House plants, hardy plants and a walk by the sea

 Inside gardening in the house and greenhouse, lots of excitement as the donkey tail cactus and Sanseveria flower for the first time

Why come to Quercus? Here are just a few reasons

Is there anybody out there?

Here's a fun thing. We bought a map for the office wall 4 years ago. As the nursery grows and our customers keep coming back and we get lots of new customers, our plants are travelling further and further and the map has got more spotty.

We thought it would be interesting to get a visual idea of where they go We don't always get a chance to chat to customers and find out where they have travelled from so if you can't see a dot where you are give us a shout and tell us where you are in the comments and we'll add another dot to the map

Don't worry if you are off the map you get a special place on the yellow paper at the side

Bonus point if you can guess the song lyric

Its such a glorious, abundant time of year in the garden and nursery with so many plants coming into flower and leaf after winter. The leaves are a fresh lush green, pink or red, the flowers gentle pinks, subtle blues, clear whites and vibrant yellows. I love spring for the flowers and new foliage, but this year definitely not for the weather.

The sales area is full of fab plants, pots, compost and garden things in the wee shop. We are open Wednesday to Sunday, 10am to 5pm. See you soon

Randoms from May, can’t believe we are half way through May already and just over a month until the wedding of the year – can’t wait – family (well some)

This Saturday its Fiona's turn to choose her top five plants to buy in the nursery this week:

Erigeron karvinskianus - great pastel flowers, frothy growth softening edges of pots and border edges, not always hardy in Scotland but should seed around. Grow in full sun.

Primula veris, Cowslips - just because they have a happy feel to them, the bright yellow flowers from late April through May brightens up the dullest of days.

Amelanchier lamarckii – a good tree for a small gardens with amazing leaf colour in spring as the leaves emerge and then again in autumn before they drop for winter. White flowers in spring and tolerant of wet ground. A good all round multi season plant.

Aquilegias - they bulk up well, seed around and have a huge range of flower colours. The flower shape in particular is eye catching, especially the doubles and bi-coloured flowers. They will grow in virtually all conditions.

Pinus mugo – fantastic small conifer that gives you the pine look without outgrowing the garden. Makes a broad shape over time and will have cones as it matures. Grows in most conditions.

Rodgersia - they have a jurassic look to them and provide a contrasting leaf colour in shady damp conditions. A great back drop for flowering plants that like similar conditions. Even though they flower grow them for the fantastic foliage.

The exhaustion is real after a full on 6 day week, 9 hours in the nursery, 2 hours admin at night, I’m looking forward to two days off. I made myself sit for an hour or so this evening and do some painting and have finished April in my journal and started a new larger painting. It was all going well unti one of the Kelpies seems to have turned into a dragon! Oh well

The middle of May already but the swallows are back, swooping and diving around the nursery, sometimes making us duck as they hoover up insects in the air. There is so much colour at the moment from apple blossom to camasia to cowslips, Epimediums and Rhododendrons, it really is worth the trip to enjoy them for yourselves.

Extra part day this week on Tuesday – Isabel and I decided after a busy weekend with customers that the best way to tackle the sales area re-fill and seasonal table changes was to do some extra hours on Tuesday. Luckily the weather was dry and sunny and we got all the tables refilled, tidied and labelled. I also got the front seasonal tables emptied and total changed ready for the early summer colour. We brought lots of new plants out from the tunnels and the sales area is fabulously full of wonderful plants.

Propagating our own stock is central to what we do and at times there are at least 3 of us working on potting seedlings, cuttings or sowing seeds, making cuttings or dividing plants. We love making new plants :) It’s a key part of makes Quercus different, that we propagate on site 97% of the plants we sell! Quite unusual these days.

The aim of this week was to get back onto sorting out shade plants in tunnel 2 and try and get P’s in the stock beds finished. It feels like I have been stuck in P for purgatory for ever…… there are a lot. Its great to get last years propagation out the tunnels, potted and into the stock beds to root through and sell. Once in the stock beds that’s where they stay until they sell. It also starts clearing space in tunnel 3 and 4 for this years propagation. A never ending carousel of plants. I made it out of ‘s, sprinted through N’s (ok I will admit there aren’t many, just Nepeta) and am ready to start M for Monarda on Wednesday woo hoo.

