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Sun_Addict

All this gardening talk has made me look up and notice just how much needs doing in my garden as I sit here by the patio doors looking out onto it. My garden is 100ft long but fairly narrow and a mess at the moment after the ravages of winter. I also have a church view but not a pretty church like yours, it's a 1960s built very unattractive one.

I agree a flylady type gardening blog/book would be brilliant.

Have a fab Easter

doingitanyway

redofromstart wrote: »

Thanks DIA - it is a lovely space when it is looked after. It will be lovely again.

Almost definitely why I am living in a mess, but I like it now. It totally appeals to me. It looks like fairies might be hiding.

redofromstart

HHOD, he is the practical one, he has (quite rightly) banned me from using them. I once put the rotavator into reverse and ran over my feet. Luckily I had decent shoes on.

SA Thanks, my last garden was long and thin like that, I quite liked being at the end away from everything. I broke it down into sections, which worked well.

I was expecting heavy rain all day yesterday but apart from a few showers it held off until 4 which was great. I got so much done, and am surprisingly not that sore today although it does need to be a rest day.

I started with a couple of bin bags, all the broken plant pots (dog!) and random bits of soggy cardboard binned and gone. Focused on the patio where everything gets abandoned. It instantly looks better even though it is still cluttered. I will need to do another two sessions of that round the garden.

I then picked a single section and did a really thorough exit of everything except the mature shrubs so invasive comfrey and washed out stocks are gone and I have a green waste bin full of roots. Stripped the ivy back up to the top of the church side stone wall on that section. Took the lower branches out on a few things and lifted the canopies so there is some light let into the underneath. I've now got an 8 foot by 6 foot patch of bare soil so I am allowed to buy plants again if I want to. I'm going to start by moving some hellebore and snowdrops in I think as I have plenty of those. No such thing as too many snowdrops.

I am still thinking about the blog/book idea. I have a name for it and a website but I am not sure that I want to do it.

I'd like to say we spent nothing yesterday, but somebody insisted on fish and chips for dinner on the grounds that I had 'earned it'. I did decline a trip to the expensive garden centre. Its hard to find anywhere that does actually sell reasonably priced plants - MrMs and B&M sadly seem to be the best options. Three of the local ones have been sold off for housing land which makes me sad.

Ordered another £10 from SBs, and had an unexpected cashback clear. One of those massively overdue ones that you think will never pay out, from an OH work expense last May, so pleased with that. I've got less than a £1 left tracked so nothing more to come that way.

stepuptothepl8

redofromstart wrote: »

HHOD, he is the practical one, he has (quite rightly) banned me from using them. I once put the rotavator into reverse and ran over my feet. Luckily I had decent shoes on.

<snip>

I am still thinking about the blog/book idea. I have a name for it and a website but I am not sure that I want to do it.

I tend to garden in sandals ... :eek: :rotfl: if I can work out how, I'll post a pic of my veg patch. It will make you feel better:o
If you aren't excited by it at the moment, hold off.. you might feel like it in 6 months xx

HairyHandofDartmoor

redofromstart wrote: »

HHOD, he is the practical one, he has (quite rightly) banned me from using them. I once put the rotavator into reverse and ran over my feet. Luckily I had decent shoes on.

SA Thanks, my last garden was long and thin like that, I quite liked being at the end away from everything. I broke it down into sections, which worked well.

I was expecting heavy rain all day yesterday but apart from a few showers it held off until 4 which was great. I got so much done, and am surprisingly not that sore today although it does need to be a rest day.

I started with a couple of bin bags, all the broken plant pots (dog!) and random bits of soggy cardboard binned and gone. Focused on the patio where everything gets abandoned. It instantly looks better even though it is still cluttered. I will need to do another two sessions of that round the garden.

