Stock Exchange holidays—the 1st of May and 1st of November—were our aim for the ceremonies of planting and lifting the dahlias. We Made a Garden (1956)
All the wood ash from my open fires is shared among the plants that particularly like potash, magnolias and irises particularly, and I give some to the raspberries, and in the winter the apple trees get their share. When I grew potatoes and tomatoes they, too, were lucky. We Made a Garden (1956)
Walter believed in manuring with a very generous hand and woe betide any little plant of mine that grew nearby, as it would surely die of suffocation under the great gallops of manure that were plastered round every rose. All the manure we could get was devoted to the roses and dahlias. We Made a Garden (1956)