Awful weather - typical Brits talk

Farway

'Cor, that looks cold RAS!

Just back to Yellow warning wind here,and not gardening day

twopenny

Pretty but glad we don't have it - yet. Strangely I found even tender plants don't mind the snow. It's the very cold wind that can cause havock.
Talking of wind it's blowing just like Friday but with added torrential rain.
I had frozen peas for dinner, not going out in that to cut veg!
My little plum tree has had its beautiful blossom shredded.  There seem to be more buds if they can hang on. Still, at least I know I got it in the right place and it fills the view from my bedroom window with blossoms - give or take some wind.
It's also made up my mind that it's small daffs from here on. My neighbours small ones half size are standing up well.  
It's a bit scary out there so I won't know about any devastation until tomorrow and I think I'll leave opening the curtains till after breakfast.

Farway

Blimey 2P, your plum blossom was early, such shame to lose it. My plum has blossom buds but no sign of it opening yet, which is just as well because yet more wind & rain this morning, Franklin I think this one is. They do say that’s the problem with plums & blossom, gets caught by frost etc.

Agree entirely about daff heights, I have Tete a Tete in pots at the front, standing well & looking cheerful, I posted a pic of them the other day. At RHS Wisley there is huge bank of wild hoop type daffs, I’ve often fancied trying some but so far have not done it

With the weather it’s another non gardening day, if it eases I have to empty the tea leaf slop bucket onto the garden and check on the progress of whatever’s left out there

twopenny

Ha! Ha! I thought I was the only one who had one of those.  Learned from my Great Aunt. 
The plum blossom isn't the fruit. It's prunus nigra, very early. Trying to take short cuts on my kindle.
I haven't pruned the new fruit trees yet. It's been either torrential rain or cold wind this winter
I may go down to buy another wavey slab from the garden centre. They only had 3 left last week and not restocking. Will cost a bomb but I can find no others.
Going to give the poor old birds some extra food. Such hard work for them to get there they need the energy.

wort

Re the streptocarpus, I was given a couple by someone at work, a lilac one and a white with dark purple veining, she said she propagates by leaf cutting. I haven’t tried it yet though. Have you ever put them outside? 

Still  strong winds up here, though I’ve been working all weekend and in later today, so hoping tomorrow when I am off is better.

in_my_wellies

wort said:

Re the streptocarpus, I was given a couple by someone at work, a lilac one and a white with dark purple veining, she said she propagates by leaf cutting. I haven’t tried it yet though. Have you ever put them outside? 

Still  strong winds up here, though I’ve been working all weekend and in later today, so hoping tomorrow when I am off is better.

My streptocarpus caught mealy bugs last summer so I put them outside, in the open until about October then under the carport so a little sheltered. Farway reminded me and I brought them in last week. No sign of mealy bugs but they are looking worse for wear. I hoping I can encourage just one or two leave to grow enough for cuttings. I think outside in the summer but they won't tolerate rain or damp.

The wind and rain here is much stronger than Friday. Driving through a village yesterday a branch fell in front of the car. I had no choice but to drive straight over it. Fortunately it was only about 7 or 8 cm diameter and no damage done but I was very glad to be home 

Farway

It’s dull & damp again despite forecast saying sunshine. No gardening again

Streptocarpus, I’ve not tried leaf cuttings but have done African violets, which are same family so they say. It’s really as easy as it looks. I intend to propagate my posh ones using leaf cuttings once they get to the right size.

I was looking at buying more Streps and amazed to see there’s a market just for named leaves at around £4, I suppose if a real enthusiast and a rare specimen why not given some plants are over £30 and up

 I’ve not tried them outside, I did see a YouTube where someone with one of those tropical style back gardens did it, but they do need a hot sheltered spot and not in hot sun, hard to find such a place in my garden TBH

Looks like you’re going to have to cough up for the wavy paving slab 2P, bird in the hand etc. Annoying but has to be done. Around here there’s only one GC with a large selection of large pottery pots, never cheap but what can one do? Not something to buy online because delivery will cost arms & legs

phoebe1989seb

Blue skies and sunshine here today after all the storms 😁 Yesterday DH said there was a largeish tree down in our lane when he went to work in the morning (fortunately belonging to the farmer, not us!), but overall Franklyn was far quieter than Eunice. No real plant (or property) damage to report, just a few branches down across the garden.

Sadly, I've been stuck inside all day painting a window and skirtings 🙄

It's so funny, 2p, we have such a severe lack of large windows overlooking the garden here that we're planning building more rooms in order to create them 😂 Our last house was the exact opposite - on the road side there were just three tiny windows (over three storeys), whereas sixteen of the remaining seventeen windows all had garden views! I miss that so much 🙁

On the subject of daffodils, I'm not normally a fan - although I do like the smaller varieties - but nonetheless couldn't resist some huge mixed bags reduced to £2 per bag in The Range recently! Anything to take away the winter gloom! I got the last two and although a few bulbs were manky, managed to plant up over 180 for my £4 investment 😉

Haven't been near a nursery or garden centre since before Christmas, but need to start thinking about (bare root) astrantias for the rose beds soon. Will probably get these online....

Also planning to start work on creating the green/meadow roof over the next few weeks.

twopenny

It's stopped blowing much, unless you go on the beach. Not too cold and only rained this morning.

I looked at the garden, walked around and decided to cut out more turf for my 'frog pond' and measured to see about seating areas out of sight of my neighbours. I'm going to have problems there.

But the lawns are sodden so I want to keep off them........well that's my excuse.

The spring bulbs have come up and my 'woodland' area looking good. Saw a neighbour with some wonderful early flowering dwarf cyclamen and asked if she was weeding them out to throw some my way and she was delighted - so was I

I'm now going to have more winter flowering plants than summer. I'm determined on a winter clematis and it can grow through New Dawn rose which goes totally bare in winter. And I saw winter honeysuckle again. Checked for cuttings but no luck.

Still have to find a home for the witchazel tree.

I don't mind creating for winter. It's when I'm stuck in looking at it. In the summer no one's particularly interested except for sitting and chatting or reading with a cup of tea.

So my baby Prunus Nigra has produced more buds and blossom - looked better in the sun but heyho. The purple leaves are already coming out. It's columnular so it's not invasive rootwise or branch wise.

I had a photo of the Japonica that has been blooming since Christmas and definitely worth a mention - but it's vanished. I'll take another.

Farway

I’ve had three seasons already today, and it’s only just gone two!. Hard frost first thing, [winter], then turned out sunny & mild [spring] and now it’s Autumn, dull & grey. Seemed to have skipped summer.

Not sure if it counts as gardening but I went off to Home Bargains, mainly looking for seed compost, none there, but bought another 40L of the good Universal I bought the other week, plus large plastic tub for my fig re-potting in the conservatory, and a narrow trough ready  for the Streptocarpus when they arrive

I also wanted some Blood, F & B but none there, I may need to go more specialised, like Wilko

Stood and admired the Tete a Tete daffs in their pots at the front, basking in the warmth & sunshine, not visible from my windows, but they do brighten the front up for passers-by, I learnt long ago to keep them back from the path’s picky fingers & pooey dogs