Trying to remove yellow polka dots.
What did you do in your garden today?
- Thread starter JBtheExplorer
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I s'ppose you could call it gardening of a sort.
Twenty-four years ago when I bought our first Honda CRV, I moved the right-hand gate pillar eighteen inches to the right, to make it easier to back in.
I had some York stone left over from when I built the koi pool, patio and path, so I made another path to the side of the concrete drive, so I wouldn't be treading on the grass when I got out of the car.
Over time this path had weathered, well at least the mortar between the York stone had and I was always having to prise weeds out of it.
So today after cutting the lawn I decided to re-point it.
I'd run out of plasticiser, so I used the bricky's standby, washing up liquid. Well, not actually that as we've a dishwasher so we had none, so I used neat car wash liquid. I did have some yellow cement dye.
Anyway, job sorted. It's difficult to get a professional finish with a pointing trowel when none of the pieces of stone are regular and if you rarely do any "brickying." My solution is to do it as best I can with a trowel, then go over it with a fine 2" dry paintbrush. If you don't make the mortar too wet it works fine.
The mortar will dry lighter and the staining on the York stone will weather in a few weeks.
Like our first one, I've had this car from new. It was seventeen years old this year, but it's only done 62,000 miles. As everything on it works I can't be bothered to change it.
Twenty-four years ago when I bought our first Honda CRV, I moved the right-hand gate pillar eighteen inches to the right, to make it easier to back in.
I had some York stone left over from when I built the koi pool, patio and path, so I made another path to the side of the concrete drive, so I wouldn't be treading on the grass when I got out of the car.
Over time this path had weathered, well at least the mortar between the York stone had and I was always having to prise weeds out of it.
So today after cutting the lawn I decided to re-point it.
I'd run out of plasticiser, so I used the bricky's standby, washing up liquid. Well, not actually that as we've a dishwasher so we had none, so I used neat car wash liquid. I did have some yellow cement dye.
Anyway, job sorted. It's difficult to get a professional finish with a pointing trowel when none of the pieces of stone are regular and if you rarely do any "brickying." My solution is to do it as best I can with a trowel, then go over it with a fine 2" dry paintbrush. If you don't make the mortar too wet it works fine.
The mortar will dry lighter and the staining on the York stone will weather in a few weeks.
Like our first one, I've had this car from new. It was seventeen years old this year, but it's only done 62,000 miles. As everything on it works I can't be bothered to change it.
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Now we are getting a bit of rain there are a million two leaf seedlings for me to hoe over. Did a fuller weed and tidy on the strawberry patch and mulched it. The other day I took the top off the bay tree, which was growing huge, and put it through the mower, the end of the garden smelled wonderful, I also took a lot of cuttings from it, I have not had a lot of success with bay cuttings in the past, but hey, it's worth a try. Also cut back my lavender and took a bunch of cuttings from that, they are always popular with people.
What I really want to do is run the rake over the lawn, but it keeps starting to rain again just as it starts getting dry enough, I don't like the idea of electric tools in wet conditions, but I do want to hammer the yarrow before it sets seed.
What I really want to do is run the rake over the lawn, but it keeps starting to rain again just as it starts getting dry enough, I don't like the idea of electric tools in wet conditions, but I do want to hammer the yarrow before it sets seed.
Our goal with our garden is to make a little self-reliant oasis. Beauty, abundance - a little 'world' that meets all of our needs. It's about 1/4 acre plot or so with most at the back of the house. It overlooks farmland. We have polytunnel, big workshop a fenced off veg garden that's half raised beds and half food forest. Another fenced off area for fruit. All sorts of beautiful little seating areas each with different aspect. We have 4 beagles hence all the fences!
We're currently in the process of installing solar generators. Rather than put the solar panels on the roof we're putting them on the roof of woodstores. So, we have big stores of firewood (about 4 years worth) and solar panels on the roof. Self sufficient in heat and power for most of the year.
So, food, energy, relaxation and enjoyment all taken care of - we've got water in the form of water butts. Worm farm, compost heap etc, etc.
My goal - mostly because I think it would be cool - is to save our own seeds, make our own compost - be 100% self reliant. Slowly but surely getting there!
Thinking about ducks or chickens.....but not sure with the Beagles.
We're currently in the process of installing solar generators. Rather than put the solar panels on the roof we're putting them on the roof of woodstores. So, we have big stores of firewood (about 4 years worth) and solar panels on the roof. Self sufficient in heat and power for most of the year.
So, food, energy, relaxation and enjoyment all taken care of - we've got water in the form of water butts. Worm farm, compost heap etc, etc.
My goal - mostly because I think it would be cool - is to save our own seeds, make our own compost - be 100% self reliant. Slowly but surely getting there!
Thinking about ducks or chickens.....but not sure with the Beagles.
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I'm impressed with your ambitions to be self reliant, when it comes to food.
