What did you do in your garden today?

[Sean Regan]

It started off a bit frosty first thing, but it soon warmed up, so this afternoon I tackled the lawn brick edging, with my jet-wash.

It was very mossy in places.

It didn't take long.

It's still in pretty good condition considering I laid the bricks over fifteen years ago.

The lawn will tale a few weeks to recover from its recent scarifying.


I also jet-washed the small patio and path. This will need some re-pointing "on a dry warmer day."

I've not yet given up with the missing grass under this acer. A bit later, I'll invest in a couple of rolls of turf. It will have a couple of things going for it this year. I'm going to "shorten the hem" of the acer and the huge tree in the garden to the left which kept this area in constant shade, has had all its branches cut off and there's just the trunk remaining, which I anticipate will be removed soon.

 

[seohunter106]

I thought I'd start a new thread that can be continuously updated by everyone any day of the year. We have people on the forum from all around the world, so there is always somebody doing something with their garden. I think it would be nice to check in and see what our members have done. So whether you've been busy today or busy three months from today, here's the question... What did you do in your garden today?


I spent today preparing my vegetable garden. I had tons of weeds to pull. There's some kind of invasive grass that pops up in there, along with creeping charlie, so I pulled as much as I could find. I can start planting in about four weeks, so it's nice to have it all ready for the season! If I remember right, peas seeds can be planted before the average last frost date, so I might plant them soon. As some of you may know, growing fruits and vegetables is only a small hobby for me. I'm not into it as much as other forum members. I grow peas for my pond fish, as well as couple of tomato plants, pumpkins for decoration, strawberries, a blueberry bush, and a peach tree. I'm also trying lettuce this year. Tomorrow, I may add a few native plants to the outside edges of my vegetable garden so it looks a little more showy throughout the season.

Thanks for your helpful Article

 

[Esther Knapicius]

We use to have about 42 pine trees, now we have about 15. I love pine needles for the garden especially on potato plant rows. Pine pollen is very bad vehicles turn yellow color and allergies are bad also for several months.

not enough area for all the pine needles. understand the Ph level. But too many, too many here. and pine cones, enough.

 

[UrbanWild]

Cleared another bed, spread compost, and planted red onion sets since the soil temp is 44°F.

Repotted some succulents and banished them to the dungeon until we get more stable warmth.

Covered more mud pathways in brush as we have lots of rain coming in a few days. When it gets a little later into spring I plan to just start bricking pathways... Completion dependent on the results of my brick scrounging efforts.

Watered the existing winter-sown containers.

Made up some new containers and winter-sowed purple milkweed (the seeds had already been in the fridge for months). This will be my 4th attempt in 9 years to sustain a population. I was lucky enough to get some seeds in the fall. Now we wait.

Dug out broccoli and upright prairie coneflower seeds to get them ready for tomorrow's efforts.

It's been partly sunny, 40-42°F here with 16-20 mph winds today.

I'm going to go up, make a large pot of cream of tomato soup with the last of the frozen tomatoes from 2024 and whip up some grilled cheese sandwiches!!!

Then it's blistering hot shower time and getting comfortable while sourcing some odd seeds and such. Lastly, a movie or two until I slip into oblivion and start all over again tomorrow!

 

[Meadowlark]

... winter-sowed purple milkweed (the seeds had already been in the fridge for months). This will be my 4th attempt in 9 years to sustain a population. I was lucky enough to get some seeds in the fall. Now we wait.

I'm trying to get milkweed going here also...first attempt last fall and the plants did well, went to seed, but I'm not seeing anything coming back yet here. I'm crossing my fingers that it shows soon.

 

[UrbanWild]

I'm trying to get milkweed going here also...first attempt last fall and the plants did well, went to seed, but I'm not seeing anything coming back yet here. I'm crossing my fingers that it shows soon.

What species?

 

[Meadowlark]

What species?

I did two varieties last fall Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) and Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata). The swamp milkweed seemed to do best here.

This spring I'm adding Sandhill Milkweed and Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa), and Showy Milkweed (Asclepias speciosa).

