Debbie's Diary

10 May 2007
The slugs really are leaving everything alone!  :cheers: Astilbe's just under way, the Water Avens and Marsh Marigold flowering, the ferns are thriving and the Gunnera's got a mammoth flower on it. I didn't cut back the Umbrella Plant so can't be sure whether I've got old growth, new growth or a mixture of the two. The Mimulus isn't doing too well, it seems to be sinking into the bog - the sluggies after all? The Iris and Dotted Loosestrife are coming up nicely too.

27 August 2007

Gosh, how things have changed since my last posting!! :o

Since the arrival of our chickens four weeks ago, who have a particular liking for the bog garden and all my ferns, particularly the Lady Ferns,  I decided to move all the ferns  into hanging baskets along the wall where the pond is, and to include in them other shade-lovers that are getting hammered by the slugs, snails AND the chickens now. The chickens haven't quite got in to their stride yet in wiping out the mollusc population.  :slap:

Nothing in the pond has flowered although it looks nice and healthy - I posted this on the forum - it looks as though there's not enough light getting to the pond due to too much Azolla, which I'll thin out. It does look lovely though.The Pickerel and Fringed Water Lily haven't come up at all, although the Bog Arum, the one remaining Flag Iris and the Pennywort are doing OK although flowerless. The Carex has come up OK too but I don't think that flowers anyway.
The pond is situated in a very cool and shady part of the garden directly under a very old apple tree - not ideal really but that's where we found it when we moved here. :