WHAT ARE WE DOING IN THE GARDEN TODAY 2023

All I did today was water ALL my plants, both inside & outside. I'm trying to feed them every Monday if I can. The last few weeks I've been able to feed on a Monday but if it were to rain I might not be able to. It takes me about an hour & a half to do them all. I also did a little deadheading of the Petunias on the balcony railings. I flicked the tomato flowers & gave them a feed with tomato fertilizer for the first time this year. All the plants are looking good with no repetition of wilt like I had last year.

 

I thought it would be a good idea to try and sort out the larger cacti in the small greenhouse on the allotment, they are a lot heavier than they look, or maybe I'm just getting weaker, but I got this one onto the sack barrow to move it out and juggle a few things around,
Unfortunately I got my hand trapped between the top of the plant and the back of the sack barrow, my left thumb took the worst of it.

Its throbbing now and apart from digging out two big spines I cant find anymore, but its hurting like hell at the thumb joint, I just wonder if these have some kind of venom, (for want of a better word), that they inject into you.
They are so top heavy.
I was stupid trying to move it on my own.

 

Oh dear @pete it will take a while for it to feel better but perhaps you should get it checked just incase.

 

I hope you weren't tanked up while handling that cactus @pete or has the cactus had that can . In my own experience with thorns that still hurt after often still have something left behind . I don't believe cactus have venom / poisons

 

I have also been moving cacti @pete - rearranging them in the greenhouse - but I let my garden helping lady move the heavy ones
She is fascinated by them so I gave her a few cuttings.

It's the Opuntias I find worst, all those glochids, they can irritate one's fingers for days even after you've taken them out.
I hope your thumb will be less painful tomorrow.

 

Forgive me @pete but I cannot see you getting lots of offers to help move that sticker! I hope you recover soon.

I only harvested some tomatoes and did a bit of watering.

 

The thumb is a bit swollen this morning and sore, I think I must have wrenched the joint at the base of the thumb but I didn't notice as the spines were hurting at the time .
I don't think it's broken just strained.

 

@pete if you're sure that no spine bits are left then it's probably just sore and you have bruised it.
I've dislocated the small joint on my wedding finger and it hurt for a few weeks.

 

Sorry, I had to laugh at this.

We had a German friend here who contacted me and asked what she should do as she rubbed Aloe Vera all over her arms as a lotion and they were on fire and broken into a rash. They lived at the river where we had our caravan/cabin so i asked her where she got the Aloe and she told me ... so I had to inform her it was an Agava! Perhaps there is some venom/poison in some species.

It is a stunner though. How old is it?

Hope you heal soon. Try Aloe Vera on it!

 

I've noticed that often where the spines go in it can sting for a long time afterwards even when you get them out.
The label on this one says I sowed the seed in 1987.
It's a Saguaro although needs a few more years to look like the ones in the westerns.

 

Nothing today it's raining again.

 

Braved the rain and 'moderate breeze '..the one that's carrying a weather warning and deadheaded and cut back any battered stems/ blooms. Despite it only being a fine but constant drizzle I have got considerably wet!!

 

I repotted a couple of plants around midday but its been pretty heavy rain since then.
Another written off day really.
A hint of something better late next week.