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Chit Chat Garden ( 2017 )
Chit Chat Garden ( 2017 )
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Funny you should mention cats on your garden Smar Tarse.
I put netting over my newly sown seeds to keep the birds off. After the seeds came through and the plants had established themselves I removed the nets and left them in a tangle by the side of a tree. I noticed next day that the netting was even in a worse tangle than when I left it. It was all over the place, shredded and in a complete mess. How did that happen? Then it dawned on me, when next doors cat come on my garden for its morning dump it must have caught itself in the netting and you can imagine the outcome..... |
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I hope you throw the dump back to where it belongs DC. If i had close neighbours with cats i would save it all until i had a bucket full and then throw the lot back to where it came from !
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We got an outside tap! In fact it was in last weekend when I cried about the lack of water
 It's at the back of the Church where the toilets are so it's understandable why I never seen it.I topped up my spuds and watered tonight. I also put poles in for my peas and beans. [ This image is no longer available. ] I bought a vacuum sealer in Lidl today mainly to store my hops for brewing but also to try Sous Vide Cooking. It will now be used to store my veg. I've a load of radishes to pick. |
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I picked a load of radishes and some spinach today, the radishes were massive and I've more still to pick (and more planted.) I'm gonna brew an oatmeal stout and add some of the radishes to give it a kick hopefully. I vac packed them
 What a great little gadget which I'll recommend to the Church. That would be handy for storing surplus veg to hand out. Spinach was used for tomorrows packed lunch. I'd a busy day and didn't get brewing but I'll attempt my stout during the week. |
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My Clematis has now reached the roofline of my man-cave (9ft ish), do i pinch the tops out or let it go over the roof ?
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pinch
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that rain has made the weeds shoot
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Wear a bullet proof vest ..
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I slipped up this year with my runner beans.
Last year I bought a packet and put them straight into the ground - half of them didn't come. So I put some beans that I'd saved from last years crop into pots, and when they were ready I used them to fill in the gaps where the beans I'd bought hadn't come. This year I saved the end of last year's crop for seeds. I put then in pots in the greenhouse and only three out of three dozen came through. So I had to buy some. They're coming through now. I'm a bit late but they'll catch up. |
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Nine days from putting the beans into the pots to pushing through.
Shows what a bit of warm weather will do. |
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My Clematis are planted up against my man cave, which has a good amount of overhanging roof, i have to water them even when it is chucking it down
Most of my runners are at the top of the canes. But like you say, they will soon catch up. |
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I put my bean canes up on Monday. Prefer wigwams as it can be windy at times and they are the most stable design. Starting the runner beans now in my heated propagator. Don't worry, Dr Crippen, most people put them out too early and they get knocked back by cold night temperatures. I don't plant them out until the second week of June, and even then I protect them from Northerly and easterly winds with sheets of PVC roofing which I rescued from a skip some years ago. French and borlotti beans will be planted directly where they are to grow at the end of May. The ground is still covered with black plastic sheets which will help it to warm up while suppressing any weeds.
Japanese greens are growing fast and I harvested a few leaves for salad use. |
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Here is an update on a few of my garden things.
This is one of two Rhododendron on my front garden. They took a bit of a bashing last week by hailstones but don't look too bad. [ This image is no longer available. ] This is my well travelled Hosta, i have dug it up when i have moved house. [ This image is no longer available. ] [ This image is no longer available. ] This is the Clematis i cut right back last year. [ This image is no longer available. ] Next door neighbour gave me this "everlasting" Sweet pea last week. [ This image is no longer available. ] One of my Runner beans, i have 5 lots, all in tubs in different areas of my garden. [ This image is no longer available. ] These Peppers are still in the polytunnel, they don't take up much room so will stay in there with my tomatoes. [ This image is no longer available. ] [ This image is no longer available. ] [ This image is no longer available. ] One of my Tomato plants, it should have the first fruit set by the weekend. [ This image is no longer available. ] [ This image is no longer available. ] Here are my Chard, Lettuce and Carrots [ This image is no longer available. ] [ This image is no longer available. ] [ This image is no longer available. ] My Sir Henry Cecil sweat pea, they have finally got a shift on now. [ This image is no longer available. ] And finally............er i don't know what it is  This pot had the old stock Onion seeds that had zero germinate. Any ideas what it is ?[ This image is no longer available. ] |
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great post and pics there Smar T'
I bought one of them ever lasing Sweet Peas last week to give it a whirl... When did those peppers get started? they are looking good! |
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Delta - From my notes.........
"Pepper ( Razzamatazz ) seeds set on Wednesday the 08th of February, in yohgurt pots, on windowsil. First signs of them were 18th of Feb " |
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4th April here - - no wonder mine are small
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Crikey Smar Tarse, where are you located - Spain?
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You must be six weeks in front of me.
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Great pics Smart!
