong to, requesting some seeds for the Seville orange. Happily, I was able to send some off this week from a friend's abundant crop. D. has started off seeds also, we we can compare progress.

Datura - and more

2010-10-05T11:35:00.000+02:00

D. grew these datura from seed and we planted them out this year. He has nursed them like babies and built a mesh frame to protect them from the Levante. Here are the results. Angels' trumpets is the common name and we understand that the hanging-down variety are called brugmansia. If I've got this wrong, some of my blogging buddies will let me know.

The pomelos are coming along - they are the pink variety and D loves the juice, squeezed fresh every morning. There are many many more this year than before. (whoops....the picture has disappeared: maybe it'll reappear when posting).

We have lovingly cared for these, thinking they were part of the hibiscus bed, but we were told last week that they are abutilon. I remember these - a peachy variety like a Chinese lantern - from my Cornish garden. We'll be taking many cuttings of this to spread around the garden.

Mini froggies

2010-09-26T18:03:00.000+02:00

inside one of the water butts (click on pic to enlarge). We have three x 1000 water containers and D has just refined the delivery pipes. This one, painted blue to stop the water going mushy, has to have water decanted into it and from there, I fill up 5L bottles to water the pots.

What a surprise to find these little fellahs all lined up, no more than one-and-a- half inches long.

Chameleons - again

2010-09-25T16:41:00.000+02:00

I just had to show you this one. Last week he was dark brown, wandering up from the pine chippings into the buddleia bush. Now he's speckled green and cream to blend in to the dead and new blossoms. This one's very shy and won't stand still for a few minutes, unlike Charlie, who sits like Buddha and is totally unafraid.

piel de sepo

2010-09-12T14:51:00.000+02:00

Thanks to my dear friend near Alicante I discovered this wonderful melon, which tastes like a cross between Honeydew and Galia, piel de sepo (snake skin). I'd never seen them before, nor had I learned how to cut pieces out of a huge melon for small servings rather than prepare the whole thing. How dumb is that!

I was not alone though. D. saw it in the fridge and said "Pammie, why have you bought a melon with a hole in it".

The skin has dark green and cream striations - the more marked the cream lines, the riper it is........so delicious.

Weird weather

2010-08-17T17:02:00.000+02:00

Can you see - 28C on the patio and thunder, lightening and hailstones like peas....in August!

Sorry, what a boring post this is after such a gap but what with repainting the house, inside and out and handling the heat, I don't have the energy for much else. I will confess though I've also devoured the three books by Stieg Larsson about Lisbeth Salander.

Thanks to all of you who continue to pass by, in vain mostly. I'm told by D. to get out there now as after the rain, the plants are glowing.....

Fruits galore

2010-06-29T17:29:00.000+02:00

I've been up to my armpits again in plums, apricots, peaches and nectarines. The figs are on their way and....look.....the grapes are swelling nicely.

There are bags of blanched fruit, fruit in syrup and stewed fruit in the freezer.

Not only this, but much work had to be done inside and outside the house to remedy the damage done following a long wet winter. The inside has been repainted, everything cleaned and polished when put back and now D is starting on the exterior. A retired couple's work is never done.

Clematis Jackmanii

2010-05-25T20:34:00.000+02:00

Couldn't resist showing you this again this year. It's such an intense blue. It's appeared just as its mate, Clematis Cardinal Rouge, is dying back, otherwise I would have shown you both as a blue and purple contrast.

Jacaranda, whoopee

2010-05-25T07:21:00.000+02:00

Not a great pic but at least it shows the blossom. We have waited for this for 4 years and I was beginning to think it would never flower. It's planted alongside the workshop, which is covered in campsis radicans just about to flower, and a palm tree.

It's one of many plants provided by dear friends and it's such a pleasure to walk around and see trees/shrubs/flowers grown from seeds or cuttings provided by friends.

Pine garden bench

2010-04-29T15:26:00.001+02:00

This was a tatty old thing, left out in the rain, and looked very sorry for itself. Look how D has transformed it....a lick of green paint and some tiles on top and, hey presto, it looks like new. And it's unique.

Sizzling succulents.

2010-04-22T08:30:00.001+02:00

An aloe vera and another I don't know the name of have come into flower.....spectacular. These drought-resistant plants do so well here that we decided to buy big cermaic bowls and plant more. This is also the time for ice plants so the garden is a riot of colour at the moment.

Click on pictures for larger view.

Swallows gone

2010-04-09T23:04:00.001+02:00

So has the rain and the vicious Levante wind is here early. Sadly, one swallow stayed alone inside the patio the next day and they vanished. I guess it was a stop over during an unsettled period.

There's always a bright side though - caught a glimpse over 3 days of our chameleon, Charlie, in a palm tree, with legs splayed, eyes googling like mad, waiting for the insects. I wish he'd demolish the large beige, locust-like creatures that have been munching on a lot of new growth.

Swallows passing through?

2010-03-19T09:45:00.003+01:00

Have we acquired lodgers? These two swallows spent the afternoon flying in and out of the patio, twittering loudly and checking out the facilities. They seem to like the perch above the home-made bamboo wind chime and by dusk had settled in for the night.

The cats were mesmerised, both sitting side by side, looking up, not moving. When I grabbed my camera, they abandoned their vigil.

Now the thing is - are we to have lodgers for the summer, and babies, or are they just passing through, enjoying a rest before continuing their journey. Watch this space, as they say.

Andalucian March

2010-03-04T08:13:00.006+01:00

I know I've done a lot of moaning about the weather - and it's still raining, thundering and lightening - when I looked around there was a lot flowering in these warm and wet conditions.

This year, the Bird of Paradise has excelled itself. Starting out with one blossom in year one, three in year two, there were at least a dozen this year.

The lilies went in in the Autumn, as did the hollyhocks grown from seed that are behind them. I wonder if they'll flower this year.

It is too wet to turn the soil in the veg patch, so nothing is in yet....a source of great frustration to Gonzalo next door. By now, his rows and rows of potatoes would be well advanced.

Andalucian Rain

2010-02-27T21:51:00.004+01:00

It's official - the wettest in Andalucia for 13 years; the reservoirs are full enough for the next 3 years and to cap it all we had a hail storm last week the size of peas. We are now in the 3rd month of this and are longing for it to end.

The temperature is abnormal - 24C in the day - so very high humidity is present.

The cats are bored and picking on one another. Yang has no-one to chase as Shanti has disappeared, I hope by choosing a better billet or, better still, gone back to his home.

The rain in in Spain.....

2010-02-18T08:00:00.004+01:00

has fallen mainly in Andalucia - or it seems like it. Not since the 60s when the river Iro broke its bank in the town has there been so much. All the services - fire brigade, civil protection, Red Cross and the police - have been out recently to cope with flooding near us. It even reached the National news. Some poor souls have had mud slides and flood waters right through their property.

