What are we doing in the garden 2024

Had a great day in the garden today. Cut back a tree as have had loads of pigeon poop issues over the entrance to my shed. (Don't worry it was throughly checked for nests-none found so all ok).

Also planted a passionflower and a jasmine (star of toscane) to grow up the trellis’ I put up last weekend.

I also ordered myself a David Austin climbing iceberg bare root rose and planted that today. I used some of the bits I cut off the tree as a frame for the rose to get growing up. If it does well I might make it into a rose archway eventually.

 

Went to see my friends Geoffrey, Marion and Barry, we went to Geoffrey's house and did some weeding, Marion helped me and Barry cut the grass. Geoffrey suffers from arthritis in his back so he can't do a lot, but he tries.

 

That looks like a very nice place to sit outside your smart garden room @Snorky85!

 

Thank you! It gets the sun at the end of the day and is lovely. It was a right overgrown patch when I first got the place. It’s been a labour of love to get it where it is now.

 

Filled the tomato's raised bed, layered with wet cardboard, homemade compost, 50L bag of commercial compost, a washing up bowl of pearlite, emptied my box of bfb, another 50L bag of commercial compost, a freezer bag of dried crushed egg shells, and lastly half a 'bag for life' of worm castings (with lots of newly hatched tiddly worms). I gave it all a bit of a stir with my cheapy hori hori knife, then watered it all in. As soon as my back was turned several dog paw prints appeared on the soil! The bfb is such a draw for Rusty, he always has to investigate that smell.

Planted in the bed 2x Super Marmande, 3x San Marzano, 1x Black Cherry, 3x Chocolate Pear, and 3x Burlesque tomato plants. They were planted in bottomless 2L plant pots which were buried about an inch into the soil. Between the plant pots French Mixed Marigolds were planted, as well as some lettuce.

Holding my hands up to going a bit ott with the tomatoes this year, I've still to find homes for Ace 55, Ciliegia, and Tesco seed Piccobella, I've got a hanging basket lined up for Tumbling Tom. They're not quite ready yet to go into their permanent home.

I'm going to have to buy more compost, I've got several containers and hanging baskets to fill yet. Where does it all end?

Also I've flitted around the beds filling up empty spaces with canterbury bells, strawflowers, and hyssop, Not to forget 3 cucumbers were also planted.

 

I've bitten the bullet and started planting out my tender plants today, for the simple reason that they're getting root-bound and I just don't have enough greenhouse space to pot them on further. Since we haven't had a frost since January (we came close in April with a couple of 2 degree nights), I'd be pretty miffed if we had one now!

I've sown far too much stuff this year anyway, so if I lose anything there are replacements lined up.

 

I pruned the Exochorda shrubs, took out an unwanted Hollyhock, and erected the Bamboo structure for the tomato and bean beds. Took me an hour, and after breakfast I did nothing apart from waiting for flying and buzzing animals and just enjoyed the sunshine and my garden.

 

What did I do yesterday…

Re-potted some tomatoes into their final pots – pleased I decided to do this as the roots were looking a little bit root bound. Bush toms are now in 9L air pots and my 2 cordons will be planted today into their 20L pots.

I also changed my mind about putting my cucumber's in my 5ft height cold frame- thinking they would be better off outside to grow nice and tall.
It will now be growing up the patio wall on cain +twine and if lucky across the patio doors. My vision of this is seeing cucumber’s dangling downwards easy for harvesting. As they are ‘La Diva’ they won’t be hanging down too low to bang our heads!

 

Nothing. Again. It's raining and everything is sodden. Good job I have plenty of indoor interests and jobs to do.

 

Weeded under the pebble area of the grape vines then moved onto the terrace area near a gravel bed. Ivy taking over this bed and while very beneficial it is getting too much so started removing some. But then the rain came so all stop.

 

Nothing actually in the garden, but repotted a house plant and used the rain delay to get on with some cleaning.

 

Pottered about, kept threatening to drizzle so not as nice as yesterday. Pondered over my compost bin area, still undecided what to do about it. Planted a fuchsia 'Garden News' in the front border and tried to dig up some hyacinths which had appeared in and around the two bearded irises I'd planted earlier. Not a success as too deeply planted and I snapped the stems/leaves off. Might have to move the irises to a dedicated bed in August perhaps.
Got rained off so went in for lunch, it's only just stopped raining now.

 

We are moving so I have recently spent some very sad time in "decluttering" windowsills, binning perfectly good plants that "might still make it" or are doing fine but are duplicates (or, rather, quintiplicates ) of existing plants. Everything possible has been given to friends but the remining lot just has to go

A massive operation on the communal bowl planter had to be done- I realised that nobody will safely lift and carry a 45cm planter with a tall, wobbly pillar cactus poking out. Loads of newspaper and swearing saw the plant (grown from seed some 5 years ago) into it's own pot. The back of my hands are in a rather interesting state



That, in today's Skype call, prompted my Dad to tell a story of how he broke a tooth when re-potting a very tall Euphorbia cactus. Apparently the cactus attacked him in a way that since he unfortunately only has two arms, forced him to take defensive action orally.

His colleagues were most amused by his looks and joked about domestic violence his sweet wife (also a colleague) may had succumbed to- until the week after when the aforementioned sweet wife got hit by an electric whisk and turned up in the office with a black eye.

In the outdoors front, more clearing out and desperate cutting taking. It's not the best time to take cuttings but needs must- at least the Lonicera Henryi should be a sure one.

I have a lovely, very large Rosemary that I have been trying to propagate for years. The only successful attempt was when the cuttings I took just to have the flowers in a vase rooted in a blink. At the time I didn't realise I wanted to propagate it for future purposes so binned the vaseful...



If it stops raining I might still have a dig in the garage and chuck any remains of fertilisers and compost to the roses. Hopefully the next person in this house likes them

 

Dug up a old dead lavender bush, it didn't do well over winter. Some have die back that I've got to cut out but the bin is full. They're very old and it can happen.

 

The story about your Dad made me laugh @Selleri, see how rumours can easily start!

It was lovely pottering around the garden at 6am this morning, such a nice bright morning. Planted a square of Minipop sweetcorn. Gave most plants a 'drink' of water with some seaweed concentrate, maybe it's my imagination, but the young wisteria now looks a little greener. Did quite a bit of potting on of tomatoes and peppers, and sorted what will be growing in the long raised bed at the front.