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The gardening thread

iona said:
You lot need a slug management team. Veg farm had a couple of ducks on the job until a recent incident with a fox, and one of my work gardens has this little guy living in their veg bed. I made him a home out of roof tiles and grass which he seems to like :cool:
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I dig up loads of frogs and toads, most of them are smaller than the bloody slugs
 
Leafster said:
Ducks are supposed to be good but round here I'd definitely worry about the foxes.

I have a team of slow worms but they can't keep up with the slimy little buggers.
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They're good but they make too much mess to keep in a garden unless it's massive, plus they'll eat your veg too given the chance.

There's a whole family of slow worms living in the compost heaps in that garden too.
IMG-20210805-113149.jpg

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Last toms picked, any others are brown sludge.

Plus points, another week or so and the glut of cucumbers should start being harvestable and I'm well impressed by how large some of the winter squash are getting.
 
My allotment is undergoing its annual collapse. I know I need to deal with the gigantic roses but a combination of too many plants, too narrow paths and some frankly hair-raising growth spurts has meant a bloody battle, attempting to push over-burdened wheelbarrows through thickets of 10foot rose canes, massive euphorbias, tree paeonies and some horrendous weeds (such as immense mugworts, lovage, bramble and verbascums). I am not enjoying any of it but, after a sorry day of nursing sweetheart (having a horrible arthritis flare-up), I took my knapsack sprayer down to the plot and sprayed superstrength glyphosate with abandon, over curtains and skeins of fucking bindweed, invading my setigera and noisette roses, strangling the plum and absolutely smothering my burnet roses (the thorny cordon between me and the slackers on the next door plot. I fucking hate these people, to be honest. They think as long as they pay the derisory annual rent, they can 'own' a plot yet do absolutely nothing except cultivate a field of couch, bramble and bindweed....for the last 8 years.
I fear I am struggling to maintain my plot but cannot face giving any part of it up since I would lose either my shed, my pond or my composts bays...all crucial parts of the plot. Nonetheless, I will have to plead for a couple of workdays from the more rufty-tufty offspring before the whole plot descends into chaos. I know full well I am now just dealing with my own hubris, planting far too many briar roses, honeysuckles, and huge perennials, most of which tower over my head. There are times when it is lovely beyond measure (up until mid June) but keeping the show going with asters, rudbeckias, dahlias et al, is more than the plot can really sustain. The 'meadow' now requires a brush-cutter and at least a coupla hedgecutters.
My garden is lovely though because growth is reined in to reasonable levels by virtue of being mostly containerised...although even here, large scented leaf pelargoniums and salvias have taken over any spare ground and the last remaining sitting space.
Just need to hang on for another month when, afaic, it all starts over and I can ignore the present mess and dwell in an orderly, imaginary future spring. This happens every single year.
 
I'm finding as my garden matures that it's increasingly difficult to get into it to keep it tidy. It's made more difficult by the different levels - in between the downpours today I've been clipping the beech columns whilst trying not to slide down the wet paved slope in front of them. After that I was scrabbling up a another steep bank, simultaneously weaving in between plants, trying to deal with the weeds in the gaps which I had to throw on the garage roof below to clear up later.
 
A4935107-65CA-4903-AA2E-BCAC155E9CA6.jpeg
I’m not usually a fan of crocosmia, but it’s welcome in our newish large Pembrokeshire garden. You can see here some gunnera and budlia too, along with triffid size bamboo (left) and Laurel hedging (glimpsed in background) that needs a good ol’ autumn hack.

Still plenty of tidying to do, but at least the summer weeds spurt is starting to abate, and I have a better idea of what plants I want to keep/move.

Looking forward to planning planting for next year now, to fill the spaces cleared of the worst of the undesirables.
 
The seed pod below in pic ( shit pic sorry but it was windy)is black and the twigs were covered in black grainy stuff. Ta.
 
No idea sorry :(

Separate topic - would I be right in thinking that any seeds being sold off now cheaply by on-line sellers will be from last year and so likely less viable? If so it's a shame because there are some nice ones on there.
 
two sheds said:
No idea sorry :(

Separate topic - would I be right in thinking that any seeds being sold off now cheaply by on-line sellers will be from last year and so likely less viable? If so it's a shame because there are some nice ones on there.
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They vary with plant family - I suppose it depends how many seeds there are per packet ...
 
Note to myself - never buy any more plants from Parkers.

At least the mites seem to have died on the brugs I had from them last year - doubtless the cold winter helped...
I managed to kill all six fuchsia plugs and all I have is the chance of a few flowers sprouting from a woody stump in one basket.
I also murdered half the pelargoniums but I have sufficient....

I bought three begonia corms.
One plant came up stunted and gave up, one is a big blousy one with a decent amount of fragrance.

The third one is a bit weaker and the fragrance is a bit citrussy - in the description they were listed as "exhibition quality" or some such nonsense :p


begonia2.jpg
 
gentlegreen said:
it looks like fungus growing on aphid drippings ... ?
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Yes, the bits on the branches look like droppings. It's about 80% of the tree, do you reckon it's treatable, or considering they only live about 40 years or so ( it's well established) do I get the chainsaw to it?
 
Well it’s been a month now dealing with the new/old garden. I have cleared all the shite.

Mowed the lawn a zillion times and pressure washed the shed, fences and patio.

Cleared the vegetable garden after weedkillering the lot a month ago.

Most surfaces were covered in a green mould. It all came up nice though bar the lawn. Pressure washers are cool.

I got a raker/scarifier (£53 screw fix) today and put it to work on rake, I’m trying to get the straw like thatch out. I got eight large bin bags of moss, dead grass and weeds.
It’s quite impressive. I fed the lawn and now it’s beer o clock.

I have my Azeda now, I’m pleased with this fact. I will dig the vegetable garden soon, sweep up and wash the paths, before painting the veg garden ashes tomorrow.

I’m making some flower beds. Break up the rectangle. Bulbs and stuff I guess.

Anyway I’m pleased with progress. I feel I am getting back my strength finally. Then I think again to how I was only two years ago and I feel blessed. image.jpg
 
TopCat said:
Well it’s been a month now dealing with the new/old garden. I have cleared all the shite.

Mowed the lawn a zillion times and pressure washed the shed, fences and patio.

Cleared the vegetable garden after weedkillering the lot a month ago.

Most surfaces were covered in a green mould. It all came up nice though bar the lawn. Pressure washers are cool.

I got a raker/scarifier (£53 screw fix) today and put it to work on rake, I’m trying to get the straw like thatch out. I got eight large bin bags of moss, dead grass and weeds.
It’s quite impressive. I fed the lawn and now it’s beer o clock.

I have my Azeda now, I’m pleased with this fact. I will dig the vegetable garden soon, sweep up and wash the paths, before painting the veg garden ashes tomorrow.

I’m making some flower beds. Break up the rectangle. Bulbs and stuff I guess.

Anyway I’m pleased with progress. I feel I am getting back my strength finally. Then I think again to how I was only two years ago and I feel blessed. View attachment 283578
Click to expand...
I just checked a pic of the garden a month ago and am chuffed really. A81BD5AA-27F8-4E2D-A415-60D6C3B1CA6F.jpeg
 
The tumbler composter in the first pic ( next to shed) was full of compost, it had been sat for 20years apparently. The soil is like talc. So nabbed a load of what I could get in a seat Ibiza in rubble sacks :D
 
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