What Jobs Are We Doing In The Garden Today 2020

Big clean up this morning as when I got up I saw my pop up greenhouse on the other side of the garden the loops that secure them had ripped off in the awful weather last night. everything apart from 1 salvia cutting had snapped or broken and I just couldn't salvage the seedlings I'd potted on last week. I'm gutted anyway this led to me and the OH and a tape measure going all around the back garden to see where we could possibly fit a more permanent greenhouse. After much discussion we found one online and a space for it so its ordered! I'm still reeling from losing lots of things but excited to get my first non plastic greenhouse

 

@Jasmine star shame about loosing your seedlings. How annoying...but every cloud has a silver lining and now you're getting a greenhouse. I loved my first little greenhouse. I used to like just sitting in it.

We finished doing the raised beds on the lotty this afternoon after the horrid weather had passed by.



I've got a bit of trellis to go behind that high bed...it just needs painting first, but need a sunny day to be doing that.

 

@Snorky85 thank you. Yes that's the plan ha I'll hide away in there. Your photo is impressive well done.

 

Spent the weekend dismantling these four raised beds; they're old and knackered and too big and in the wrong place, so it was a job that definitely needed doing. Plan is for the chicken run and green house to sit here instead, it's pretty much the only close-to-flat part of the garden.



We got three-quarters of them broken up before rain stopped play. Annoyingly the two deeper ones have nearly a foot of rubble at the bottom, rather than just soil, so clearing that is going to be a bigger job than anticipated



They were surrounded by a sea of semi-overgrown slate, so another new job is working out what to do with this small mountain of the stuff

 

Thanks to Foxy. My rose beds are now zilch. So I intend to slavage any roses and cinfine them to containers. I can well imagine coments from friends. This is like a garden center. So what.

 

Hmm. Was supposed to be planting bulbs today but opened the tulips and they are like this...



Rang J Parkers and the lad on the phone tried to tell me its normal. I said gardening for 15 years tells me its not normal. I've had to send an email in...

 

Ooh a reply already and they are sending me replacements.

 

I've dealt with Parkers since the 1950's. Always found them OK. Never any problems if not fully satisfied. Sadly tulips do tend to have this mold, usually it is harmless, your bulbs do however seem to be over moldy.

 

@Snorky85 sorry about your bulbs, did you take them out of the box? I always do ,i put them in a large seed tray still in the packet but have a lot of air.

Started cutting out the fruited canes on the blackberries and Logan berries, then tied in the new ones, only did 2 plants and cleared all the old ones away. I've been putting a lot of it at the back of the garden to rot down. Got too much stuff to put in the bin so i thought of that.

 

I must admit. Our friend Snorky's tulip bulbs were not pleasing to the eye. So often purchasing tulip bulbs will often provide you with the mold as well. Often I have found, that a gentle wipe over with a moist cloth will get rid of the unsightly stuff, then whilst still damp, a good dusting of flowers of sulphur. Plant in the usual way.
Unfortunately tulips tend to be the worst affected by pests and diseases. Many types of virus affect the bulbs. Fungal infections along with nematodes etc take their toll. It really is such a shame as tulips provide such a display in the garden and parks. Albeit for such a short peiod, their short display is so often hit by high winds and heavy downpours.

 

The bulbs only arrived a few days ago and i took them out the box and had the bags on the side in the boot room which isnt heated-thought they'd be ok. Have to admit I didnt check the contents of the bag when i first opened the box. Hey ho...should all get sorted. They were supposed to be lovely orange tulips.

i did end up planting bulbs...mixed crocuses/crocii (? ), purple sensation alliums, various daffodils. Also planted a hebe that I thought Id planted but id just sat the pot in the border (oops!).

Raked up a load of leaves and used the petrol blower to clear them out the border.

Also potted on a conference pear tree that id taken out the ground earlier in the year...that can go up to the lotty tomorrow weather permitting.

 

@Snorky85 well at least they'll replace them, never had trouble with parker's either,always good bulbs and plants.

 

I had trouble once before when all of the bulbs had loads of aphids or little flies in the box. Again they replaced them free of charge with no fuss. They're very good in that respect.