Weymouth Sculpture

Local councils seem to spend huge amounts of money on sculptures in an attempt to improve areas. So Weymouth is the latest place to get a sculpture, this time one that cost £335,000 and looks like something from the set of a Flintstones movie, that is being constructed near the main entrance road to the town. For the same price, based on retail not even trade prices, the following could have been planted throughout Weymouth and would have matured and grown to look even more impressive in years to come.

200 3ft 7 Yuccas that grow to 15ft tall
200 10ft Olive trees
200 6ft Dicksonian New Zealand Ferns
200 Italian Cypress Trees 8ft will reach 20ft
100 9ft Japanese Maples that will grow to 20ft
200 Cordyline Cabbage Palms 11ft will grow to 20ft
200 Trachyapus Fortuneii Chusan Palms 10ft will grow to 25ft.

I wish councils would spend more on planting than on one off big sculptures as a way to improve areas, as the results can be so much more impressive and long term.

BBC Asking 'Where are the garden birds?'

Have you noticed fewer garden birds in your garden this winter?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-16743212

Busy Lizzies Bust for 2012

Big news Impatiens lovers, this year will see a massive shortage of busy lizzies as the major retailers such as B&Q and the main garden centres will not be selling them due to a disease outbreak of Impatiens Downy Mildew which makes the leaves go yellow.

The problem began as far back as 2003, but has steadily got worse, and is now becoming resistant to the strongest fungicides. The reduction in plants being grown it is hoped will give growers time to try and address the problem.

In the meantime other flowers will have to take over the job of providing colour in your hanging baskets and window boxes. There are plenty of other options the most popular likely to be Geraniums, Pansies (see above) and Begonias.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/9020650/Busy-lizzy-shortage-due-to-disease.html

HS2 Plough Through Countryside

So, the HS2 railway from London to Birmingham has been given the go ahead. One thing I heard on the radio is that it will mean the destruction of 48 ancient woodlands. Remember the Newbury Bypass, that was probably only a few miles of road, so imagine the protests against the HS2. Like so many of these big building projects they always come back to the same root cause, over population. More people equals more roads, schools, train tracks, and housing needs to be built. Last year alone net immigration was 252,000, that is a city the size of Nottingham! This has been going on for over a decade now, so now the infrastructure is beginning to be built to cope with all the extra millions, wait until the big house building schemes get underway, parts of England will never be the same again.

Rich Pickings

A Swedish woman has found her wedding ring she lost in 1995. The ring was around one of the carrots she grew in her garden last year. 23 Carat Gold?

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/swedish-couple-find-long-lost-wedding-ring-carrot-garden-article-1.1000639

Panda Cam!

Now heres a fun web page to take a look at when you're on your tea break. Edinburgh Zoo have fitted cameras into their new Panda enclosure, so you can see what they are up to and how they are settling into their new home.... can't see any tartan home furnisings... and where are the Pandas?? Perhaps they are having a snooze.

http://www.edinburghzoo.org.uk/pandacam.html

4,000 BMW's for London Olympics

The Daily Mail has an interesting article about the Olympics ordering 4,000 BMW's from Germany to ferry Olympic dignataries from their west end hotels to the Olympic sports arenas. They point out that Seb Coe had promised the greenest Olympics.

If that was a serious pledge they would have orderd 4,000 Nissan electric vehicles from the North East, and would also have been supporting BRITISH jobs, but then I suppose this countries politicians could certainly win a gold medal for hot air so its no surprise.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2081005/Olympic-VIPs-whisked-London-4-000-BMWs--green-Games.html

Happy New Year

Happy New Year to all readers, so what might 2012 have in store for gardens? Well, after a quick gaze into my crystal ball I can see it being another boom year for all things allotment, veg patches and grow your own. If you search the main site you will come across articles from 2007 about the carrot credit crunch, so this downturn has now been going on for ages. However, I think even if the country was doing well, vegetable gardening would remain very popular. People have got the bug, and even if they had more money in their pockets they would still now want their own home grown lettuces and tomatoes.

Another trend for 2012 could well be drought plants and water saving, this winter has been quite dry and warm so far, and if you remember last spring was very dry and it was on course for a summer hosepipe ban until the summer was quite wet.

Apparently there is going to be the first Chelsea fringe event this year, with a lot of more informal, garden events and 'installations' surrounding the main event.

On a more political note, I think the issue of building on green belt is going to become a very hot topic. Over the last decade net immigration has been vast, just last year over 500,000 people moved here, and taking into account people who moved away from the UK net migration was about 252,000 (a city the size of Nottingham) all this means there is now a huge demand for housing, there is 1.8 million on council housing waiting lists. Many people are going to find out there lovely field they look out onto with deer walking in morning mists has been earmarked to be concreted over.

Plantwise I'm not sure, I'll contact some of the nurseries to see what they are launching in 2012, I remember last year one new plant was a black Petunia, which finally meant that all Newcastle United fans could grow hanging baskets in team colours! ;0)

Happy gardening for 2012!!!!!