Gardening Aspirations For 2018

I have similar aspirations are simple. I feel deeply connected to my garden, as it is saying me do not use chemical fertilizers to kill me.

 

Be very afraid: Beware the monstrous climbers that¿ll overrun your garden before you know it ¿ Halloween or not | Daily Mail Online

 

At some point I am going to need to repaint the shed. In my heart I wanted to paint a spring meadow on it and blend it into a raised deck attached to the side of it. The decking part of the plan is still a possibility. It probably won’t happen this year because of the cost and work involved, but next year who knows.



I would have to start by painting the whole shed with a white undercoat. B&Q sell a 2.5l pot for £12. Coloured paint is expensive. I have yet to find a blue I like. If I bought one I would have to try to mix it myself. That in itself is easier said than done I’m sure. I would also have to make a big enough batch to cover the whole thing in one go. Also if I painted this shed would I also have to do something similar with the one immediately next to it?

When the project is complete, whichever way I go, most of the shed “should” be covered with pots, climbers etc. Would painting it have been a waste of time?

I have 3 sheds all in need of a bit of TLC. The logical answer is to buy a really big tub of brown fence paint (I might already have one somewhere in my pigsty of a shed) and do them all at the same time. Whatever happens, it has to be done soon. I can’t attach trellising or plant anything around it until it’s done.

Sorry. I’m just thinking out loud. What I can imagine and what I can achieve is not always compatible.



G.

 

I'm feeling quite tired now having read about all the projects others have planned for this year!

All I've got on the agenda, is jet-washing the patio, pointing up the York stone where necessary and a bit of re-painting. All my constructions in our garden are fabricated from soft wood. These get another coat of Dulux mahogany Woodsheen every couple of years or "when necessary." It forms a polymer skin around the wood so keeps the water out. Our tea-house will be thirty-one years old this year and there's no rot anywhere in it.

 

My patio gets very slimy and slippery during winter. Walking on it can be quite interesting . I wonder if the stuff you use would work on mine ?

 

The problem can be that the stuff you spray on may get rid the moss, but I'm always concerned about the "run-off" which may affect the soil in our borders.

Anyway, I find using the jet-wash therapeutic...well for the first half hour, then it becomes a chore. I might try treating it after I've jet-washed and pointed it where necessary.

 

I’m thinking ahead again. Any advice would be appreciated. There is a gap of no more than a foot or so between the cage and the fence. When the better weather comes, I have a sheet of willow screening that will go across the back of the cage. At some point there will hopefully be a corrugated roof added sloping slightly backwards. This means of course that area is likely to get waterlogged. My immediate thought is to fill the gap with gravel. I will need to top up the gravel on the front drive anyway. Is there a more environmentally friendly way of dealing with the problem? Are there plants that would grow in virtual darkness and happily soak up any water that might fall there? Ideally too I would like to be able to still use the gap as an access. Any thoughts?

G.

 

Not necessarily.

My thought would be, once you have added your sloping corrugated roof, add some guttering to capture the run off water and direct it into a water butt. With the planting ideas which you have, that lovely water will be desperately needed come dry summer time It's a win-win because you won't lose access either (well, as long as you position your butt carefully).

 

The gap tapers inwards from right to left. There is enough room for me to get through the thinner end carrying hand tools. It is not wide enough for a wheel barrow.

The water butt would be ideal but there isn’t room to put it anywhere without it being intrusive. Actually, hold that thought. I might be able to make it work.

I will have to find a wider aspect photo when i get a minute.

Whatever happens that strip of ground will still need covering with something environmentally and pet friendly. Bark chippings would be my preference.

I’ve got to go. I’ll pick up again later.



G.