Awful weather - typical Brits talk

Farway

Dull & drizzle, mild though. Looking at forecast for Dave stricken areas, blizzards for Easter, guess a bit of a drizzly morning here is not bad. Supposed to brighten up later, maybe.

Oh, I was waiting for BG YBE, oh well at least it's sort of gardening, beats Monty going round stately piles with a team of twenty gardeners and telling us it's a small garden

Reading Taff and the tomato seedlings, made me get up & check my "Caniles" toms that I sowed 31/3 [Tuesday, 4 days ago], They are just showing through the compost, wow, 4 days in a the airing cupboard. Very fresh seed of course,. Hope they prove worthwhile

2p said While picking up old plant pots at the garden centre I did find a packet of what's it Falls tomatoes that was recommended but they were £4.99😲 and it's too late to get earlies. I'll search for cheaper ones for next year. I'm sure you'll find them cheaper sooner or later, can't speak for Dusty but mine must have been cheap in a clearance offer, 'cos no way would I pay anywhere near that price.

Fingers crossed 🤞 for your grapes Farway. Perhaps research more and see if there's something you can do I suspect a lot is just the position I have them in, it's warm or sunny enough round here, even have commercial wine growers a couple of miles away on the downs. Some may be due to my Judas tree casting a shade later in the day, but now neighbour has kindly lopped loads off, the sun may shine and grapes will grape

Dusty I intended to get some cuttings from my friend's garden, as her grape (variety unknown) does so well, but forgot. It's too late now. I think still time, I used to take loads of bud cuttings with nearly 100% success. Hard wood stem, with potential buds, need one bud per cutting. Remove bark on opposite side of bud, to expose cambrium layer, secure / lay horizontally on compost, cut side down 😁. water & wait. I bet they would root in water as well, like Figs. I've also found grapes dead easy to root using the poke a stick in ground method

The Ground Cherry looks interesting, hope they work for you.

Potted up the dahlias yesterday, some of the tubers have broken off and I'll put these left overs up and see if they come to anything, not sure if any growing shoot potential on the broken tubers, but worth a bash.

After the Taff tomato germination delay, I can report my purple Mange toot surprise, I started them on damp paper as normal, but no show after week or so & thinking they were goners, I was just waiting for the mould to start before I binned them, but this morning they have split and the white roots are just emerging

This morning I am a dad to more peas & tomatoes 😃

Dustyevsky

How are things in the norf this morning? We had very blustery conditions overnight, but Dave didn't rattle our tiles, so he was only in storm category 'Meh!' here.

This morning sunshine, gusts of 30mph, and some rain in the blustery bits. Some warm temperatures predicted for the middle of the week ahead, so maybe we'll finally get into the borders and remove those self-satisfied looking weeds! 😏

I can confirm that our Cherry Falls seed cost under a pound. It'll probably do 3 years too. 😉 A tomato would have to be off the scale in quality for us to pay nearly £5! Joining T&M's 'club' means being spammed daily, but they're 'friends' with benefits! 😆

Farway, many thanks for the advice on grape cuttings. Must admit, I've not researched….always just plonked hardwood sections in a frame in autumn and left them to get on with it. At least I know my friend's variety produces acceptable fruit, and early too, so I'll give it a go. 😃

Yesterday was so windy my only longer term option was to carry on building the fourth and last deep bed in the polytunnel. I say 'last' but with the world in an 'uncertain' phase, it's possible further covered growing space may be developed, if required.😕 I also chopped-up more of the 'rejects' in the log pile. These are always the ones with knots which the supplier machine didn't like. Can't say I like them much either, but it's natural variation.

Speaking of chopping wood, I almost bought a 15hp chipper last week. Friends who've sold their farm (yes, but we won't go into the politics! 😡) had an online auction of all their gear, from tractors downwards. I joined at the appropriate time for the chipper and there appeared only one serious bidder. The price was stupidly low, so I bid him/her up another £100. For one horrible moment, I thought they'd stopped 😲, but to my great relief they returned (you get 5 mins grace) to bid again. While we'd love a chipper, one of half that size would be perfectly adequate, especially as we'd need to lug it around!

