Awful weather - typical Brits talk

Dustyevsky

RAS said:

Reminds me of some of the battered old Fergies all along the NE coast.

 A Fergie was the source of massive embarrassment to me at the age of 9. New into the countryside from suburban London, I was trying to fit-in, helping the farming guys in the field behind our house. One of them turned to me and said, "Lad, fetch thickee Fergie up there, down yer!"

I knew he meant the tractor, which was ticking-over a short distance away, but I'd no idea how to work it, so I burst into tears. No one was being unkind and got a lesson straight away. I was still ashamed no one had taught me before, though!

OT: The stiff breeze is keeping the temperatures down again today and drying everything in pots out twice as fast.

ArbitraryRandom

Being inspired by some of the lovely pictures on the thread, please see my lovely (I think) alpine strawberry - which is very bravely not sulking at being repotted yesterday. 

Farway

Some nice pics again, nothing from me today although I did get up to the volunteer spot this morning, two of us planting up the last of the pots with petunias, not my ideal flower TBH but found for free from Wilkos "death row" by the other volunteer, so ideal really. Managed to get some Cloth of Gold into the near concrete clay, I have spares should they fail

AR, a tip, I have those tri armed pots, trouble is they do dry out very quickly and the soil gets hungry as well, mind you mine bake in the front sunshine

Yesterday the orphan tomatoes were planted out at long last, I have way more than I intended, but the blighters just grew and no doubt I will be glad of them later, especially if the doomsters are correct about some food supplies.

I'm going to add a pinch of LG lettuce seed to one of the tom pots at the front, may as well use some of the growing space

No sign of my overwintered dahlias at the front, I wonder if the winter has done for them? They normally survive, but last winter was long & cold, so maybe they are no more, deceased & done for. They were only from seed and nothing special. I'll see what else I have to fill the spaces, no rush, could even be more lettuce.

Went for a coffee with the other volunteer post planting up, there is a "smells of wee tree" on the verge near her, one sniff and I thought of MSE

YoungBlueEyes

That made me chuckle Farway! Mine is across the fence between me and lovely neighbour but her bit is only flowering now while mine is nearly over. She said she always thought it smelled creamy and sweet but now it smells like cat wee My bad. 

Dustyevsky

Farway said:

Yesterday the orphan tomatoes were planted out at long last, I have way more than I intended, but the blighters just grew and no doubt I will be glad of them later, especially if the doomsters are correct about some food supplies.

I wouldn't describe myself as a 'doomster,' but I can't help thinking the removal of 3000 farms in the Netherlands, on land needed for a new Tri-State City of 45million, won't have some knock-on effect. Of course, all those evil cows and pigs won't be farting and burping noxious gases and warming the planet, so that'll be good. Their job is obviously done, because when I was at school we were just about to enter a new Ice Age. Anyone else remember that?

The drought continues here, with no sign of a let-up. I shall soon be doing something hasty and temporary in the polytunnel, so I can plant my toms instead of checking them 3x a day in their pots. Out in the pretty garden, the geraniums are doing a good job of filling-in the gaps where we've had losses. Here's one of my favourites, which goes down well (literally) with the Greenfinches later on. Then cut-down, rinse and repeat.....if we have anything to rinse with, that is!

YoungBlueEyes

Now that's a cracking photo Dusty!

I don't remember anything about a new Ice Age, I remember the hole in the ozone layer gluing itself back together though, which was nice.

Dry here too. My app reckons they'll be no rain 'til 8th June, and then only 1mm Thank god I'm not on a water meter ha haa!

Cool and cloudy here still, and no gardening to report. In tenuously related garden news - squirrels and jackdaws are coming up against each other for the food I put out.... Jackdaws seem the meaner and more persistant :fingerscrossed: 

My tom forest seems to have ground to a halt. No more growth nor new flowers nor nothing. I'm enjoying this weather meself but they sure ain't  

wort

Way behind on your posts, but some great pics as always. 

Suns out and forcast good though quite windy still, at least at my house 🤨 I sat out after work yesterday and was admiring my climbing hydrangea, it’s over the back of my garage and ramping along quite fast, I am going away so if it’s done flowering when I get back I will hack it/ trim it back! The evening sun on the smoke bush leaves was beautiful, wish I was as good as Farway with a camera.
I think my soil is on the acidic side never tested but the rhododendrons ,peiris, Acer etc love it.
my rose that friends bought when my hubby died is flowering now beautiful white fragrant flowers it’s a David Austin one can’t quite recall, though will remember in bed tonight, such is my brain at the moment. Also the rambling/climbing rise I dug out and chopped to a stick and threw in a pot is taking off. If I wanted it to live it wouldn’t have such is the vagarities of gardening.
i had to give the pots a water yesterday , and mow the lawn again. It will be waist high when I get back no doubt. Hope I can rely on Dgson to water a couple of pots if he notices. He is in charge of the cat 🐈 

Dustyevsky

wort said:

 He is in charge of the cat 🐈 

No doubt he believes he is. In the real world, it's usually the other way round!

Farway

More sun, but the cold north wind is still with us. Similar no rain due here until well into next week YBE, looks like the watering can will be busy, I had to give a quick hose squirt to the plum in a pot yesterday, soon dries out, but will try & give more, non-emergency, later today

I also remember the new Ice Age with icebergs in the Channel and polar bears patrolling Trafalgar Square etc, probably complete with an Artist's Impression on the front page, it may have been around the same time we were due electricity so cheap from nuclear fusion that it would not be worth metering it

Luckily these days, we have the Beeb's newly formed Verify department to ensure we are not fed such fantasies

Lovely pic of the geranium Dusty, getting some named ones is on my list of things to do one day. The ones I grew from seed did well but seem to have been Vine Weevilled in their pots so are struggling this year

The Burpless cucs I grew from seed have perked up since I added some liquid feed to the watering, and now are ready to venture outside. I only have two, so it's one at the front & one at the back, both sharing pots with a tomato

My pyracantha is about to burst into flower, another wee smeller enjoyed by all bees, hover flies etc

Dustyevsky

YoungBlueEyes said:

I don't remember anything about a new Ice Age, I remember the hole in the ozone layer gluing itself back together though, which was nice.

Cool and cloudy here still, and no gardening to report. In tenuously related garden news - squirrels and jackdaws are coming up against each other for the food I put out.... Jackdaws seem the meaner and more persistant :fingerscrossed:

We can carbon date people from the lies theories prevalent in the education system when they were at school/uni. I think the ozone layer maybe needed a bit of help, but I didn't check it myself, being too busy deciding if we really had landed on the moon.

Jackdaws will win against squirrels and nick anything they can. Indeed, if they could've flown there, I'd have had them down as No1 suspects for the missing ozone! 

Venturing outside now as light relief from the Planning & Compensation Act 1991. I hate viewing all the wilted primroses and primulas, but I know they'll survive.

Did someone mention buttercups? I have a few....I'd rather have more clover, but it's still a developing ecowhatsit.

If you expand the picture in a new tab, you'll see the ash tree 1/3 of the way across the frame from the left, has the beginnings of ash die back. That's winter fuel 2026. right there.