A Few Blessings

Gardener:Northland Backyard Gardener

Date:18 Dec 2023

Blog Type:Vegetables, Flowers

When I saw my first frangipani (Plumeria) this morning, I knew I had to take a photo of it for Sue. There is just one out atm, but it is still a delight to see. This frangipani was grown by my mum from a cutting from my brother's place. As I know they can get quite large, we keep this in a pot by the doorstep. I do intend to take a few more cuttings so that I can put a couple in pots in the BBQ area as well.

I also have my first of my more special dahlias out (Crazy Love). This would perhaps be my favourite one as it reminds me of a water lily as it opens up. I also enjoy it's delicate colours that changes as it ages (Neil - you will love that part of the dahlias especially with the variagated ones). 

The strawberry popcorn is starting to silk as well. Growing corn of any sort always fascinates me. First the tassles appear, and then I always stress (every year without fail) that they are forming but no silks are out, and then overnight the silks appear out of nowhere, or so it seems. My mother now has been put under strict instuctions not to pick the corn while we are away on holiday over summer like she is proned to. 

We are also starting to eat blueberries. With all the rain over the past year, these ones are the biggest we've ever had. We just need to beat the birds to them. We decided not to cover them as we have 7  bushes in various locations, and it tends to make mowing the lawn a bit of a nightmare. So long as we pick early in the morning, we don't loose too many. We take the same approach with all our berries. 

And finally, a huge thank you to Sarah and the team at Yates (my very generous prize arrived this morning). With so many amazing gardeners and writers on here, I was completely blown away with being selected as a prize winner. I believe that the community on here is what has made me grow as a gardener, and I honestly don't think I would have confidently expanded it all those years ago if it wasn't for this group and the support of Sarah and all of you on here. I know I have learned something from each and everyone of you on here, and for that, I will forever be grateful. 

A Few Blessings