I'm gonna donate my surplus vac pac'ed radishes to the church. I picked a load more with more on the way. One thing I won't be doing is planting them with a row of parsnips, pulling the radishes out destroyed a load of parsnip seedlings. Gonna pollinate my tomatoes by giving each plant a quick shake. I remember a few years ago I had tomatoes in a mini greenhouse and got very little tomatoes off each plant. Lack of wind or insects prevented them. Most of my raised bed is now filled with beetroot, turnip, radish and spring onion but I'll be planting more as things come out. |
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Lovely photos, Smarty, good gardening.
I'm probably at the same stage as Dr C as I have a draughty allotment for my veg not a sheltered garden. Don't recognise your mystery plant although the leaves are reminiscent of docks. It's probably something more exotic and will be interested to see it when it flowers. |
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Ovalman - I spotted a Magpie feather the other week when mowing my lawn, i have been using that to "tickle" my tomato flowers
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Had a read up on pollination and it says you have to tap each flower, I'll just give the whole plant a shake
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I have always used a small soft paintbrush, i thought i would try a feather instead
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I have seen quite a few Cóckchafer bugs landing on my lawn the past few days
 Each time i have sat down for a cuppa there were at least two land in the grass, i managed to jump up and grab a few but gord knows how many have got in there this week |
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Can't you just put the plants outside occasionally?
I had more fruit off the ones I put outside last year. That would be the reason. Although I did leave the greenhouse door open and their were bees inside. |
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Not really unless someone else lifts them out. I don't go near it at daytime (unless it's the weekend) and only spend 30-60 minutes a few nights a week. Maybe I shouldn't worry, there's 2 tomato plants in a hanging basket that have around 10 fruit growing. I only noticed them when I was touching each flower.
The tap makes a massive difference but it would be handy if we had a hose. Filling watering cans got a bit monotonous but I and another person managed to water everything tonight. Can't really complain and I'm sure we'll get a hose soon. Now we have an outside tap we could maybe run a car wash involving the Youth Club that would help raise money to recoup any costs. I'll put it to the minister next week. |
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Hey farmer farmer put away the DDT, I don't care about spots on my apples just leave me the birds and the bees, Please!
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Taken on the allotment site at the end of last month.
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That's a lovely sight Foinavon
 There is nothing in my garden that is worth spraying with chemicals, ever. The worse anything gets is a Fairy Liquid soapy drowning  If the Cóckchafer kill my grass i shall just sow some more grass. |
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Is that a wasps nest Foinavan
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it's a beehive Ovalman, there are three or four in a fenced off area of the allotment.
We have no problem with pollination and the honey is delicious. |
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An absolute plethora of bees in my garden this afternoon, dozens of the critters.
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I did spot 1 bee yesterday around my raised bed but that was it. Nothing to compare it to from last year so I've downloaded the bee count app from Friends of the Earth.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.niceagain.beecount&hl=en_GB&rdid=com.niceagain.beecount I don't know what it will be like but hopefully I see an influx of the critters from now on. |
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Just spotted quite a lot of Cuckoo Spit on my Lavender Now i don't like killing things, so can i leave them to it or will they suck the life out of the Lavender ?
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never seems to affect mine as always left it
RHS say What is cuckoo spit? Cuckoo spit is a white frothy liquid secreted by the nymphs of a sap-sucking insect known as a froghopper. Symptoms Blobs of white frothy liquid develop on young stems and leaves of a range of plants in late spring and summer Each blob contains a creamy white insect nymph up to 4-6mm (¼in) long Usually plant growth is unaffected, but, if the nymph has been feeding at the shoot tip, this may cause some distorted growth Control Apart from producing the 'spit' these insects have little detrimental effect on plants and can be tolerated If considered unsightly, they can be wiped off by hand or dislodged with a jet of water from a garden hose There is no need to use an insecticide against froghoppers Biology This froth has no connection with cuckoos It is secreted by the immature stages of sap-sucking insects known as froghoppers, presumably as a means of protecting themselves against predators The adult insects are present during mid-late summer and live openly on plants. They do not produce cuckoo spit or cause any noticeable damage Overwintering eggs are deposited in plant stems in late summer |
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sweetcorn and courgette planted out today here after a lovely 0.2 inch of rain over night
butternut squash to go in tomorrow |
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It's chucking down here but gonna buy some cucumber plants for the polytunnel later.
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Cheers Delta, i shall leave them be then
My courgette went in the ground a few days ago, there isn't much left of it right now It was the same last year, stripped bare in a few days |
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Home Bargains had veg plants at 49p each in reasonable condition. I got Cucumbers, Aubergines and Beef Tomato earlier but managed to kill one plant on the way home
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Cabbages and Swedes have some slug damage , it appears they don't like Parsnips.
Peas and Broad Beans climbing well. Fruits now showing on apples trees and raspberries. Potatoes now all well above top of pots and bags. Carrots looking ok . Strawberries and Pineberries full of flowers. |