Our hedgehogs weren't put off by the wind last night. Look how many showed up at one time!😮

Never has two eating at the same time before!

wort

It seems spring has sprung and all the seeds are jumping into life. My seeds are on the way, and after not being able to find gaura, I spotted seeds in Tesco ! So picked them up and as they were 3 for 2 got dwarf larkspur, and lavatera. So 5 packs of seeds to be sown and me saying I don’t do seeds 🙄

Dusty I like the white trumpet flowers beginning with E. I hope you all survived storm Dave. I spent yesterday cooking for the family, then we went to nephews housewarming, It was definitely very windy walking back, but not too severe. It’s sunny at the moment and still windy I can here the scaffolding rattling down the street, at the house where they seem to be building a skyscraper .

wort

spoke too soon we now have Hailstones 🫣

twopenny

Gloomy, windy and wet here. Very occasional sun looks out. There's been the odd gust to keep you alert but so far so good.

I like the sound of dwarf larkspur Wort. Love the plant but so do the slugs. So like delphinium I've given up.

Dusty, what a joy to know your efforts are appreciated 🙂 that's lovely to see. You may need to build an extension soon. We have signs all round the area saying 'slow, hedgehogs ' but the hoipoloi don't even see them 😐

More peas and tomatoes Farway, got to be a good thing. Supermarket veg has got worse. I met someone who had been given fresh broccoli and was aglow at how delicious it was. I explained that it was easy to grow but I think she switched off then.

Got loads done in the garage yesterday, washed the car and polished the windows and guttering. Even mowed the front lawn because 2 neighbours who grow weeds are infesting mine 🤨

Started on the house clean with a view to cleaning the carpets but it's not warm enough. Bit scary when you realise how much you couldn't see over winter.

Hoping to get my seedlings back more sheltered and cleaning up out there because the alley gets green paving this time of year but it's raining again.

Stuff to be done in the garden but it will have to wait till this weather passes. And I must sit down and go through all the posts and collect information. Perhaps a job for when I have my op.

Quite enjoying having 6 days with nothing on and doing all the stuff that's been on my mind and I can stop and read when I fancy. Too good to be true 😏 don't fancy venturing out with the crowds.

Farway

Just a bit blowy for Dave, nothing more than normal, so I join Dusty in the "Meh" category. Sun's creeping out & it's quite mild already

The toms sown a few weeks back, some are now showing true leaves, looking healthy so far on window sill. Today I hope to split & pot on the Bajaja, only have two so not a big job. I have some fresh crunched egg shells so I'll mix them into the potting mix, nothing lost & it may even do some good, in drainage at least. I will not be able to judge on taste because I've never grown Bajaja before.

Wort said. My seeds are on the way, and after not being able to find gaura, I spotted seeds in Tesco ! So picked them up and as they were 3 for 2 got dwarf larkspur, and lavatera. So 5 packs of seeds to be sown and me saying I don’t do seeds. Sounds lovely and cottage like, I used to grow lavatera and loved it, but that was so long ago it was Mallow then 😁

Before you know it you'll be sprinkling seeds around. 😉

Jobs for today, if sun keeps warming me, dead head the last of the daffs, starting to look tatty now, pot up a rooted tip layered Boysenberry ready for giving away to my cleaner, she mentioned they have just planted a Loganberry, and they have never tasted Loganberry, so now they can try two new tastes in 2027. They used to be my neighbours a few door down, but moved years back, he is a self employed gardener / landscaper, mowing machine repairer etc so knows how to grow "stuff"

I still only have a couple of purple Mange toots sprouting, old seeds, at least I may get a taster.