Apart from a very few good days when we rushed out to the garden hacking the undergrowth like demented beings, it has been impossible to do anything. Gonzalo next door is fretting as he cannot rotivate and get his potatoes in. He's used what good days we've had to prune our fruit trees, graft pears onto the last old almond tree and graft grapes onto wild vines.

And on the days when there was thunder and lightening, I daren't take a chance with the PC, so have switched off and pulled the plugs. Two hits in a year (despite surge protectors) and the need to replace my PC is too much to ask on our budget.

Last year in February we were pottering about in Tshirts.....what a difference this year.

Money Tree blooming

2010-01-01T16:46:00.003+01:00

Something I've never seen before.....a money tree/jade tree in bloom. We have had a fortnight of constant rain with daytime temperatures of around 20C. Maybe that's made the difference.

A Happy New Year/Feliz AÑo Nuevo to all visitors - I wish you peace, joy and good health.

Happy blogging.

Poinsettias for Christmas

2009-12-17T22:22:00.005+01:00

We're going to try again this year to nurse along our poinsettias in a pot for planting out later.

On the first left is one planted last Spring in our friend's garden. Its protected from the frost against a south facing wall.

The one below is magnificent and in a garden a few minutes walk away. We thought it had died some 4 years ago in a hard winter, but it's sprung into life again and thriving.

Three chameleons

2009-11-05T14:51:00.000+01:00

Has the word gone out that Casa Arcos-Iris has fine dining. We've gone from one to three chameleons in a week. One is very shy so maybe s/he's the new arrival and hasn't found his/her feet yet. We could only get two in one frame but the one in a lower branch is the latest, I think.

Fulsome Charlie, the chameleon

2009-10-22T21:31:00.001+02:00

He's been lurking in the buddliea for a few days, catching all the flies that have appeared since the rains and the resultant humidity. He's all plumped up, so the dining has been good. I saw my first ever proper bumble bee here and waved him away from the buddliea bush as I saw Charlie eyeing him up. If we're not quick enough he makes short work of the butterflies.

Click on pictures for full screen view. Charlie got camera-shy by my second picture and he started climbing up and away with one eye cast backward....fascinating.

Cockateel - garden visitor

2009-10-19T15:24:00.003+02:00

This lovely little bird flew in recently and sat on the jacaranda tree, showing no signs of nervousness. It quickly hopped on my finger when I held it out, transferred to D's head, nibbled his ears and specs then onto his hand.

Surprise, surprise, 3 Siamese showed great interest and we were relieved when neighbour, Gonzalo, agreed to take the bird to his friend's large outdoor aviary.

Obviously, this cockateel had been someone's pet and if we hadn't found him/her a new home, s/he wouldn't have survived for long in the wild. Personally, I don't like to see any bird caged but I guess a large aviary is the next best thing, especially with the company of canaries and budgies.

My PC got struck by lightning recently and I've had to buy a new one. Only Vista in Spanish was available so it's been a stressful time installing programs, bookmarks and contacts and hoping I've not been clicking on the wrong things. The new set-up is very fast, no Firefox crashes and my Spanish has improved daily - fluent in EspaÑol computerese.

Blogger comments

2009-09-23T08:22:00.003+02:00

How very frustrating.....many bloggers I visit must wonder why I've gone quiet. I haven't, it's just that every time I try to comment, Firefox crashes. I've trawled the forums but can find no answer.

Have done all the usuals - disabling add-ons, clearing the cache, but no joy. If any of you have had the same problem, and have solved it, do let me know.

Meanwhile, I'm still visiting you....

Garden 2003-09

2009-09-12T10:41:00.001+02:00

For those who haven't seen this completely unplanned garden on the windy coast of the Costa de la Luz, this slide show will give you an idea

Osteospurmum seedlings for Sue in Milan

2009-08-29T15:37:00.004+02:00

This is an osteospurmum seedling for Sue in Milan, who's discovered loads in her English garden. We have about 4 colours of these plants, plus a spoon petalled one and whenever we've turned our backs, new seedlings pop up and in one season they can grow to a metre in diameter.
This is an old self-seeded clump, much in need of a drop of water......later, when the temperature drops. It's 45C out in the sun at the moment.

Carissa macrocarpa - Natal Plum

2009-08-29T08:55:00.004+02:00

Friend, Yvonne, gave us a tiny cutting of this gorgeous shrub last year and now it's going crazy. The smell of the jasmine-like blossom is divine. One day it will look like this.

There's a lot going on in our semillero. It's like the tryffids getting in there as the Paulownia leaves take up most of the space. But tucked at the back are a few Chirimoya seedlings. This is the custard-apple tree. The fruit is full of shiny large black seeds and we planted them just to see what would happen. I can never get over the miracle of a thriving plant from seed: I think all the loving talk to them must help.

Marula - signs of life

2009-08-29T08:40:00.003+02:00

One tiny little seedling so it's a start. Our friend's seeds are about a month ahead and the seedlings about 12" high.

Marula (Sclerocarya birrea)

2009-08-11T22:15:00.004+02:00

A dear friend has shared her Marula seeds that she ordered from South Africa. They have to sit in damp peat moss for 2 weeks to allow the plugs to soften and be removed and thereafter the seed planted again in the peat moss. Some time down the line, ha ha, it will grow into this...

The distribution of this species throughout Africa has followed the Bantu in their migrations as it's been important in their diet. The leaves are chewed to aid indigestion and heartburn; the bark used to treat malaria and inner bark used to alleviate the pain of scorpion stings and snake bites.

Here are the fruits, which are commonly eaten fresh or used to prepare juice, jelly or an alcoholic drink.

I know very little about the tree apart from what I gleaned from Wikipedia, so would like to hear from anyone who's been successful in propagating from seed and how big the tree has grown.

Mediterranean harvest

2009-08-03T15:16:00.004+02:00

What a lovely haul. The first real grapes from this vine, which was grafted from a wild vine shoot by Gonzalo last year. There are several bunches and they have the most delicious flavour, something like the German wine, Mosel.

Below are the green and red peppers, aubergines and two paraguayos. Alas, the wind blew away the only two baby ones we had this first year of planting the paraguayos tree so I've had to resort to buying some to show you.
I am snowed under with aubergine and have made a great dip, Baba Ghanoush. Here's the recipe.

2 large aubergines (about 700g)
2 garlic cloves, more if you like
half tsp. salt
2 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tbsp. tahini
1 tsp. ground cumin
pinch pepper

Prick the aubergines with fork and grill, turning occasionally until the skin blisters and blackens. When cool, peel off the skin. Drain excess liquid off the aubergine flesh.

Pound the garlic and salt until smooth, transfer to a food process and add the aubergine, lemon juice, tahini, cumin and pepper. Can add yoghurt to make it runnier, but I didn't. Have a taste and add more cumin or garlic, whatever, if you want.

