WHAT JOBS ARE WE DOING IN THE GARDEN TODAY - 2017

A lovely day here today....tomorrow is good too, they say
I cut my lawns twice a week if I can so cut again today.
A good friend and neighbour has called and went away with a few plants....gaura, salvias Waverley and Blue Note and a trailing begonia. I dont mind, she is kind to me
Hostas are fading now but been excellent all summer....no slug damage.
Weeded wallflowers growing in the veg patch.....they are already large plants and they will make specimen plants when moved next month.

 

It's been dark miserable and rainy here all day. Nothing done in the garden due to weather and being busy doing some work.

However, stopped by the lotty when walking the dogs and picked a red cabbage. Was a bit slug eaten on the outer few layers but after removing all that it was good inside.



Made some braised red cabbage for the freezer.

 

as I was driving out my drive this morning, I am looking at the three tree stumps we can't burn because of lots of plants near them, or bulbs. all of the stumps are soft in the center and I had put just dirt there to encourage breakdown. And the pain of it , is there are weeds that grow out of that. WELL , the light bulb went off. I am going to dig out the centers as much as I can, and replace it with more dirt, and plant some hardy geraniums, they will kill the weeds, and mound up nice, and cascade down the sides of the stumps and look pretty. I have tons of hardy geraniums that need thinning. Dam, I am good. Wish I thought about that sooner.

 

Does cooked cabbage freeze? I once tried to freeze a fresh cabbage. It was all gooey when it thawed out.

G.

 

by pure accident, my hosta collection has early flowering kinds, medium later flowering kind, and late flowering kind, so many are still pretty fresh come now. Perhaps if you wish some study can be made there to extend the hosta season. Also I have some that turn a nice fall color and hold till it snows. But of course not all are wonderful. I have two large ones that were planted before we cut down a few trees that do not like the lack of them, so today they look pretty sad from the extra sun. Maybe one day I will get around to move them somewhere.

 

Cooked cabbage should freeze well. But fresh does last for a long time. I just finished a huge one that I had bought about 3 weeks ago. Had used a wedge, then I went on holiday. Looked at it again, apart from an outside leaf which I had to trash the rest was just fine.
You can also make sauerkraut out of it.

 

Redstar, if you divide a hosta in early summer it will maintain its pristine foliage longer than the established plants. Used to do that here.
I find the blues...Halcyon for example, copes well in full sun. Also Patriot seems to thrive in the sun
First Frost is still looking fresh ....one of the first to grow too

 

How?! Over the years I've tried beer traps, copper rings, egg shells, gravel...the only thing that seems to help at all is copper tap around pots, and even they get eaten eventually!

 

Have you tried garlic spray or better yet, lambs wool pellets (it's a mulch)? does the trick here. encourage natural predators like blackbirds, hedgehogs, frogs & toads

 

Agree partly with Mark but, 2nd bassoon, look under those pots too.....slugs will enter through the compost by passing copper tape
My regime includes torch and salt at night.....I grow several hostas in the ground and in pots and all slug free.

 

its only the two that were meant to be in shade. the rest are just happy. BTW, have you seen my hosta's take a gander at Redstars gardens.

Redstar's USA Garden

 

Ha ha Redstar.......you have so many more varieties than I have. And all look so good. Superb

 

Ive seen your Hostas @redstar and in my humble opinion ....i don't think you need any advice on growing them - their AMAzing ...only wish i could achieve your success - but who am i kidding

 

@shiney the cracks I had in mind for the Forget Me Not are under the baths and benches, so not areas where we walk . I had a small blue Lobelia pop up in such a crack during the summer ( even though there was no Lobelia planted anywhere else ) and that gave me the idea.