The gardening thread

[bimble]

box moth has arrived at the allotment (mugged my garden buxus last year). I am giving up on box now, and advising my customers to do the same, since no-one wants to be spraying lethally unspecific pesticide every coupla weeks...surely. Having similar problems with rosemary beetle (which seems fond of lavender too). Selecting alternatives has to be a better long-term solution for pest control...so I am propagating a shedload of shrubby salvias as a potential border filler underneath a very lovely evergreen magnolia. First sweet pea blooms just starting, along with geums, blue flax, perennial wallflowers and campanulas. Just at that untidy time of year when spring bulb foliage looks sordid but must be endured for a week or so more before I can strim the fuckers. Hoping to set up my mister in the greenhouse so I can REALLY do softwood cuttings.
And again, where are my thunbergia seedlings. They took so long to get going last year that I had (measly) blooms at Xmas. Same with cobaens but didn't even manage a bloom (although I did overwinter one so it might surprise me this year..

This late growth of tender plants is a perennial problem for me...but mostly because I hate using heated propagators, which are fairly necessary to get a lot of these plants going while temperatures are still miles too low. While tomatoes always catch up, things like thunbergia, morning glories, crossvine, some New World salvias, really need to get started much earlier, then protected from chilly nights. Probably easier to do on a sunny windowsill, but I have none of them free for starting seedlings. I am really going to either go down a more technical road (which always makes me anxious) or just buy them from a nursery, so they are already a good size by planting time...and even then, day length often delays flowering until the first frosts are almost here. Will be very interested in hearing how you get on with moonflowers, bimble (calynction album). I grew them once but didn't see a flower till November.

I have also had a coleus fail along with yet another (4th or 5th) abortive attempt to grow 'kiss me over the garden gate'...aka persicaria orientalis and annual phlox, which mystifyingly didn't show (these are normally easy annuals). OTOH, had a very successful year of growing the primula family, adding trickier Asiatics (japonica, secundiflora, wilsonii) to my usual cowslips/primula/auricula spree...not that I have any hopes of growing any in my gardens but I have grown them for a customer who has much, much lusher, damper soil than I am ever going to have (especially since I have bullied them into trying out one of my youngest's revolving copper watering sprinkler).

I think there are a hundred plants all referred to as ‘moonflowers’ but mine (and I think gentlegreen ’s as well) are Impomea Alba. Nothing but the lovely heart shaped leaves so far but will keep you posted.

 

[gentlegreen]

I think there are a hundred plants all referred to as ‘moonflowers’ but mine (and I think gentlegreen ’s as well) are Impomea Alba. Nothing but the lovely heart shaped leaves so far but will keep you posted.

A Youtuber I follow, insisted in pointing to a caper spurge - euphorbia lathyris and calling it "moonflower" - but she lives in France so perhaps the French call it that.

I potentially have SEVEN seedlings now ! - and have decided to not have any of the ordinary white ones on the front house wall and may plant 4 of these smelly ones instead !

Mine aren't heart-shaped yet - still just the large wrinkly cotyledons.

 

[gentlegreen]

It will take me a while to get a handle on sowing my veggies.
Now I have the confidence in speedy germination, hopefully future sowings will be a lot less overkill.
With the lettuce and mustard, I was hoping to save by buying mixtures and recognise different types at the seedling stage.
I'm going to have to set up a small bubbler and a bigger one so I can grow hydro-friendly roots on small numbers of seedlings ...

 

[campanula]

Yep, same plants, bimble. Used to be calynyction but have now been subsumed in the ipomeas. Very, very late to get a bloom, although the few I did get were spectacular. I think I was actually attempting a 'moon garden' at the time, with nicotiana, zalyuskiana ovata, stepanotis, valerian and so on. Never managed top get a decent show from Chilean glory (lapageria) or night scented cereus but it was a good experiment (and due for a repeat, I think). I certainly sustained an ongoing thing for nicotianas, and still grow 4-5 varieties (plus this year, my eldest and I are trying smoking tobacco, with n.tabacum seeds, including one called 'Virginia Gold'

 

[campanula]

I have a home-made Bordeaux mix (copper sulphate and calcium hydroxide) but would also use a fungicide such as dithane if I had it to hand. I often fuck up my timings though, missing that tiny window of budbreak. I ignore it on my current almond as all the disgusting leaves will fall off and new leaves do appear...but I am unimpressed with the 'fruit' of this tree (it is a bizarre hybrid of p.amygdala x persica) so I am only keeping it for the early blossom (which, as the first blossom of spring, is a joy, lighting up the whole plot). While I am finally having a cull of the sweet cherries, I will hang onto this almond...but am planning to get an apricot (am testing a couple in a customer's garden).

 

[gentlegreen]

Yep, same plants, bimble. Used to be calynyction but have now been subsumed in the ipomeas. Very, very late to get a bloom, although the few I did get were spectacular. I think I was actually attempting a 'moon garden' at the time, with nicotiana, zalyuskiana ovata, stepanotis, valerian and so on. Never managed top get a decent show from Chilean glory (lapageria) or night scented cereus but it was a good experiment (and due for a repeat, I think). I certainly sustained an ongoing thing for nicotianas, and still grow 4-5 varieties (plus this year, my eldest and I are trying smoking tobacco, with n.tabacum seeds, including one called 'Virginia Gold'

Brugs and datura ?

