Awful weather - typical Brits talk

twopenny

Talking of trees someone in the past had the bright idea of planting conker trees around the children's playing field.
Some of them have gone now more to save on maintenance probably and the total lack of imagination that seems to pervad these days.

I have a question please.
I now have two apricot embryos that are bigger than the rest by quite some way.
As the tree is in a pot for a year or more now do you think I should give it some liquid feed?
It's had some bfb spring and autumn but nowt else.
I'm just feeling over cautious because it's thriving at the moment and I don't want it to remember it's supposed to be fragile.

Chilly and grey here but chilly nights still which is getting the plants confused and edging towards ailing.

Love the bird pics. How do such tiny things thrive and give so much joy?
Was it PPS that was a blue tit with it's head cocked watching and curious? That makes me smile.

greenbee

My asparagus crowns have arrived, so I need to get on and finish prepping the beds for them so I can plant them. But first I have work

Working_Mum

twopenny said:

I have a question please.
I now have two apricot embryos that are bigger than the rest by quite some way.
As the tree is in a pot for a year or more now do you think I should give it some liquid feed?
It's had some bfb spring and autumn but nowt else.
I'm just feeling over cautious because it's thriving at the moment and I don't want it to remember it's supposed to be fragile.

Hi 2P, I have several trees in pots and always feed them at this time of year - they're in pots which are too big to replace the compost so I simply top dress with new compost (it always seems to sink down the pot) in late Winter and then start with a liquid feed from early Spring and right through Summer. I always think they're sleeping from late Autumn and worry I'll overfeed them and get them out of sync!

I use a bone meal feed and occasionally an old (evergreen) tree fertiliser I found last year.

Hope this helps 

((WM))

diveunderthebonnet

Can i ask a question please ,i planted tomato seeds in my greenhouse about 7 weeks ago ,i only bought the greeenhouse last year so this is all new  for me ,anyway after a couple of weeks abroad and the 2 weeks in hospital visiting my wife who took ill the tomatos are all sprouting ,i will pot them on this weekend.
now the question is - is it too late to expect the plants to grow and  produce fruit this year or as its getting on should i buy some established plants and try harder next year.
We live in the NE of England so tend to be a bit colder than some regarding growing. 

Dustyevsky

twopenny said:

Talking of trees someone in the past had the bright idea of planting conker trees around the children's playing field.
Love the bird pics. How do such tiny things thrive and give so much joy?

Good Lord!  Conkers near a play area!  Didn't the council know, playing conkers is extremely dangerous? Just acquiring some was pretty risky when I was at school. The only tree in town was just inside the vicarage garden, and, predictably, the vicar was of the hellfire and brimstone breed. Stealing his conkers more or less guaranteed one's place down below , so most of us settled for the more meagre pickings in the adjoining field.:|

I've been planting down beside the stream this afternoon, serenaded the whole time by a blackbird, and watched keenly by the resident robin. As you say, this time of year's a joy!

Farway said:

Plum time, maybe?

After all my slagging off, I think my plum may just have earned a stay of execution, spotted these little fellas

I forgot to look at my plum again today , but Mrs Dusty said there was plenty of blossom earlier, which I obviously missed.

I've not taken photos of the apple blossom yet, but it's advanced significantly this week. Meanwhile, I'd better post a cherry blossom, Prunus incisa praecox (at Rosemoor) before it becomes history. It probably is!   This is a cousin of wort's Kojo-No-Mai.

twopenny

Thanks WM 😀
So I've done that. I thought I might give it half the amount of liquid feed and hedge my bets. It will salve my concence and can't harm.

Hi ya Dive. If they've got at least one set of real leaves or more then re pot.
As for buying bigger plants you will find yours will catch up with them. It's one of the mysteries of plants that you think you are getting ahead and then you end up with a forest of the whole blooming lot thriving 😀 

Fingers crossed that we all have more plums than we thought Dusty.

I was doing so well today thinking I was going to be happy with the plants I have when taking the car for a run to top up the battery I thought I'd stop and check out a local plant grower. You know the sign that says 'plants for sale ' as I don't see them now I don't walk, and he has a wonderful selection of things you don't see in garden centre. Temptation was huge!
But I may go back for bags of manure and had an interesting discussion of growing veg on the same plot and his lovely pale yellow magnolia etc.

Most trees now in leaf, it's been a bit strange. The hedgerows full of colours of wildflowers. Even the odd apple tree where people have thrown cores out of the cars. Amazing how they can flourish when our carefully tended ones struggle.

Just for a photo here's my unknown wisteria, got it half price because it had lost it's label 



I wanted to grow it as a tree but could find nothing about it. Of course I've seen several this summer 😬 however it's thriving and being woven into some shade for my sitoorie.

LessImpecunious

My cherry blossom not so swish, just bog standard Stella...

Soon to go over, but tree is absolutely laden - definitely a good blossom year overall, blackthorn in front hedge was heavily floriferous, should have taken pics before wet and wind last weekend resulted in what looked like snow on the ground...

And here's another apple, against the same wall as the Stella, and just starting to flower...this one is Sunset, pretty good when it has fruited, which is most years, not bad as it is practically rooted into bedrock and wall footings...

wort

Pp yes as Dusty said it’s been a week of tongue lashings from customers,no one seems to carry their card or cash anymore.. More to come as click and collect parcels still cannot be booked in either as computers are still down.

Fruit blossom is so pretty a shame it’s so fleeting. My choiysia and low growing stocks are looking gorgeous too.

Greenbee such a nuisance when you have work getting in the way of gardening😂

Farway

Dull and chilly, unless it warms up sharpish it will be conservatory only for me today.

Good blossom pics on here again, looking like a good year all round. My pyracantha is covered in buds, last year it was very sparse.

LessImpecunious said:

Sunset, pretty good when it has fruited, which is most years, not bad as it is practically rooted into bedrock and wall footings...

Nice to hear, acquired Sunset last year, so this year is first time fruiting. All the blurb I read tells me it is a good garden apple, but sometimes has an off tasting year. Time will tell.

2P, lovely wisteria, and even better at half price

Half strength liquid feed, I do that, eeeks out the cost plus anything is better than nothing.

I do wonder if suppliers up the quantity to get us to buy more, like gravy granules instructions, to make thicker add more granules, NEVER use less water.

I wonder if your apricots, with two larger than the rest, are following a fruit pattern? The pollinated ones swell & ripen, the duff ones sit there and fall off eventually.

At least you have them, so way ahead of where I've been

Dive, as 2P says, your toms will catch up, early days yet, in fact later gets going faster due to increased temperatures & day length

twopenny said:

Even the odd apple tree where people have thrown cores out of the cars. Amazing how they can flourish when our carefully tended ones struggle.

That is the background story of the Christmas Pippin apple. Trouble is, stopping to sample them can be life-threatening. 

There was, maybe still is, one on the A339 going south out of Newbury, I used to look at it while stuck in traffic pre By Pass days. Looked a beauty, but never sampled.

Just checked with Google Earth but inconclusive.

Today is strawberry, nothing special and I usually only get to eat one or two, but I don't do anything to them except look

twopenny

Wort breath deep and look at blossom when they get to you 😉 
Different places,we have queues at the cash tills because so many people prefer cash for their budget and got someone to change the parking meter to o take cash.

Lovely sunny morning here, wonderful photos. Your Stella is looking better than mine Less. Do you get cherries 🍒?

Over slept, morning is busy, not sure what will come next 😏