3: Gardening Diaries ...

[Silentrunning]

In the last year I have spent a lot of time, energy and money getting my garden soil in shape. I started with almost solid clay. I have mixed in tons of horse manure, composted cow manure, green and brown compost and anything else I could find. In February I was very happy because the top12” of soil had become rich and dark and absorbed and retained moisture. I knew that under that was still clay but there wasn’t much I could do. I planted most of my vegetables and was off to a great start. Then came the rains. The clay has not allowed the soil to drain so most of the garden is dark brown soup. The weeds have taken over since I can’t get in there to hoe. I am afraid my garden diary for 2018 will consist of one word that I can’t post here.

 

[johnny canoe]

Hello silentrunning, It must be a terrible disappointment to have your garden fail after all the work you have put into it. Is all your land clay? If that's the only area for your garden I would wait for it to dry and start building or hire somebody to build raised beds. There is this young couple down my street who converted their entire front and back yards to raised bed veggie growing. They drive around in an old VW van (no shocker there). Anyway they grow a massive amount of food in raised beds on just a city sized lot. Also their yard is an attraction around here. Good for them I say.

 

[alp]

Hello everybody! I have been working flat out and glad that there have been so many posts. I weeded the front, poured vinegar to kill the ants, hopefully! I also applied them onto the weeds in amongst the slab pavings. 12pm, went out to work and set the alarm to 3.30pm and in the end came in at 4.20pm. Very hot and collected some more hellebore seeds.
@BigC I love the white short candytuft, not these taller ones. I first started my seeds with candytuft and they just bring good old memories.

@Silentrunning Your post I am afraid my garden diary for 2018 will consist of one word that I can’t post here. makes me giggle. I have these words in string when my neighbours are out, especially the old g and the mother form. Last two nights were awful. Let's not go there.

This is so sad and what you said reminds me of the video in which the ginger man grows his gingers in a 3 foot tall huge metal container! I always thought no-dig is a bit too optimistic. I have been here 22 years and I haven't touched the lawn. Every winter, it feels like a slide here and there. I concentrated all my efforts on my borders and patches for hellebores and that have taken me about 6 years as I hadn't been thorough in my digging.

@Silentrunning Do you think another 12 inches will help? Or do you want to have raised bed? It's heartbreaking. But try to sow again. You never know. Put an ad in freecycle to see if people have bark/wood chips/top soil to give away please.

Johnny - I saw on Beechgrove Garden programme a couple who put down huge polytunnels in Scotland and they fashion every strip of land the same size. They use the manure of their animals and straw to build a propagator for seed germination. The thermostat reads 70F. When the straw and manure are spent, they use them as fertilisers. I think you could use this method in Canada. Nice to see people into their homegrown stuff! I really like the idea.

 

[alp]

Honey Gold

I split my lobelia perennial plant into nearly 12 pots. Lo and behold, the slugs and snails swallowed all their leaves .. I need to recruit @Perki in my mission to kill!

Or start a fire and drape the ash all around. The weather just creates a boom growth condition for the SS!

 

[Logan]

Lovely flowers @alp
This is the first rose of the year called
IndianSummer.

Wild foxgloves

First pot marigold

This is my sort of salvia.

 

[Perki]

Evening just had a potter round the GH this afternoon after work cleaning / watering plants and pruning grape vine, went to b&m and picked up another passion flower for the GH after mine hasn't returned, unsure if the cold winter killed it or was kept to dry over winter, got that planted as well.

Lovely peony and rose alp - Logan

This is Bob the bird

 

[Perki]

Took a few pictures the other day

Crown imperial fritillaria dying back / eaten away

Recently been planting up the front right of the this border, I put the lupin in a few weeks ago, you can just see Ligularia Brit marie crawford I planted the other day and astrantia snow star at the front with salvia caradonna behind. I am after some agapanthus to go where the maroon aquilegia is.

I am sure I've lost some alliums this year, I've dug up a few rotten bulbs recently. I must invest in more alliums this year

 

[alp]

Lovely rose, Logan!

Amazing amount of flowers, @Perki ! I think we have the same white alliums. Are they gorgeous. Next year, I will have more as I am going to use the seeds. You have so many that they look like solar lights!

I am amazed that I didn't fall asleep watching true crimes. Normally, I just drifted off in the middle of an episode if I worked that many hours a day. I will continue to weed early tomorrow to escape the relentless sunshine!

 

[Upsy Daisy]

Love Bob the bird!!

We had two Cockatiels they were such fun. The last one died 2 years ago, still miss them .....the house seems so quiet!!!
They loved being out in the garden ,singing away with the wild birds.
They always alerted the other birds and us whenever a bird of prey was near by clambering up and down the sides of their cage and squawking ......and sure enough if we looked up we could always spot the predator circling very high up in the sky.

 

[alp]

Lovely touching story, Upsy! Perki What other pets have you hidden from us? Thanks for sharing the little cutie! I remember a family friend teaching his black bird to swear!

 

[Perki]

I had cockatiels for years, unfortunate they have all passed on but for bob, I took Bob in from somebody who didn't want him /her ( I do think its a female though ), she was kept in the garage the poor sod on her own, I had one cockatiels left at the time which was very lonely, they got along very well couldn't split them apart from each other. Just got Bob left now . I got some fish / shrimp as well

Used to have a african grey parrot got it given cause they couldn't look after it, shame it was a bit nasty and didn't get on with the cockatiels. It used to swear - answer the phone said all sorts of things. One day someone kept knocking on the door pestering and it flew out the door never to be seen again.

I have or had a few allium variety's the white one is mount everest, I have also got purple sensation - christophii - gladiator - white giant - giganteum - globemaster - round and purple - summer drummer - nectaroscordum - nigrum maybe? - sphaerocephalon yes I like alliums

 

[BigC]

Good Moring all...We set off yesterday morning at 10am for the garden centre and only arrived home again at 2am after we called at the daughters house on the way home and got roped into babysitting....I wanted a Cockerel (ornament) I rang around all the stockists (Garden Centres) and eventually found one 50 miles away....Glad I went too, great place and plenty too look at and admire all fresh and healthy plants...we bought another shrub half price in the bargain section (name later, I'm developing @alp 's characteristics) and it was a great day out..I'll fill you all in with what else was purchased when I've had a sleep

Probably a bit too early but here goes....."Cock-a-doodle-doo".........

 

[Logan]

Morning all

 

[alp]

It used to swear - answer the phone said all sorts of things. One day someone kept knocking on the door pestering and it flew out the door never to be seen again.

Hehe! The parrot and I are soulmate, in every aspect! !

I don't think you can kill alliums, not even with the amount of slugs and snails I have killed this morning. Up 5.30 and had an hour of killing spree. I am going to reduce the number of pots I have to half of the number. Going out to weed before the sun is out hot again. It's going to be a scorcher.

 

[alp]

@BigC That's a handsome addition to the menage! The best is that it is not noisy!. Yes, go to posh places and buy them when they are in a big pot 3L to 5L and you have more chances of getting your money back and by splitting them, you get more plants. I love going to posh gc .. a buzz you don't get anywhere else as it is so loved by so many. The Brits just love gardening. The saddest of all is to see a kid playing with his phone sitting on the gc floor! Have to go out again or I will get nothing done.