I think my datura Metel if it germinates may also be "moonflower" in some parts ...

 

[campanula]

O yes, for sure, gentlegreen. Along with pale flowers, fragrance was the biggest motivation (to attract moths). I had hesperis matronalis and silene noctiflora. Ooooh, am getting quite excited and will plan one for a customer for next year, I think.

 

[iona]

I have a home-made Bordeaux mix (copper sulphate and calcium hydroxide) but would also use a fungicide such as dithane if I had it to hand. I often fuck up my timings though, missing that tiny window of budbreak. I ignore it on my current almond as all the disgusting leaves will fall off and new leaves do appear...but I am unimpressed with the 'fruit' of this tree (it is a bizarre hybrid of p.amygdala x persica) so I am only keeping it for the early blossom (which, as the first blossom of spring, is a joy, lighting up the whole plot). While I am finally having a cull of the sweet cherries, I will hang onto this almond...but am planning to get an apricot (am testing a couple in a customer's garden).

Cheers. Two of my customers have proper knackered trees and they're both organic hippy types who won't use any chemicals but they also really want to keep the trees

 

[campanula]

I vaguely recall not being able to buy Bordeaux mix but it's such an easy one to make and is, apparently, recognised, by the Soil Association, as suitable for organic gardening. If this summer is even slightly similar to last year, we are all going to have issues with blight. Are you on blightwatch, iona?
I am avoiding growing outside tomatoes, this year. I have 9 in the greenhouse,

 

[iona]

I vaguely recall not being able to buy Bordeaux mix but it's such an easy one to make and is, apparently, recognised, by the Soil Association, as suitable for organic gardening. If this summer is even slightly similar to last year, we are all going to have issues with blight. Are you on blightwatch, iona?
I am avoiding growing outside tomatoes, this year. I have 9 in the greenhouse,

Yeah you can get the stuff for bordeaux mix from eBay or wherever.

Not bothering with blightwatch this year, my garden's little microclimate gets blight before the first email arrives. Just growing resistant varieties - tomatoes do well in the garden here and spuds are up at the allotment.

 

[gentlegreen]

Arse.

I specially raised extra tomato plants for my neighbours and they've put up their substantial mini-greenhouse on the NORTH fence - with the neighbour's wistaria obscuring the small triangle left at the top - expectant growbags at the bottom.

It looks like a bit of a repeat of a previous family in that small house and garden - two small boys - father is sporty so trampoline, goal mouth and balls starting to come over the fence - nothing stands a chance and I suspect the greenhouse is only an attempt to give physical protection to plants and more her idea than his.

I thought everyone knew what plants need to grow ...

It's so shady there I wonder if even salad is possible ...

 

[gentlegreen]

More weird gardening.
I don't trust either the closeness of the seal or the perfect levelness of my porch planter - though an overflow hole at 3/4 full might be useful in the Kratky (passive) method ... I'm trying to resist spending £4.60 on a tube of silicone because 3/4 of it will end up wasted ... and I don't think I'll need it for the NFT unit.

 

[BristolEcho]

Very cool clicker

 

[clicker]

To all who said, my 'what's this weed?', was a poppy...you were right. This little beauty popped out today.

 

[gentlegreen]

Foxes can definitely climb fences ...

 

[BristolEcho]

They used to climb over my Parents garage when I was a kid. I remember trying to throw them Ham late one night but they ran away.

 

[gentlegreen]

Hopefully now that the easy way back has gone, they won't come and dig up my plants ...

 

[bimble]

I need to adopt / kidnap a sizeable roving band of hedgehogs and toads, to eat my ten million slugs. Any ideas? (Yes I know make a pond with a very gradual incline but not there yet).

 

[gentlegreen]

I'm being as good as I can be - the rains have arrived here so I've used iron phosphate pellets - but I used metaldehyde between the back fence and the wall - and it will be metaldehyde when I plant up my container of French marigolds because they're fairly safe from any cats or foxes seeing them as a tasty snack.
Maybe I will chuck chilli powder down at the same time.

 

[gentlegreen]

I'm down to my last handful of seeds - still no show from cleome - I'm putting the pot in the fridge at night - someone said that might help ...

With my two shady fence climbers no show from canary creeper, the thunbergias are struggling to escape their seedcoats - but I suppose I only need a few ...

Mirabilis jalapa "Miracle of Peru" has funky cotyledons

This may be a decent compensation - I've never grown it before and somehow I'd missed it's fragrant - ditto cobea scandens ...

 

[StoneRoad]

There was a sizeable rabbit in the garden this morning - lobbed a "brickend" at it, It scarpered !

 

[clicker]

Campanulas enjoying the sun after the rain.