Transfer to bowl, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with chopped parsely or coriander and serve with Arabic flat bread/roti or pitta bread.

A Spanish recipe for aubergine would be to slice the aubergines, dip in a light batter and fry. Drizzle with honey before serving.

Happy eating.

Aztec lily - another chance to see

2009-07-24T07:27:00.002+02:00

I posted about this last year, at the end of September, when it first flowered after planting that Spring. Mathilde, who gave me the bulbs, calls it Fleur de Lys and Titania in Australia supplied the botanical name - Sprekelia Formosissima. It's a glowing clear red and this photo doesn't do it justice.

I read that they're native plants of Mexico, love the full sun in well-drained soil and will flower twice a year. When the bulbs have multiplied I'm going to add more around the inner garden.

Paulownia Tomentosa - The Dragon Tree

2009-07-16T21:11:00.005+02:00

These are our seedlings being nurtured in the "semillero", which we planted 18 months ago and now have 6 of about 5'6" in height.

Also known as the foxglove tree. Such intricate beautiful blooms to be found on this tree.

Here is a fully grown one which is to be found in Kew Gardens, West London.

We bought the seeds from California. It's a great company, which sells bamboo fountains as well, and provides lots of information for the care of your purchases. Here they are

Datura

2009-07-16T20:55:00.005+02:00

This little hairy ball a bit like a horse chestnut is the seed pod, some of which were given to us last autumn. It has grown into this. (Not a good picture I'm sorry, due to the light inside the seed/seedling house and the fabric cladding the structure.
This flower is erect, which apparently makes it a Datura, whereas the pendulous ones are Brugmansia. Both are originally from South America. The Datura is herbaceous and the Brugmansia perennial and woody.

Datura has been used by the Shamans for its hallucinogenic properties and is referred to in his books by Carlos Castenada.

I was apparently incorrect in calling the vivid magenta, yellow and red ones I first saw in Greece Datura - they were all Brugmansia as the flowers hung down. Like these delicate apricot-coloured ones.
And how about this exotic-looking one.

We have about six of the upright white ones, "Angel's Trumpet" and now have the problem of where to put them, especially as the Paulownia have gone mad in their growth and will need planting.

July.....already

2009-07-09T17:51:00.002+02:00

It seems like only yesterday I did my last post on figs. Since then we've survived a brutal heatwave with Levante winds, where the bare minimum got done, and filled up the freezers with apricots and plums. It was lovely to go to friends for dinner last night and get served a stupendous Crumble with the apricots I'd given them a few weeks back.

It's now the turn of green peppers, the bell and cylindrical type, aubergines and tomatoes. I've started harvesting, chopping and frying with garlic and onion for use later in cheese lasagnes and any other recipes I can find.

Figs

2009-06-06T16:22:00.002+02:00

Would you look at the size of these figs! They come from Gonzalo, our next door neighbour, who thinks he's feeding a family of 10. Two evenings ago he came round with a strawberry box full of figs. If they're not eaten within half a day they are unedible, but if we ate all that he gives, we'd never get out of the loo! They really are delicious and very more-ish, but there is a limit, eh.

Ours are growing but they're the late-ripening variety - sometime in the Autumn, I think. We have black and green figs and will welcome their eventual arrival when many other fresh fruits are finished.

Apricots - up to me armpits in 'em.

2009-06-03T14:51:00.005+02:00

It's that time of year again - clearing space in the freezer to make way for bags of blanched fruit. The apricot tree is laden, fruit not quite ripe.....but, look....

Brown rot on the fruit . Que pena - que bloody nuisance. It seems that this and the nectarine and peach trees have to be drenched all over in the Autumn with a fungicide and again just before the blossom opens in the Spring. Some fruit is totally unblemished and are as hard as bullets.
I've harvested one crate, halved them and cut out any brown sides, blanched and bagged. And below is a batch I've simmered with Muscavado sugar to eat tonight with a creamy Greek yoghurt.
The bags are now in the freezer for eating when the fruit season is over. The fruits will make a lovely almond crumble. I'll continue harvesting and freezing the good bits and those that do ripen that are unblemished will be eaten au naturel.

By the weekend, the damsons will be ready and I'll be tied to the kitchen again repeating the whole process. I might even try my hand at jam.

Clematis Jackmanii

2009-05-31T08:51:00.005+02:00

I wrote about the two companions for our Cardinal Rouge clematis that we bought in April: a Clematis Jackmanii and a Sealand Gem. They both took off within a fortnight and while there's no sign of the pinky-apricot of the Sealand Gem, just have a look at the Jackmanii.

What a fab blue.

Levante....again

2009-05-29T08:29:00.003+02:00

Look what the wind's blow in...he's strutting his stuff up and down our unmade road, harvesting the snails as if he hasn't a care in the world. We've had a 75 mph easterly wind for a couple of days and I guess he got lost.

This coast is famous for its wind, hence the centre at Tarifa for wind and kite surfing. It's a buffeting, nerve jangling kind of wind that has everyone snapping at one another if it persists more than 3 or 4 days.

It was so strong yesterday that it brought a nearby power line down and we were without electricity for 7 hours, starting just as we had friends arrive for lunch. Grrr. We are on a well with submersible pump, so no power, no water. The washing up sat there for ages until we got desperate and boiled up bottled water on the gas hob.

The developing apricots, plums and peaches are being blown away and our tender aubergines, peppers and tomatoes under threat. So demoralising.

Hollyhocks

2009-04-30T20:44:00.003+02:00

May Day tomorrow and I've been checking what's changed in the garden. The scrawny bunch of mesumbrianthemum-type plants, which I now know are delaspermum (ice plant), have expanded to a riotous, vibrant bunch. Are't they gorgeous.
And here the hollyhock has started flowering. We had an horrendous storm Sunday morning with roof tiles blown off, the seed house listed to one side and half a tree branch torn off. Miraculously, this hollyhock was unscathed.

Of the two paraguayos trees we put in last autumn, one is bearing two fruits......well, it's a start - one each if they develop into that so delicious doughnut-shaped peach.

Where did the sweet peas go?

2009-04-25T06:44:00.003+02:00

My picture disappeared when I published the previous post. I really shouldn't twiddle with the layout on this blog as it plays havoc with the posting. All right, they're a bit sparse at the moment, but they are our first and we are over the moon.

Garden maturing

2009-04-25T06:13:00.006+02:00

Last year, Gonzalo grafted a productive vine onto wild rootstock and this year D's dream might come true - lounging under the pergola and reaching up to pick a bunch of grapes.

The strelitzia below suffered after a cold snap in December and instead of blooming on St. Valentine's Day, here is a lone Bird of Paradise with maybe two more on the go.

This is the first year the lemon tree has given us anything in 4 years and we have yet to see what they taste like. We are surrounded by lemon trees and our neighbours give them away by their bags' full.