I'd like to get a permanent stand established so I'm trying out several varieties to find which ones work best for my East Texas environment. Right now, the swamp milkweed seems best suited. I'd really like to get more Monarch visitors going through here and hoping to get some plants up in time for spring migration but its pretty iffy at this point.

 

[Sean Regan]

Busy afternoon.
My neighbour and I got into the silver birch trees in the garden between ours, (that neighbour is a long term, hospital patient). After tackling the one that overhangs his garden, we then pollarded the three next to mine. We needed a scaffold, a chainsaw and my extending pruner
A drastic reduction in the height

.

They look "dog rough" at the moment and there's still some "wispy bits," my side, that I can remove with my telescopic pruner. But once the leaves appear, they will look acceptable.

There's still a lot of cut down branches to clear, (almost as much behind the camera) and we've already nearly filled two green bins.
There were quite a few very large dead shrubs that needed the chainsaw to cut down.

It'll probably take another two bin collections, at least, before we can get the garden clear. But we're going to leave the garden tidy.
On the right is a garage, with a pergola on the side, which has been completely overgrown, (we aren't going to attempt to tackle that!). I have to occasionally trim off what tries to get onto my garage roof!

As I don't have to work for a living, I'll spend some time tomorrow with my secateurs, reducing the smaller branches so they'll fit in a green bin. l can get a lot more in that way. The thicker branches will need my friend's chainsaw, (and that needs a new blade!) So that will have to wait until later in the week.
But by Thursday we'll have three empty bins again. So a lot more can be done.

 

[Tundra20]

onions and potatos went in the ground love this weather wer having finally
chked carrots have a few more poppin up
cut some greens for the chickens thankfully they back laying was gettin low

 

[Sean Regan]

The good news!
I did a bit more work clearing the cut down branches in next door's garden.

The bad news!


I've moved them all up to the top of the garden.

There won't be any green bin space until Thursday.

 

[Meadowlark]

Today we ran out of stored 2024 onion bulbs. Choices are 1) go to the store and buy commercial stuff...or 2) use thinnings from the garden 2025 onion crop.

That's no choice at all...the 2025 onion crop needed thinning anyway. From now until late May we will be using these delicious, thinned onions for everything needing onions. Continuous onion supply from the garden

 

[Gardening purrple15]

My zinnia seeds let out their roots! (pic is upside down)

 

[Sean Regan]

No gardening today, I'm trying to keep off my lawn to give it a chance to recover from the winter. The patios need a bit of re-pointing, but that can wait until we get some warm weather. But I will repaint some of my garden woodwork before the wisteria blossoms get in the way.

I've some domestic chores to do today and I might get into one of my other hobbies.

My jukeboxes get little use in the winter, although I just play a few tracks each week, "as use is the best form of preventative maintenance." But the records in their carousels could do with being taken out and given a clean with record cleaning fluid. I do it every year.

The stylus does pass over a little brush before and after playing a record, so any lint gets removed. But that's not enough.

I'll also give both of them a drop of oil, "where it's supposed to go."

 

[Sean Regan]

It was a golf day today, sunny and quite warm, it was nice not to have to wear any wet gear for once. Just fed the birds when I got home and actually watered the pots.
The phlox in the troughs on the shed widow sill are doing really well.

Still no hedgehog activity. We know one went into the house under the azaleas in late October and the cameras didn't pick it up again after that.
Hopefully, it's OK and still asleep. I'll leave it until the end of the month before I check on it, if it doesn't come out sooner.

 

[gary350]

Several days ago after I planted onions I kept thinking I am forgetting something. I returned several times to look at onions & still could not figure out what I forgot. High wind all day yesterday blow down power lines and trees all over town. TV weather man drama kept telling how bad this store is, it will be at our house about 8:30 pm after dark. I looked at my wilted onions 1 more time then realized I forgot to water them. LOL. OH well too late now rain will be here soon. Radar showed the storm broke up to almost nothing about 15 miles west of us before it arrived here. My rain gauge shows 5/8" of rain. TV said, 61 mph wind. Forecast is now 6 days of 35° nights and 50 to 60 during the day. I hope no more rain so I can plant potatoes maybe Saturday or Monday.