What are we doing in the garden 2024

Finally (after being away - and then grandchild 'minding'; not sure who minds who) I have got into my 'office' and potted on the last of my Golden something tomatoes (this makes a total of 13 tomatoes of various varieties. I hope that's not an omen), 3 Carmen cucs, a scotch bonnet and a stray dahlia tuber, which looked dreadfully shrivelled, but has now sprouted.
There's a definite sense of peace in the 'office'.
Tomorrow, grandkids will fill my Haxnicks containers for the courgettes. They feign boredom, but I'm teaching 'em good things (they were property tycoons in Monopoly yesterday)

 

That's how I felt last year @fairygirl and did eventually give up with the garden. For me it was deer - a herd had moved into the area early summer and they decimated my roses - although they don't touch Rugosas. I'd dug the roses out and put them in pots but they still found them. The same with my hardy geraniums. What really upset me was they'd stripped a rose that was sent to me by a dear member here who has since passed away. I did everything possible to get it to recover but sadly gave up on it a week ago.

 

Can I suggest using a groundsheet @Plantminded. I struggled for a few years cutting a couple of long hedges then this was suggested to me, it made clearing up so much easier. Just bundle it up after cutting and drag it away from the area.

 

That's very difficult for you @Sheal . I'm not terribly sentimental about plants, but when someone has given you it, that's a very different set of circumstances. I had a similar thing with a Phormium that I like very much. I lost all the others in the 22/23 winter when we had those severe swings of temp on several occasions. Never lost any in all the decades I've grown them. This one looked as if it had gone too, but last summer it started to appear. It's in a raised bed, to help with drainage, and the wood had also given it just enough protection as it was right up against the edge. It wasn't given to me by someone, but a fellow poster admired it every time I'd posted a pic, and decided to get one. She died a year or so later, so when I thought I'd lost it, it was quite upsetting. Every time I looked at it, it reminded me of her, and I was so pleased it had come back. It still isn't great, but it's getting there.

 

@Plantminded it is much easier using a groundsheet, as @Sheal said. No need to rake way the bark mulch.

@fairygirl was that Joyce? Sadly missed on GW.

At last we should get some dry weather in Dordogne. So much to do in the garden. Yesterday I was digging in compost in the veg garden and OH was mowing and down came the unforecast rain, but it should be dry for the next week. I have weeding and planting to do and there is still quite a bit of mowing and strimming.

 

Indeed it was @Busy-Lizzie .

 

Watered the greenhouse and did an hours weeding. Mainly peeling the dead thatch from the weed membrane of the path. Also weeded a small bed. 2 wheelbarrows full.
I found another iris flower head hanging where a slug/snail had chewed 3/4 of the way through the stem, just below the bottom flower bud. I now have 3 in a vase smelling delicious next to my recliner chair. Such a shame. What are they after. It is almost as if they climb so far then run out of energy so have a munch and slide back down again!
I might need my lead boots today it is is so windy.

 

Thank you @Sheal and @Busy-Lizzie, yes, you're right. I would normally do that in other places but the hedge is in quite a tight space with a few perennials emerging very close by. I wanted to keep an eye on them to avoid standing on them. That didn't stop me standing on a late emerging grass though!

 

Re sown some wallflower seeds that didn't come up, not much else today.

 

Walking around the garden swearing about the Snails.
Potted on more Tomatoes.

 

Managed to weed the broad bean row and then along the fence and path. Transplanted outdoors some more dwarf french beans, rubbish germination! So in the polytunnel sowed some more dfb in pots and then in the soil some kale and japanese spinach. Gave them all a good water. Picked some strawberries that survived the installation on the new polytunnel.

 

Potted on some perennials acquired as teeny tiny plugs (GW offer) that have grown surprisingly well, growing strongly and now in 9cm pots, hopefully some can go out maybe later in the summer, though I may keep the delphiniums in pots till next spring.....
Still debating whether to plant out the sunflowers yet, some are over a foot high, but worried the slugs will still get them.....maybe I'll bite the bullet at the weekend and plant them out along with the seed-grown dahlias....

 

Havent done much in the garden the last week or so…bought compost but had very weird weather. Crazy hailstorm and garden/pond got flooded. All gone now but was a worry.

 

That's diabolical.

 

I've spent the morning putting together one of those cheap arches from Lidl. I want to grow my cucumbers up it, if they ever get their act together. Currently they've got their first set of real leaves but don't seem to be making any more progress.