Shall I mention the weather? I usually do, its was so cold this week, we even had the heater back on most days in the office! With rain and very heavy hail and even a clap of thunder on Thursday, we’ve had it all. Still less watering to do! Gotta stay positive, apparently better weather is on the way.

Look out for our newest sign in the sales are – our guide to pruning Clematis, you’ll find it on the climber table. Another key thing we do here in Quercus is help our cutomers with the right information to make them and their gardens bloom in confidence and colour. The gardens, stock beds and sales area (and our website) are full of helpful information panels to help our customers with their plant choices and garden problems.

Fiona is working through potting cuttings so tunnel 3 is filling back up agan and she will soon be starting on all the perennial seedlings sown earlier this year. Isabel is back in the shade stock beds and after wrestling with giant roots of Filipendula Elegans which was dug out earlier in the year, she is looking forward to sorting out the more sedate Eupatoriums on Wednesday. David was in most of the week working on lots of behind the scenes tasks that make the nursery run smoothly. Thanks to Margaret and Whim for bring up a pile of scalpings so we can finish the paths to the tunnels, no more squelching through muddy paths making it all much safer and cleaner for staff.

So that’s another fabulously busy week over, thank you so much to everyone who has visited this week, I’m now enjoying a relaxing walk by the sea to de stress (hahha) and planting some plants in my own garden. If you are curious about what a Quirky Bird Bird gardener plants in their own garden you can follow and read my blog of the same name. Its quite different form the nursery but still has my own unique take on plants and gardens 😊

Lastly its Chelsea week, are you going or like me watching it on the TV every night because you don’t like crowds or all the hype? Whats your fav garden, plant and what do you think of the Best in show plant – Hosta Red Ninja 

I really needed a sea top up, I’m happiest on the seashore or on top of a hill. So this week we headed east to the east coast and wonderful East Lothian where I have many happy childhood memories with my Granny and Uncle Andy. We headed to Cove, somewhere I’ve been many times, especially with my Uncle, tucked away its like a place out of time, sheltered from the modern world when in reality its just off the A1.

We wandered down to the harbour and then through the tunnel for a walk along the wee beach before heading back up hill and joining the coastal path taking us towards Pease Bay. My Uncle used to tell great stories of smugglers and tall tales when we walked here as children. Great views out to the north sea and we managed to avoid all the showers. The wild flowers were in bloom, the heavily scented hawthorn brightening up the hedgerows and the sea thrift and primroses were growing down the cliffs.

We ended the walk with our picnic on the cliff top looking out to sea, enjoying the sun and the sound of the sea on the rocks below. If you visit please do leave a donation for the up keep of this wonderful wee corner. You can do so with cash in the donation box or by qr code.

Another perfect walk and relaxing day off together, chilling, being out in our wonderful wee country and a great picnic from Whitmuir farm shop too

#gardentherapy #gardenplanning #seasonaldisplay #embracingtheseasons #aseasonalyear #joyfulgardenmoments #scottishgardens #gardeningontheedge #quercusgardenplants #scottishplantnursery #independentplantnursery #gardeninspiration #gardenideas #scottishgrown #garden_style #inmygardentoday

#rural #countrylife #countryliving #cottagelife #antiquecottagescenes #interiors #scottishborders #independantretailer #smallbusiness #localbusiness #independantplantnursery #uniqueplantnursery #hardyscottishplants #scottishgarden #gardeningontheedge #scottishborders #lifestyleblog #gardenblog

 If you to see what's new and looking good at the nursery like our Facebook

  Quercus Garden Plants

Find out more about the nursery here - our web site: www.quercusgardenplants.co.uk

Follow us on Instagram quirkybirdgardener and Quercus Garden Plants