The gardening thread

[iona]

TopCat spuds and tomatoes got blight every year in my Brighton garden before the first blightwatch email had even gone out. I just grew resistant varieties and didn't even bother picking off affected leaves all the time, barely affected the actual tubers and fruits if at all.

 

[Saffy]

Yeah they might be thirsty, how much are you giving them? I'd do one to two big watering cans once a week for new trees, maybe twice a week at the height of summer if the ground was really drying right out in between. A proper soak and letting it dry out a bit in between is better than little and often.

Thanks iona, I'll start doing that.

 

[The39thStep]

Potatoes have got blight. Going to rip them all out later. Pissed about this.

Everything else is loving the warmer weather

Someone once said if it’s early blight you can treat the leaves with powdered milk and something else ?

 

[iona]

Someone once said if it’s early blight you can treat the leaves with powdered milk and something else ?

You can still buy bordeaux mix easily enough online even though it's banned, and I know TopCat likes a bit of chemical warfare in the garden...

 

[heinous seamus]

Some fuck has munched my peas.

 

[two sheds]

I had several pea seedlings eaten when I put them out so I decided I'm not putting them out any more. I'm quite pleased that the seeds that have come up are doing as well as the plug plants I ordered as reserve and came recently.

 

[iona]

Not even sown peas here yet but for once that's someone else's fault

 

[Fairweather]

Well my onions have suffered the same fate as last years and have been had by the dreaded onion fly, I knew I was talking a risk putting some sets in this year but it’s still gutting to loose the entire crop.

 

[two sheds]

Not sure what this is but it's giving a nice bit of colour early in the year

 

[two sheds]

Some germander speedwell in the chimney pot, and sea campion around it:

 

[two sheds]

and on the third time of trying my wisteria seems to finally be happy.

 

[cesare]

Our London Pride has done itself proud, a pink cloud

 

[clicker]

 

[RubyToogood]

My fig tree ("Little Miss Figgy") is not very happy. She is looking a bit droopy. I think it must be underwatering due to the dry weather and constant winds and have given her a bigger saucer and a good drink, but I'm wondering whether to repot her now in case it helps, or whether it would stress her out further. Normally I would repot in autumn or at least early spring. I bought her in the pot in autumn and didn't pot her on then.

 

[iona]

My fig tree ("Little Miss Figgy") is not very happy. She is looking a bit droopy. I think it must be underwatering due to the dry weather and constant winds and have given her a bigger saucer and a good drink, but I'm wondering whether to repot her now in case it helps, or whether it would stress her out further. Normally I would repot in autumn or at least early spring. I bought her in the pot in autumn and didn't pot her on then.

If you're not causing too much root disturbance and just moving her into a bigger pot I'd probably do it now. Can you tell how pot bound she is now without digging her up?

 

[RubyToogood]

If you're not causing too much root disturbance and just moving her into a bigger pot I'd probably do it now. Can you tell how pot bound she is now without digging her up?

From the way the soil has shrunk away from the sides of the pot I'd say probably quite rootbound.

I've discovered there is a whole forum devoted to the growing of figs!

 

[Wolveryeti]

Ages ago I found a discarded roasting tin outside someone's house. The depth makes it perfect as a leek seed bed. These have been indoors for 10 days; now they are going out on the patio. Leeks like room temperature to germinate, but once sprouted they are very tolerant of cold.

I will leave them to grow on the patio til July or so, when they will follow my second early Charlottes in the ground.

View attachment 367260

2.5 months later, these are of pencil thickness and ready to go in...

 

[Callie]

My fig tree ("Little Miss Figgy") is not very happy. She is looking a bit droopy. I think it must be underwatering due to the dry weather and constant winds and have given her a bigger saucer and a good drink, but I'm wondering whether to repot her now in case it helps, or whether it would stress her out further. Normally I would repot in autumn or at least early spring. I bought her in the pot in autumn and didn't pot her on then.

Is little miss figgy your name for the plant or did it come with that name?

My fig looks amazing this year, loads of fairly big fruit but I'm not sure if they're ones that started this year or late last summer. I'm not sure I understand figs. The fruit seem to have a habit of looking great then just falling off. Probably due to abuse (not enough water).

Will have a read of that forum!

 

[RubyToogood]

Is little miss figgy your name for the plant or did it come with that name?

My fig looks amazing this year, loads of fairly big fruit but I'm not sure if they're ones that started this year or late last summer. I'm not sure I understand figs. The fruit seem to have a habit of looking great then just falling off. Probably due to abuse (not enough water).

Will have a read of that forum!

It's the name of the variety! It's a dwarf one that won't grow into a massive tree.

 

[RubyToogood]

Or even a small tree if it pegs it.

 

[newme]

I harvested, grass. Since I added the bed and cover but then did nothing. Now transplanted into a 4x8ft bare earth area. I can dig the bed and add nutriants while we get grass and flowers not hard soil. 6 wheelbarrow loads later here we are with grass and clover seed dumped on the covered section.

 

[clicker]

 

[quimcunx]

I joined some gardening group on fb and loads of them have taken to buying a shower curtain and putting it up in their garden to give it a quaint country cottage feel.

 

[two sheds]

errm ... where's the shower curtain?

 

[quimcunx]

errm ... where's the shower curtain?

The wall with blue shutters. Here's another couple.

 

[Elpenor]

The wall with blue shutters.

Still don’t get it?

 

[two sheds]

Over the top half of the window?

 

[Callie]

That's just plain weird

 

[Leafster]

Still don’t get it?

The whole wall including the stonework, window and shutters are printed on the shower curtain.

So it's a sort of trompe l'oeil on plastic which I'm guessing ripples in the breeze spoiling the 'illusion'.

 

[two sheds]

When I think of shower curtains I think of cold clammy plastic sticking to my skin which isn't really the quaint country cottage feel I'd go for.