It's photo time again:

We get all kinds of dramatic and spectacular weather conditions that never fail to impress us out here in the middle of nowhere.

The T-Rex is growing up fast

As are the fish. The little dark ones are last years brood.

And finally, a couple of nice abstract ones. Some flowers from our Euphorbia which is growing like a maniac at the moment, and a shot through our willow tree.

Just to show that even when there are bare patches, taking the photo from the right angle can show a lusher garden than really exists.

This photo shows an area that needs filling. We've planted a (very) compact Azalea 'Fedora' today and we're hoping it will grow to fill the area.

These pictures show the progress of the Banana and Tetrapanax Rex.

Compare these to last weeks post to see how quickly stuff grows.

We've overwintered our Strelitzia Reginae in the Greenhouse and it has rewarded us with a fantastic display of flowers. We've now moved it out onto the deck to enjoy the summer in some fresh air.

Following a recent visit to Kaths parents, we may have to steal an idea they had.

They've got bricks (block pavers) around the edge of their lawn to make edging and mowing easier. They have alternating red and charcoal bricks, but we'll probably just stick with the charcoal colour.

1) Irrigation system for the garden (including rain/moisture sensors)
Almost complete, rain/moisture sensors not installed as it's been to wet to calibrate them.
2) Garden light timer
3) Patch up the screening
4) Put weed resistant fabric under the paving and cobbles
5) Repaint the deck
It's been too wet recently. It's no good painting the deck if the rain's going to wash it off
6) Install new garden lights and pond lights
7) Shore up the pond edge
8) Build some stepping stones in the pond
9) Build a brick pedestal under the willow for a statue
10) Planting
Almost complete. During the last two weeks we've spent about £800 on plants and got them all in. Amazing we've had the time given that it's rained almost solidly.
11) Get the second hernia this is going to give Simon repaired. (PS. He's already had one from this garden. He had it patched last December)
Still working on this, but I'm sure that the Hernia's not far away.
12) Scarify and re-seed the lawn.
I got the lawn scarified three weeks ago. I pulled seven sacks of moss out of the lawn. Two weeks ago, I aerated the lawn and tonight I finally found a time when the lawn had dried out a bit to sow the seed. Most of this last fornight has found the lawn under about an inch of water.

Following our massive planting effort, these are a few photos to give an idea of where we are now.

We have been very busy planting up the garden despite the horrendous weather. Below are some of the plants that are currently in bloom.

Anigozanthos 'Flavious Ranger'	Arisaema Tortuosum Arisaema Ringens
Water Lily

Our To Do List:

1) Irrigation system for the garden (including rain/moisture sensors)
2) Garden light timer
3) Patch up the screening
4) Put weed resistant fabric under the paving and cobbles
5) Repaint the deck
6) Install new garden lights and pond lights
7) Shore up the pond edge
8) Build some stepping stones in the pond
9) Build a brick pedestal under the willow for a statue
10) Planting
11) Get the second hernia this is going to give Simon repaired. (PS. He's already had one from this garden. He had it patched last December)

Note: Order subject to revision.

Whilst we get around to do all the above, we've moved several of the plants onto the foremost bed to fill up some space.

Last year, we bought a small plant called the Tetrapanax Papyrifera 'Rex' from our good chums at Mulu.
Overwinter, it appeared to take a significant turn for the worse and looked very unhappy indeed.
This spring, however, it has come back with a vengeance.

This may look small in the photo, but I can assure you it's a monster of a plant. To put it into perspective, each leaf is around 3 ft across and the whole plant is about 3.5 ft high and is already putting out runners.

We have now begun the garden work this year in earnest. A whole weekend was spent weeding. We've cleared out the pond and destroyed the blanket weed (Ed: It's come back so I may need to re-dose it - 31 May 2004).
The lawn has had a coat of weed 'n feed put down, so it's now full of dead moss which needs scarifying out.
Many of the greenhouse plants have been moved back outside for the summer, and several of these have been re-potted. The Papyrus has been put back in the pond and the Orchids now have a brand new irrigation system.
We've cleared and cleaned the deck in preparation for repainting once it's dried out.

To make up for the reduction in plant count in the greenhouse, our cat Tayesha (aka Pickles) has taken up residence on the staging to keep the plants company.

We have finally indulged and bought a beautiful hammock stand for the double hammock we bought whilst on holiday in Florida last year. The hammock comes with a lovely pad which makes it ultra comfortable and very easy to relax in. The best part is, that being a double, there is space for two.

Its relaxant capabilities have been through a thorough quality assurance process overseen by our best friend Phil.

Roll on the lazy weekends. Unfortunately, there is still much to do. As you can probably see from the photos, though the deck was only built and painted the last year, it already needs repainting. We think is because the timber was still a little damp from storage when we painted it.