Another week, how did we get so far through May already? Another crazy day in the nursery, there is so much to do at this time of year and we have our charity open day to get ready for on Sunday too! I had my not so helpful helper today, Crazy Maisie. We had a delivery of water plants and lots of book donations for Sunday (thanks everyone who has brought books in. Weeding the gardens, potting, tidying and watering, customers and thank goodness for Isabel doing a fab job weeding the woodland garden. Home for tea in the garden and much ball throwing for Maisie.
Happy Birthday to us! 
Can you believe eight years ago this week we arrived on site at Quercus as the slightly terrified new owners of the nursery. We knew we had a massive amount of work ahead of us to turn it round and make it into a viable business again, but we were enthusiastic, determined and had a massive amount of ideas to play around with. With David's business knowhow and hard graft and my horticultural skills and creativity (and hard graft and ever growing business knowledge) we have created something rather special in the gardens and nursery. So here we are, older, wiser, a bit worse for wear, more tired but delighted to see what we have achieved in those years. Everything you see in Quercus has been done in those 8 years, so despite our colder, exposed site, clay soil and battles with weather, pests, pandemics and farm sales and so on it just shows what can be done even in challenging conditions, garden and otherwise.
We've made great friends through owning the nursery and met some lovely, interesting and great people along the way 
Lets raise a glass to us and to you, all our lovely customers who's enthusiasm, support. enjoyment of the place and custom keeps us enthusiastic and determined to keep going. Cheers x 
Here's one I did earlier in the week Its crazy season in the nursery so I don't have time to breath never mind anything else! This was just playing around with 4 or 5 colours, just to relax
Not only good to eat but they will provide plenty colour too.
I picked as many of the lilac flowers as I could reach this week as this tree is getting cut down next week. Sad I know, I don't like cutting trees down but to be able to do the next major changes in the back garden it has to go. All change in our back garden next week.
Its a hard life being full time nursery dog
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Huge thanks to Fiona and Isabel who organised the entrance table with books and plants and who chatted to and welcomed all our visitors
To Betty who kept Maisie entertained all day (very important, think small child in dog form) 
Last and not least big thanks to David and Daniel who ran the railway which was very popular 
We all had a great day, if slightly exhausted but very happy the weather was good, we had lots of garden books re homed and lots of chat about plants, gardens and what we are doing here at Quercus 
the weather was good, we had lots of garden books re homed and lots of chat about plants, gardens and what we are doing here at Quercus Photos by Isabel, Fiona and myself 
As they say, no rest for the wicked and plenty time to sleep when your dead........No day off today either as I had to be in the nursery today for a delivery arriving and never being one to miss an opportunity to get jobs done I made the most of no customers and dry weather to get our bridge painted 
its been needing done for a while and looks so much better. I got lots of other tasks done while waiting on the lorry so feel a bit more caught up now. Including burning all the dead treees and shrubs that should have een out for sale but died in that blasted winter 
If only it would rain, watering is a full time job 
We now have a topped up climber table, shrubs and a few other lovelies to fill up the sales area. The gardens are filling out and everyday there is something else in flower. We are stocked up on compost too, David has tidied up the pot stand and the wee shop is full of great gifts for you or someone else. Come visit and see all this garden gorgeousness for yourself.
its been needing done for a while and looks so much better. I got lots of other tasks done while waiting on the lorry so feel a bit more caught up now. Including burning all the dead treees and shrubs that should have een out for sale but died in that blasted winter If only it would rain, watering is a full time job We now have a topped up climber table, shrubs and a few other lovelies to fill up the sales area. The gardens are filling out and everyday there is something else in flower. We are stocked up on compost too, David has tidied up the pot stand and the wee shop is full of great gifts for you or someone else. Come visit and see all this garden gorgeousness for yourself.We are open Wednesday to Sunday, 10am to 5pm.
Junkshopantiques 11am to 4pm and Whitmuir cafe 10am to 4pm
See you soon 
Not content with being super busy with both our businesses and spending time with family, trying to get all the garden painting at home done while the dry weather lasts, and all the usual day to day stuff........ we decided to start the major back garden re-working 
Calum the tree surgeon arrived on Monday to cut down the 20 feet high, 8 feet wide half dead leylandii hedge at the bottom of the garden. This will free up enough space to get at least one car parked, thats how much space its taking up (we only have on street parking at the moment). As with everything in this property it was bound not to go to plan. The hedge, chamaecyparis and lilac came down no problem, but when Calum came to grind out the stumps on Tuesday, there was too much rubble around the roots to safely grind them. So plan 2 is for a digger to come in to remove the stumps next week Between the parking area and garden David is building a tall wooden fence which I will cover in climbers and we are planting 5 new trees to replace the lost privacy and green-ness.
Calum the tree surgeon arrived on Monday to cut down the 20 feet high, 8 feet wide half dead leylandii hedge at the bottom of the garden. This will free up enough space to get at least one car parked, thats how much space its taking up (we only have on street parking at the moment). As with everything in this property it was bound not to go to plan. The hedge, chamaecyparis and lilac came down no problem, but when Calum came to grind out the stumps on Tuesday, there was too much rubble around the roots to safely grind them. So plan 2 is for a digger to come in to remove the stumps next week Between the parking area and garden David is building a tall wooden fence which I will cover in climbers and we are planting 5 new trees to replace the lost privacy and green-ness. Although I knew how it would look once removed, it was a bit of a shock to come home on Monday night to such a change
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You have a lot going on at the same time but spring / early summer tends to be the time to get about everything done!
ReplyDeleteWhat a transformation you've done in the eight years. Your nursery is beautiful, useful and everything a visitor hopes a nursery would be. Congratulations!
(And a few ball throws for Maisie)
It is so busy and the nursery had been even busier this year. Mad but good, the weather is extremely hot so work at home has slowed as its too tiring to start heavy work in the evenings, but we will get there. Hope the weather is doing well for you, we havent had rain for weeks so its hard trying to keep everything watered.
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