Help MBE grow his dinner 2012

TallGirl

Would it be worth keeping it there until you have tried the liner and worked out how you are going to secure it. Not a pond expert but it may not show once the liner is in.

Good work though looks like you hav lovely soil. I have not done much gardening this weekend just got two hanging baskets and done a bit of weeding. Marigolds getting quite big, cucumber shooting up but had to put more beans in guessing it's about the right time now for in-door sowing.

Lawn seed coming up nicely lawn almost look nice now, might cut the old bits tomorrow.

gazza975526570

TallGirl wrote: »

Would it be worth keeping it there until you have tried the liner and worked out how you are going to secure it. Not a pond expert but it may not show once the liner is in.

Good work though looks like you hav lovely soil. I have not done much gardening this weekend just got two hanging baskets and done a bit of weeding. Marigolds getting quite big, cucumber shooting up but had to put more beans in guessing it's about the right time now for on door sowing.

the worry would be if you just put the liner over than as it fills it could tear.

Wow you doing more beans? I havent even sown any and probably wont for another few weeks - any frost will really set them back if you have them outside. Same with cucumbers.
Love marigolds though - just so quick and easy to grow and one of the better annuals for ease versus price of buying them.

carebearbecky

I would say keep the shelf in there, it will help Mr Frog climb out when he visits instead of sheer sides

TallGirl

Gazza I have 1 bean in a pot that is about 1 inch tall hence the need for some more. They are not going outside for a while but we are right down on the South Coast so hoping it should be about a month before they can go out. Hopefully I have not sown them too early in-doors.

mrbadexample

carebearbecky wrote: »

I would say keep the shelf in there, it will help Mr Frog climb out when he visits instead of sheer sides

There will be a sloping shelf to allow things to get in and out easily.

I could keep it, and use it as a marginal shelf. I'd have to put some fleece over it or similar to protect the liner, and I did plan on making the marginal shelf about 9-10" deep. That's only about 4".

emiff6

carebearbecky wrote: »

I would say keep the shelf in there, it will help Mr Frog climb out when he visits instead of sheer sides

I'd leave them too. Pad the edge with some cardboard before you lay the liner and you have a ready made shallow end to the pond.

They look as if they may be properly laid, so I would also do some exploratory stabbing of the lawn with a garden fork to see how far the paving extends.

On the other hand, if there seem to be quite a few paving slabs under the grass, it might be worth lifting the grass, removing them, filling the space with soil you're digging out of the pond, and relaying the turf. Then you'll have some nice slabs, and no worries if you decide to do anything with that end of the garden.

mrbadexample

emiff6 wrote: »

They look as if they may be properly laid,

:rotfl: That genuinely made me laugh. Nothing's properly done in my house - it's all been ruined by Mrs Bad-Taste and Mr Bodge-the-DIY who lived here before me.

There's nothing underneath them except mud. My preferred method would be to remove them, as they have no business being there. I don't plan on doing anything else up that end (with the possible exception of some decking in front of the shed, as I'm wearing a track to it at the moment) so it would probably be ok to leave them. Looking at the pond, it is actually a bit longer than I planned, so I might stick a bit of turf back over them and leave it.

misskool

i would do no. 4.



I feel so behind in growing this year! I must get a move on.

annie123

Too tired to catch up, laid the carpet on the split level landing and the few stairs it has.....lower hall tomorrow......I want to pot on my toms:(


MBE what you need is some of my carpet off cuts

You have 2 options but whichever you do you are going to need serious padding against those slabs.

1....pad with non wool carpet, (or anything else you can get at least 1" thick and I'd go for 2" thick) you don't want anything that will rot down over the years as then your liner with get torn just by the weight of the water against it.
You can then lay liner over and have a very handy and solid planting shelf.

2. If you put the soil back I would still pad as above as you need the edges of those slabs well and truly covered and soil then turf on top won't be enough to stop the wall of the pond liner touching the edges. Earth you back fill with won't be as compacted as it was before so you still risk torn liner.

I'd go for No 1 personally, but if you go for No2 cover those slabs up well by shrinking the pond by at least 4" inwards from the protruding edge.

I hope all that makes sense, but my back and fingers (from holder a stanley knife) hurt:( and I'm waiting for hubby to get back from the takeway as I'M HUNGRY and can not think straight!

Sambucus_Nigra

djohn2002uk wrote: »

I'm sorry but if you stick to vegetation and paper/cardboard or similar then there is nothing to entice rats, unless you have a breed of vegetarian rats in your area but I haven't heard of those yet. I think you'll find some of the people who say they only put veg in thier heaps forget that cooked veg attracts vermin and shouldn't be used. We've had 2 daleks for 10yrs and 1 dalek for 20 yrs before that and never seen a rat and yet they are about on an old railway embankment about 100yds away.

I agree - we have never had rats in our dalek - the only place that I've heard of rats in compost it's because of bread, cooked food or meat going in. And our dalek is 20 feet from a canal.

Lotus-eater wrote: »

Well you're wrong I'm afraid.
I got rats in mine, so do my neighbours. I've seen loads of reports of the same and no easily eatable stuff in them. Rats will eat anything and I guess the warmth must play a part.

Is yours too dry? Try damping it down regularly and maybe siting it where there is regular footfall of people as that also helps to keep them away.