What Jobs Are We Doing In The Garden Today 2020

More watering today that's all.

 

Went to the garden to make a front shelf for my planters, to put a strawberries tub on.
It did not come up quite as I meant, so I guess I will redo it tomorrow :D
The funny thing about carpentry, or at least what I try to pass as carpentry, is that tipically I will go for a one hour job, spend 4 hours on it instead, find myself using 4 tools rather than one without quite getting I want, then come back home and realize that there was a much simpler way to do it all which would have taken me 30 minutes only :D
Well, we live to learn I guess

 

Visit to B&Q this morning, no queue to speak off, picked up 150L MPC and some bone meal.

The rest of the morning we spent in the garden.
I potted on the last remaining tomatoes, cucumbers and some Tagetes, sowed some Cabbage and Cauliflower. Carol meanwhile stole about 60 of my pots and potted up 50+ of her plants.

Afternoon I did a bit of digging and leveling off, erected the first off the bean frames (with help from Carol).

This evening I had a big bonfire, the old wooden compost bins have been cremated along with all the privet hedge cuttings, willow branches that were hanging over from next door's garden (they didn't want them back!) and the old Ferret hutch.

I've just got back in, absolutely knackered, my back aching so it's time for a cup of tea and then BED!

 

I think they called my situation keeping a watching brief... so today I simply watered and observed and am delighted with all my springing offspring. All green and flowering. Especially some old poached egg plants ( aka limanthus of course but we are on familiar terms) . Flowers are hard won out here unless you have fences and windbreaks etc. So I am well pleased. The rose is fully out now, a fair fine sight. So I told them all they are wonderful, watered them copiously and blindly found my hay fever way back inside.

 

Got the cover on the polytunnel (one of three) I've relocated from my plot. Staging, high level shelving and raised bed edgings to add by Saturday.

One at home will be secure enough to have emergency heating in, use my expensive folding tables, etc., and easily water and ventilate.

On the downside, Mrs Scungee immediately started trying locations for hanging washing driers, wants a clothes line in there and muttered something about a "Sheila maid".

 

Today I mixed the media for the autopots and began planting the tomatoes in the greenhouse.

 

Started pulling up some of the wallflowers that have finished and did some weeding and watering.

 

Spent most of today digging out a very small area of grass in order to create a space for an arbutus that had been waiting patiently in a pot. There were so many stones and bricks that I did less digging than crowbarring (is that a verb?). Originally with this garden I resolved to remove all the stones. I have now reached the point that anything smaller than the palm of my hand is classed as as drainage grit and left - otherwise I'd never finish!

 

Not done much in the garden today, stuck with work and then busy with family.
But I went checking the garden. The mini grennhouses seem to keep temperature around 20C during the day, so perhaps not much lower than 10 at night.
First tiny signs of life from the soil blocks




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Covering tomatoes seems enough to keep them alive. The potatoes migth be growing, I covered the soil with some bubblewrap hoping it helps. But I am very much looking forward to the forecasted higher temperatures starting Friday.

 

Out of curiosity, what is your media made of?
I experimented a bit with DIY self watering pots over the last few years and the plants did not do great, perhaps it was a bit too wet for them. I used normal potting soil mixed with vermiculite.
I think this year I will try again, because I have too many plants, so some will need to go in pots.

 

I have been mixing my own for several years and use it exclusively in the greenhouse. It consists of equal parts of course builder's sand, sphagnum moss, a bio-compost, and agricultural perlite. When mixing I add a few hand fulls of 15-15-15 fertilizer and pelletized limestone to the mix also. I topwater for a few days and then add a professional hydroponic nutrient mix and calcium nitrate to the tank for continuous feeding. Additionally, I include a small amount of Epsom salt to the tank to add magnesium.

 

Yup. Says it all!