Highland Floods 27th October 2006

I'm afraid that there hasn't been much gardening in Highland this week with heavy downpours transforming the landscape across the North, turning fields and car parks into lochs and streets into rivers.

As Flood water swilled around the wheel arches of cars in Dingwall who seemed to suffer the worst, many folk were forced to evacuate in their homes as they were swamped with water, some in dinghies as the water level was four or five feet high.

Whilst the Highland capital, Inverness, escaped the worst of the weather this time around they weren't so lucky in 2002 when they were hit by flash floods.

The high amount of rainfall over the past week had taken it's toll and the ground saturated with water caused run-off from fields to cascade down embankments in a brown waterfall and create streams of water across the road several feet deep. The water also caused several landslides and trains are still not able to run.

Cars were left wallowing in a swimming pool that was once a road or drive.

Chaos ensued with roads blocked and commuters and communities were cut off whilst emergency services tried to deal with the fast rising water levels and pump the water away. There was just nowhere for the water to go. An added problem was the high tide which was due at 2pm. People struggled as some areas were also affected by power failures.

If that wasn't enough the same night high winds reaching up to 60- 80mph hit the region exacerbating the problem, trees where uprooted easily from the saturated soil. Closing any roads that weren't already blocked by landslides or water problems.

Winters on it's Way

Garden is really slowing down now and autumn has taken a hold. We've had quite a few nights of frost shown up clearly by some of the shrubs which have taken on that reddish tinge after being frosted. The leaves are starting to drop and the rest of them are a turning as the nights are really dark. Daylight is fading fast by 5.30 and virtually dark not long after. Found this interesting site which gives the Sunrise and Sunset Times in UK ...being a little bit further North we lose a bit more daylight than our English cousins.

I'm still picking rasps and blackberries. The rasp canes are now starting to change colour so i reckon by the end of the month they will need cutting back. The blackberries are doing fine and still producing well. I noticed today that my gooseberries and currants have dropped their leaves so will need to give them a prune.

Apples are starting to ripen now and starting to get more and a few wind falls but lovely apples and nice to be able to pick and eat off the tree.

Picked a few brussel sprouts today as they looked like they needed to be picked. I planted Maximus F1 variety but they seem ok. It was a fight to get them off the stem as they are all packed so tightly and don't yield very well. Just picked a few and have a few little holes in them from the beasties but on the whole not bad.

They've not had the hard frost as yet but just been lightly frosted. They are still tasty but just not as sweet until they've had their first hard frosts on them.

The Broccoli is still cropping so i'm picking this as and when i need it....had some earlier in the week and it was delicious. Another F1 variety Marathon. Unfortunately the caterpillers got the original heads so i took a chance and cut them off and they have produced more of the smaller heads which are really nice.

The cabbages that I cut down due to the caterpiller problem are now producing smaller heads so looking forward to harvesting my first one probably in a couple of weeks time.

In the Ornamental garden there's still colour in some of the plants. My Japanese Flowering Quince is quite confused and started to produce more flowers probably due to the mildish weather for the time of year. So at the moment it's got fruit and flowers on it. My poppies are in flower still and seeding well. Meant to collect the seed but haven't bothered so i'm sure i'll have lots of little plants come the spring.

The lawn is growing significantly slower and I managed to get my autumn feed and weed on the grass and that's made a big difference the grass is really green. It will require another cut but it's been so wet this last week it will have to wait until a day or two without rain and then i'll just top it ready for winter. Hopefully it won't need much more after this. The worms are really active just now in the lawn and there's a few worm casts. People get really upset by these but i don't, i'm really pleased to have a good worm population and see this as a benefit. Casts are easily swept off before mowing and don't really do any harm and aerate the soil for the little roots.

I managed to finish off another border and got this planted up and it's looking quite good. I also managed to find a few plants that had self seeded in the front garden. I found various types of Lavender, Aquilegia Vulgaris and the biggest surprise of all was Crocosmia. Not sure if it's Emily Mackenzie or Lucifer as i have two types but i've a little crop of small bulblets and managed to thin them out and replant the surplus.

I was also delighted to see that several 'cuttings' had taken. These were just bits i had stuck in the ground whilst pruning. So far i've found a honeysuckle, buddliea, redcurrant and my biggest surprise Rose Gertrude Jekyll, although don't think this will come true but it'll be interesting to see what does come of it.

Progress

Continuing to pick the apples on the second tree and still loads to go at. Had one or two off the Red Falstaff's and these are really nice. They're still developing but should be fully ripe in another month or so.

Greensleeves should be the next to become ripe and can't wait, they're more like a Granny Smith in taste and texture. At the moment, however, they are staying put on the on the tree and stubbornly refusing to budge, that's show's my patience - none!

Picked more blackberries and raspberries. Didn't quite get enough of each to make a pie so i mixed together the blackberry and raspberry, sprinkled with a little bit of sugar and added a crumble toppping.

Within 10 mins of it coming out of the oven it was half eaten, but it was delicious. That's what i call home-made, home grown fruit and home made topping, perfect.