I then picked a single section and did a really thorough exit of everything except the mature shrubs so invasive comfrey and washed out stocks are gone and I have a green waste bin full of roots. Stripped the ivy back up to the top of the church side stone wall on that section. Took the lower branches out on a few things and lifted the canopies so there is some light let into the underneath. I've now got an 8 foot by 6 foot patch of bare soil so I am allowed to buy plants again if I want to. I'm going to start by moving some hellebore and snowdrops in I think as I have plenty of those. No such thing as too many snowdrops.

I am still thinking about the blog/book idea. I have a name for it and a website but I am not sure that I want to do it.

I'd like to say we spent nothing yesterday, but somebody insisted on fish and chips for dinner on the grounds that I had 'earned it'. I did decline a trip to the expensive garden centre. Its hard to find anywhere that does actually sell reasonably priced plants - MrMs and B&M sadly seem to be the best options. Three of the local ones have been sold off for housing land which makes me sad.

Ordered another £10 from SBs, and had an unexpected cashback clear. One of those massively overdue ones that you think will never pay out, from an OH work expense last May, so pleased with that. I've got less than a £1 left tracked so nothing more to come that way.

I think your blog/book would be very entertaining and useful, but you'd have to put the work in so would need to feel reasonably committed to the project.

DH should certainly keep you and machetes apart :eek:. I will admit to a slight fear of power tools .

We are lucky enough to be nears lots and lots of garden centres, both cheap and expensive. My two favourites are the Duchy garden centre in Cornwall (just for looking as a bit pricey) and an unspoilt former vicarage nursery here in Devon (more likely to buy here) .

Well done on all your gardening, it always feels good to see you've made a difference :T.

redofromstart

Envious of the garden centres HHOD, ones that are reasonably priced and actually do some propagation are rare beasts round these parts.

Free electricity Sunday is here again. Needless to say the smart meter has been on red all day, and the oven is on with a leg of lamb slow roasting for later. Still overcast and the soil is too wet to work so I did some shredding. Last year I took out/trimmed back a lot of shrubs and couldn't fit it all in the green waste so it got left to dry on the bank ready for shredding. A year on and it shreds perfectly, making rough chippings that I can use round the less planted bits of the garden. I also found several hidden stashes of logs underneath, one of the dogs used to steal it from the log store and chew the bark off. Three wheelbarrows full so far, it'll be fine to burn after a few weeks in the woodstore to dry off the surface muck. Three 6 foot by 6 foot patches of shredding to work through, I got maybe one and a half patches in before it started to rain again.

There are also some surprise patches of bulbs shooting up under the shredding, alliums i think. If i am right they are christophii and schubertii - so nice architectural ones.

Lentil loaf, lamb, and a small bit of beef pot roasting in the oven so that is dinner later, and lunches for the next few days sorted. Might make a carrot cake too. Bought a cake for the boy tomorrow.

Need to sort and put away the clean washing mountain, and see how much of the ironing I can do before 5pm. Need to find something to watch first though. Miss Marple or be brave and watch something new?

HairyHandofDartmoor

Miss Marple always works for me, restful and soothing .

Well done on the gardening, it's always annoying when rain interrupts some good progress though :mad:.

greenbee

Good news on the logs And getting the shredding done.

I've done lots in the garden and am nearly worn out, so need to put the garden tools away and do indoor stuff (like lying on the sofa reading a book) for a bit.

System

Redo your garden sounds great, I love your photo overlooking the church. When it is all cleared it will be lovely.

Hope you have had a bit of sunshine to get on with it, it looks like rain all day here.

sashybo

redofromstart wrote: »

Need to find something to watch first though. Miss Marple or be brave and watch something new?

Did you try something new? Have you watched "And Then There Were None" ? It's on iplayer & Agatha Christie, DH & I thoroughly enjoyed it, we have watched 2 of the 3 episodes.

Well done on the gardening, wish the weather would warm up so I can get my seedlings either planted out or into the greenhouse. Sweet peas are taking over my spare room. :eek: