i have had two people seperately tell me that Gunnera (manicata) is toxic- but i have never seen it listed as such- or on the poisonous plant list- are they getting it muddled with something similar or is it toxic (to the skin)- can anyone help me?!

Well it's turned distinctly autumnal all of a sudden. It's just a beautiful time of year- still nice and warm in the day, but cool in the mornings and evenings. The light is wonderful-the shadows long, and the oak trees are just starting to turn yellow. I have spotted the first cyclamen popping up out of the pine needles that cover the floor.

This has been our first year with a vegie garden here, and it has been a steep learning curve. Not enough organic matter added to the soil at the beginning of the year and the watering has been a major job every evening. However, it hasn't been a total disaster- we have had beetroots and salads, wondeful carrots, courgettes, onions, peppers and chillis, lots of herbs and tons of tomatoes (and I have spent days and days in the kitchen making sauces and chutneys!).

This winter we will be installing a decent irrigation system and adding as much chicken, pig and horse manure as we can! Hopefully next year will be even better!

I have been taking cuttings- rosemary, salvias, perovskia, buxus, and potting up delphiniums, echinaceas and verbenas for next summer.   We have also renovated all the olive trees (seriously hard-pruned!) and planted new vines.

We continue to battle with the brambles and the broom, but we are winning slowly but surely (can't believe there are still areas here we haven't even walked on!).

My next job will be planting more spring bulbs- I planted alot last year, but I am careful to only plant bulbs that will work well (and not compete) with the native wild bulbs that are here already.

hi- just wondering if anyone has experience of growing treeferns inside.

i have two beautiful tree ferns- doing well under a shady tree but I am wondering if i could move them inside my house entrance. i have moved them before so thats not the issue its whether they would be ok inside.

the area is a large unheated sort of atrium- nice and cool and shady (some natural light but no direct light), obviously i would need to incorporate a drip irrigation system.

any comments would be helpful

 thanks in advance, shelley (portugal)

I have been having an interesting 'conversation' on another forum about treehugging. Talking to my husband about it- he thinks this is an eccentric hobby (surely not!)- and now i'm beginning to wonder...... Am I eccentric? (don't think so), abnormal/mad? (possibly). Anyway I thought TGN would be a good place to ask- are there any more treehuggers out there- and if so what determines the tree you would hug?!

We have a family of tawny owls in the woods around our cabin- it's so fantastic- i have never seen owls so close up in the wild. Most evenings you can see at least two of them- in the pine trees just above your head- some nights four or five-wow! Hopefully building a few more boxes this year will ensure they stay.

The Vegie garden is improving after a sunny spell and the addition of some organic compost and chicken pellets- things are finally taking off and I can already pick spring onions, lettuce, spinach, beans, peas and baby carrots.  Tomatoes, peppers, courgettes to follow soon hopefully. Happy days!

Summer has finally arrived in this area of Portugal. After several weeks of (welcome) rain, it has turned hot hot HOT! The combined rain, and now sun, has made everything shoot up, and we have spent two days trying to find the vegetables amongst the wild flowers! Our neighbours have been constantly complaining that this weather is causing problems with the crops, particularly the potatoes, and you can hear the sound of chemical spraying all around the village. We won't use any chemicals here, even though our neighbours think we are crazy, we hope that the using new seed potatoes and not third/forth/fifth? time-round spuds will give a better, disease free result- and be more cost-effective in the long run.