The gardening thread

[campanula]

Do insects enjoy lilac?? I know they like budleilja (howeverthefuckyouspellit) but lilacs flower much earlier so possibly a decent food source?? I've never spent time close enough to observe if they are more ornamental or serve as an attraction for wildlife?

Lilac does have a role to play...although it actually isn't one of the most favourable shrubs/trees for wildlife owing to the flower shape of the blossom. Only insects with a long tongue or proboscis can reliably collect nectar or pollen (although I think there might be a couple of bumble bees with a long tongue)...so it's main use is for butterflies and moths. They are a good food source for cabbage whites, skippers and an array of moths. The best is our common lilac, syringa vulgaris. Avoid double flowering types.
I love lilac...which thrives in my sandy woodland.

Wedding avoidance so escaped to local botanics which was having a little plant sale. Came home with some very old-fashioned plants indeed - pelargonium sidoides, calceolaria 'Kentish Hero', another scented leaf geranium (Lady Plymouth) and a lovely red delphinium nudicaule (nothing like the usual blues, a US native). Planted up a large terracotta pot with mix of reds, oranges and lime green. Highly satisfying, May even take pics.

 

[BoatieBird]

We've added a new garden construction this weekend.
A 'wall' with a floating window.


The plan is to infill the gaps with some sort of trellis/mesh and grow honeysuckle and other stuff up it.
Maybe some virginia creeper, possibly a late flowering clematis - haven't quite decided yet.

 

[campanula]

Oh, splendid construction, BoatieB (now eyeing my wonky bamboo sweet pea supports with much dissatisfaction).

 

[heinous seamus]

I've got some sweetcorn ready to plant out. Will I need to protect it from pigeons / caterpillars?

I also planted some parsnips. There's plenty of stuff growing in that bed but I've no idea if any of it is parsnips or if it's all just weeds... I may return later with pics!

 

[BCBlues]

Anyone recognise this? I saw it growing up a factory wall, about 20 feet high. Just what I need in my garden to hide a boring fence.

It's smells lovely too... so what is it, how do I get it going in me yard? campanula & Co
That little cutting is all I have btw

 

[BoatieBird]

Clematis of some sort?

 

[BCBlues]

Clematis of some sort?

Yeah just googled it,looks the part don't it.
Appears easy to grow as well so here's hoping. Thank you.

 

[Calamity1971]

Yeah just googled it,looks the part don't it.
Appears easy to grow as well so here's hoping. Thank you.

Looks like clematis Montana rubens. I've got one to cover a horrible metal shed. It goes nuts. Smells like butterscotch to me..

 

[BCBlues]

Looks like clematis Montana rubens. I've got one to cover a horrible metal shed. It goes nuts. Smells like butterscotch to me..

Yeah the fence I wanna cover is metal and yeah it's a butterscotch smell. I'm in the pub with at the mo in my pocket I will put it in water as soon as I get home.

I hope it goes nuts in my garden, I have way too much ivy covering stuff i need a bit of colour.

 

[Calamity1971]

That little cutting is all I have btw

You need a new shoot that's tender. I took a few off my neighbours and they all took. Take a bag and spray some water in, snip a few and jobs a good un
Campanula might have better advice.

 

[BCBlues]

You need a new shoot that's tender. I took a few off my neighbours and they all took. Take a bag and spray some water in, snip a few and jobs a good un
Campanula might have better advice.

Ok. The factory is only a five minute walk away so I might revisit over the weekend to take a few snips.

 

[Calamity1971]

This is what you want

Take out the middle growing tip and two bottom leaves to encourage it to root rather than energy to leaves.
Off to plant the one I've just taken off .

 

[BCBlues]

Ok that's great. It's a very wirey plant ain't it but I'll deffo go back now I know what I'm looking for.

 

[StoneRoad]

I've got a couple of big, rambling red currant bushes; one up then garden, the other right against the house.
This year they flowered at about the same time and have been bee heaven for what seems like weeks.
Finally, it looks like the flowers have finished.

 

[campanula]

Couldn't have put it better, @Calamity 1971

 

[wayward bob]

dear gardening thread...

somewhere in my interweb travels i've come across a website that you dial your postcode into and it gives you the expected time for apple blossom in your area.

this seemed the most productive place to ask if anyone has a clue where that might have been?

eta: i was mean to my apple tree over the winter, i'm curious if it's the weather or my memory or my pruners or none of the above....

eta: lmgtfy: Apple blossom and harvest dates by variety

 

[wayward bob]

ALSO

do cordelines tend to drop leaves in batches? i can't tell whether it's what i'm doing now or what i did previously that has it half green half yellow

 

[Leafster]

ALSO [emoji1]

do cordelines tend to drop leaves in batches? i can't tell whether it's what i'm doing now or what i did previously that has it half green half yellow

Mine tends to lose a few of the lowest leaves over the winter and spring and then the odd lower one over the summer and autumn.

Being on an exposed hillside I’m happy to see the back of these lower leaves as they are usually battered, discoloured and stringy long before they fall off.

I’ve been known to help them along.

 

[Leafster]

Oh and the apple blossom on the tree I share with a neighbour has been over two or three weeks. That was after I took a saw and pruners to it over the winter in an attempt to rebalance it.

 

[ringo]

Some of the best flowers in my garden are self seeded weeds. Up yours Homebase [emoji12]

 

[wayward bob]

I’ve been known to help them along.

i pull off the properly dead ones, but i think i'm supposed to be pruning off the yellow bits? it's flowering atm, which i always associate with about-to-die, but i may have that wrong...

 

[Leafster]

i pull off the properly dead ones, but i think i'm supposed to be pruning off the yellow bits? it's flowering atm, which i always associate with about-to-die, but i may have that wrong...

I don’t know the answer. Mine doesn’t go yellow, just brown but it’s a bronze/red one!

I just leave the leaves on until they look a complete mess and, if they don’t fall off naturally, that’s when I give them a helping hand.

 

[wayward bob]

mine goes yellow in a call-social-services-for-gardens kind of way

 

[Leafster]

mine goes yellow in a call-social-services-for-gardens kind of way [emoji33]

I’d give it a feed perhaps?

I’ve just checked the RHS website and it says to feed them monthly during the growing season (if they are in containers) so perhaps I should be joining you on that social services watchlist as I’ve never done that!

I do top dress the tub in the spring though.

 

[Calamity1971]

Mine has just had the dead bottom leaves hacked off.
It's one thing I never feed. What's the number wayward bob

 

[Leafster]

Here's mine looking tatty

 

[Calamity1971]

Here's mine looking tatty

Looks in better fettle than mine. Oh, and nice pot

 

[Leafster]

Looks in better fettle than mine. Oh, and nice pot

I think the only reason it might look better is that the brown bits don’t show up so much because of its colour.

 

[Calamity1971]

Must get one of those then

 

[StoneRoad]

Had a bit of a blowy day, with an easterly wind. Result is loads of dropped petals from the two Bramley Apples trees, which seem to have gone to town with flowers this year. It looks like it has snowed petals !
The three 'eaters' had to have a severe prune during the winter and seem to have more or less skipped flowering. The soft soil and winter winds had put one of them down almost on the ground. It had been gradually jacked back up and is now 90/95% upright, we pruned the top out to take the weight off just after we started on the process - once I could see the shape. The other two had problems as the greengage (?) next to them had made a bid for world domination ...