I've long admired the sweet peas of Yolanda in Holland. (Fight your way through the many visitors to her wonderful blog HERE ) .Some kind friends gave us seeds last year and D nursed them like babies. Here are the first results - the smell is heavenly.

And finally, the Norfolk Island pine. It was no bigger than the top of the bottle tree whimsy on the left of the picture and this is the result 5 years later.

Easter garden in southern Spain

2009-04-09T16:00:00.006+02:00

All the hard work has paid off and we feel reasonably on top of things. That oh-so English cottage garden plant, Hollyhock, that has sat in its spot for 2 years, has finally decided to grow and flower. In between the palm and the cypress along the back wall.
And here is a closer view. When she's in all her glory, I'll post another. No idea yet of the colour of the blooms.

And, finally, we've been able to find clematis companions for our Cardinal Rouge variety (on the left). Jackmanii (a deep purple) and Sealand Gem (a pinky apricot).
As usual, click on the picture for a better view.

April abundance

2009-04-06T17:19:00.008+02:00

The last of the cauliflowers, just big enough for one each and of the most intense flavour. I've never grown broad beans before and was pleased with this haul, although of different sizes. I shall serve these with a Romesco sauce (a Spanish sauce of tomato, garlic, ground almonds and hazelnuts, breadcrumbs).

I worried that I'd hacked this solanum around too indiscriminately, but would you look at those flowers. Just gorgeous.
I call these mesumbrianthemums but I think they have another name. The red is arresting, just like the bright magenta and a golden yellow elsewhere in the garden.

April/May is a wonderful time for gardeners in southern Spain; temperature around 24C today. By June and July things begin to wilt.

Here's is D's Greek amphora urn, newly grouted, with the copper mirror snaking up the side giving a great art-deco look.
And, finally, here's Yang, posing for me in mid-wash. How he likes to check on my doings as I ramble round the garden.

A Marriage of cultures

2009-03-25T08:47:00.002+01:00

I've spent hours trying to figure out how to do videos on here and I hope this works....here goes.

A wonderful marriage of Irish and Spanish from Riverdance.

Chillies

2009-03-04T18:08:00.007+01:00

Is this what it's going to take to fire me up, get me out of the doldrums and blogging again. Very fitting if it is - something firy, piquante and tasty in the shape of the South Devon Chilli Farm. There's not a chilli to be seen in this corner of Spain. There's cayenne pepper galore and jars of minced chilli but there's nothing like growing and picking your own. Here's the website where I found a wonderful selection, not only of chillies but chocolate, pickles and jams
http://www.southdevonchillifarm.co.uk/index.php And they post to Europe.

So I ordered the starter pack and it came with strange little discs of Jiffy-7 plugs that had to be hydrated. Ideal for tomatoes as well and as I kept some seeds from Gonzalo's tomatoes last year, we'll give it a whirl. We'll be ordering more of the plugs as we've never seen them in this area. They're probably old news to you seasoned gardeners out there, but these funny little dun-coloured discs are a novelty to us.

The net-covered greenhouse I wrote about last year has been worth the effort because all the succulents and cacti were protected during an extremely cold snap; the sweat peas have taken, paulownia, brugmansia seeds and natal peach are all showing signs of life......yippee - Spring has sprung.

La Barossa Beach, New Year's Day, 2009.

2009-01-01T15:44:00.005+01:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL

May the coming year be a good one for you, your families, pets and gardens.

Season's Greetings

2008-12-23T18:27:00.003+01:00

to all who may pass by this Christmas. Thank you to everyone who visited and may 2009 be a happy blogging, peaceful, joyful year for you all.

(Card with thanks to corporate Christmas cards)

Yang's gong

2008-12-23T00:26:00.005+01:00

This lovely Japanese windchime gong has been hanging on the wall for a couple of years. Yang has recently noticed that it makes a good sound when he pats the swinging wood. So now, instead of knocking things off shelves to attract our attention when he wants to go out, he sounds the gong...

What did I say...? Dogs have owners: cats have staff!

Winter Solstice greetings.

2008-12-21T12:15:00.015+01:00

OK, I can't stay away, especially on a day like today - blue sky, 17C on the patio and lots blooming in the garden as if it were Spring.

Isn't that a sight for sore eyes.

Farewell to Dermy.

2008-12-09T15:42:00.011+01:00

EL SUPREMO. Sad to say, Dermy lost his battle with a heart complaint this week. He was nearly 20, was a much-travelled cat and a real character. Our friends, his owners, have been at the vets almost daily for the last few months and Dermy, due to their t.l.c., kept rallying round. It was not to be though, he was just too tired.

Enjoying an English springtime last year.
Fare thee well Dermy. You have given us a lot of pleasure in the short time we've known you and you will always be in our hearts.

November doings

2008-11-18T16:44:00.006+01:00

I've had to creep back over here as there's so much going on. Some have asked for an update on the Greek urn mosaic....here it is. Slow going but getting there. We were trying to figure out how to do the rim and pourer without spoiling the shape and we may have to grout and paint. More news and pics when it's finished.

There's a lot blooming in the garden after the heavy rains: lantana, daisies and osteospurmum going mad, lilies coming up again, also dame de noche, portalacas and I see the Bird of Paradise is putting out its buds. We spent 12 hours between us weeding last week and, boy, do my knees know it.

Colin at blog Mediterranean Garden Spain was mentioning how impossible it is in Spain to have a greenhouse: they get too hot. Usually, oceans of ugly plastic can be seen. I can't say that this looks much better, but we've made use of an old metallic car port, sunk it in the ground and clad it in green mesh to let in light and rain. It will provide some shade and protection from the wind for our seeds and cuttings . We're cossetting a banana plant recently give to us by friends.

On the right hand side we are planting some shrubs just to break up the eye line. The snails love climbing up it, so it makes it easy to pick them off and feed them to the ducks, hens and turkeys next door.

Gonzalo was not happy with our largely-empty veg plot so leapt over the fence as usual with some goodies from his favourite nursery - over 200 fledgling onions, lettuce, more broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower. Not content with that, he appeared later with broad beans, then beetroot seeds. We have two small strips bare now ready for tomatoes and runner beans next year. The whole plot has been rotivated twice and fed with rotted cow and horse manure. Honestly, you'd think we were feeding the whole of Chiclana so we've warned our friends to be ready for the surplus produce

The extra guttering went up about 10 days ago to fill our 4th 1000 litre tank and, waddyaknow.....no rain since then.

Five years on....

2008-10-19T09:15:00.004+02:00

For anyone stumbling across this blog and wanting a short cut to view what happened in a neglected orchard and a new house surrounded by builders' rubble, have a look here

There are many wonderful gardens to see out there in blogland. I particularly like the English ones as well as Yolanda's in Holland, Titania's exotic one in Australia, Nicole's in the Caribbean, Green Thumb's in India and it's fun and interesting to see what people in other parts of Spain are doing and what works for them. (See sidebar for links).

