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Advice on getting condition into top soil please.
Morning. Since moving to this house I've been trying to make a garden from what was originally gravel and concrete. Getting there bit by bit and most recently bought some top soil locally which I've used for raised beds. However it is very solid and I need both to lighten it and to introduce some organic matter. It's not…
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Gardening gift suitable for 70 year old
Hello I have a good friend who will be 70 soon. I'm thinking of purchasing a magazine subscription for her but cannot decide which one to get. I think Gardeners World will be a bit basic. I would welcome any recommendations please. I was going to get RHS membership but unfortunately she is the wrong side of the country for…
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Dealing with knotholes in new fence
I had a long tall fence fitted earlier this year. There are a fair few knotholes and one or two have dropped out or have turned into bits and blown out. Is wood putty filler the best option to fill them? Any other suggestions?
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Daydream fund challenge part 4
back in march 2009. this thread started, as I had daydreamed of having a smallholding for far too many years than I can remember.. since then, we are now on our 4th new thread.. and have a nice bunch of mse'rs who are at various stages of their dream... even if you ream is to have a plot of land, or a house with a nice…
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What lawn weed is this and how best to deal with it?
Hi Our lawn has sudden growth of this weed(photo attached) which has come up over last 1 month. what is it? how to deal with it? thanks
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Tomatoes too late?
Tried growing some fruit and veg in containers this year as an experiment for the first time. I grew tomato plants from seed but they are only just ripening as it seems i am much to late with these this year so another rookie mistake. I have quite a few of them and wondered if i can somehow at least get something out of…
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Ideas for covering large concrete slab please.
At the end of my garden I have a big scruffy ugly, concrete slab, approx 8 m long by 2 wide. It's roughly laid, (an old farmyard I believe), cracked and slightly sloping in parts. To cover it this year I've had loads of pots which were nice but watering has been a killer and I'm dreading the water bill. Can anyone suggest…
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Concrete Posts Query.
Can the posts and gravel boards drop - does/can the ground move and they drop down with it - or what is it ?? I'm sure i'm not imagining it, i'm sure they're lower than they used to be, i gauge this by what i can now see over the fence compared to what i used to be able to.
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Recycled plastic raised beds
Hello forumites - I'm on a Friends of (Primary) School committee and we've been asked to buy a hexagonal raised bed - the example we were provided with was a timber version - https://www.hope-education.co.uk/product/early-years/outdoor/gardening-and-wildlife/hexagonal-gardening-wheel/he1383645, which is quite pricey at…
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Ideas for tall plants for screening between properties without too much horizontal spread
Background: when we moved into our property, there were some large evergreen trees in the garden of the house next door effectively screening our house from theirs. (The property is currently rented out, and faces onto the road behind us, so our houses are sort of back to back). Last summer the landlord had the trees…
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Overwintering Dahlias
I bought some reduced price Dahlias from the seed merchant I use and planted them in pots. This was for a supply of cut flowers. They have done very well and I wondered if I could just cut them back and leave them in the pots ( in a shed) rather than lifting them and drying them off to store them. The compost they are in…
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Material for fruit cage
Hi I am trying to source 4 numbers of 2-2.5 metre metal pole/tube/rod to make a fruit cage structure. Plan is to erect four of them and put a pvc pipe in a curved manner on top of two of them to get an arch shape. Where can I source these for cheap or if possible for free? Many Thanks
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Help me identify this conifer please
Hello gardeners, Could you please help me figure out what this conifer is? It’s about 10 years old, 6 foot tall and 4 foot diameter. Previous owners of the house kept it trimmed so it could have been bigger/ could be older. It’s planted at the front of our house and I’m trying to decide if it could be responsible for some…
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What is this???
Can someone tell me what on earth this is? On land at the back of my house that is north facing and always damp. (The colour is much darker than pics) it has only appeared in last few days and I had it last year too but I'm not sure if it was the same time of year. The beads are black in colour and a bit shiny - they…
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Recommendations please for a small ornamental tree for a front garden
Hi, we are in the process of organising a front garden make over and would appreciate any recommendations for a small ornamental tree that we could plant. The garden is east facing and I would guess the soil is largely sandy. We did inherit a Rowan tree originally but it was in totally the wrong place - too close to the…
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How to turn my Port Laurel into a tree?
Hi all. I'm about to plant a Portuguese Laurel, which is currently around 5+ feet tall. I'll be keeping its ultimate height to around, ooh, 15', and by then would like it to look like a 'tree'. Ie, a trunk - say around 1m to 1.5m high (yes, mixing my units :-( ) - with a natural canopy above, not a 'ball' but a natural…
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Rust on Geraniums/Pelargoniums
This happens every year. This year I looked up what to do as I have some nice ones that sometimes flower a bit through the winter and are really filling the pots. It suggests to cut off all affected leaves and spray with neem oil. Has anyone tried this? Did it work or does anyone have soloutions they found worked please?…
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Burnt hedge caused by contractors - advice please
Hey guys. So a subcontractor for Virgin Media recently did some pipework related works on the pavement outside my dad's property and in the process of doing this, managed to burn my dad's hedge (the burn area is approx 3.5 metres left to right, and 80 centimetres high at it's tallest point). The company responsible has…
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Are these mining bees, digging wasps or something else and how can I get rid of them?
They're leaving lots of hills and patches of sand which is making the lawn an eyesore. I've uploaded photos of the hills as well as trying to capture the bees/wasps here. What are they and any suggestions on how to remove them? I tried to basically hose them down but they appeared again the next day. Would adding lawn…
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Bugs, caterpillars or ?? eating my magnolia leaves
So 2 years now my potted Magnolia has been defoliated. Now it's getting so it isn't recovering. I've just taken it out of the pot and found snails, woodlice and at the last minute on the old compost some black bugs that had abdomen, thorax and head and scuttled slowly.They aren't any of the usual beetles I've been…
