WHAT ARE WE DOING IN THE GARDEN TODAY - 2021

Been very busy on other projects but managed to get out and do a bit of gardening after dinner.

I've tied up 3-4 clematis and honeysuckle and have been having a look around the garden to see what is getting ready to bloom. love this time of year.

oh forgot-this morning I cut down a diseased shrub which was huge and took it all to the tip.

 

I may be mad but I've just finished potting on rudbeckia seedlings in the dark. needed doing so thought it'd get on with it.

 

@Snorky85 Stealth gardening are we?

I got some time today to add netting to one garden as the rabbits were nibbling things down to a nub. Filled tne potato planter with soil and sowed Margurite Daisy seeds in it. Went around the back yard and put down grass seed in bare slots and vole paths and covered with black soil. Ran out of grass seed so went to the garden area at a local hardware (indoors under lockdown so garden area the only open part ) got more grass seed, lawn fertilizer, a Heucheris, a Bleeding heart and a columbine plant. First plants I've bought in ages as I usually grow from seed. Picked up another step stone and put it where the downspout has been creating a mini mud puddle.

Got the bird bidet running.

It is going to rain all night and tomorrow so I wanted to get the seeds out there to take advantage.

I'm surprised it's not predicted to snow as I put my car snow brush away and got my winter tyre/wheels on my van changed over to "all season" ... and booked the mustang for it's changeover tomorrow.

And I got the one bigger raised bed all raked and ready for this year's abbual residents

 

Been out and treated the box for caterpillar and applied a health mix. fed all my pleached trees and watered it in. Now time for woofer walkies.

 

Started sowing the wallflower seeds.

 

I really can't believe we've had any rain - we have had some rain. But nowhere near enough. I thought I'd push in poles for wigwam and get sweet peas planted out. The soil was so hard that they wouldn't go in enough not to fall over. Then I tried weeding; after 1/2 an hour I had a blister on my palm from all the levering down on trowel....and I'd left as many roots in the ground as I got out. Very disheartening.

 

Plenty of rain here today @JJ28

 

Absolutely tipping it down with rain last night and this morning. I've been out to check my waterbutts and they've gone from hardly any water to being full to the brim. I'm very happy that I purchased the additional 220l butt and got it in before it started to rain! Looks like today will have to be a planning what to do next in the garden day...... Plus I have to go through two weeks of work emails to get rid of the trash before I start work again on Monday - there goes my two weeks of garden fun . Still at least the days are much longer so I can get some bits done in the evenings and pretty much all the big time consuming stuff got completed in the last two weeks off

 

We have rain!!

... the rainwater tank will be filling up to the overflow - where it hasn’t been since February!!

I went to weed around the salad seedlings that are finally starting to germinate (i don’t think they noticed the difference when they transferred from the seed packets to the soil, it was so dry). We have fine drizzle falling now, but still the soil in the veg beds is dry and crumbly, like dried-out compost. Which is what in essence it is... Hopefully the forecast week of rain materialises this time.
The warm weather that we are also forecast for next week, with the lowest low being 6c, means that I will plant out my indoor-started mangetout plants under a cloche, with a seed next to each toilet roll tube plant, and get them staked. I will also harden off the first indoor-sowing of french beans, ready to plant them out in the other cloche next week. Once the mangetout are established, I can move the cloche on to warm up another patch of soil for the courgettes and Pattie pan squash....

I also threaded in the clematis, and tidied up the leaf mould that a blackbird had turfed out of the “bog area” of the wood barrel water feature. I could have told him there weren’t any grubs there, just little red “compost worms”. (Can’t remember their proper name - brindle worms? Nah! That doesn’t sound right!!)

 

Since we've had a dose of rain , I've been out cleaning the patios with a wire brush. Well maybe not clean cleaning as I don't like to see the slabs too clean, I prefer a more natural look to them, so long as they aren't slippy anymore that's my only aim .

And I said patios.....but so far only the kitchen one...two more to go ,but maybe not all today,my arms may not survive!!

 

I'm going to continue with the low flow irrigation. The outside lines are all okay except for an 8 foot length that must have a blockage. As soon as the sun hits that area, I'll get to it. Also need to do some more tidying and wiring work in the greenhouses and get the water sorted in the two unheated ones.

This is the WORST spring I can remember. Looks like it won't be half safe to plant out any seedlings until Wednesday as it will be close to freezing the night before. Almost a week later than usual. I really don't like this global warming!

 

Done another hour's worth but the winds have now returned and it's howling out there so I will finish the other patios maybe tomorrow.



This is how it looked before!!!

 

My back is aching in sympathy with you, @Upsydaisy

As we would say here, and probably needs no translation .... “glass wijn?” - you’ve certainly earned one!!