What are we doing in the garden 2025

Hi,

With heavy rain forecast all day yesterday I thought it's going to be a wash out. Whilst doing the dishes after dinner and looking up the garden the rain had stopped? I wanted to attack the latest infestation of weeds; thousands of the things growing nicely thank you having self seeded; it was war. I quickly donned my work clothes but opening the back door it was raining again so instead of turning around I headed into the workshop to put away the kit I'd been using for painting and to tidy up.

15 minutes later with weeds tormenting me I thought I've had enough being dictated to by the weather so I opened the workshop door to find the rain had almost stopped; now it didn't stop me; I headed to the top garden hut to collect the hoe and if needed my waterproofs; time now for me to torment the weeds and evict them; WOW 30 minutes of bliss as I used the hoe with force; no rain in fact it was perfect; cloud cover and mild. With tired arms I quit but only few weeds left I can sort out later; back in the bungalow and looking out down came the rain again. I could have remained indoors just sulking at the rain or playing my violin but my determination to get rid of the weeds was my mission and it worked.

Bare soil certainly attracts weeds and everything else that decides to make it home; it's amazing how over the last few years whole sections of garden are taken over by weed seedlings and the weeds are always different; they must do bombing runs over my garden on air currents; I should have had my camera with me.

The weedkiller is now flattening the grass; I hope it kills the couch grass rhizones preventing more growing; I emailed the supplier of the weedkiller and received a reply stating yes it will kill the couch grass completely; it's looking good so far but I won't be grass reseeding until next year; if I see more couch grass popping up I'll go over with weedkiller again; I'm taking control of my garden.

I was pleasantly surprised whilst out yesterday looking at Bron's memorial garden to see one of the Gardenia Kleims Hardy has a flower bud on it; all the shrubs and plants bought for this garden from J Parkers look very healthy with no losses. I'm fighting back after a terrible year this year and at last I'm winning; I'm on top of the weeds so far; the couch grass problem is being addressed; the memorial garden is looking good and all the heavy jobs are completed. The extension interior painting is completed. The new front porch I made and installed is watertight having been fully tested by the climate power washing it with horizontal rain. Now bring on the next problem; nothing can hurt me more than I've been hurt this year.

Light rain is forecast for today I thought all rain weighed the same?

Kind regards, Col.

 

Hi,

Once again I've dared to work against the MET office forecast over the last hour enjoying peaceful weeding before the predicted heavy rain arrived; I wanted to weed the area all around the oak tree stump so I ignored the huge overhead cloud and got cracking.


It's steep and I had to be like a ballet dancer between plants and shrubs but it looks a lot better with a pile of weeds removed; I used the hoe and a trowel for the tougher ones getting them out complete with roots then raked the debris up.


The whole garden now looks tidy and I'll keep it looking this way. The stump with the butterflies is what's left of a huge oak tree I felled and disposed of about three years ago. Note my automatic sprinkler watering the garden & patio area. Now I'm indoors the sun is beaming in but I did what I set out to do.


Here's just a few of the weeds that have suddenly invaded large areas of the garden also I'm having lots of problems with creeping buttercups. I'm removing most of the buttercups including their root with a trowel not wanting to simply hoe them because they'll only grow again. I like buttercups but not the garden covered with them.


Close up of the weeds; I assume they are weeds but they are coming out; I want to clear them before they seed which won't be long by the rate they're growing.

Even an hour or half hour energetic weeding makes a huge difference; the hoe reaches under shrubs better than I can; I like to remove the weed roots too but I'd never get to the end of the garden before the weeds were following me; it's an uphill struggle in every sense with the garden being steep. It's nice though to potter around and to see something good for my efforts. Next year I hope to transform the wildflower meadows with new shrubs and plants; I'll plan this over winter and browse J Parkers website.

Kind regards, Col.

 

Just had a brief wander round the garden, deadheaded a couple of penstemons, returned indoors feeling quite refreshed.

 

Decluttered 2 gutters and downpipes. One had been a constant drip drip drip and totally blocked. Couldn't see why but maybe moss down the pipe and when poking down with a bamboo....well the whoosh was horrendous.
So rain today and no drips from that one thank goodness.

 

Spent Saturday emptying every single pot out of my "nursery" barn and carrying them to the veg plot. Each pot was weeded and then top dressed or potted on with the causalties going o th ecompost heap. The barn lost its roof in a tornado in 2020 and has 3 walls so is open to the northerly winds and rain. One of the two remaining beams looks like it will slip this winter, hence the need to empty everything away from danger.

The pots, big and little, have been stashed on the grass in the little orchard area where I hope they will kill the grass so I can plant meadow plants next spring.

Back out there this afternoon to plant more roses in the new rose bed. Much quarrying of stones and broken roof tiles from when another barn was demolished years ago but the soil is good and I've been adding horse muck. Most of the roses already planted have new growth showing and 2 are flowering so they're clearly happy to be out of their pots. Only 5 more to go.

Next job will be transplanting irises and more cuttings.

