What are we doing in the garden 2025

Nothing today went to see my friends.

 

Got my grass cut and edged etc yesterday afternoon. We had a good wind [ideal for the washing!] and even some sun for a few hours, so it was ideal for that. I did a few other bits and pieces, including some prep of a length of timber for the last bit of edging. Cut a large branch off the conifer at the back of the garden, which was a job that needed done. It has a naturally weeping habit, and it hangs over the rear access road. All chopped up and utilised in a couple of sites, and the rest is bagged up for the tip tomorrow. I collected seed from the little sweet williams I bought cheap in spring. Not something I normally grow, but I'll have a go with them. I sowed some and put them in the greenhouse, but it might be too late for them to work for next year. I'll do some in spring as well and see how they go. More feeder filling, and deadheading etc.
Today is to be very windy again and a mix of all sorts of weather, so anything I do will be dependent on that.

 

Didn't do anything yesterday - went to Aberglasney to the late summer fair and orchid festival. Lots of lovely food stalls, and more importantly plant stalls! Succumbed...

 

I did a lot of weeding Friday and yesterday, pulling out loads of dock, bramble, small teasel and wood avens that had all exploded into life with the rain. I'm glad I took advantage of the good weather, and also that I remembered to put my tools away, since it's hammering down today.

 

I have just noticed a faint haze of green on my banks where it was strimmed last week. It will not be long before it needs cutting again. Grass never stops growing down here.
I had the satisfaction of removing a very large, dead clump of field grass from between paving slabs on the edge of my pond yesterday. I had sprayed it two or three times with glyphosate as I did not want to lift the slabs. I had to be really careful as glyphosate is toxic to fish and aquatics etc. I do not know what kind of grass it is, it forms huge tussocks and grows from bulbils rather than fibrous roots. It is very coarse and spreads like wild fire. It suffocates any other plants growing near it and is almost impossible to weed out from the roots of garden plants.
I hate it with a passion!

 

Tried to do some more weeding and trim the grass edge but it started raining.

 

Cut the lavender bushes back, always seems a bit sad to do so. They have been lovely this year with all the sunshine we had.

 

I returned home around 5am today, after 2 weeks abroad, and I couldn't resist checking out the garden with a torch before getting sleep (I had arranged for a gardener to keep my plants watered in my absence).

Turns out that most plants have had a massive growth spurt! To the point that I am now wondering if my watering regime was not ideal (the gardener was using less water per plant).

I have started pruning some shrubs and doing deadheading, but most of that will need to wait till the weekend.

I also got rid of a clematis that seemed dead ("Lambton Park"). I knew I was risking it when I transplanted it in July but was prepared to lose it. It had been really struggling since.

 

Some blessed rain has been falling on and off, just enough to keep the laundry moist

Anyways, a small window of gardening attack was allowed, so I finally tied up the surplus Tigerella tomato plant that I chucked next to the old laundry pole with best intentions of tying it up regularly.

In reality, it has been happily creeping on the ground smothering the young Lavatera I had forgotten about and on a positive note, weeds.

It keeps amazing me that in the deepest jumble of growth where no ray of sunlight has ever touched, there are always some perfectly ripe red toms. I collected some pocketfuls whilst tying the mass up. (A word of wisdom- if collecting stray tomatoes into pockets, do remember to take them out before sitting down. ) This is the "after" situation



Vinca Minor is my favourite child at the moment, I told it to grow over the pond liner and it's doing just that, plus flowering.



The Veronica Beccabunga shop bought for the task can hang it's head in shame.

The Child weeded and cleared out some dead Cornflowers, and found four perfect Turnips amongst them. Cottage garden philosophy seems to work well here.

Managed unslotting and carrying some more paving slabs ready to be collected. There are two possibilities- either I will not be able to straighten my back tomorrow, or I will wake up with a toned sixpack midriff.

 

I'll have the slabs, just stick them in the post.

 

Just keep an eye on the suspension of what ever they are collected in.
Some years ago a mate of mine collected some slabs from me, loaded them up and then we looked at his suspension and took a fair number out again. He collected these later.

 

Sorry @pete , the slabs are spoken for. If you are interested in good quality timber though, there's an inherited kennel sturdy enough to hold a herd of wild Buffalos for taking.

Just pop in with your chainsaw, minidigger to get the 4x4 concreted posts up from tickling koalas' toes, and around twenty muscular youths to do the carrying

I'll get you a beer and can keep one or two of those muscular youths once they have finished.

 

@Goldenlily26 have you thought of using a brush to paint the glyphosate on? If you can't remove the top of the spray container, squirt the amount you need into an old pot.

 

I've been pricking out seedling , can't really call them seeding anymore I should of pricked them out ages ago but got them done - Wallflowers - pansy/viola - Bellis - foxgloves and some verbascums southern charm and a few olympicum.

Mowed the lawn just before the rain arrived. Chucked a cucumber plant due to red spider mite.

Don't know everybody else but they have been loads of wasps this year I've been stung quite a lot this year . I got some in a dry stone wall which haven't been bothering me until the other day , one decided it would crawl up under my t shirt rude no doubt it stung me after I were wondering what on earth is that , chased me up the road after until I lost my rag and turned round to flatten it soon scarpered.

 

We get wasps nesting every year @Perki , but they never bother me. Maybe I don't smell nice to them! I do have a red admiral butterfly who keeps taunting me though. If I sit down next to a sedum [hylotelephium] it sits beautifully on the plant about a foot away, but every time I try to get a pic....
Nothing done outside yesterday. The rain [light] started when I went for my walk in the morning, but by midday it just got persistent and heavier and went on all afternoon and early eve. I'd gone out for a couple of things, hoping to do something in the afternoon, but the wind had really got up too, so it was pointless.
Today - hopefully something! It's meant to be dry and bright all day, but who knows- yesterday was supposed to be showers. I got some concrete to do another toadstool, and maybe I'll get on with the other edging for the front garden. Other than that, it'll just be bits and pieces, and maybe check on some seeds I've sown etc.