Dusty said Joining T&M's 'club' means being spammed daily, but they're 'friends' with benefits! 😆Must say I have been tempted in the past but was never sure. I may plunge in this year

Watched GW, lady loving dahlias was on there, made me happy that I have just bought some posh named tubers, all set now, except the Bishop of Canterbury tuber is more Vicar size, the other tubers are massive by comparison

YoungBlueEyes

Morning all, and happy Easter 🐣🐥

Did we all come through Rodney Dave without too much damage? We had no real bother from it tbh. It got pretty windy at bedtime, it was slamming straight into the front of the house and making the windows sort of squeaky squeal. Topped out at 51mph say the sobers, and a bit of rain with it. I think you UpperLeftHandLandias were in for it iirr? I know we're sans @pink_poppy and @ArbitraryRandom but I was thinking of them both…

Taff what was that about you being reprimanded by a local but not council guy…? Did you put him back in his box? (Or, whisper it, were you doing nawty things and got caught 🤭)

Those Ground Cherries look interesting Dusty, I'm not sure if I've ever seen those before. They sound tasty though 😋 I think I'd pick erythroniums over trilliums, trilliums look like they'd squeeze everything else out with growing sideways… Your auction story made me chuckle - daddy used to to do something similar when the badness was on him, especially when the wezzies holiday makers were in town 😄And look at your hogs! Can you tell if they're girls or boys..?

I'd rather be erse-deep in garage detritus then out among the heaving masses too 2p. Not that I have a garage but it's on the shopping list if we move. Could you beat the beggars at their own game and get out v early/v late in the day? Then you'd maybe have the beach/moors to yourself ☺️How's the revenant seedlings btw?

Being out of Judas' shadow might be the very thing for your grapes eh Farway. You'll be making wine next and bemoaning the quantity of it ha haa! Hooray for purple mangy toots, and more peas and toms 😀

Good luck with the seeds wort 😁Ooh a house-warming, I love a house-warming. Was it actually windy walking home, or were you staggering about cos you were sloshing about on the inside 😆

OT well if that wind would drop it'd be a lovely day. Sunny and blue sky, puffy white clouds of every shape scuttling past. We had a sharp shower 2 minutes after I put the bedding out, but it's to shower on and off all day and I'm not traipsing in and out and in and out every time a raindrop falls so it can stop out there. Himself wants to go to the beach so I told him that was a great idea and please be back for dinner at 6, and now he's sulking. No matter. I've beef to rub with mustard powder and the grass to cut. A quick run round the boards first though, in case I've missed anything good.

Farway

Had to come back, had a helper while potting on my Bajaja toms this afternoon

twopenny

Oh gorgeous Farway 😍 doesn't it cheer you up when something like this happens!

I heard an unusual bird sound just now, rushed in for my phone and the bird app and not a peep to be heard.

My tomatoes plants in the ground have grown again. New soil and compost seems to do the trick.

More house and garage cleaning and I cleaned the garden tools and stuck in more nails to get them on the wall. Then a friend rang and that was an hour gone. Put some jeyes down the grumbling drain after clearing. Still grumbling 😬

A bit more and I'll give in.

Dustyevsky

Good to see you still have a robin helper, Farway. 😇 Mine are still around, but taking no notice of me now. 😕

As someone once said, a long time ago, “Eeh, it's turned out nice again!” 😉This afternoon, while it was allegedly only11c, I was in shirtsleeves mowing the two larger lawns. 😎 It'll be positively tropical by Tuesday, when all the holiday folk return to work. Looks as if they may get two good days in this neck of the woods. Probably average for Easter.🤔

I can't tell if a hog is a boy or girl, Bluey. Firstly, I'd not look! 😂 But Mrs Dusty does, and she can ID the relevant particulars. 😧 Apparently, one of last year's hogs, number 5, was in the photos last night, and he's a boy. The other two are larger, and possibly new to us. When our others return in the week, we'll be well and truly hogged! However, before any of you imagine this will mean fewer slugs, I should add that those only make up about 1% of a hedgehog's diet. They're really not that keen.☹️ We did see a robin eating a slug last week, which surprised us, but on the whole the slimy beggars seem to be a meal of last resort. Even the chickens turn up their beaks.

I don't think I'm fully in the T&M club, Farway. They just have one of the email addresses I use for nonsense, hence the daily advert for something or other. When it's seeds, I take notice. 🤔

2p, Your forecast isn't as cold as ours for tonight, but I’d not risk those toms without some fleece! Think I'll whip the chillies and aubergines out of the poly and indoors.It might be the last near frost.