【ガーデニング】真冬でも美しい庭　球根の植え付けと寄せ植えのお手入れで春を待つ

Hello, I'm SARA. Winter has arrived and it has got so cold in the past two weeks, but the flowers I planted are growing well. I will give the last touch to my garden before the new year comes. 1. Deadheading - the difference between viola and pansy dead heads and flower buds. When I come out to the garden, the first thing I do is deadheading of flowers. Last year I had a hard time telling the difference between the deadheads and flower buds, but this year I can well distinguish them! If the petals are shrunk and wrinkled up, the flower is dead. The buds are closed in a beautiful, and neat shape like this. This is a bud. There are many fresh soft petals which are alined beautifully. This has already become a seed. I should not have left it this long. This is a deadhead because the petals are curled inward. This deformed one is a deadhead too. The weakly hanging head is also a sign that the flower is dying. Deadheading must be done from the root. Pansies has large petals and it is easier to tell the difference. Weakened petals are shrunk like this. It is also easier for small violet flowers. The petals are curled inward like this. There are many seeds in the lower part where it is hard to see. It is best to turn the basket or pot around from time to time. I found a little bug freezing and clinging to one of the petals of these blackish viola. If you don't like insects, please fast forward! I tried to remove the bug with a scoop but I couldn't. So I picked the whole flower. For stocks, the petals start drying from the bottom and wither, so I scrape off the withered petals with my fingers. I also pick the leaves inside which have turned yellow and dirty. Deadheading continues.... 2. Planting bulbs longing for spring. I believe we human need "hope" to keep moving forward in our lives. I enjoy gardening because it gives me hope to see how my plants and flowers grow to be in the future. When I plant bulbs in winter, I am hopeful that they will sprout beautifully in spring. These are tulips. These are allium bulbs that I have always wanted to plant. A few types of muscaris too. And hyacinths. The hyacinths already had flower buds when I bought them two weeks ago, and they have started blooming. And I got daffodils too. Very Japanese. I've been stocking up on bulbs since fall whenever I had a chance. I also went to my favorite shop GARDENS this month, so I bought some moss there. Covering the pot with moss will make it look even more beautiful. Looking good! The bulbs sticking out of the moss look so cute. One more bulb with flower bloom. This is called Lux - a kind of Ranunculus. The cut flowers of Lux are so expensive, and so are the bulbs. But the lady in the shop said I could just leave the bulb in the pot and flowers will keep blooming every season. If you can't get the flower out of the pot, step on it and roll it with your foot like this. The buds were all closed when I bought it, but the flowers have fully bloomed in the past two weeks. Beautiful. This shady place was a spot where I kept failing to grow anything. But the daffodils I planted two years ago have finally bloomed this year. The place next to it was empty, so I planted those new bulbs of daffodils. Despite the long distance from the US military base, the noises of their choppers and planes catch my attention. The roots of the linden tree reach here and I am having a hard timing digging. I read the instructions after planting the bulbs and it said that the bulbs should be spaced 12cm to 15cm apart. So I re-did it later. This is allium. I wanted this in my garden for a long time. I planted 6 bulbs to start with, but the timing might have been too late for the next year's bloom. There are 20 tulips here - those inexpensive kinds that can be purchased at home depos. Like last year, I haven't had any success with pretty European tulips. So I go with these simple Japanese tulips. I planted many stocks in this flower bed on the south side of my garden last month. I decided to plant the tulip bulbs here so they will come out in-between the stocks. Placed the bulbs randomly. And just plant them. Hoping and praying that they will bloom beautifully next spring! I continued working. These are small bulbs of Muscaris. I decided to plant the white ones in this pot of stocks. Poke holes in the soil with your finger and put the bulbs in there. These are rare pink Muscari. I will plant these in small flower pots that have been left unused. 3. Finish by cleaning the flowerpots and adding some final touches. As I was taught by Ms. Miyamoto last year, I will put some decorations on the pots Remove trash and weeds from the soil. I decorate it with pine cones. This kind of a small thing changes the whole look dramatically. My beautiful hosta has finally withered. I water the bulbs in their pots. and decorate the pot with moss. In the end, I use my bare hands to give a final touch. Oh, I forgot to water the pot of allium bulbs. Ms. Miyamoto from the GARDENS taught me to decorate flower pots with moss during the winter. Same for the hosta pot. Enough for today and I need something sweet now! Yes, I have a tea time today as usual I make red bean paste using boiled red beans. A little bit of water and some cane sugar. Boiling this down, you can immediately make some red bean paste. I am making Ogura Toasts - Toasts with red bean paste and cream. Make some slits in the bread so the butter soaks through. I use a frying pan instead of toasting it in the toaster. The reason I wanted to eat Ogura Toast was because I went on a business trip to NAGOYA two days ago. (Ogura toast is a specialty of NAGOYA) I somehow craved for it on the Shinkansen train on my way back home from the trip. Probably because I saw too many "Ogura" related souvenirs in the Nagoya Station. Leaving the butter on the bread for a while, it will melt and soak into the bread. I left the bread too long on the frying pan and the underside burnt a bit! To be honest, I do not like red bean paste. But I have no problem eating it with my favorite fresh cream. This is fresh cream. Hot tea on a winter day warms my heart. I hear Noa's footsteps starting to move in response to the good smell. Here comes Noa as usual. Oh my! This is delicious. When a bread is toasted on a frying pan, the outside is so crispy and the inside is so soft. Can't resist the second one. It is so good that I do not have to be in Nagoya to eat the toast. Thank you everyone for watching my channel this year. I felt like giving up many times, but thanks to everyone's kindness and encouragement, I was able to continue. Wish you a happy new year and see you all next year!!