I repotted the first batch of lavender seedlings. These are Vicenza Blue and Bandera Deep Rose.
I used a good quality, regular potting mix (Black Magic, I think). I continue to keep them under LEDs.
These are slower than the Pelargoniums, but not at all difficult. They just need some patience.
Spring is a LONG way away. These didn't need to be started so soon. But they are fun.
These are the Maverick varieties, Red, Coral, White.
They may need repotting soon. I think they will start to bloom in early Spring.
I pruned back the container David Austin roses. Removed old rose leaves and mulch. Re-mulched with chestnut leaves.
Now I think they are ready for winter. I have them in a sheltered location, out direct sun (north side of shed, on concrete base) to avoid freeze/thaw cycles and prevent warming sun from causing coming out of dormancy too soon, which can cause frost injury.
I the Spring, I may prune back further,
This raised bed developed a sagging side. I was concerned it might fall. I had to remove the entire side, and re-start from the bottom up.
My original plan was to make it more narrow, because it's hard to reach the muddle. But this is too much hard physical labor for an old, handicapped guy like me.
I had to use that steel fencepost to pry the lower blocks out.
I can see that moles undermined the outside side, causing the soil to sink. I'll fill in the gaps with lava gravel, which I hope is more difficult for moles to dig. Then re-build in place.
I can mulch the difficult-to-reach area so it doesn't need much care this year. It's not a lot.
I'd like to finish before the soil freezes, but I need a break first.
Here are two of the micro-mini roses that I was playing with last year.
I want to keep them very compact, so they will fit in the indoor shelves garden. Also, I kept them outside for the summer. They had problems with spider mites and aphids. I sprayed with a neem spray, which caused the leaves to look bad. Finally, I gave a dose of systemic houseplant insecticide - which I don't like using- and cut the stems very short. Basically leaving only the lowest viable looking buds on each stem. I gave the remaining stems a spray of neem oil.
Here they are a few weeks later, putting on new growth.
I think they'll do OK. I saw a tiny amount of webbing on one stem, so sprayed again with neem oil.
These are the "button flower" type. The type that look like mini tea roses seem to grow bigger. The yellow one grew too big and had leaf spot, so I discarded it.
This is the other one. It had spider mites too. I just gave it the same treatment as I previously did for the others.
I thought about discarding it, but decided to give it a try too.
