And some more pictures from today

These taken with the camera and 50mm lens.

Tiny caterpillar on lilac leaf

Hawthorn

Fern frond

Hawthorn

Broom

Muscari seed head

Peony

Strawberries

Another picture dump

Back from last post up to today. No further details for now.

Last weekend last trip to the garden centre.
Pots and an extra hose and shower thingy.

An extra fig tree

A planter and some lettuces

A new hydrangea

Finally got to plant the broom, lilac, hops and elder.

Cross-pollination

Today we visited a nearby garden center (Van Goidsenhoven in Holsbeek). It was great! ;P

We got 4 bare root, low-stemmed fruit trees for 7 euro each. We could choose and pull them out of the ground ourselves. We got an apple (Elstar), two cherries (Regina and Early Rivers). The elstar is supposed to cross-pollinate nicely with the Jonagold we already have, and the Regina is cross-pollinated by the Early Rivers (the other way around was not mentioned in the label however?).
We also got a medlar, we have never tasted the fruits, and they seem quite particular, so we'll see.

We hurried home and immediately planted the trees, the apple had some flowers already so it's probably not the best time...

Medlar

Early Rivers

Regina

Elstar

I also found a few other plants I wanted to get for the garden, all with white flowers:

Except the hops, which blooms green, and the three ferns, which have no blooms ;)
So the rest are a variety of broom, which has small, nicely fragant cream white flowers (Cytisus praecox 'Albus'), a white lilac, an elder bush and a white wisteria.

Tomorrow I have to find places for them and plant them.

Edit Nov 2015: I realise I did not write down the cultivar for the lilac. I think in the shop they had Madame Lemoine which I had read about, but then I bought another white variety. Could it ve Edith Cavell? I actually don't remember, I hope the label shows up somewhere.

Another update

Maybe I should just name all my posts "update" followed by a roman numeral ;p 

So ok, here comes more pictures.

Pim got another large container and removed the large pile of bricks at the edge of the garden (we have some sort of concrete driveway-court on the side of the house). We kept the best bricks and pieces. I cleared grass of this area and put some bricks around the base of the ivy. The lower stalks are loose, difficult to see and fragile, so I wanted to protect them. I tossed some poppy seeds in there as well.

I also cut up bamboo stalks and stuffed them in a large flower pot (plastic, from a berry bushes). I noticed the mason bees did not have enough nesting places. 

Most of the stalks are too small, but I didn't have enough large ones and the small ones anchor the big ones.

I think there's some smaller bees later in the season anyway. 

Already today I saw activity at this new nest.

Some seedlings starting to emerge. If course the radishes are fast. I think the others might be carrots.

This bee was spring cleaning :))

Good news everyone! Lemon verbena survived the winter! It was quite woody ... when the leaves died from the cold, before it was freezing, I covered the bottom of the stem with a large pile of straw. Earlier this spring (might have been the end of winter) I pruned it back, and was glad to see the wood looked alive. It's taken a long time but here finally are leaves! Love love the scent of it and I use it in infusion, got a big handful last year and I hope to get more this one.

I have been taking pictures and not posting them...

17th april:

Hawthorn buds developing

First white peony bloom!

Apple blossoms nearly there

18th:

Iris eats grass

Nom

19th:

Won't focus ;P
First narcissus
Some got munched

There we are
Lots and lots of blossoms this year

We've got fruit!
Redcurrants

Redcurrants

Today:

The soil under the apple tree is acid
so I've been keeping eggshells

Woot!
The buds are pink but once they open they become white

And that's the apple tree

Loki has discovered dirt

Which is yay
I sowed in there dude

Dirt and sticks is heaven

King of the compost heap

I had forgotten the white muscari I bought in a small pot
They were languishing and fading
I separated them and planted them next to the hyacints, hopefully for next year

More surprise bulbs

First raspberry blossoms

One of the gooseberries also has some
The other one is too small I think

And the hawthorn buds slowly ripen