Spreckly wrote: ↑ 12 Dec 2023, 10:24 I have a Liquid Amber tree in the front garden,

I had to look this one up, it looks a stunning tree.

I've been very lucky so far....my next door neighbour built a huge tunnel house for his citrus trees (which are very young) and so has a lot of room
We've had some harsh frost even up to 4 weeks ago (officially in summer) and I though I'd lost my potatoes as a result (thankfully they've rallied around but there'll be no new potatoes for Christmas Day they we've grown ...never mind plenty for the New Year as they're doing really well now
I planted a whole bunch of tomato seeds thinking if some failed I'd still have plenty of plants but then having been able to put them in Bob's tunnel house they all thrived ...I have 12 Sweet 100 vines (they are prolific cherry tomato producers) and 44 Roma's
This week I took a week off as I'm working Christmas and New Year....so
We've made 3 arches out of reinforcing mesh - dug a trench either side (so you can walk through and then plants are on the outside - we've planted into buckets so we can plant things in the same area and just change the soil in the buckets (which when emptied will be able to be added to the compost we're making and be reused).
On 2 of the arches I've planted 6 of the sweet 100's out on arches and 18 of the Roma because I'm hoping it's late enough now for there to be no more low temps ...we've had days with 30 this week so we're hoping summer is finally here.... but they had to go out because they were becoming triffid like and need support.... now we wait and see.
On the third I planted a load of peas and sugar snap peas along with some Tromboncino squash....Jamie Oliver reckons are amazing and I just think look fabulous and hopefully tasty. Either way it's something new to try apparently they are close to butternut squash if they mature but picked younger like Zucchini both of which we love so win win for us
https://hub.suttons.co.uk/gardening-adv ... ino-squash
In the tunnel house we've got chilli's, Romano peppers (which I plan on roasting and canning) and eggplants (which I've never grown before either so am interested to see what happens with them).
The raised beds we have found we really need to cover because those rascally rabbits get in too easily.... I planted broccoli (2 have been eaten) and a couple of square feet of beetroot seedlings were munched! but still growing strong (now we've covered everything is broccolini, a load of bullseye beetroot and cylindrical beetroots along with little round carrots (because we need to work on a carrot bed for longer varieties) and a load of spring onions.
Our Asparagus bed is going great...not to be picked this year but we've got loads of ferns now so next year should be a good one (fingers crossed).
Oh and I planted sweet potatoes this week (because they can't go out if there are frosts) ...I don't know if they will have long enough to grow and next year I think I'm going to have to do a covered raised bed for them but make it so they can't escape into the garden (Oxalis) because as much I love them and want to grow heaps I don't want the vines taking over which they will if given half a chance.
All in all I'm feeling quite positive about this years growing and we've got plans for next year already forming based on what we've learnt this year.

Spreckly wrote: ↑ 12 Dec 2023, 10:24 I have a Liquid Amber tree in the front garden

.... one of my husband's favourite trees

Just picked my first crop of 2024. Frost forecast so I thought those pencil thin sticks of rhubarb wouldn't survive. Not quite a portion so I added a small apple. Very nice.

My Magnolia Susan has had buds on since before Christmas!

Our east coast weather is very mixed. Heavy frost on Saturday morning followed by a glorious day. My son cut my back and one front lawn, topless. I sat outside with Gracie and debated whether to put a t shirt and a skirt on. The following day it heaved it down, but today is glorious so far.
This morning after my Monday cleaning, I have sown tomato, cosmos, cornflower, nasturtium, delphinium and French marigold seeds. They are tucked up under plastic in the greenhouse.
All my geraniums died off in the greenhous over the winter.
My pink camellia continues to flower, and my white one is just starting to open. Blossom is forming on my pear tree and my magnolia stellata is bursting into flower.
In front of the house, which faces south, my tubs have wallflowers, aubretia and daffs, all flowering.
Nettles are coming up under the hedge. Despite the fact that they attract butterflies, I get rid of them.
I love this time of year.

MY plums and pear are in flower. The damson might be about to flower too, but most of them have a bog surrounding them, don't know how long they'll live if we have more wet winters.
I'm picking some skinny sticks of rhubarb, though just a handful once a week.