But at my age...there's Waitrose..
Yeah, that sounded a bit more grand than reality!! That's the motivation, but realistically it's not possible. I really meant self reliant in veg with *possibly* eggs. The biggest challenge will be to actually EAT veg as I'm a bit of a junk food junkie!!!
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Finished off the rest of the strawberries and potted up a few runners. The sun came out this afternoon and I ran the rake over the front lawn, going back on myself so it all got done twice, then I went over it with the mower and picked everything up.
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Emptying out an old compost heap, topping off the one I have been using, and starting a new one. I have been splitting up a large log to make the new one, the wood from the old heap has been cut and split long enough it dry enough for firewood. Had a covid booster this morning and my arm was starting to hurt by afternoon, so slowed down a bit then.
We are tried to finish getting the rest of the fall crops planted. Was able to secure some organic seed garlic to get in the ground before the cold gets here. It should be here next week. Below is a picture of our recent harvest. Tomorrow will be a canning and dehydrating day. Also need to make and freeze pumpkin puree. The season is in the final stretch here. Where did this year go :/
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That's a fine harvest you have there. 
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Tackled a tree I cut down ages ago, split it lengthwise several times with wedges, then cut it into about four foot lengths to build a new compost heap. Spread the last of one old compost heap out, so now I have the tail end of one, one that is newly finished and capped off, and a new one just started. Cucumbers and last of the tomatoes were getting pretty mankey, cleaned them up and took a lot of dying leaves out, had to have something for my new heap so I mowed that up and a lot of rubbish I had taken out of the hedge, it rots down much quicker that way. Tidied the garage and put away most of the patio furniture.
so I mowed that up and a lot of rubbish I had taken out of the hedge, it rots down much quicker that way. Tidied the garage and put away most of the patio furniture.
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Did a bit today, reduced a lot of growth on the wisteria between the shed and the tea-house. I'm going to tie a few branches back tomorrow as they are trying to spread out away from the fence and over the path. It happens every year.
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Tied up this wisteria to get it closer to the fence.
If I didn't, to get to the tea-house I'd be walking on the grass and not the path.
The "heave" in the little wall and path wasn't caused by the wisteria, but by the roots of a huge cherry tree in next door's garden that died twenty-five years ago and was replaced by some silver birches.
They are a real pain. Although they had 10ft taken off the tops earlier this year, they want to grow towards the sun which means over our garden. I'll have the leaves to vac up later in the year.
Once they are all down I'll get at the branches my side with my long Fiskars lopper.
If I didn't, to get to the tea-house I'd be walking on the grass and not the path.
The "heave" in the little wall and path wasn't caused by the wisteria, but by the roots of a huge cherry tree in next door's garden that died twenty-five years ago and was replaced by some silver birches.
They are a real pain. Although they had 10ft taken off the tops earlier this year, they want to grow towards the sun which means over our garden. I'll have the leaves to vac up later in the year.
Once they are all down I'll get at the branches my side with my long Fiskars lopper.
- Joined
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You have my sympathy, there were three silver birches in a group, one my side, two next door. The one my side went almost as soon as we moved in, the two next door, to the north, keep getting bigger. Still, growing over the fence is better than blocking all the sun, and I notice the birds like to sit in them to check out the bird table before they fly down to it.
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Cut the lawn. Looking quite good so will most now we've had periods of sun and rain. The squirrels are still digging a few holes in the lawn to bury nuts, but I can close them up with a golf green pitch mark repairer.
I pruned a bit off this acer palmatum. I like it to be symetrical, but you can't remove offending branches that are growing the wrong way, if there's nothing below them or you'll end up with a hole. When all the leaves have fallen. I may put a net over it and tie it down and release it befor the buds start to open. In the past the branches adopted the required shape when I've done it a few times over the last 20 years.
As usual the garden is mostly green this time of the year.
The last of the hydrangea blooms. But lots of sorbus berries.
Last of the roses.
This bed will be full of cyclemen in a few weeks.
I pruned a few branches off this acer, it was beginning to look a bit like a pin cushion, because of the uneven growth.
Once all the leaves are down it'll get the usual "big prune" reducing the size by up to a foot all over.
I pruned a bit off this acer palmatum. I like it to be symetrical, but you can't remove offending branches that are growing the wrong way, if there's nothing below them or you'll end up with a hole. When all the leaves have fallen. I may put a net over it and tie it down and release it befor the buds start to open. In the past the branches adopted the required shape when I've done it a few times over the last 20 years.
As usual the garden is mostly green this time of the year.
The last of the hydrangea blooms. But lots of sorbus berries.
Last of the roses.
This bed will be full of cyclemen in a few weeks.
I pruned a few branches off this acer, it was beginning to look a bit like a pin cushion, because of the uneven growth.
Once all the leaves are down it'll get the usual "big prune" reducing the size by up to a foot all over.
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