Better late than never, a bit like Spring

Willow and Daffodils, must be spring in the cafe

Lots of new shrubs and Rhododendrons for sale

Back to work Wednesday and it was a misty, drizzly, cold old day, we're not quite out of the dreich days yet. I got to the nursery to find our delivery of new shrubs had arrived before me, so I had four barrows of plants barrowed up before I did the cafe flowers and caught up with everyone there. That was good exercise first thing! I got all the plants labelled and priced and put out on the tables, they've filled a few gaps and will provide colour right through to summer. In the afternoon I carried on tidying the stock beds, I'll be glad when they are finished. They do look good though, cut back, weeded and top dressed and the ground swept underneath. It pulls the nursery together and I'm getting lots of compliments about how well cared for and good the plants look. At last I got our Easter advert finished and ready for our newsletter and social media.

I keep thinking I'm feeling better then the next day I feel awful again, but on Wednesday I managed to get everything I'd planned done both at the nursery at home and it was the first evening in ages I hadn't felt completely exhausted.

Lambs up to mischief, Walston

Lambs with Blackmount in the background

Enjoying the sunshine

Thursday was a busy day, with errands in Biggar on the way to the nursery and then on with more stock bed tidying and potting of the "A's". I'm almost finished and it's great to see the rescued and re- potted plants shooting away in the stock beds. It was a foggy start but the sun broke through for the rest of the day which always works wonders on feeling good and bringing customers up to the nursery. There are plenty lambs in the fields now on the way to and from the nursery. I got some photographs of some playing in the sun on the way home, they were fun to watch.

Rhododendrons on the sales tables

Lots of colour in the sales area

Friday was freezing again, brrrrrrrrrrrrr. Bring me sunshine .......... and warmth and holidays and a lottery win (ok the last two were pushing it perhaps). It was a day of working in the covered area working through more plants from the stock beds, tidying them, sweeping up and putting them back. I am determined to get this job finished soon so I can get on with the thousands of other jobs on my lists. The lists have lists of their own these days! David came over in the afternoon and it was good to catch up with Andrew and Linda. Knowing how much David loves barrowing gravel up to the nursery I ordered another three tons to finish off the sales are, I'm nice like that. 

More gravel to finish off the sales area

At last a warm and sunny day on Saturday which meant there were lots of people coming up to the nursery to wander around and shop, which is great. David had his student training day in the yurt at Whitmuir which went well and it was good to catch up with everyone at the end of the day. At last I finished potting the "A's". I now know exactly how many achilleas, Asters, Astrantia and so on we have. As you can see in the photo below the stock beds are all now re-potted, what a difference from when we bought the nursery last year!

The stock beds, all re-potted

Stock beds last May when we bought the nursery

David and I made the most of the sunny evening after work to walk up to the wildlife pond to see what Andrew had added to the fairy walk. Of course we had to try the new swing, young at heart and all that. It was great fun in the sunset and the views up the Pentland Hills were beautiful. Do make sure you take a walk up through the woodland to spot the fairy doors if you visit Whitmuir, it's fabulous.

Wheeeeeeeeee

Lift off

Sunday was a beautiful sunny day, one of those real feel good days. It was great to be working outside in the stock beds in the sun and warmth, enjoying the views of the hills and chatting to customers. Daniel was in with us for the day as he and David were meeting Ben at a local model rail exhibition in the morning. Daniel was a great help working with David on his job list for the day. They brought the rest of the gravel up to finish off the sales area, it looks great and means we can get the compost set up for selling and there is less slippy ground cover to walk on. They shifted some compost, put up a banner on the road into Whitmuir and sorted out the next stage of the watering system. We enjoyed eating lunch outside on one of the benches in sales area in the sun, the piglets are out in the field and the chickens were on the move to the next field for summer. All in all a successful, busy, enjoyable day. The sense of achievement getting everything on a daily and weekly basis is great.

Mobile potting bench in the sun

Gravel finished in the sales area

Sunset on the way home

Sunset on the way home Elsrickle

Next installment on the fairy walk

Now that I am working six days I planned to use my first Monday working again to catch up on all the jobs I kept running out of time to do each day. I went over to the tunnel and did an hour or so of weeding and filled a trolley of plants to go over to the nursery. I potted up some new plant in the tunnel and moved some plants about. It was good to get some work done in the tunnel and move plants on that have grown well over winter. The weather was cold but dry and a few hardy souls made their way up to the nursery to shop. I spent the rest of the day sorting out the plants I brought over from the tunnel, putting plants on the sales tables, paperwork and moving compost. So an achieving day of small but important tasks that cleared my overflowing to do list.

Heather burning on the hills behind Biggar

Tuesday was overcast but not too chilly which was good as David was away gliding for the day, the first time since early last summer, meaning he was going to spend the day doing some check flights with the instructor. After a long lie I was off to Biggar with Betty for lunch, shopping and looking for her ancestors in the graveyard. We had a great day pottering about the shops buying gifts for my nieces and nephew for easter and a lovely lunch in Aroma on the high street. We did find some graves with related names but not the right people, so Betty is off to do more research then we will go back again. It was lovely to spend time together and we had a laugh.

A beautifully carved head stone in Biggar Cemetary

Lichen on gravestones

Looking toward the Biggar hills

It's been a busy week again all in all. Plenty happening in the nursery, all progress and building up sales and business. I've not got much done in the garden at home but hopefully the longer nights and better weather (I hope) will sort this. The lurgy still lurks, maybe I should give in and go to the doctor after a few months of feeling like this. I'm off to write this weeks bog as I'm far behind, again. I'll leave you with a few pictures of what's flowering in the garden this week at home.


Have a great week

Haquetia 'Thor'

Pulmonaria 'Azure'

Pulmonaria 'Samurai'

Scill sibirica 'Bright Blue'

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