WHAT JOBS ARE WE DOING IN THE GARDEN TODAY 2018

Thought I'd better finally get my cheapo box plants in the ground instead of them sitting in the broken cold frame! Have pulled out all the rotting wooden edging and hoping this box will grow and make a neat border instead.

Been lovely to get outside and get gardening with it being so mild.

 

Snorky, the path edging the lawn is screaming out for lavendar.......evergreen aromatic neat edging in autumn through to early spring and topped with billowing scented flowers from June. Esp echoing the edging through to the house.

 

Cut back various perennials in the borders, then emptied my second compost bin and used the contents as a mulch. Active composting can now be switched to the empty bin, starting with this morning's cuttings. I'd been procrastinating so am glad to have got this done at last. It made a good morning workout in default of walking Ken (see below) who has somehow fractured a carpal bone and is confined to bed rest, much to his disgust. Classic FM helps:

 

I'm not using "recovering from surgery" as an excuse, far worse has happened over the last few weeks, so nothing done in the garden, it'll get done when it gets done!

 

I use neem oil to spray gooseberries over winter. Seems effective against sawfly; it also seems to be effective against mildew

 

Thanks Verdun, yes I’d love some nice lavender.2 winters ago I grew a load of different types from tiny plugs i got from thompson and morgan and had varied success...a lot of them seemed to just die off....as in half of the plant suddenly totally dead. Really annoying. Thing is I dont think my ground is suitable being heavy clay. I thought that lavender plants like poorer well drained soil.

 

Ah! Quite right snorky......lavendar for lighter soils. Shame!

 

Yeah real shame as I love it. I need to find something else to do along that side of the path to soften the harshness of the edging.

 

Is now the right time to be spraying bordeaux mix? Its the last thing I want to try on my apple tree and roses as no mater how careful I am with them cleaning away and cutting back from bad leaves etc, the roses are ALWAYS covered in black spot.

 

For me, bordeaux mixture is applied just after leaf fall and again in early spring Snorky but not for black spot.....not convinced it is effective against black spot on roses......You would need to apply it regularly during the growing season. Every time it rains you need to re apply it, just as you would with proprietary fungicides.

I dont grow any roses here.....black spot is common here in the clean air of Cornwall.

Why do you want to spray your apple trees? For my gooseberries ....control of mildew and sawfly.....I use neem oil over winter ( now just once in two years) and this seems effective.