It has been a real battle against the hot Levante winds, claggy soil , summer droughts and winter deluges. We have learned what works in this south west corner of Spain and with the help of Gonzalo and Mathilde, our Spanish neighbours (who incidentally think we're mad when we plant non-edibles) have been able to provide ourselves with delicious veg and fruit. There are several places now to just sit and be and watch the unusual, for us, wildlife and birds...the balletic storks, the Spring returning hoopoes, chameleons and little green frogs.

Just when I think we're done and there's nothing new to say, el jefe will come up with a new project and our enthusiasm gets renewed. It's been salutary having a look back at the photographic record and creating a web album. I hope you enjoy it.

Grandmother of all storms

2008-10-17T16:58:00.004+02:00

A week ago, in the early hours, the east wind got up like a hurricane, and the rain was a deluge. The sky was lit up like a million flashbulbs for about 3 hours and it looked spectacular. 3 inches of rain fell in those hours; 750 litres poured into one of our depositos and half a tree came down.
Here is el jefe with his chain saw tidying it up. We got off lightly. Others we know were flooded out and all we had was a pooling of water and rubbish by the front gate (below).

It is very odd: when we installed a wood burning stove last autumn, that winter was too warm to light it (it is so efficient); we bought a super-duper portable air conditioner and it's been too cool to use it. So blame us for the excessive rain - we had a 25 metre tube well sunk to give us enough for the fruit trees and veg next year.....Parkinson's law strikes yet again.

Sprekelia formosissima

2008-09-30T20:23:00.004+02:00

That's what it is - thanks to Titania, here who has the most amazing exotic plants in her Australian garden. Aztec lily or Jacobean lily are its common names and in northern Europe it's usual to have them as a house plant.

Mystery plant from Mathilde

2008-09-29T20:16:00.004+02:00

I've popped back over because this appeared suddenly in a little patch under the trellis. Mathilde gave me 3 or 4 bulbs last year, saying they were "Fleur de Lys". They are a vivid scarlet, really beautiful, but I can find nothing in any directory under Mathilde's name for them.

However, it does look like

"Daylily" or " Day Lilies"
Latin name: Hemerocallis 'Autumn Red'

The colour is different but the leaves are the same. It's a stunning little plant and I'm off shortly to find out more about it.

But not before I tell you about a comical week having a tube well drilled. Diego, the water diviner and driller, came and pointed out the spot and said about 25 metres down....sure enough it was. Then the plumber with a long submersible pump with cables and tubes; a bricklayer next to make good all around the well with a nice square chamber and a little caseta to house the control unit and keep it weather prooof. We await the electrician to couple all this up but we've had wind and rain and no-one works in those conditions. All this conducted in the incomprehensible local Spanish, translated by neighbour Gonzalo in his slower, clearer Spanish while he wanted to do hands on work in all the trades. It has been an exhausting and stressful week as we rushed around buying materials.....I'm sure we understood only half of what we've been told. We only hope the whole thing works, even though with the amount of rain we've had lately we're unlikely to need it until next summer.

A change of Direction

2008-09-13T21:31:00.003+02:00

It seems I’m not the only one thinking of winding up their gardening blog: I’ve read of two or three others intending to do the same thing. I’ve sometimes felt a bit restricted when I’ve written about other things , as if they shouldn’t be there. So after 5 years of gardening blogging, I’m about to diversify. The main gardening projects we’d planned have been finished: it's been a hard slog creating a beautiful area out of a wilderness and there is always more to do.

I may be back here now and again and I will certainly be visiting my blogging buddies from time to time. But for now it’s Adios from here and on to pastures new to ramble on about Everything and Nothing, as the fancy takes me. See you there…..maybe.

Long time gone

2008-09-10T21:44:00.004+02:00

Returned from UK after my niece's wedding a week ago to find a water crisis in the area. All of us are outside the town, drawing water pumped from our wells and they're all dangerously low. Our friends some 10 kms. away in the hills just had a muddy splodge at the bottom and as they return to Spain from their summer visit to Wales this week, it was all hands on deck to get something improvised for them. They had a disused swimming pool so we all pitched in, scraping, cleaning and mopping the bottom, had 10,000L delivered and used a huge black awning to cover it. Meanwhile, back at our casa we were coming to the end of our rainwater depositos that we use for the garden. Here they are - 3 x 500L and 1 x 300L and the lone one of 500L waiting for new guttering down that side of the house.

We have three corners of the roof that act as a funnel for rain and have spotted some robust plastic water containers in a DIY store with lids and taps, about 350L capacity. Only 35€, so we'll give those a go too. All our shower and washing up water is being recycled but the laundry-to-do is in danger of walking out of the basket on its own......it will have to wait.

Apologies to all my blogging buddies for my silence on your blogs. The phone connection disappeared last week and we waited almost 5 days for the repair. All those little jobs that get put off in favour of getting on line were completed, plus the cleaning up of old files and pictures on the PC and generally streamlining stuff ready for when we were back on line again.

So, I'm gradually catching up and look forward to seeing what you've all been up to.....

Heading for the English rain....

2008-08-26T15:37:00.002+02:00

I've not had a lot to say the past couple of weeks and I'll have even less over the next week as I'm off to UK tomorrow for a wedding.....that is, if I can wrestle my case away from Yin and Yang. Like most pets, they know something's up when the cases come out. I thought I 'd hide mine under the bed, but when I got it out to finish packing, there was Yin staking her claim - her new favourite sleeping place.

Adios hasta la proxima......

Yang in a hammock

2008-08-12T08:25:00.003+02:00

Can you see him? The silhouette of his tail is on the right. We have an awning halfway over the pergola and he's got himself comfy in it to make a kind of hammock. He's got shade up there from the pink trumpet vine and solanum - and company as we think that's where the chameleons walk about, judging by the droppings.

The awning has been a blessing because we've learned that even sun-loving plants like geraniums need a respite, so most of the pots have been brought over and we're still able to water them with our rainwater reserves in the three depositos. Like Gintoino over in Portugal, most of our plants are waiting for the Sept/Oct rains.....not long now. That's why it's such a pleasure visiting Cheryl in Kent, Yolanda in Holland and D in Devon to get my fix of lush greenery.

DERMOT (DERMY) THE BURMAN

2008-08-09T16:59:00.005+02:00

It's official - Dermy has given his seal of approval. He is 20 years old and has been very ill lately. Now he seems to be on the mend and has been out investigating his new pot.

He is the shoutiest cat I've ever met, and here he is giving full voice
That was a bit exhausting, so he'll just have a lie down near his new property.

What a lovely picture this makes.....

SNAZZY SCARECROW.

2008-08-08T15:43:00.002+02:00

We usually see CDs strung along veg and fruit plots in our Spanish neighbours' gardens and this is the first scarecrow (espantapájaros) we've ever seen. He's guarding the vine and listing ever more to the right as time goes on. We keep forgetting he's a scarecrow and call out "hola, buenas dias) whenever we pass before giggling at our mistake.

