(Via Snappy's Gardens Blog)

Posted by admin to herb garden, house mouse, kitchen garden, lavender, strawberrys on 2008-02-04, 10:59:00

The house mouse today grabbing some birdseed.I was stood outside today and he still ran backwards and forwards. Under the Stone paver three smooth grooves showed his favourite routes onto the border. He is a Yorkshire mining mouse emerging from clay soil under the slabs.
I went shopping today thinking of log roll for the right hand border to raise the soil level and keep it in the border, and not on the pavers.
I could not believe how expensive it would have been to buy 22.5 feet of logroll!
I left Focus with two lavender plants for £5....
Next stop was Wilkos. I bought a rolled up green lawn edging, because it was nine metres long, more than enough for the 22.5 feet I needed to edge the border. I thought it could be hammered into the soil. I bought a cute garden sign, and three packets of Strawberry plants.
I spent late afternoon putting in the green edging around the right hand border now like a backwards C shape. I planted the newly started Herb garden with the Lavender, Rosemary, and three heirloom (as they were here before) Parsley plants. I ordered more seeds last night for growing a variety of Kitchen herbs for cooking.
I lastly planted eight Strawberry plants into pots temporarily. One packet only had two plants not three. I have five pots of Strawberry Elsanta, and three of Strawberry Honeoye (Wilkos spelled it Honeyoye). They are chilling in the cold frame. Where to grow them is my next question? The Victorian Chimney pot I looked at online has 32 spaces! I only have Eight Plants at the moment so its too big for me.
The green Edging was not as easy to go into the ground as I thought, because it was quite pliable material. I dug mini trenches but it still needs further pushing down I think or the Soil raising more!
The mouse will have to find a new way into the right border though as his access now has green edging to it.
It is so bright compared to the muddy tiles that were there before. I want plants to grow tall so they overlook the new border edging. I still have some white wire fencing but I dont know where to put that yet so its in the outhouse.
I hope I will get used to my Green edging in time, and with luck the mouse will find a new way (under the fence which is full of holes at the base) to get the seeds!
The Kitchen Garden is beginning to take shape slowly.

(Via Snappy's Gardens Blog)

Posted by admin to Garden birds, house mouse, plans, weather on 2008-01-31, 09:12:00

It was foul outside today. Pouring rain, hailstones, and snow driven downwards and sidewards by the wind. I watched the hailstones ping off the fence and soil like pinball machines! The gusting Westerly wind blew upto 70 miles per hour. It is forecast for snow tomorrow when im at work and minus six degrees at night.
The diurnal mouse has removed all the seeds around the rose when i worked the two long days, and today was at the far end of the garden hiding behind the compost bin.
My biggest mystery is the Birds waterbowl under the Viburnum keeps getting emptied out. I fill it up to the brim, and when I check it is nearly empty and drained of water. There are no holes in the green bowl but something is either drinking it, or bathing in it!
The birds came back today despite the weather.
I hope at the weekend I can revamp the right border with a log roll. The new plan is to keep the pavers as they are, and used raised bag beds to grow the veg and potatoes.
The cabbage seeds are germinating in the cold frame despite the weather. The alpine strawberrys are growing slowly in the cold frame also.
I need the new borders ready by March. Most of my seeds are to be sown in March. I need to organise them into piles. Directly into the ground, and into seed trays. I have to stock up with three inch pots ready for my masses of plants to grow on.
Im writing brief notes in a Garden Journal to try and keep track of whats being planted when and where. I am in heaven with the amount of space in the kitchen to grow seeds in.
When the Weather drives you back into the house you begin to plan and dream of warmer days, and sunshine.

(Via Snappy's Gardens Blog)

Posted by admin to house mouse, wildlife on 2008-01-28, 11:24:00

This is a house mouse I think. He had light brown fur, little pink ears and feet, and had a penchant for the cereal seeds left for the abscent birds.
He started darting out between the paver by the water bowl and the seeds that i pu out around the rose bush.
I did not know mousey was active during the day but he scampered back and fourth about fourty times. If I lifted the Paver there would be a stockpile of seed secreted by the scampering mouse.
An opportunist mouse, the second one after the field mouse in the amazon boxes.I love photographing wild Britain, when you get unexpected garden guests.
There is more than enough seed to feed the birds and a stray mouse.