What Jobs Are We Doing in the Garden Today... MK3.. 2013

It's baking hot here in West Cheshire, GA!

 

http://www.lbsgardenwarehouse.co.uk...site&pf_id=R-MHTB&name=tapener&sfile=1&jump=0
Might have a look at that , Kristen, Thank you

Just noticed that it says it's out of stock............until September 2010!!!!

 

Hi Chimneyrosegarden, yes I do feed my roses with Tomato Feed. Usually I start off feeding them with a general soluble fertiliser like Miracle Grow in the early Spring when the roses are showing signs of growth. Then when the first buds show I feed the roses Tomato Feed one week and Miracle Grow the next week until the buds are getting big and fat and then I feed with just Tomato Feed. I don't use dry fertiliser as it takes too long to break down and pass on the nutrients so I use soluble feed. Some experienced gardeners don't feed their roses at all or, if they do, very little. I have found giving the roses a steady feed once a week does encourage them to grow sturdier and produce more flowers, and repeated feeding for a repeat flowering rose is even more important.

 

Well, I've just come from a wade around in the pond and checked the pump which has stopped working..........it's going to be a new pump I think!! It was still in the same position it should be and the filter was clear. It's wired up to an armoured cable that runs unseen along the side of the garden to a out door weather proof switch which is in turn connected to a internal RCD so everything is safe. When I switch the pump on the RCD operates and so having checked the wiring etc I'll have to stand on the street corner again with my Banjo and sad eyed dog to raise funds to buy the new pump.

 

So, you'll be a pump pimp then?

 

It's one of the oldest professions much revered by those who find that their pond pump has failed............spare us a quid, Guv, for a cup of tea???? Most people plying their "art" on the street corner get paid to continue..............after a few minutes I get paid not to.

 

That's okay, Merleworld, but I'm a Dog Walker for Chester Zoo who let me loan one of the Lions so long as I walk it. I just ask people going by if they want to stroke my "dog" but they always shake their head and toss a quid in the hat from a distance!!

 

It was 'gardening by proxy' for me yesterday - guiding Mrs C by text message as I was stuck at work. Bless her, she finished planting the big side border with French marigolds, planted both African and French marigolds into the back border and then potted on a load of Malva Zebrina for me - then watered everything.

Today, I haven't done a lot (still cream-crackered after yesterdays 16-hour shift), but I did plant up my two troughs for the outhouse roof with nasturtiums, putting 'upright' ones at the back of the trough and trailing ones at the front.

Then I planted up the big pot for the front door with lavatera novella rose at the back, nicotiana in front of them, African marigolds next, and then a couple of trailing petunias.

After that, I clipped some straggly branches off my elder tree, whilst my neighbour cut some back that were hanging over his side of the fence, and between us we got a bit more of a shape to it; then I gave took some African marigolds, nasturtiums and some tomato plants round to the neighbours, and finally cleaned up and watered stuff whilst giving Mrs C a laugh by telling her that I needed to clear the other border as soon as possible so that I could plant out the 'peans and beas'