For the fig lovers

2008-08-01T17:15:00.000+02:00

Gonzalo insisted we had some of his figs and here they are.... they put our little black ones to shame. Each tastes slightly different. I sent el jefe round with a small bowl but noone can get out of Gonzalo's garden without a sackful of something. Luckily, I was able to offload some to our friends who helped with the horse manure gathering - figs, tomatoes (huge ones) green peppers and beautiful purple aubergines.

Where did July go?

2008-08-01T08:42:00.002+02:00

It's true, the older I get, the more time whooshes by. This is echoed by other garden bloggers who are seeing signs of Autumn already, literally and metaphorically.

Yesterday we collected our horse manure. We thought we'd have to do a lot of shovelling up and got suitably dressed with our Cornish shovels but, no, it was all bagged so today we have to release it to rot down. I don't think it'll take long in this heat and we can then get on with creating our raised vegetable beds.

Thanks to D, here
I've added a Playlist widget to listen to some of my favourite music while I blog. Turn up the volume and enjoy.....

I've also taken a leaf out of other bloggers' design and used the new layout thingy to introduce gardening buddies' blogs on the right sidebar. Further down is an Affinity List (to borrow a term from Time Goes By) of other interesting sites.

I can hardly keep up with all the bells and whistles that technology has to offer. I do struggle with it but it's been a change from "garden-keeping" to fiddling around further customising this blog. I've only just caught up with Google Reader to alert me to new posts on favourite blogs
- late developer or what.

Up the Garden Path

2008-07-28T17:50:00.005+02:00

Yes, I misled you - not everything here is wilting. My brain must have turned to porridge in the heat to have missed these sun-loving plants.

The pink trumpet vine, which will flower now until the end of the year. Their blossoms smell faintly of vanilla.Campsis radicans, which sends out little suckers and clings to wood and brick. Both plants are very invasive and we have to get the machete out at times...well, at least the secateurs , although we feel as if we're in a jungle when these two are on the move.
These lovely portalacas probably need thinning out. Last year it was one mass of flowers.
Finally, the natural products for pest control have arrived. The supplier had gone on holiday and the distributor was also out of the country. Everything in pots got doused in Neem spray this morning. Let's see if we banish the white fly, mildew and geranium moth.
We've been enjoying a westerly breeze from the Atlantic for the last few days, which has made us a bit more alert, so much so that I noticed an abundance of our black figs. This is the first year that we can count on more than one hand the number produced. I used to treat myself to these in UK when they arrived in their individually-packed paper doilee at vast expense. It's a real buzz now to go and pick my own.

Levante is late this year

2008-07-21T14:55:00.003+02:00

No pictures today as everything is wilting, including me, and all I seem to be doing in the garden is clearing up the mess from the solanum and pink trumpet vine: in fact, it's shedding so fast it's like Autumn. The pears, of which there was an abundance but mostly inedible, spread a yellow carpet on the central bed and I collected a bucketful each time to put on the compost.

We're enjoying a respite from a few days of hot Levante wind before it returns later in the week. Yin hid in the wardrobe for days and Yang ....well, who knows: he only appeared for his grub.

Our little town and separate beach holiday resort is bursting with "emmets" (a Cornish word for tourists from up country)....this means no cash in the ATMs, barking mad city drivers on the road and long queues in the shops. All resources are under strain, the local shopkeepers getting tired and teazy and higher prices on most consumables. Oh, and my neem oil hasn't arrived and I can't make contact with the supplier!

Roll on Autumn!

Trees - Bead Tree and Paulownia.

2008-07-11T14:08:00.006+02:00

This is a one-year old sapling of a Bean Tree, also known as Persian Lilac or Chinaberry tree. It was given to us by a friend last year and I'm delighted to learn that it's also known as Nim in India (Green Thumb will correct me if I'm wrong).

Now the strange thing is I've been taking an interest in Neem oil for a few years but haven't been able to find it until recently. It's an effective natural insecticide and fungicide against the geranium moth, aphids, mealy bug, spider mite, botrytis and mildew. So I'm eagerly awaiting the arrival of my order from northern Spain and will report on its effectiveness.

And this is the mother tree from whence our sapling came, grown from seed. It has pinky-bluey flowers in the Spring. Beautiful, eh.

Now the central seedling below is a Paulownia, seeds ordered from UK, and took around 4 months to germinate. We have around 6 and they are being nursed like babies. They are very fast growing, have beautiful blue flowers and huge leaves and are prized by wood carvers. In Japan, so I read, one is planted on the birth of a daughter and cut down later to make her wedding chest.

Here she is in all her glory, with thanks to a website for the picture.
Finally, here is my friends' "cork" tree which is really a yucca. There's been a lot of new growth in their absence and they haven't got round to adding corks to the new spikes, but you get the idea. It looked very cute when all the spines were capped but I guess they need to do a bit more imbibing before they can complete this one!

Name this plant

2008-07-03T15:36:00.006+02:00

We're stumped again. I saw this in Yvonne's garden nestling against several other plants and admired it. She didn't know its name. So when I saw one at the garden centre yesterday and it was labelled Clerondendron, I bought it and looked forward to enlightening Yvonne.

Blow me, it's in none of the books, no information on the various plant identifying websites, nor Google......so, please, if anyone knows the name, let me know. Maybe Clerondendron is the Spanish name.

P.S. Thanks everyone for your replies. It is Clerodendrum Thomsonae.

2008-07-03T07:59:00.002+02:00

We went north of Cadiz (near Chipiona) yesterday to look for a paraguayos tree and hostas for the friends who drove us. We were resolved to buy nothing else! Of course, that didn't happen and we staggered out with everything but what we came for.

Here is a little slide show. We stepped into an Aladin's cave of ceramics, textiles, furniture, sculpture, tableware, candles.....then we tackled the plants. One section felt like the tropics so we had to repair to their bar/cafe for refrescos.

2008-06-30T14:29:00.007+02:00

I visited my friend, Yvonne's garden last week and many of hers are blooming nicely while ours seem to have gone dormant. She has many plants clustered together - as, for example, the two different lantanas and an hibiscus in the middle. I guess they're providing protection for the roots. The hibiscus here is the size of a small dinner plate.

I love this succulent, don't know its Latin name but it's known as Desert Rose....beautiful and I want one. Y. has promised me one of its babies and I will swap my incense plant with her.

Another Desert Rose set amongst rocks.

And this lethal-looking cactus type is beautiful, but dangerous. Click on to see the lovely red leaf edges and the very sharp tips. Other friends have something similar and bigger and found a use for all their wine corks by fixing them on the sharp tips. Must take a pic when I next visit and let you see. They call it "the cork tree"!

