Daydream thread... without the rose-tinted specs

moneyistooshorttomention

Have duly ordered some of that glyphosate Dave recommended for a rough area full of weeds near my place.

I'm an organic gardener myself and wouldn't use anything like that on my own garden, but I guess it wont "spread" so to say and will soon break down into harmless stuff (after its done its job on those weeds)?

Apart from that, I've just had an offer of some Daubentons Kale. Any thoughts on that anyone? Is it good eating being the primary one?

DawnW

lostinrates wrote: »

Was this the walking cane variety? Qionzhuea tumissidinoda? I have read its very happy in uk!!

How tall was it?:o:D

No idea, sorry - I didn't plant it, merely inherited it with the garden. It reached about 6' high as I remember, though not uniformly so. The canes were on the thin side, but the bigger ones were ok for garden use. No good for walking canes though, not sturdy enough (that is my OH's business, so can be quite definite on that).

When we moved in, there was 1 clump, which was ok, but I can only assume that it hadn't been there very long, as within a couple of years it had started to spread long distances, with clumps springing up all over the place :eek:

We even had a fire (an outbuilding near the house caught fire, and caused a lot of damage) and although being burnt to the ground checked it, it was soon springing up again :mad:

Davesnave

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

Have duly ordered some of that glyphosate Dave recommended for a rough area full of weeds near my place.

I'm an organic gardener myself and wouldn't use anything like that on my own garden, but I guess it wont "spread" so to say and will soon break down into harmless stuff (after its done its job on those weeds)?

You are weed killing on someone else's land?

Haven't you enough to do right now with your own garden?

Don't forget, non-selective weed killing results in bare earth, and nature abhors a vacuum, but if you sow immediately with grass, it will be OK, if all you want to do is tidy the site.

lostinrates

DawnW wrote: »

No idea, sorry - I didn't plant it, merely inherited it with the garden. It reached about 6' high as I remember, though not uniformly so. The canes were on the thin side, but the bigger ones were ok for garden use. No good for walking canes though, not sturdy enough (that is my OH's business, so can be quite definite on that).

When we moved in, there was 1 clump, which was ok, but I can only assume that it hadn't been there very long, as within a couple of years it had started to spread long distances, with clumps springing up all over the place :eek:

We even had a fire (an outbuilding near the house caught fire, and caused a lot of damage) and although being burnt to the ground checked it, it was soon springing up again :mad:

Sounds like a different bamboo, though I think this one is as spreading.

Your oh makes walking sticks? Any pretty ones? . ( on perpetual search for sticks that don't make me feel older than I am but aren't gaudy)

RAS

lostinrates wrote: »

Congratulations davesnave!

Um,

Many squirrels near you?

One of our fellow plotters has a walnut tree (do not think t'Committee have realised yet). There were nuts on it of the last two years and was planted about 6 years ago.

I think it was the guy from the Agro-Forestry place at Totnes who warned him he would need a squirrel harvest if he wanted a walnut harvest.

I know the BIG tree at Hutton le hole http://www.ryedale.co.uk/ryedale/villages/huttonlehole/huttonlehole.html
is normally cropped by locals but a couple of years ago they got not one nut off the tree. Actually I got more than them because I picked a few early droppers up after a stormy night. It seems that after ignoring it for years, the squirrels had found the tree.

Davesnave

I think Bissetii is supposed to be one of the best screening bamboos, but it can be a bit naughty....

https://www.bowdenhostas.com/products/Phyllostachys-bissetii.html

lostinrates

RAS wrote: »

One of our fellow plotters has a walnut tree (do not think t'Committee have realised yet). There were nuts on it of the last two years and was planted about 6 years ago.

I think it was the guy from the Agro-Forestry place at Totnes who warned him he would need a squirrel harvest if he wanted a walnut harvest.

I know the BIG tree at Hutton le hole http://www.ryedale.co.uk/ryedale/villages/huttonlehole/huttonlehole.html
is normally cropped by locals but a couple of years ago they got not one nut off the tree. Actually I got more than them because I picked a few early droppers up after a stormy night. It seems that after ignoring it for years, the squirrels had found the tree.

This.

A previous home had a few walnuts, very mature. Never saw one of the nuts that I can recall right now. Saw plenty of squirrels though.

We planted a walnut here, in a hedge line. I shall check it this weekend. I doubt we'll see it fruit.

RAS

DawnW wrote: »

No idea, sorry - I didn't plant it, merely inherited it with the garden. It reached about 6' high as I remember, though not uniformly so. The canes were on the thin side, but the bigger ones were ok for garden use. No good for walking canes though, not sturdy enough (that is my OH's business, so can be quite definite on that).

When we moved in, there was 1 clump, which was ok, but I can only assume that it hadn't been there very long, as within a couple of years it had started to spread long distances, with clumps springing up all over the place :eek:

We even had a fire (an outbuilding near the house caught fire, and caused a lot of damage) and although being burnt to the ground checked it, it was soon springing up again :mad:

At this stage in the year, consider harvesting the shoots for stir fries? Might knock it bacl a bit?

If you want to kill it with glysophate you might want to use the tricks for dealing with Japanese Knotweed in gardens and SSIs?

Leave it til August and then cut back above one or two nodes. Inject (syringes are 30p) glysophate directly into the stem using a solution 5 times the recommended strength. It can be useful to add a little food dye so you can see what you have injected.

The weed killer is drawn down into the plant as it dies back for the winter. Growth next year is severely stunted and can be sprayed or painted. The odd strong new growth will erupt between the old stumps but can be cut back and treated in August.

rozeepozee

Davesnave wrote: »

While in the nursery, I couldn't help noticing some seeds that had fallen from some shrubs in the polytunnel. It seemed a shame that people were walking on them, so I rescued a few.

They were from one of these, which might just be a useful subject for the shady slope down by the stream:

http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=3475

Whenever we visit gardens with my MIL, seeds just seem to fall off the plants into her hands. I can't imagine how it happens.

I love the thought of a walnut, Dave.

I have put off any thoughts of planting this year. I have too much else to do. I have chickens coming out of my ears and geese eggs pipping in the incubator..... Alf, you may soon be a god mother to the Sebbies' babies.

RAS

Rummer wrote: »

I can really empathise with mummy pig at the moment :rotfl: thank goodness I am only feeding one greedy boy and not 6 :rotfl:

LIR I have seen it in white and it is very pretty.

I think I will have:

A

• ubrieta coming over the top of the stone border
• White Astilbe
• Snowdrops
• Fritillaria
• Hosta
• Hellebore
• Viola
• Aquilegia

What I need though are a couple of tall things.

Would Japanese anemone work in the shade? For late autumn and then leave the seed heads to froth up over winter?