What Jobs Are We Doing In The Garden Today 2020

Happy Midsummer everybody! Yesterday we celebrated the magical night in a true Finnish style apart from dying. In Midsummer Finns leave the cities to embrace Mother Nature in their summer cottages, drink a lot and die in various more or less spectacular manners, typically by drowning into one of the 190 000 lakes. We skipped that but The Teenager collected her 9 different flowers to put under her pillow. I'm now eagerly waiting her to wake up to let me know if her future spouse appeared in her dreams. (BeGeorgebeGeorgebeGeorge )

Apart from that, the lawns got a nice trim, they are finally getting green after the dry spring. Everything pruneable got pruned thanks to my new pruning scissors. Tied back climbing roses and again remembered too late that I actually own thornproof gloves. Fixed the soakaway rock bed around the bird feeder that is just about to start flowering (Lonicers Henryi that is, it's climbing up the pole). The crows keep throwing the rocks around in search of fallen seed.

The slugs are causing havoc with my Dahlias but otherwise things are looking very good in the garden. It makes a difference to have been working from home since March with a lot more time to do bits and bobs every day.

If it dries up today we'll make a start with the hedges. ​

 

Just had to Google......very interesting @Selleri . I love learning about other cultures. Thank you.

 

Weeding and dead heading so far, got a barrow load for the compost heap already, decided to reduce the number of self sown nigella before they self seeded again also removed a number of Geranium yeoii before they could seed as well. Now need to tackle the violets getting everywhere in that bed. Found a dead shrub that needs to come out also looking to prune some stuff that is getting to big for the space. This afternoon might tackle the rambling rose "Treasure Trove" on the back fence; just about finished flowering; @Selleri thank you for the reminder about the thornproof gloves.

 

@Selleri that is so interesting to hear about and I love your sense of humour- glad to hear no one died

I'll be weeding the lawn on commercial breaks during the three episodes of my beloved Corrie airing this morning. Should get 9 square feet done

Then later it's back to trying to get the one pump going. I do have a watering system for the receptacles in this greenhouse and a turn of the tap fills them but I do really want to have them automatically fill from the rain barrels.

 

Cleaned up the borders today. Deadheading and cut down some verbena bonariensis that had got out of hand. Put down some blood fish and bone too. Realised I had been nursing weeds very successfully in the greenhouse heaven knows how that's happened. I had a pack of seeds that I'd written Delphinium on and ended up with god knows what growing . Preparing for Wednesday when the conifers in the garden are going, stumps and all thanks to advice on here oh and the puppy has decided he much prefers to do his business inside rather than out

 

@Jasmine star My Verbena bonariensis is just getting going at the moment. Ended up trimming back the Choysia ternata and the Vestia foetidia as well as cutting back some overlong grass. Another couple of barrow loads to the compost heap and I now have three separate piles for the shredder.
The good bit was picking the raspberries!
The rambling rose got a reprieve for a day or so.

 

@NigelJ the verbena is over 6ft. I planted it last year for the 1st time. This year it's gone mad. I've had to take out quite a lot. I'll have to keep my eye on it

 

What a wondrously industrious lot you are! Here? Zilch, apart from watching the gale batter my peas, beans and marguerites etc. Same now ..... "We also serve who only stand and stare."

 

… I used to train kittens on torn up newspaper. Less mess and free... Usually here my cats are free range, but I keep one receptacle, usually with peat ash from the fire but now grass cuttings. Only one cat uses it.

 

I've just had a parcel arrive with my strawberry plants in, so I suppose I'm planting those out today.

They came packaged in a plastic wrapper inside a jiffy bag. The plants look very brown and broken. Is this typically how plug plants are shipped? It's the first time I've bought them and I'm wholly unimpressed.

 

I looked further and there's a bunch of mould in the middle. Most of the plants are brown and broken.

I'm so disappointed and so angry. I've already emailed for a refund.

Is there anything I can do to salvage any of this?