2008-06-22T14:33:00.003+02:00

32c in the shade....how to keep cool. Just spread out on your back on the cool tiles and let the air get at your armpits and groins! Me, I'm taking Yolanda's advice and sitting with my feet in a bowl of cold water!

2008-06-17T08:09:00.002+02:00

Titania in Australia here
has tagged me to write 6 random facts about myself. La Gringa in Honduras got me on this a couple of years ago, so this one will be different - simpler:

I love Latin American dancing and I just wish my old knees would allow me to learn the salsa.
My favourite occupation is flopping out with a good book
I miss Springtime in England so visit English gardening blogs instead
My little weakness is pastries, but they don't like me
I still miss my dog, Sheba, who died 12 years ago.
I keep a journal of memorable sayings, poems, extracts from books.

So, don't worry compadres, I'll not single anyone out for tagging....I'll leave that up to you.

On the garden front, we're harvesting our cherry tomatoes and damsons...delish. But all the apricots, nectarines and peaches have been got at by a little black beetle and I'm doing what I can to salvage edible bits.

It's been very hot for June and many of the plants are wilting, while others are revelling in it, unlike me as I feel like a beached whale!

2008-06-14T08:21:00.002+02:00

ASPERGILLUS.

Many of you may know about the dangers of Aspergillus but I'm posting this to raise awareness.

I came across the condition in the West Country in the 1970s with a patient who had farmer's lung from mouldy hay. I understand that leaves saved in black plastic bags for later mulching could pose the same risks.

"Gardeners have been warned about a mould, called Aspergillus, that grows on compost and decaying wood following the death of a middle-aged man.

He developed severe breathing problems after working with rotting wood and plant mulch in his garden.

Medical journal The Lancet reported that the man, aged 47, died despite hospital anti-fungal treatment.

An expert said a dust-mask was a good idea when moving large quantities of mouldy bark chippings or compost.

This should not be a problem for your average small-scale gardener who is using small quantities of compost at one time
Professor David Denning
University of Manchester

The Aspergillus mould is very common in UK gardens and is better known as an allergy trigger, but serious illness linked to it remains relatively rare.

Lung inflammation

The case of the Buckinghamshire man dates from May 2007, when he arrived at hospital with worsening shortness of breath, a fever and muscle pain.

The results of the X-ray meant that doctors at first thought that pneumonia was the problem and gave him antibiotics.

These had no effect and tests suggested the inflammation in his lungs was getting more severe.

By now he had been transferred to the intensive care unit, but even this made no difference, and he was transferred to a bigger hospital for a last-ditch treatment to get oxygen into his body.

At this point, the laboratory found Aspergillus in two samples and talking to his partner revealed that the day before symptoms started he had been engulfed by clouds of dust while he shifted rotting tree and plant compost.

Unfortunately, although anti-fungal treatments were then given, he died a few days later.

The speed of his decline surprised doctors as, apart from smoking and a job as a welder, he seemed to be in good health.

Alerting doctors

David Denning, of the University of Manchester, said that while Aspergillus itself could be found in many gardens, it would generally be dangerous only if disturbed in large quantities and the resulting dust inhaled.

He said: "This should not be a problem for your average small-scale gardener who is using small quantities of compost at one time.

"However, if you are moving it in very large amounts, then perhaps wearing a face-mask would be advisable."

Prof Denning said that the key to recovery in severe cases was rapid identification of the problem, and prompt anti-fungal therapy, as many doctors would not see any cases of "aspillergosis" in their career, and try antibiotics first.

He said: "This article aims to alert doctors that this may be a possibility when patients present with these symptoms."

Story from BBC NEWS:

2008-06-08T19:37:00.002+02:00

WATER CRISIS IN SPAIN.

After reading about the shortage in northern Spain, so much so that water had to be brought from France by container ship to Barcelona, and the crises on the Costas threatening the ban on water for swimming pools, we jumped at the chance for two more 1000 litre water containers.

We had to wrestle them off the back of a trailer and dismantle the metal cages so's we could manoevre these big tanks into position at the back of the green shed and the back of the house. The containers had to be rolled and lifted - what a lark for the two of us, who had to stop for frequent rests. The cats looked on in amusement.

We had to paint over the surfaces then so that the water didn't go mildewy and then lift the containers back into the metal cage mounted on pallets. Pheww. Some more guttering has to be erected at the back of the house now, and the tube modified at the back of the shed. We probably won't have any significant rainfall until October but it's a comforting feeling that we will eventually have 5000L of rainwater.

2008-05-28T10:30:00.005+02:00

MOSAIC URN.

This is the latest project that D has started and it's going to take some time. The tiles for the black swirls are tiny and he needs hundreds of them.

Here is the start of it, with the larger tiles in copper mirror in a single fluid line on either side of the urn. To break up the black swirls, we decided some ordinary mirror tiles will accentuate the design.
I'll do some updates as this progresses.

Meanwhile, it's gung-ho in the garden again as we've had regular rain and sun. The black fly have appeared in their hordes and settled on the apricot and nectarine tree trunks. Now if only I could encourage the chameleons over there they could have a banquet - a real good blow out, so much so they'd probably fall off the tree!

2008-05-26T23:25:00.003+02:00

PALM TREE.

As promised, here is a good example of the artistry that goes into the trunks of palm trees. This one is about 8M high in the courtyard of a hotel where we go quizzing every fortnight.

It looks to me as if it's hand-sanded when the coir is removed from the grooves. I wonder if the age of the tree can be deduced from the rows of grooves, rather like the rings in other tree trunks.

2008-05-22T14:06:00.006+02:00

PLANT IDENTIFICATION - help please.

This deep red leafed plant says "Euphorb Cotin" on the pot with no other instructions. Cannot find it anywhere. Euphorbias all look like succulents or cacti. This has a slender stem.

This is a close up of the leaves, which fan out into a kind of coronet, rather like poinsettia and minute cream flower in the middle.

Any ideas anyone. Click on pics for close-ups.

2008-05-21T17:29:00.005+02:00

VOLCANIC GRAVEL.

We planted a palm tree 5 years ago in a block surround raised bed. The palms need regular trimming and the more you trim, the higher they grow.

This is the same tree last October and see how the osteospurmum was getting squashed and tatty.
Here's the palm a year before.

Recently we dug out the osteospurmum, removed the blocks and gave the palm a real good trim to properly reveal the patterns in the trunk. Today we placed the volcanic gravel round its base. It's supposed to retain moisture and provide nutrients, so most of the herbs grown in pots are now round the palm.....let's see how they do.

Caring for the palm tree trunks is a work of art here. When the exposed wood is mature enough it's trimmed back further, all the fibrous matter is dug out and the trunk sanded down to provide a smooth finish. They look really beautiful and I will look around the area and find a good example and post a picture here.

2008-05-20T08:45:00.002+02:00

CAT MOSAIC POT.

