3: Gardening Diaries ...

[BigC]

Je vais prendre Pina colada, s'il te plait!

No you wont ! ... but you can buy One Beer for the price of Two and receive a second one Absolutely FREE

 

[Logan]

ul plants @Logan and @alp...inspirational.

Last year all my fruit bushes were attacked and annihilated by Saw Fly Larvae...must keep a vigil this year

Thanks @BigC
Hubby gives the fruit bushes a winter wash with jays fluid in January or February. Also keep the bushes open to let the air flow through. I pruned a lot of the old wood out of mine, that might help. They lay the eggs in the ground by the bushes if you hoe the ground around them,that should help. They hatch, the grubs climb up them and start in the middle so you won't see them straight away.

 

[Perki]

Thanks @Perki it does smell lovely, it's a old variety called cloth of gold.

I grow that one and the red version last year for flowering this year, most are lying horizontal and not doing to much. By the time they are ready to flower I probably replace them for summer planting

 

[BigC]

Hubby gives the fruit bushes a winter wash with jays fluid in January or February. Also keep the bushes open to let the air flow through. I pruned a lot of the old wood out of mine, that might help. They lay the eggs in the ground by the bushes if you hoe the ground around them,that should help. They hatch, the grubs climb up them and start in the middle so you won't see them straight away.

Thanks @Logan great advice

 

[alp]

Very pretty front Logan, the amount of wallflowers around your garden must smell divine

I liking your fritillaria persica it lovely, I like the white ones as well, dunno if I can fit anymore bulbs in I tend to chop them with the spade cause I've got that many and I forget where I planted them .

Rained over night so a bit damp early morning, mostly dry day otherwise until 20mins ago, suddenly got windy now it lashing it down and it cold.

We have been windy the whole day. Perfect for empty crates of soil into my new plot which used to hold 5 huge compost bins. Most the the compost is now being buried underneath compost and tomorrow I will grow something on top and let the worms stay underneath and do their business. As @johnny canoe pointed out, the fritillaria persicas stink a bit. At first, I thought some foxes had marked their territories over my pots. I had been mildly ill because of the horrible smell; until Johnny pointed it out! LOL!

And I thought I was the only one planting something new on top of something old. I had a firewheel lily Scadoxus and I poked the fork in and half opened a bulb which was already sprouting. I was so mad with myself. I really like it. I wished I had a bit of rain.. The heat killed some of my hellebores in pots.

 

[marlingardener]

Alp, we are having weather that is not typical of April in Texas! Daytime temps now are in the 60's, and usually are at least 10 degrees higher. Nighttime is in the 40's, which again is about 10 to 15 degrees cooler than usual. We have had some rain, just enough that I don't have to hand water the veggies. I lost my Mexican tarragon to cold--dumb me, I had it in the barn and should have brought it in when the temps went into the mid-30's one evening. Some folks shouldn't be trusted with plants .
When volunteering in the gardens of a local college, the horticulturist told me that any bulb that I damaged, as long as it still had its root bottom intact, would survive. Perhaps your firewheel will?

 

[johnny canoe]

Hello alp, I read that they smell like wet fur but fox pee would be a definite turn off as well. lol
I take it that you have moved those stunning plants back outside?

 

[Logan]

Morning all

 

[BigC]

Morning @Logan and all the crew.
Not setting itself to be a good day here weather-wise, mini heatwave has gone I reckon.
Aw well I'm off to London this aft from the Emerald Isle..Lot of driving overnight and I'll miss the garden.
Planning the mini bar area is always on my mind...I have a couple of nice pallets at my disposal and I've sourced some Grey Granite Pavers for the worktop on Gumtree for £22 a sq mtre they look nice..I dont think I'll be painting it White @alp and as the ranch fence at the front of the house needs a lick of paint so I might just get another tin of my favourite Green.
I will also source some quirky personalised bar signage... incorporate a wine rack or two with room for glassware and a beer bottle bank with bottle opener.a chalkboard menu board would be nice and a couple of adjustable Tractor Seat Hi Stools should complete the scene.

 

[alp]

@marlingardener Weather has been freaky for all of us. Now it is 10 cooler than 3 days ago which was like hot summer. Hope you use a bit of cloche or minigreenhouse to push your plants a bit. Freaky weather like this just disorientate us trying to gardener, especially that I haven't been to any horticultural college, like @johnny canoe !

Johnny: How are you? Any lingering pains? Hope you've got back your equilibrium before out biking again and get a brassy bell belting when you turn a corner. Yes, the offensive items have been out in the garden. I tell you, not until you posted about the smell, I thought it was foxes scenting on my pots. The odour was quite repulsive. When you mentioned that I just cackled.

Because of the intense heat, they are now worse for wear than the one staying outside all through. I so wanted to put them to the border, but it will be a waste of time as there will be too much to dig when I am lucky enough to move.

 

[alp]

BigC - Wow, that's a LOT of driving. You're going to town with your min bar! Granite top too. Be careful you friends don't want to go home. That's a nice chair. I'm going to get that dark green paint as well. Have stripped the top of the table. Shame the Kracher packed up. Most of the paint on the table came off. The others are a bit tricky.

Good morning all to a very grey day! What a nightmare! From a kiln to a cooler, with a bit of chemical cosh chucked in. The ebac is on again.

 

[BigC]

Have stripped the top of the table. Shame the Kracher packed up. Most of the paint on the table came off. The others are a bit tricky.

I bet it will look really nice when complete..Impressed with the find, too good to throw away....but I'm still at a loss on how you fitted all that into such a small car..now that would have been tricky

 

[alp]

BigC : The lady's husband who, according to her, is suffering from the early stages of Alzheimer, tweaked the angle of the table. He turned the table top backing to our seats and after that, it was plain sailing. He's surely is a problem solver. Glad that he helped. He's a joker as well. He said that he's not moving from his chair and then came out 5 minutes later, enough for the lady to tell us the story. Might go and get the other bit. 10 doors away, there was another set of garden table and chairs and I nearly wanted to take them home. I will feature in HOARDERs soon, with the smell of Fritillaria imperalis thrown in just for drama! LOL!

There goes my Kracher!

 

[Zenj]

Morning all dry but windy here a high of 12 c ,but real feel a lot colder

 

[Logan]

@alp that table will look great when you've finished it. Have you got room for it?

It's raining now so going to do some vaccing, do the stairs and bedrooms.