 

[campanula]

Ah, you could try a forced vernalisation, gentlegreen . A week in the fridge, back up to the warmest, brightest spot you have. Do not cover the seeds either - they need light to germinate. IME, cleome can take 3 weeks to show and although stratification is suggested, I have never bothered, just sown in May. What is not ideal is moving them in the fridge at night and outside in the day. a day at a time. You cam imitate a short, cold spring, in some cases with just a 48hour vernalisation, but keeping a constant 4C temperature for 7 days, then back up to 26C for a couple of weeks might kickstart them into growth. Nasty, prickly things that they are.

Who doesn't love those tall campanulas. clicker. They have been a garden presence for over 30 years...without a single blip of effort on my part.

 

[gentlegreen]

It's not pretty - but neither is the porch itself and hopefully there will fairly quickly be luxurious nasturtiums spreading out of the compost compartments at each end - alongside the hanging baskets and across the front ...and hopefully the salad will have its own appeal - I'm hoping I might persuade the watercress to spill over the front and I deliberately started some red chard too ...

I'm pretty sure I got substantially more than 10 litres of compost into the ends that I lined with polythene as a gesture towards method for my madness ...
I'm growing the nasturtiums in compost partly because the hydro nutes are designed for salad and I find nasturtiums a bit heavy-going as an edible - though maybe I will try the flowers this year as I'm growing a crazy amount ...and partly because they'll likely drain the relatively small reservoirs dry. I probably should have fabricated actual "growbags, but it's done now...

Not wanting to get up there more than is necessary, I'm also deploying drip irrigation for it and the hanging baskets and I will see if I can - that bit that's showing will disappear tomorrow .
I will also take it along the front of the house to the planters there and I will see if I can hook up my water computer - I have a hose running through to a tap at the back of the house ...

 

[Aladdin]

Garden efforts today.

 

[campanula]

Is that 'Red Admiral', Aladdin ? Or one of the psilostemons? I have Red Admiral and a couple of the Armenian cranesbills such as 'Patricia'. I love their generous foliage. Have you ever tried any of the Canary Island geraniums such as g.palmatum, rubescens and, of course, the star of them all, g,maderense. You might find they do really well for you, as well as flowering for ages (although maderense does flower itself to death but is generous with seedlings). My geraniums are also starting to wake up and bloom (and I cannot think of a single one I do not love). I have been a true believer in Marjory Fish's famous dictum:
'when in doubt, plant a hardy geranium'. I love that vivid hot pink, with orange geums and lime green euphorbias (subtlety is not in my vocabulary).

Are those pink flowers godetia, clicker? I used to grow them for cutting but had forgotten about them until seeing yours. Nice to see them being grown again. as they are such good doers - must remember to put them on my hardy annual list for September sowing (they look glorious with white umbellifers such as orlaya or ammi majus). They used to be seen in every cottage garden, along with calendulas, love-in-the-mist and gypsophila. A cutting garden classic., along with annual lavateras and larkspurs. Cosmos perform the same pink duties, for me, but later in the year. I always have them, along with various nicotianas, for when the cornflowers and sweet peas have gone over. And zinnias and tagetes, of course...although those garish south Americans are not to everyone's taste.

 

[Aladdin]

Is that 'Red Admiral', Aladdin ? Or one of the psilostemons? I have Red Admiral and a coup,le of the Armenian cranesbills such as 'Patricia'. I love their generous foliage. Have you ever tried any of the Canary Island geraniums such as g.palmatum, rubescens and, of course, the star of them all, g,maderense. You might find they do really well for you, as well as flowering for ages (although maderense does flower itself to death but is generous with seedlings). My geraniums are also starting to wake up and bloom (and I cannot think of a single one I do not love). I have been a true believer in Marjory Fish's famous dictum:
'when in doubt, plant a hardy geranium'. I love that vivid hot pink, with orange geums and lime green euphorbias (subtlety is not in my vocabulary).

Are those pink flowers godetia, clicker? I used to grow them for cutting but had forgotten about them until seeing yours. Nice to see them being grown again. as they are such good doers - must remember to put them on my hardy annual list for September sowing (they look glorious with white umbellifers such as orlaya or ammi majus). They used to be seen in every cottage garden, along with calendulas, love-in-the-mist and gypsophila. A cutting garden classic., along with annual lavateras and larkspurs. Cosmos perform the same pink duties, for me, but later in the year. I always have them, along with various nicotianas, for when the cornflowers and sweet peas have gone over. And zinnias and tagetes, of course...although those garish south Americans are not to everyone's taste.

I honestly am rubbish at gardening. I dont know what they are... I pick what looks nice and plant and forget.


Eta..I should make an effort to find out ..

 

[gentlegreen]

I was going to say I wouldn't kick that out of a larger garden - a decent amount of flower to foliage
I was watching a patch of chocolate geraniums up the park recently and I can't say it lit my fire ...

 

[Aladdin]

campanula I checked with my mum whose memory is better than mine when it comes to plants.
She thinks its some sort of geranium and mentioned a crane?

 

[gentlegreen]

I thought I ought to have a stab at a vlog as in the future I may have something interesting to share.
Perhaps in French
Here's a first crude attempt ...