Photo: Jolene loves to see the frost on winter flowers
This week Andrea Brannigan and her daughter Jolene from Buncrana show us around their garden. They both love to see their garden full of plants and colour. The garden is also home to two friendly pet rabbits and is a small haven for children to play in.
How long have you been working on the garden?
Eight years. We were the first people to move into the house and it was just laid out in grass. The soil needed a lot of work before we planted.
What is your favourite plant?
I love the rose. I have a few in the garden and my favourite is the one that has two different colours, red and pink. The red one comes from the original rootstock.
What is your favourite season and why?
I prefer the spring because everything starts to grow and there is all of the preparation to do for the year ahead. (Jolene likes the winters best because the few flowers that are out look lovely with the snow and frost on them)
What work gives you the most pleasure in the garden?
Weeding and putting in the new plants for the year to come. I also love feeding the garden.
Any irritations in the garden? How do you cope?
Wasps and slugs. I put down beer traps for the slugs. The wasps I just have to put up with.
What is your best gardening tool?
It has to be the hand trowel. You can get right into the corners and around the base of plants to get out the weeds.
Top Gardening tip?
Feed regularly! I have a bit of a thing for the 10-10-20 grass feed. I tend to use it for everything!
Any plans for the future?
I would like more rose bushes. I will be keeping the nasturtiums down next year too, there are just too many of them this year. The rabbits seem to like them though so all is not lost!
How long have you been working on the garden?
Eight years. We were the first people to move into the house and it was just laid out in grass. The soil needed a lot of work before we planted.
What is your favourite plant?
I love the rose. I have a few in the garden and my favourite is the one that has two different colours, red and pink. The red one comes from the original rootstock.
What is your favourite season and why?
I prefer the spring because everything starts to grow and there is all of the preparation to do for the year ahead. (Jolene likes the winters best because the few flowers that are out look lovely with the snow and frost on them)
What work gives you the most pleasure in the garden?
Weeding and putting in the new plants for the year to come. I also love feeding the garden.
Any irritations in the garden? How do you cope?
Wasps and slugs. I put down beer traps for the slugs. The wasps I just have to put up with.
What is your best gardening tool?
It has to be the hand trowel. You can get right into the corners and around the base of plants to get out the weeds.
Top Gardening tip?
Feed regularly! I have a bit of a thing for the 10-10-20 grass feed. I tend to use it for everything!
Any plans for the future?
I would like more rose bushes. I will be keeping the nasturtiums down next year too, there are just too many of them this year. The rabbits seem to like them though so all is not lost!
Horticultural.
