Saturday, May 17, 2008
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Gardening Diary

POTS OF SPUDS BUT NOT ENOUGH SPACE TO GROW Friday, May 16, 2008

POTS OF SPUDS BUT NOT ENOUGH SPACE TO GROW

GARDENING
FROM tomatoes, my daughter Roseanna’s favourite, to potatoes — my passion.
For a while, I’ve asked myself the question whether Jersey Royals taste the same as they used to? Other people have similarly questioned them too.
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Friday, May 16, 2008

DUBIOUS HERITAGE FOR TINY TOM SEED

GARDENING
I WAS so pleased when poor little Tiny Tom popped up his fragile head.
I thought he would have been crippled by age and was delighted that one wizened seed from a packet that should have been sown by the year 2000 had germinated.
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TRAINING THE YOUNG SHOOTS Friday, May 9, 2008

TRAINING THE YOUNG SHOOTS

GARDENING
ACROSS the Island, schoolchildren are learning about gardening like never before.
An ever-increasing number of schools are taking on the task of telling kids about food miles and, best of all, helping them grow good, wholesome produce.
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FRUIT OR BLOSSOM? GREAT CHERRY CHOICE Friday, May 2, 2008

FRUIT OR BLOSSOM? GREAT CHERRY CHOICE

GARDENING
PIG farmer Stuart Pierce hopes he has cherry picked a new venture that will bear fruit.
IW Bacon continues without him but down at Godshill he has taken on the 4,000 cherry tree orchard that is in full blossom, at the same time as the ornamentals throughout the Island that bloom in ever-greater spring profusion.
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GUERRILLA TACTICS TRANSFORM PLOT Friday, April 25, 2008

GUERRILLA TACTICS TRANSFORM PLOT

GARDENING DIARY
THERE have been guerrillas at work down in East Cowes but now they have come out of the mist and attacked a project with the help of the authorities.
A couple of glasses of wine ...
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PLANTING A PARASITE IS A STICKY BUSINESS Friday, April 18, 2008

PLANTING A PARASITE IS A STICKY BUSINESS

GARDENING
MISTLETOE was accompanied by whine the other weekend.
Planting of the sticky berries was frustratingly snowed off but, kept in a bag in a cool place, they survived the delay.
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BLEAK FOR PEACHES AND GLUM FOR PLUMS Friday, April 11, 2008

BLEAK FOR PEACHES AND GLUM FOR PLUMS

GARDENING DIARY
THE brilliance and bothersomeness of the weather never ceases to amaze.
I was pleased the contents of a bag of daffs, bought late and cheap, had emerged as little rays of sunshine ...
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BEANS TAKE A BATTERING AFTER NOCTURNAL PLANTING Friday, April 4, 2008

BEANS TAKE A BATTERING AFTER NOCTURNAL PLANTING

GARDENING
GARDEN carnage caused by the biggest blow for 21 years failed to uproot my newly installed greenhouse.
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CLASSIC COLOUR — BUT PROTECT THE HOUSEHOLD HEAD Friday, March 28, 2008

CLASSIC COLOUR — BUT PROTECT THE HOUSEHOLD HEAD

GARDENING
NEW brooms offer a sweep of colour in the garden.
A great advantage of cytisus scoparious, the common broom, is that it is fast growing and quick to establish, meaning it can be bought small, and cheaply.
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MAGNOLIA A STAR IN TOUGH TIMES Thursday, March 20, 2008

MAGNOLIA A STAR IN TOUGH TIMES

GARDENING DIARY
MAGNOLIAS have an inner steel. They look the most fragile of spring flowers, a beautiful herald of better times ahead, but most are surprisingly robust.
Their mettle was really tested...
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