WHAT ARE WE DOING IN THE GARDEN TODAY - 2022

Planted a honeysuckle in the new border. Neatened up the grass edging. Found vine weevil in my Acers
Luckily the newly planted Rose's cheered me up.

 

Roses are stunning @Jasmine star .

 

Sticky day yesterday.

Tall sticks went in for the ornamental gourds I have never grown before- we'll see what they decide to do. At least I sort of have enough plants

Very tall sticks got fixed to the roof board of the garage in readiness for the giant sunflowers to romp away. I'm prepared to go heavy with the support and have strong rope, various metal hoops and a master plan to tie the beasts on the garage as they grow. It'll be just fine.

Tiny sticks and some string were introduced to the front of border to encourage the small Alliums and the omnipresent Erigeron (cuttings take way too well and it is the easy plant to fill empty bits even in tough conditions) not to lay on the grass.

And finally the metal sticks went into chicken, veg and lamb and we had a proper feast when the drizzle stopped in the evening.

Today my Superhero Child is planning to carry on with the hedge, I will tackle the front lawns.

 

I'm raring to go this morning ,everything will have to wait.....serious planting out day today, and before the temps get too warm by this afternoon. It's June and my plants need to be in the borders, it's taken me so long this year.

Had my shower, not even stopping to dry my hair, donned a summer dress ( did I mention it's going to be warm ) and I've been out here an hour and now having a quick coffee break

 

Thanks @Upsydaisy I'm really pleased with them so far. They all went in during winter so didn't expect flowers this year. Glad your weather is sunny. Raining again here

 

Just setup a soaker drip pipe in the greenhouse…so i dont get water on any of the leaves of the toms and cucs

 

The planter project is finally finished. Hopefully in a week or two all the plants will start filling out making a lovely display. Ideally I wanted another one alongside it but there isn't quite enough room. If I like what happens this year, next year I will look I to getting 2 slightly shorter ones.

The gate post in the corner is also my doing. I am rather chuffed with it. At some point in the future I will be having a go at the other side of the gate and the adjoining fence.

G.

 

Planted out more pot marigolds and did a bit of watering.

 

I got loads done today and have made a significant dent on the number of plants waiting to be given a home.
Dahlias, Pelargoniums ( I think they are breeding while they wait!!) Calendula, Snapdragons ( standard and small) Cineraria, Cephalphora, Zinnias and Cosmos. Also did some weeding and then made a start at tidying up the mess in the greenhouse as that had become a dumping ground for all the pots and trays which have now be stacked and are waiting to be washed.

Have a few perennials left to plant out tomorrow plus the remaining annuals.

 

At one point of my nowadays distant youth I was misguided to study some Higher Mathematics. You know, the kind with no numbers or even letters in sight but a spiritual feeling trek around directions, fields and amounts totally arbitrary but with a need to proof it with a fancy equation.

I loved studying the stuff and have never, ever in my life used even a fraction of the knowledge acquired, until today when I started pulling up the Buttercups.

So the challenge is: One has a 1x2m patch of lawn, dedicated to the most ill advised gardening idea ever, "naturalised bulbs". Hand rip out the bluebell/ buttercup foliage to avoid strimmer induced splashing of greeny-blacky porridge (the black bits being smiling slugs), and start pulling out the buttercup rosettes.

OK, a 1x2m bit of lawn can hold X number of buttercup (or, X+1 including the contribution of my neighbours) rosettes, each measuring about 3cm above the ground and 5cm below.

Explain, how it is possible to fill a council bin and have a good overflow for the next collection day, with that stuff? I just ask.

Here's the glory of the remains of the previous owner's idea of naturalising the wrong kind of bluebells and buttercups in the lawn, seen here after the unmathematical whack and a scattering of good compost plus grass seed.



Anyways, the front lawns (with somewhat more grass than "great ideas") got cut and anything strimmable got strimmed.

The Superhero Child continued with the hedge and sowed some surplus beetroots in the raised bed. If the beets turn out nice I will never speak to her again and will testament my worldly possessions to the local cat shelter. I have been trying to grow decent beetroots for about a decade, always failing miserably.

We'll see.