What jobs are we doing in the Garden today 2015

Not gonna be caught napping, eh??

 

The material is pretty standard stuff, based on a sodium compound from memory (will try and find out for sure and post back) which has a given 'capacity' that it will absorb; once that absorbtion level is reached, any more water simply drains away.

Sorry, I didn't really explain it too well. Once harvested from the nappy, the material is actually still quite dry, and has not got anywhere near its peak absorption level - putting it in a receptacle and adding more water will bring it up to a consistency similar to lumpy wall paper paste. At this point you mix it with the compost - quantity is key though! Add it a little at a time and mix it through thoroughly, and keep adding until you have a nice crumbly compost that should be to all intents the same as a 'normal' compost mix - if it goes gluey or stodgy, you have overdone it and you need to add more compost. Because it is already at its peak absorption at that point, it wont accept any more water (or very little) so in theory even if it was deluged with rain, the majority would run off and drain away. The difference for me, so far anyway, is that because it doesn't dry out as quickly as compost alone, the compost retains its nice crumbly texture - compost alone or compost/sand/vermiculite mixes would set solid long before this particular mix is at all bothered.

I have had herbs in the mix for quite a while now (sage, thyme and coriander) and all three are thriving in their respective pots; I also sowed some cineraria silver dust seeds in 180 cell trays, where each cell is the equivalent of the 'small plug' size that you would get in the post from the likes of T&M; I have had a bit of a run at work, so I am well behind schedule now, but simply watering and feeding them in their current home is sustaining them really well (they are good size plants that will be going straight out in the garden before long); the cucumbers potted on into the mix at the weekend are looking thoroughly enthusiastic today.

That one I cannot answer, as I am trying not to let mine dry out - I have had so much trouble with baskets and pots of things like petunias drying out too fast on a hot day and I return home to droopy flowers in a solid brick of compost that then doesn't really want to know water for a while - I am working on the premise that the continual drip irrigation systems used by many public houses seems to give them remarkable displays, yet mine go great guns for a while and then turn pretty horrid. It is a situation that isn't helped one bit by the fact that my working day can go from seven hours to eighteen hours in the blink of an eye.

Again, I cannot give a definitive on this one - so far, Miracle Grow has been fine, and I will also be using tomato feed before long. I will endeavour to report back (and have no objections to PM's seeking progress reports, as I am a forgetful old fart at times )

I understand your caution - I did a wee bit of research about the idea, and the chemical itself; I drew the conclusion that it is effectively the same as the swell gel that you can buy in garden centres or is sometimes already added to compost when you buy it.

By all means, keep tabs on my progress - I am happy to be a bit of a guinea pig for the forum; the ladies and gents on here have helped me a lot in the past few years, so if this is a way to give something back, I am more than happy

Beside anything else, I have not been happy with my pots/planters/flower-pouches etc for a few years, and basically I am putting it down to two things - moisture retention and nutrient retention; I am also working on the premise that if I am not watering every single day, then I am not washing all the nutrients out of the compost. The half basket on the wall by the door still isn't asking for any water, and at the moment I reckon it will be the weekend at the earliers before I have to give it a splash - everything planted into it is starting to get a bit of a spurt on now, so I can only assume at this point that they are happy.

 

Got it - Sodium polyacrylate. The nappy filling is made up of more than just the powder though, there is a tissue type fibre that helps to sustain the moisture and not have it go all powdery as it does on its own. Here is an good video which shows the chemical on its own - - - this video comes with a bit of a warning though!

In this video, you will see a gentleman called Sir Professor Martyn Poliakoff of Nottingham University; the YouTube channel is called Periodic Videos, and he and his team have produced hundreds of videos all relating to chemistry. However, these videos are presented in such a way that even people who know next to nothing about chemistry (like me!) can understand the vast majority; the sheer enthusiasm for their subject, and the passion to pass their knowledge on is infectious. I have lost entire evenings watching these videos - - so much more interesting than the tripe you get on TV.