What Jobs Are We Doing In The Garden Today 2020

@CanadianLori Thanks so much for the info about the jalapenos! Sorry I did not get back to you earlier, I got entangled with work and lost track of most things..

 

Le grand échange de roses accomplished. This is a regular Selleri tale- it started last year when I decided that I must have a Climbing Iceberg to adorn the rather nice cast iron obelisk I had in the garage. After a lot of googling I found a reputable nursery and promptly purchased the plant. A few weeks later the owner emailed me that unfortunately Climbing Icebergs are out of stock. So we agreed on a substitution plant and I googled some more only to find a twin pack of bareroot cheapy Icebergs in Amazon.

Surely I can fit two large climbing roses into my postage stamp of a garden... the day the cheapy ones arrived, the reputable nursery told me that they had found one, and shipped it. So there I was, with three Climbing Icebergs. The reputable one went into the prime position in the front, one of the cheapy ones in the back border and the spare one into a container.

A year later, it has turned out that the cheapy ones are very vigorous and healthy climbers smothering their (appropriately) cheapy obelisks, and the reputable plant is mislabelled as it in fact is the shrubby type.

So today we untied the shrub from the posh obelisk, dug it up, untied the spare climber from it's obelisk, swapped them and re- tied both. We look a bit shredded but it all went well and the new front centrepiece is just right.

I know it is the wrong time to move roses but if something annoys me every time I step out it must be done. Fingers crossed both swapped parties will recover well. The rootballs were still quite small and we managed to get them out and in with little disturbance so hopefully it'll be ok. If not, I know where to get replacements.

Finished the job by plopping in some leftover lavender here and there.

Things are starting to look quite nice now

 

We can so relate to that tale! As I read the account out loud to hubby, he just grinned!

About 6 weeks ago, we decided that our golden celebration roses just were not happy, in fact they were downright miserable, in the island bed. We dug up the two most miserable plants of the three, and have planted them in the drive bed. We decided that we should take advantage of the lockdown - we will be around for most of the year, give or take a day or two, so have promised them water whenever they need it. A Veronica was growing nearby, so I use that as my “indicator” plant. If it looks unhappy, it’s time to soak the roses. 6 weeks in, and we will have new flowers soon - both plants are already looking so much happier.

Bon chance to your roses!

 

We’ve been busy with all those small jobs in the garden.

- the jasmine and Passion flower have been tied back into the trellis along the house wall.
- new “upright posts” have been put into the compost bays, to help divide them
- three loads of washing have been pegged out to dry, and brought in
- 2kg of summer veg (Peppers, courgettes and aubergine) have been char-grilled on the outdoor grill, ready for chopping and freezing
- tea - a lump of entrecôte, has been cooked and devoured

we are now sitting out in the dusk, with a brazier going, and a glass of rum...

 

@mazambo that's a lovely water feature puts my bucket pond fountain thing to shame.

It's been a pretty productive day here now we've had one dry day. Got the Snapdragons in the border and managed to get the Californian Poppies out too. Repotted some Aquilegia seedlings and finally got manure in the new border. Found a second wind later on (after 2 sausage rolls) and dug a huge hole for the last of the big jasmine plants. Finally out of a big pot it's been in for about 5 year and into the ground lawn mowed and done.
Meant to be pouring down again tomorrow

 

A dry day at last allowed me to strim and mow the front garden this afternoon. The grass was so long it took me the best part of four hours. After an hour back indoors the rain was back.

 

That looks nice and cosy

 

Not much done really, beside some pruning and planting one spare tomatillo which I did not quite know where to put. I thought of giving it to my neighbour, but they do not do very well as single plants (even though, despite what I read, they are not self-incompatible and they will still make some fruits all alone).
I trained a few tromboncino on top of the fence, so hopefully they will start cascading squashes in a few weeks. Last year they made several over 4 feet long, so they should look nice there.

Some leftover tomatoes, patty pans and cucumbers still need planting out. And I should go on and set up chilli, melons and peppers in the mini greenhouses. Perhaps seed some perennial spinach, radish and similar. But most is done and the rest is just maintenance.
I guess I am delaying the last bits because after I will not have any excuse left. I will need to empty my workshop/gazebo entirely, clean it all and change the roof and sides. It will be a pain in the back but after it will look better and I could take out my lathe and go back doing woodworking.

Finally, gave a clean to the garden furniture and we had a nice barbeque, which was quite nice, mosquitoes notwithstanding
I am tempted to get a brazier, having seen Sian's one

 

Just been enjoying the garden today. Watered the front garden and the new trees this evening and did a bucket full of dead heading.

Is it just me or are there LOADS more blackfly/aphids than usual this year??

 

@Aldo what's a patty pan? Not heard of that before.

i like that brazier too! Just going to google them

 

To be perfectly honest. It seems as all I want to do is sleep. So, sod the garden. The gardens either side are a menace. My roses are now being overtaken by bindweed. In the GH. I am emtying trays of leggy seedlings. Why bother. I fall for it every year. Let's try this and that. Plants are then given away, as my garden is too small. I still do my research but then ask myself, why? I must admit, if and when I manage to get into the garden/GH I enjoy it. I think this age thing has caught up with me. Perhaps I should start thinking about.....sub-terranian gardening. eg: pushing the daisies up, instead of planting them. Never mind. Tomorrow is another day................................Oh' Dear!

 

@Snorky85 Patty Pan are a form of squash flattish, circular and with scalloped edges.

 

Yesterday turned over compost heap and watered it (ants so too dry) added shreddings and grasscuttings. Then pruned out finished soft fruit canes, tied in new raspberry canes and removed weak, crowded new growth. Planted out some Snowdrops, Wendy's Gold and Galanthus regina olgae "Tilebarn Jamie" (autumn flowering species). These have been in pots to build up quantity and I have kept a couple of reserves in pots.

 

Not much just deadheading the roses and calendula every day, a bit of watering, but mostly picking fruit just got to find room in the freezer so that i can use it over winter so I'll have to make some jam.

The black birds ate most of the pink currants, then started on the gooseberries and red currants, but I've got enough anyway.

Hubby finds it difficult to mow all the front lawn so trying to persuade him for me to dig some of it up and put some plants in.

I don't bother much with growing veg anymore the ground isn't suitable but i can grow fruit very well and it's much easier.

 

Well it was a job and it was partially in the garden, cleared off Carol's plants from my work bench, got "big bertha" my extremely heavy compound mitre saw out (now I know why I have a bad back) and cut and fixed all the dado rail in the hall, stairs and landing, I wish I had spent more time listening during geometry at school..... getting my mitre angles right was a nightmare!