My gardening diary, ( amongst other things)

ani_26

Piquant wrote: »

I've been painting tin cans today and decorating the edge with braid. Once dry I will seal them, paint the names of herbs on and eventually put them in the garden. They look surprisingly nice and more importantly, don't cost anything to do.

With the tins in mind I have sown basil, garlic chives and parsley seeds today.

Look, i'm getting rather envious of all your painted pots and tins. Will you stop going on about them, please? :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:


I'm the worlds worst when it comes to artistic creativity.


Me and paint brushes just don't match.

ani_26

Piquant wrote: »

Rather than send you the foxglove, canterbury bell and sweet william seeds, I will grow them on and send them to you in the autumn for planting out for next year's flowers!

Yippee. :j


Thankyou.


Next year? Hmmm

ani_26

I am still peeved about the system for cwp's, now i've worked out where my weather station is. I feel it's now nowt but a waste of time hoping i will receive cwp's. I shall check on tuesday, as there's a 1% chance i still may yet receive a payment for this week? Considering the stringent qualifying criteria and those the cwp's are supposed to help. You are against bureaucracy, all the time? Well. I shall say no more, but i may question it further. I shall also contradict myself.

A heavy, heavy, uber heavy frost this morn. They said temperatures would drop as low -8 c last night. Probably. It's currently -4 c. Why have i become so obsessed with the cold? Because it's blimmin cold? I just seem to have sat here all winter, feeling freezing cold. My health has been suffering all year, and i'm now more inclined to put the heating on, despite the cost. Health issues have started me thinking. I still have the heating on, the thermostat is at 15 degrees, the radiators are hot, hot, hot, and it's still freezing cold in here, this morning.


I wonder how rose and ula are? It looks like another day for sunbathing for them.


Oooch, just had a look out of the window. Everyone is hanging their head in shame. Or sadness? Still plenty of the white stuff, too.


It really is looking out of the window at the garden, or wrapping up like an eskimo for a private viewing. It's gonna be several months yet, before 'gardening' gets into gardening, proper.

On the inside garden front. What can i say? Everything needs watering everyday. I think the sunflower plants are almost ready to pot? I've literally watched them grow in the plastic bag, yesterday. They are now 4 inches tall, and all have two leaves. What a difference a day makes?

I also need to do something about the poached egg plants and the sweet peas < sigh > I'm totally lethargic when it comes to physical tasks. I need some more canes for the sweet peas, but i can't be bothered to go out just for canes, beside which, it then makes them very expensive canes, in terms of cost. I shall wait until tuesday? At least it's been a no spend, no going out easter weekend, apart from the £2.70 p & p, and i haven't spent that, as yet. In fact, it will be a week since i've spent any money, come tuesday. Except on heating, that is.

NorthernLas

Ani - Once the weather gets warmer and before the SC come out to play?

I'll be the one with yellow tubs of S&S killer ... make a difference the The Guardian and a red carnation

And the hairy stems of Sunflowers stops THEM a little, but I do remember sitting quietly and being able to hear chomping ... the I found they had scaled the stems and were munching underneath the leaves!

No red sunflowers in my stash, but I do have veg a plenty and some chilli seeds that fell in my pocket when I went around the eden project last summer...

NL x

ani_26

NorthernLas wrote: »

Ani - Once the weather gets warmer and before the SC come out to play?

No time soon, then?


They have aleady been out to play and gone back into hibernation.:rotfl:

NorthernLas wrote:

I'll be the one with yellow tubs of S&S killer ... make a difference the The Guardian and a red carnation

:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:


I'll have a copy of the star

NorthernLas wrote:

No red sunflowers in my stash, but I do have veg a plenty and some chilli seeds that fell in my pocket when I went around the eden project last summer...

NL x

Excellento......:D


(everyone seems to have gone to the eden project, last summer. Except me, that is )

ani_26

Ah well, 1st April 2013. My birth month, yet again?


I can now stop fretting as to whether i will receive anymore cold weather payments. The answer to that is no?

The cold weather, however, continues. It is still -3 c, as i type, it has snowed overnight, and is still trying to snow, (but it's too blimmin cold?) I have now had the heating on constant for almost the last two weeks? (since i received the last cwp......... ) Cwp's are a bit of a joke, to say the least. :rotfl::rotfl: On balance, i don't think it's costing huge amounts more than you would expect, given i've had the heating on for an additional 22 hours a day, :eek: maybe 50p - £1 more, per day, but it's enough to raise my blood pressure as i wait in dreaded anticipation for THE bill, of the winter. Any day now..................... After which, i should now have some idea of my annual gas and electric usage, and can start that veritable 'putting aside pot.' If i can afford to pay the bill, that is? I'm beginning to think it was a mistake to move here? It's more isolated / isolating than i first thought. You need money to get in and out of here, and you need money to keep yourself warm, if you're stuck here. Not the best place for retirement?



I had one of those 'do nothing and don't feel guilty about it' days, yesterday. In all honesty, most days are do nothing days, but i tend to feel slightly guilty, because i have at the back of my mind, 'i should really do this.' I think i shall have another 'do nothing and not feel guilty' days, today, and if i manage to do something along the way, it's an achievement?

Pre-war_babe_33

You`re not doing nothing Ani, you have all that indoor garden to water - sounds like quite a lot of activity keeping up with it all I would think.

As for me, well no gardening here for me at the moment (too cold, but no snow at the moment) but a good excuse for me to get my paint brushes out and paint pictures of flowers instead. In fact I am now surrounded by pictures of flowers and beautiful scenery since joining the local art group a couple of years ago.

Do you paint Ani? There are so many things I can`t do now so I concentrate on the things that I can, and painting gives me such great pleasure, especially through the long winter months while I`m in hybernation.

ani_26

Pre-war_babe_33 wrote: »

You`re not doing nothing Ani, you have all that indoor garden to water - sounds like quite a lot of activity keeping up with it all I would think.

As for me, well no gardening here for me at the moment (too cold, but no snow at the moment) but a good excuse for me to get my paint brushes out and paint pictures of flowers instead. In fact I am now surrounded by pictures of flowers and beautiful scenery since joining the local art group a couple of years ago.

Do you paint Ani? There are so many things I can`t do now so I concentrate on the things that I can, and painting gives me such great pleasure, especially through the long winter months while I`m in hybernation.

Hi again, Pre-war babe :hello:


Sometimes the fact that i only manage to water the indoor garden, is such an insignificant achievement, i forget it's an achievement for me, at the moment.


It's difficult, long winters in hibernation, isn't it? I'm impressed by anyone who can paint, or is artistic. It's such a gift. Please don't say anyone can, because i'm definitely the worlds worst. I dropped out of art as soon as i could, (about 50 years ago.) :rotfl::rotfl:


Strange, considering i'm also a musician?



Someone suggested joining the writers club, but i'm still sat right back on feeling i 'have ' to do something, stakes. I don't want to join something and 'have' to read a book, 'have' to write something. These days it's very much as and when.


I'm just feeling a bit bleurgh today, as there are alot of health issues going on.

ani_26

I should imagine your painting is at least as therapeutic as gardening is?

NorthernLas

Ani - Just let me know when you fancy venturing out ... I don't think it's gonna get warmer anytime soon!!! Though I was outside dancing in the 'sunshine' this afternoon (I had thermals on under my normal clothes )