> That’s for sure. These are the vineyards on the “other side” (i.e Hesse – boo, hiss…) side of the Rhine, with the Niederwald Memorial topping it all off. (Helen…
> They didn’t have stuff like this when I was a kid. The State Horticultural Show in Bingen has something for all ages. This is a kiddies’ playground in the…
> ….Number 6… Helianthus and hypericum
> Pretty sloppy security at the Landesgartenschau (State Horticultural Show) in Bingen the other week. This chappy appears to have got through all the barriers and clambered up to the…
> At the Landesgartenschau in Bingen (Told you you’d be swamped…) Loungers and chairs sprinkled all around the park. Just the nicest idea (Mr Helen would subscribe to that idea…
> Talk about streets paved with gold….. Went on a quick 8km stroll before breakfast the other day – up to the top of the hill, across to the Ebersheim…
> There’s been farmland at the top of our village since we moved here 30 years ago. Crop rotation means that you get annual variations on the sugar beet/grain theme…
> Toddled off to the Landesgartenschau in Bingen with Ms jb, Helen and Mr Helen yesterday evening (cut-price tickets as from 5pm…) It’s an absolute treat. Apart from some stunningly…
> …Morning Glory? If it’s true what they say that weeds are only really VERY successful plants, Convolvulaceae is definitely a weed And just look what it says here: The…
> ..when sunflowers turn up on the market. Trivia Alert: The Italian name is Girasole from their habit of rubbernecking to follow the sun. (“girare” – to turn + “sole”…
> Not the sort of thing you want to see if you’re a farmer. Sudden storm, microbursts galore and whole swathes of your cereal crops are flattened. Rarely the entire…
> A blackberry at the instant of conception….
>If there’s a patch of open space in Mainz, they’ll either have covered in in cobblestones or the busy chappies from the city’s gardening department will have bagsed it and…
>Rosa canina or dog rose. There are various theories on the origin of the name. One goes that it was a disparaging cachet (in the context of “worthless”) compared with…
>Odile Landragin is legendary in these parts for her stunning herb and aromatics garden. So legendary, in fact, that the local paper has assigned her the elevated status of Official…
>No, not the Provence. These manicured rows of lavender are squeezed in at the back of the Hauptbahnhof (Main Station) in Mainz and between a jumble of flyovers and access…
>This is how much of the asparagus is grown around here. (That’d be “Spargel”, the blanched stuff that you have to peel, as opposed to the green stuff that you…
>There’s the Federal Horticultural Show – the Bundesgartenschau – held biannually and it’s such a huge prestige object that cities are queueing up to apply for the honour of hosting…
>Take one virulent hosta plant, a bit of tweaking in iPhoto and tghis is what you get
>Rue – Ruta graveolens – is one of those herbs that you’ll rarely find a use for. It featured prominently in Middle Eastern and Roman cuisine in ancient times, but…
>…isn’t really enough. But given the constraints and country gardenish-ness of our section here, we’ve taken to planting strawberries in terracotta wall planters. Taste great, though…
>The Albertine rose. Our two specimens are full on at the moment. The only improvement I could think of would be a longer flowering season. One blast and they’re gone…
>This is why I just love this time of year…
>Waiting to blossom. jb is back tomorrow.
>For no other reason than this picture makes me happy.
>Spargel (Asparagus – especially the white variety) is the greatest vehicle for Hollandaise Sauce ever invented (except for, perhaps, poached eggs). Yes, we are in the grips of Spargel Fever…
>Seriously, I wanted to buy them all. Instead, I bought none. It is fun to look though.
>So, I met jb yesterday. What a hoot. I wrote more about it over here. The lovely Mrs jb bought me a gorgeous bunch of roses that smell divine. Having…
>Alchemilla — Lady’s Mantel is a definite favourite. Easy to grow, good ground cover, medicinal benefits for female plumbing. The Latin name means “little magical one”, referring to the way…
>Mainz goes in for mass planting in a big way. The city has its own gardening department, with glasshouses and the whole shebang. Over winter, you’ll mostly see hardy heathers…
>…but blue? And not both? Odile Landragin is celebrating the 10th anniversary of her exquisite herb and aromatics garden in Gonsenheim with a series of open days. If the weather…
Mainz Daily Photo 