Sunday 4 March 2012

Charlie Is My Darwin

Bit of a play on words there.


This is Rose Charles Darwin flowering in March, I know, it really should not be flowering now. Admittedly it's not the best looking bloom at the moment, but if you had been out in the wind and rain, and the frost and snow, you would probably look a bit worse for wear too. I'll give more details about this rose when it flowers again in summer. I pruned all my roses, except this one, last week in the spring like weather. And as soon as this bloom goes over, I will finish pruning this rose too. Now that we have had some much needed rain, my next job will be to feed and mulch the roses.

And look who's back:


Yes, the siskins are here again. Oh dear, winter has not finished with us yet then. As I've mentioned before, these beautiful little birds only visit my garden in the winter, and don't leave until the last of the winter weather has gone. I didn't see them at all last week, must have been on their holidays, but now I've got four of them on the feeders.

There's a full moon on Thursday which makes Tuesday an ideal time for planting. If you're thinking this is mere mythical hokum, sorry to disappoint, but it is scientifically proven. 48 hours before the full moon is the perfect time for planting and sowing. Have you ever noticed how often it rains around the full moon period ?  And have you ever noticed how nice the weather is 48 hours before the full moon ?  I often used to take these days as holiday to do the gardening, and observed that I often got good weather, especially in the mornings. And I didn't have to water the plants either, because it usually rained afterwards. Check the weather forecast as well though, because there is always the exception that proves the rule.

6 comments:

  1. The final paragraph, for me, was so interesting. I shall remember that, and see if it applies.

    The rose is still beautiful, even if the elements had battered her around a little.
    I cannot grow roses in my garden, due to the rabbits that live alongside me :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. What a cheerful sight to see blooming in March!

    How lucky you are to have Siskins in the garden, I had a couple a few years ago which visited for a few days in the bad weather but I have never seen one since.

    It is very interesting about the Moon, I think I have read about it before somewhere and that quite a lot of people work with that belief.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Charlie is beautiful, weather damaged or not, and I will try planting my Calocephalus on Tuesday instead of today, just to see...

    You have a lovely blog.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Your siskin is similar to our goldfinches. I tried planting by the moon last year with mixed results. But I can't blame it on the moon. I'm pretty sure the fault was all mine. Oh well! Live and learn. I'll try again this year and hopefully will have a bit of new knowledge to bring. :o) Your rose is beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Who needs the weatherman when we have the moon and birds. I need to start adding gardening tasks to my calendar that are more in phase with the moon. : )

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thanks for all your lovely comments. I don't know how the weather faired in your parts of the world today, but here, 48 hrs before the full moon, we have had a glorious sunny day. Managed to plant some strawberries and lilies. Now waiting for the rain, that has been predicted for tonight, to water them in.

    ReplyDelete