Finally got the strawberry bed finished....still got a few stray runners to clear up. There has been some more top growth already so they must have enjoyed the hair cut. Not producing runners now i've trimmed them back as they are putting all their energies into new leaves which is just perfect. That should give them a bit of protection over the winter.

Whilst i was tidying up the bed I noticed the amount of whitefly that were made homeless...they didn't seem to do any damage but i've had a lot of whitefly this year and they're still fluttering around my runner beans and apples...anywhere there is greenery really. Must be due to the exceptional hot weather as I've never seen so many whitefly.

Apart from the picking of fruit and tidying up the garden is really slowing down now. However, the warm weather we've all been enjoying has helped to get ahead in the garden for a change. I'm sure we'll all be in for a shock when the weather does turn...but let's hope it's not until nearer to Christmas.

First year i've grown Broccoli and caterpillers had got to it so i decided to snipoff the heads and see if it would regrow. Which they did so today i managed to pick my first home grown broccoli. I was amazed at the difference between home grown and shop bought. I notice too that a couple of my brussel sprouts seems a bit short but are still producing buttons, will leave them and see how they fare as they seem to be getting bigger. The other ones are developing well and are nice and tight so i'm hopeful for picking in a month or so after the first hard frosts. Only thing is i adore brussel leaves but the caterpillers got these.

The cauliflowers were a disaster in that this was the first year they developed heads and i was well chuffed and then the caterpillers got them so haven't been able to pick one decent one. The cabbages didn't fare much better so i decided to cut my loses and cut the heads off them and composted them leaving the stumps to develop smaller heads which they have done so i should salvage something from them. Such is the highs and lows of veggie growing. On the whole though it's been a good year and i've really enjoyed it. Actually felt like I was in charge (well almost).

Picking and Storing Fruit

At this time of the year those with fruit trees are busy harvesting apples and pears. Knowing when the fruit is ripe is sometimes difficult but not impossible. One of the advantages of growing your own fruit is that you can pick it at the peak of ripeness and store it.

Apples are ready for picking when they can be plucked from the tree by simply placing a cupped hand under the fruit, lifting and gently twisting. If the apple does not come away easily in the hand then it is not ready to harvest.

When picking, place your apples in a basket lined with some sacking or newspaper. This will prevent bruising on the way to the garden shed.

It's amazing how many people struggle with knowing whether it's the right time to pick and it is surprisingly straight forward and easy to do as this video link with Monty Don shows.

How to pick and store apples and pears

Storing apples for the winter is simple. Apples need a cool, frost-free environment, where they can last for weeks, even months in winter. A garage or garden shed is perfect.

Happy picking!

Mid October 2006

I finished harvesting the first of the dessert apples, ‘Red Windsor’. I lost a few to earwigs and thinned quite a few as it was laden but still managed to get a good crop. The tree is now stripped bare and three other trees happily producing away and developing well. They all flower and fruit in succession, essential for pollination and also makes it easier to manage when cropping. Red Windsor produce nice medium sized apples with a nice sweet flavour, not quite as sweet as ‘Scrumptious’ but still sweet.

I picked the first two apples of ‘Scrumptious’ another dessert apple and these tend to be a fair bit larger than the Windosr’s but the flavour is really nice, the apple skins are naturally shiny too which also makes them appealing, and although they look completely red in the picture they are a dual colour. The flesh is white with a nice texture which is really sweet and juicy would be a favourite with children. Certainly you can’t beat home grown apples straight off the tree.

For anyone wanting to grow apples but worried about space I would recommend cordons, I have four trees in a 12ft space. They crop well enough to keep you going in apples and you can have more varieties in a small space cropping in succession. They are also very decorative and it’s amazing the amount of interest they generate.

Found a shield bug part of the 'stink bug' family again on the apple leaf...think he must be looking for somewhere to hibernate over the winter as turning from green to brown. They don't do any harm from what i can gather but they can exude an unpleasant smell if they feel threatened which if they happen to be going across your blackberries is left behind. Haven't seen these before in Highland so assume this is due to the hot summer we've had this year.

Rose 'Gertrude Jekyll' is still producing buds. It's a very pretty 'girlie' pink and has lovely shaped flowers. It is very fragrant and looks really attractive in the lower light levels of autumn, likewise in the summer at the end of the day it shines.

The yellow rose is ‘Golden Shower’, a climbing shrub rose and has grown quite well to cover a trellis and again is very fragrant.

Still blackberries to be picked and these are starting to ripen in earnest now. This is the second growing season for Blackberry ‘Chester’ and has produced very large fruit which is very sweet and full of flavour…very different to the brambles you see growing in the wild. An added bonus is that it’s also thornless. Despite it being the second growing season it’s still managed to produce a reasonable crop and put out new shoots to be tied in next year. I will have to move the bush though as I allotted 6ft of space it clearly isn’t enough and could do with twice the amount. Luckily I’ve a spot where I can move it too where it will have enough room to flourish.

Pictures of Highland

Thought it would be nice to include some pictures in and around the area. Every season gives the outlook a different scene. I hope you enjoy the scenery.

Click on the filmloop to see them in detail.

Also thought it would be nice to see my plot via virtual Earth

Ziggywigs' Plot via Virtual Earth