Here is the recently-finished pot for our friend - a real girlie-girl, hence the pinks, lavendar and blue colours. The grout was a bit of a problem so in keeping with the colour theme, we used white with a blue dye. El jefe prefers doing abstract designs and found the cat extremely difficult. I've looked at many mosaics featuring animals and although they are good representations of the animal, it seems difficult to capture their individuality.

This pot is dedicated to Dermot (Dermy) a Burman, who has a shout like no other. He's getting old now and weak on his back legs but he lives in the lap of luxury with his own room, all his toys around him, steps up to the bed and we all hope he lives to an ever riper old age.....he is such a character.

VIVA DERMY.

2008-05-16T19:47:00.005+02:00

BOLD LITTLE FROGGIE....

We'd rolled up the awning to give the patio plants a shower after the dusty wind (didn't do a good job by the look of it) and I went out later to have a chat with the bourganvillea. Look what I found sitting on a stephanotis leaf. Both plants are winding themselves around a bamboo pole.

Here he is in context
and again.....
We've had some lovely showers today and all the flowers, fruit and veg are standing up straight.

2008-05-14T15:33:00.001+02:00

Would you believe it - I've not only got a handle on the date, but I'm a day
early for Garden Bloggers Bloom Day. There's so much blooming at the moment, I thought I'd do a slide show for you. Enjoy.....

2008-05-10T18:59:00.004+02:00

HOOPOE.

What a thrill.....I was just on my way out, early morning shopping in the car, and this little chap/ess was strutting along the unmade road at the bottom of the lane. I didn't dare get out of the car in case s/he vanished so got off a couple of quick snaps. So sorry, the quality is poor but you get the idea of this beautiful bird with the funny little crest on top.

The chameleon made an appearance too this week, plus little green frogs, lizards and centipedes. The snails are ever present, so the ducks can have a daily banquet and rush to the fence when they hear my voice. It doesn't seem to deter them that I'm speaking in English! Food is food, right!

There's not much going on in our garden that might be of interest to others, hence the silence here for a while. It's one long round of watering, weeding, dead heading and trimming up the palms.

El jefe has started his new mosaic work, about which I'll post when it's further along.

2008-04-30T20:16:00.002+02:00

LUSCIOUS LILIES - Zantedeschia elliottiana.

We couldn't resist these when we saw them - yellow with a coppery exterior and rim, with those wonderful mottled leaves. I hope they like their new home in a giant yellow ceramic pot by the long pergola, close by where we can enjoy them, fuss over them and have a chat!

2008-04-25T07:00:00.003+02:00

GUERILLA GARDENING.

I came across an article in the Guardian this morning which reminded me of a post by Sue at the Balcony Garden in Milan: all about people who go gardening in the small hours to beautify public spaces. Sometimes, ironically, they face prosecution, as in Reading borough where a public space was cleared of needles, broken glass and rubbish, flowers and shrubs planted and the Council have tried to prosecute the "guilty ones" under Health and Safety Rules. (What a mad world we live in).
Anyway, here the link to more information about these unstoppable "renegades" .....
http://www.guerrillagardening.org/

2008-04-22T15:59:00.008+02:00

Try as I might, I could not get an angle to eliminate the shadow, which obscures some of the wording. Here it is: To forget how to dig the earth and to tend the soil is to forget ourselves.

This is the main reason we chose this model: that and the lion.

And this is where it sits - on top of the mosaiced pot. I really don't know why we wanted this. Neither of us wears watches and are not governed by time but it just seems in keeping with this very rustic garden.

As well as not knowing the time, we rarely know the date so I always miss the Bloggers Bloom day in the middle of the month. So here's my little April 22nd treat - marvellously dazzling colours of just two of the plants at the moment.

2008-04-20T12:03:00.002+02:00

Thunder, Lightening AND Hailstones...

What a racket as they thundered down on the terracotta roof and onto the tiled patio. My log box is outside the kitchen door and as they pounded on that, it sounded like a roll of drums out there. Hailstones the size of peas - whatever next in April. Here is a picture through the "rejas", the wrought iron railings which are traditional on many Spanish houses.

I think this is called "goto frio" in Spanish, not an unusual occurrence in late April/May.
I hope our poor little tomatoes and new bourganvillea are not traumatised.

2008-04-19T17:55:00.003+02:00

ooops, I spoke too soon. The wind and rain came back with a vengeance and coincided with the arrival of a brass sundial we'd ordered from UK. Since then, not enough sun at solar noon to get it calibrated properly and properly installed. It's a real beauty and I will post about it as soon as.

"Mustn't grumble" (a favourite English cliche, after folk have a good long grumble!)....the onions, peppers and tomatoes in the veg patch are grateful for the rain.

Costa de la Luz Gardening

blooming December

Tree diseases - very worrying

SPECIES AT RISK

Sundial mosaic instead of Palm tree.

Red palm weevil saga

Look - no palm

Red Palm Weevil

Mathilde's pots

Cresta de Gallo - mystery plant

mosaic lizards

Garden sculpture

Petrea (Queen's Wreath)

La Rivera Sculpture

Easter Monday dew-sodden garden

Bird of Paradise and Laburnum

Physalis - Cape gooseberry

January in Spain

Citrus trees Fruiting - at last

Datura - and more

Mini froggies

Chameleons - again

piel de sepo

Weird weather

Fruits galore

Clematis Jackmanii

Jacaranda, whoopee

Pine garden bench

Sizzling succulents.

Swallows gone

Swallows passing through?

Andalucian March

Andalucian Rain

The rain in in Spain.....

Money Tree blooming

Poinsettias for Christmas

Three chameleons

Fulsome Charlie, the chameleon

Cockateel - garden visitor

Blogger comments

Garden 2003-09

Osteospurmum seedlings for Sue in Milan

Carissa macrocarpa - Natal Plum

Marula - signs of life

Marula (Sclerocarya birrea)

Mediterranean harvest

Aztec lily - another chance to see

Paulownia Tomentosa - The Dragon Tree

Datura

July.....already

Figs

Apricots - up to me armpits in 'em.

Clematis Jackmanii

Levante....again

Hollyhocks

Where did the sweet peas go?

Garden maturing

Easter garden in southern Spain

April abundance

A Marriage of cultures

Chillies

La Barossa Beach, New Year's Day, 2009.

Season's Greetings

Yang's gong

Winter Solstice greetings.

Farewell to Dermy.

November doings

Five years on....

Grandmother of all storms

Sprekelia formosissima

Mystery plant from Mathilde

"Daylily" or " Day Lilies" Latin name: Hemerocallis 'Autumn Red'

A change of Direction

Long time gone

Heading for the English rain....

Yang in a hammock

DERMOT (DERMY) THE BURMAN

SNAZZY SCARECROW.

For the fig lovers

Where did July go?

"Daylily" or " Day Lilies"
Latin name: Hemerocallis 'Autumn Red'