What are we doing in the garden 2024

So after the downpours managed to plant out the very small pea seedlings....by small I mean the number. Germination this year is a big concern. Harvested some salad leaves and radishes (some already turning woody). Sowed some more carrot seeds.

 

Today in the garden we are avoiding the rain and shivering with cold

 

That's why I asked! I have clay in my garden in France and I have trouble with poppies there. In OH's Norfolk garden poppies grow like weeds.

 

Would you manage gravel @wiseowl ? Some membrane and a few bags would do the trick, and be easier to keep tidy.
I have one of those sack barrows, which is really good for shifting gravel or anything heavier, and it's easier than howking them in and out of a wheelbarrow too, because you can just drag the bags on and off rather than having to lift them.
We always used them at work [I worked with horses for many years] and they were perfect for shifting bags of feed, bales of straw/hay etc. because of being easier to manoeuvre. It's why I've always had one

 

Yes, gravel would be ideal. It always looks clean and stays trouble free. We have gravel at the side of the house all around the GH. It's been put straight onto the ground and it's only the occasional weed that pops up. And it's cheap too.

 

I am very much a fan of gravel. Better for the worms etc than hard surfaces, easy to install, easy to maintain, not too expensive, drains beautifully, and no problem to change in the future if you decide you want something different.

 

Today we mentioned to weed the beetroot rows, spinach and courgettes rows. Resowed, yet again, for swiss chard. Germination was 4 plants from one row.
Sowed some black radish.
Harvested some more radishes but more of them are woody. Will have to sow some more. Pick some loganberries and rhubarb. Picked another globe artichoke. Not doing well this year. Very few developing.
Whilst weeding we have the dreaded creeping thistle in so many places. It is very difficult to dig down too deep as then we disturb the roots of other plants that we want.

 

Looking at the garden from the kitchen window with Rain running
down it. Oh the Rain has stopped & the Sun has come out.

 

I had sown foxgloves last month and it was now time to give 20 of them an own pot. I did that this morning.

 

Picked some more gooseberries, black currants and red currants.

 

Looking down the garden towards the summer house. The Bramley is the only tree to bear fruit this year.

 

Checked my veg, planted some Cosmos into a gap where Borage was and put a cover on the washing line (as that won’t be used this week).

@Penny_Forthem
I noticed that only one of the 3 apple trees at MIL’s garden has fruited this year. Think that’s a Bramley.

 

Today I decided to bite the bullet and remove a Honeysuckle and an established Whitebeam that have both been showing signs of stress at this time of year for the past three years, with early browning and shedding of leaves as if approaching autumn. I’m pretty sure that my shallow sandy soil and the proximity to my neighbour’s 12 foot laurel hedge haven’t helped . Anyway, with bin collection day tomorrow and both looking a sorry sight, I decided that out they would come. Secateurs, loppers, a pruning saw and a spade plus two bins came in very handy! Surprisingly, the garden looks better without them and I don’t regret the murderous deed!

I then pruned some of the lower leaves off a Phormium, cleared away some flower stalks from some grasses which had been damaged by recent high winds and heavy rain and relocated a Sarcococca from a pot into the ground. Finally, I mowed both lawns and put the bins out for collection tomorrow .