 

no gardening for us outside today..plus been raining all day :( did check greenhouse, spent 10 min plainting up one more container with artic king seedling found. Planted in middle of them one of my red cabb seedling iv got to see if will carry on growing over winter for a early spring harvest..if only get baby leaves ll be happy. As iv got quite a few red cabb seedlings ll plant the rest outside under clouches to see if grow. Did trial plant one of them last week to see if get eaten and its looking ok and strong even though not covered with a clouche..time will tell if survies over winter. Just ordered 2 pk of winter seeds ( no more ordering till spring )..kale' midnightblue' £2.25 and cabb ' red express' £2.65, says can be sown up to Oct..getting a bit late but will give them ago for my trial winter growing. Wont bother ordering anything else off my list..plus they wanted £4.25 each pk for all the others and l think thats far too much to pay. Checked field beans l planted out, the tips are being nibbled so not hopeful for those. l still need to plant up all the seedlings of kale (self seeded dotted around garden)..might as well plant them up in the raised beds and leave them to take their chance over winter.

 

Been moving some pots closer to the house so I don't miss anything should we get a frost soon.

 

I got my hose fitting yesterday so I'll get that done today. It was wet when I got home with it, so today is looking more promising for outdoor jobs.
Apart from that, probably not much. I have a few bulbs I can plant, but I'm waiting for annuals to finish so that other bulbs can go in those pots. This mild weather brings it's own problems! I still haven't planted some things under the front window, so I might look at that while we're weirdly frost free, although I think that's changing in the next few days.

 

With the cooler nights, like Pete, I'm keeping an eye on plants in pots and will be moving some into the greenhouse this weekend.
Leaves are beginning to drop and herbaceous plants are beginning to retreat back underground.
Amorphophallus leaves have gone over and been removed as they do, they've done well with the hot summer so I might get flowers next spring.

 

Hi,

It's turning much cooler each day and we're in the rainy season; sunny spells today but more heavy rain forecast for tomorrow.

I've a pile of weeds I'll bag up today and also a pile of couch grass sods; I'll try to knock most of the soil from these then I can take the lot to the tip; the problem is everything is soaking wet but I'll try. The gardens are looking good so I'm at last on top of them.

My new toy an Electro Harmonix B9 organ machine is due to arrive today; my electric violin plugs into it then to the amplifier; it turns my violin into an organ; I'm keen to try it out; with winter approaching and outside temperature dropping I'll enjoy longer violin practices together with practicing the Fender Strat guitar; I'll also be browsing what shrubs and plants to buy for next springtime when I replace the wildflowers; I've had enough of grafting on the wildflower meadows only for the climate to destroy them again as this year with the drought; time for a change?

Kind regards, Col.

 

Yesterday did some weeding around some hellebores and cut their leaves off before the spring, today I'll plant some tulips.

 

I am finding lots of shoots of grape hyacinths appearing in the ground plus in some pots. This seems a bit early to me. The thistle is sending up another stem with multiple flower heads on it and the Royal Bumble salvia is going bananas. It’s double the size of last year and still flowering its socks off.
Isotoma still in flower so not much in the way of pruning going on just yet. I did prune down a clematis the other day though.
My six new Catananche Amor Blue are doing well, settling well into their pot now.

 

OH has helped me plant the last of the roses in my new bed, all but 4 grown from cuttings and labels lost so the colours may be interesting. Expecting rain today and tomorrow so will let them all settle in before I start on the alliums and daffs I have to go in there and then some perennials.

I have a few broccoli to plant out after lunch and seedlings to check on.

My Bumble and Violette salvias are also going bananas @Songbird and I shall be looking for good shoots to take cuttings. Belle de Nantes is much less exhuberant but is still settling in as she's a recent planting and has had to cope with extreme heat and drought. Hot Lips - a gift - is also very happy and needs a good hair cut.

 

After I get my work done this morning I plan to try to get some of the irrigation sorted out in the greenhouses. I use capillary matting type watering for my plants in the little greenhouses and up to now have just used a container of water under the runs down each side to feed the runs of matting. I had low flow irrigation to fill them or used water from my rain barrels but I want to change over to a Frankensteined autopot system. I've ordered the components I think will work. I can't afford and also do not want their complete systems because the pots are far too big and to me, would be a waste of valuable grow area. I'm going to add valves/spouts to fill the big water receptacles that feed the autopot system and want to sort out just how I'm going to make this work. Then I can fill the receptacles from the mains. Next summer I'll work on solar powered pumps to use the rain barrel water when it's available.

Loads of fun tinkering.

 

I’m really chuffed @Obelix-Vendée with our royal bumble as we’ve had it a good few years now, OH cuts it almost down to the ground in autumn/winter and still it comes back, as good as new. It didn’t wilt at all during this last summer so received little water but it’s so big now that it’s encroaching on the path! Really like the little red flowers and so do the bees. They are still visiting it daily.
Might take some cuttings too. I did take some a couple of years ago and found them quite easy to grown on.