What did you do in your garden today?

[vette-kid]

Cleaned and sharpened all my secateurs. What heaven....a basket of sharp gardening implements. I soaked them in soapy water. Dried them, used a scourer to clean off rust and dirt, sharpened and sprayed with WD40. What method do you guys use? I'd love to know how to improve.View attachment 47352

Well I'm new to gardening, tools I know pretty well. You've got a pretty good process actually. Light soapy water works best on soft handles, otherwise they get gummy and yuck. On hard tools you could use a stronger solution like simple green if you need to cut a lot of dirt and grease. But it's not so good on the soft handles.

 

[vette-kid]

Decided to plant some flowers in the new garden bed. I'll probably do something a little more interesting in the spring, but for now pansies should do well. Also got some lettuce going. Need to harvest potatoes.

 

[DirtMechanic]

Well I'm new to gardening, tools I know pretty well. You've got a pretty good process actually. Light soapy water works best on soft handles, otherwise they get gummy and yuck. On hard tools you could use a stronger solution like simple green if you need to cut a lot of dirt and grease. But it's not so good on the soft handles.

Actually, lets not let bacteria, fungus and virus off lightly here. A detergent, like a dish oriented grease cutting product ( I use Joy brand) is going to kill a lot of pathogens. A actual soap will not. I would even suggest clothing detergent, just because of the difference in sanitation versus something like baby shampoo or the extremely low cost kitchen soaps or even car wash soap, all of which are not as biologically cleansing as one might think at first.

 

[DirtMechanic]

So far I have been pleased with weeds being both low and slow in the winter garden. Got some rain last night. I do not believe I have watered by pipe mor than 2 times this whole year. I see some weeding coming on, but its nice to not have to hurry like in the fast growing summer when grasses are coming up as well.

 

[Sean Regan]

Our four new bare root patio roses arrived from T&M yesterday.
I had a spare green ceramic tub for one of them. Three other "out of favour" roses on the patio were transferred into green plastic containers and "relegated," to the fence along the drive, to provide the other pots I needed

We've now sixteen roses on the patio. "It's probably enough."

 

[DirtMechanic]

Our four new bare root patio roses arrived from T&M yesterday.
I had a spare green ceramic tub for one of them. Three other "out of favour" roses on the patio were transferred into green plastic containers and "relegated," to the fence along the drive, to provide the other pots I needed

We've now sixteen roses on the patio. "It's probably enough."

Never enough! Trellis some climbers!

 

[Sean Regan]

Got the ceramic pot ready for the replacement "tree rose" I'm getting from T&M which will be delivered next week.

It was one of these. We'd only had it a couple of months when a strong wind blew the grafted rose off the trunk. it wasn't a very secure graft.

Wired our Stella cherry, new to us last year. Used some plastic clothes line, so it won't rub. It did well last year with a lot of foliage.

Not sure if it will fruit next year, might be too early.
As with a lot of plants, the shape was less than satisfactory, one or two crossing branches that were also rubbing.
This treatment will help it achieve a more regular shape, when I remove the restraints in April.

 

[Sheal]

For some reason your images aren't showing Sean?

 

[Sean Regan]

For some reason your images aren't showing Sean?

Sorry about that, I've just edited the post.

 

[Sheal]

Thanks.

 

[Esther Knapicius]

what I need to do is rake, rake, rake. but its raining, leaves are wet. so cleaning house, or watching netfix. flipping coin.

 

[Sean Regan]

what I need to do is rake, rake, rake. but its raining, leaves are wet. so cleaning house, or watching netfix. flipping coin.

It's raining here too.

Here's a "rain song" i played on my leccy piano.


https://app.box.com/s/c91qqhdpvyupe9dddnn8

 

[DirtMechanic]

what I need to do is rake, rake, rake. but its raining, leaves are wet. so cleaning house, or watching netfix. flipping coin.

I remember college where there was a distinctive third choice.

 

[vette-kid]

It's raining here too.

Here's a "rain song" i played on my leccy piano.


https://app.box.com/s/c91qqhdpvyupe9dddnn8

Nearly 6" here in the last 48hrs. EVERYTHING is soggy!

 

[DirtMechanic]

Nearly 6" here in the last 48hrs. EVERYTHING is soggy!

Is it that we think backwardly? We all consider our Zones after all. USDA 6a or 9b or 4 in Canada. All this means is what is the COLDEST we get, really. Summer is the dryest time around here usually, and in fact, (8a) the harshest time of year for growing anything at all. One is certainly never guided to plant anything in June for example, although many plants would survive, *of course. I just find some galactic humour in how we are taught that summer is the best time of year for plants. Yet here at least, like you have described, Mother Nature has declared it is time to water roots.