Daisies Out Front « Cherry Menlove

Daisies Out Front

Welcome to my Potting Shed, on this rather sunny Wednesday morning in April.

Daisies Out Front
The front of our house had been looking a little miserable. It had taken a battering over the winter and was looking so dull and dreary. It needed colour, brightness and sunny faces.

Enter my hand-painted plant pots and copious amounts of Chrysanthemums and Marguerites.

I’ll take you through the making of the plant pots on Friday but to keep Chrysanth’s looking great from April right through until the end of the Summer a little prep has to be done.

Fill the bottom of the pots with a trowel full of grit to add a wee bit of drainage.

Next add some all purpose organic soil. I added enough to fill the pots until they were two thirds full as the soil that was already surrounding the plants that I had bought would be enough to take the soil up to the top.

It’s fun to potter outside in the sun. Feeling the cool soil get right under your fingernails and sprinkle itself over every surface imaginable. I always use my garden table as a potting bench as it’s just the right height but after this day’s session I could no longer bear the fact that it was looking so dry and weather beaten. It clearly needed a good dousing of teak oil.

Later, later, later!!!!!

I shoved six pots of Chrysanthemums onto my front windowsill and am utterly in love with them. It gave the front of the house the boost it needed and gives me something to smile at when I’m trundling back up the hill from a trip into town.

As long as I keep them watered, deadhead them and make sure they get lots of sun then they should continue to provide me with smiley sunny faces throughout the summer months. I’m looking forward to those balmy nights when the house is cooling down from a days worth of baking in the sun and I pad outside in flip flops to check on my friendly plants. Meditating on the day that has been and relishing the next day to come.

I like daisies!

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As you can see I caved and squeezed in enough time to get that dreary garden furniture of mine looking a little more ready for the season. If you also have wooden garden furniture that you love, but somehow feel a little ashamed of, then find out what oil suits the wood the best and proceed with painting on a drink for the parched pieces.

My own furniture needed teak oil and as soon as the oil hit the wood it started to look better and a lot more presentable.

By the next day (apart from a water ring) it was looking as good as new. By doing this job now it also means that not only is the furniture better prepared for a wet Summer if (please God no!) we have another wash-out but I don’t have to do it again in the Autumn when I’d much rather be in by the fire with a bottle of Barolo.

Lazy!

See you tomorrow when I’m well and truly entering the realm of baby showers, bridal showers and wedding favours! It’ll be ’sweet’!

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