Awful weather - typical Brits talk

-taff

GF, they are some massive foxgloves! And a good haul of tiles. They should last for quite some time too, if children cant destruct them, my money's on them.

2P, Kevin! :snort!:: And that's just stupid money really  being as you're basically being paid for doing something you'd do anyway..not the tea and cake though, I can see charging for that is fine but a fiver for a piece of cake and a cuppa? We all know how much they cost and it's not that. Even with bonus spending time making it money.

Bridie, I am in the same boat with plants that should be romping are merely crawling at a glacial speed.

Dusty, i wouldn't worry about the heating being on, I've had mine on three times in the last week or so. That's such a clever idea  and really easy to do with a few sticks of wood [the mirror] Nice aphids too..yuk.. So far, not bad getting on with Linux, I do like the wrokspaces thing [ you can portion off whatever you're doing in areas so you're not clicking through lots of windows to find what you want. The only things I'm not liking so far are one particular program, the text is tiny, but this is because it's a windows based app, and taking it's cue from the size of text of the OS display. But since this is also an app which is a bit naughty, I can either find a Linux version or just spend five mintes sitting very close to it and sorting the rest of the preferences in perpetuity. You can install Windows based programs using WINE or something similar depending on what it is, but it does seem much more intuitive than Windows so far. There is some cmd writing to do but if you search for things, you can just copy and paste that bit. So far it's a thumbs up with a few niggles as a bog standard user. Sorry for long critique...

YBE, sorry about your posh weather app, next time, blutack or something or superglue And well done for getting out of a situation intact with life. Have fun open gardening, and I like your scale object. In some places, it's a banana

PP, nice to see deathwish birds exit everywhere. Good save! That's some great camouflage on the babby blackie [ ybe, your words are rubbing off/]

Farway, same, I think I'll let the peat free improve a bit before taking the full plunge.

I'm orf to an open garden tomorrow evening, cost = 5 included tea and cake, this is through the gardening club [irl] I joined. If it's pants, I'm still going just because the house is in a kind of semi rural/urban situation and it may be the same place I got a free trug from [ no shortage of money there either ybe] And I concur re the housework. I'm just not very good at it and I don't see why I should be. I'm better at other stuff. Like DIY, reading or gardening I have stuff to pot up today, my donated Totally Tangerine, one has roots coming out the pot so it's definitely taken, the tromboncino same but they're so small I can't put them out yet. Someone whose knowledge makes me feel embarassed is coming round to fetch some stuff and give me some stuff [ supposed ot be yesterday but plans scuppered and all that] so i will spend my time apologising for the garden, my choices and my methods Even though I know I shouldn't. !!!! it, it is what it is...[stole the idea off Dusty] I also succumbed and bought some runners that were alive and uneaten because of my dearth of beans and they are Scarlet Emperor ones which I like, especially when they're very young. I also bought some echinacea, and a salvia which kind of looks like a lavender but much deeper colouring on the flowers. Hope it lives...Weather is weird again, sunny, cold, windy , raining. I can't comment how many times I took something off or put something on yesterday

twopenny

Ah no, £5 for the cake, £1.50 for a cup of tea Taff. It costs less than that in a gorgeous tea room with a view.

So it's picnic today, not excited. The gardens were average, so many that were spectacular the owners had health issues and they were poor quite honestly. Understand that but opening for the sake of it was not a good idea. Nothing to photograph.

Very few people attending which is unusual.

Forgot to say well done Bluey, takes courage. I've been in a couple or 3 of situations. I seem to attract the weird. That's why I decided to stay footloose and fancy free.

The garden needs some serious work after the storm. Never seen anything like it and just when I'd got it looking tidy. So it's on the list for tomorrow.

Love the Alliums Dusty, almost looks like summer

Farway

Still wettish & windy, I was hoping the promised sun would arrive “later” so I can get my broad beans out, they are about nine inches high, but I didn't use a banana to measure them

They've done well, being a late decision to sow some at the end of May, like Taff it was triggered dearth of beans due to slugs

I have my Mk2 sowing of runners to start hardening off, these were also new sowing, due to slugs, the leaves are just unfolding so sooner out the better

I'm expecting DS to arrive this morning for Dads Day, if I remember I'll get him to get my potted fig back upright. One of the pot feet has dislodged, and I don't have enough bend or strength to correct it these days.

Yesterday was wash out for gardening, slumped watching Walking Dead, then realised my mind was not perhaps as concentrated as it should be on the zombies biting lumps out of folks. 

I spotted a beautiful stand of red Cannas in one of the gardens being patrolled by zombies.

So perhaps my lack of cannas, bar one, is what is keeping the zombies away?

Works better than slug pellets anyway

Here are some alliums I took at the posh gardens last week, the borders are maintained by volunteers so all credit to them, lovely surroundings to volunteer in

-taff

Farway, one method I use reguarly to lift stuff I can't, like the lump of concrete I put in the car just now for tip run tomorrow , is to wedge the end of a shovel or fork underneath if there's space and then put your foot and weight on the handle. Sometimes it' lifts it up just enough to do what needs to be done . If you put a wedge of wood under the handle first you can lift it higher. [I have no idea how I'm going to get said lump of concrete to the bin because they do have a drop, but there are rails in front of them]

2p, didn't mean to sound like I was poo pooing the idea of charging but ten quid is a lot of money plus refreshments. I don't think I'd have the nerve to charge for both, but I could do a fiver with a tiny slice of cake That's if my garden was ever show worthy..[unlikely unless I go med weeds ]

twopenny

No I'm in agreement. Way too much money.

Went again today and the sun was almost out and we saw the best gardens all in one go so expect queries and pics about plants for the week

The owner of one was showing us a video of some ducklings that had hatched that morning when with one missing they tried to get the mother duck and ended letting all the other ducklings wooshing through a drainage pipe into the far end river beyond the pond and mother left behind. All family involved and quite dramatic as they tried to rescue them. We never found out if they did though we waited.

So thinking about you all here's the first sign

goldfinches

2p - that's brilliant and if you want to view the National Thistle Collection I have an allotment you can visit for free! That sign did make me laugh, wonderful.
It's actually almost warm here today and sunny in small amounts in between the chilly wind and large clouds although it did bucket down during the night judging by the puddles on the paths this morning. My plot has sprouted a huge collection of thistles and lots of weed seedlings so I spent an hour hoeing round and then thistle removing followed by another hour weeding assorted marjoram, willowherb and couch grass along with various other exotica like perennial peas. I think I might go and buy some sort of tent peg kind of things along with the convenient plant loop bits from B & Q tomorrow for a treat outing meanwhile my sweetcorn have survived and started sprouting from their centres whereas my sweet peas are still all about 6" tall and not looking as though they're going to do anything. The real news though is that two, yes two, of my tomatoes have flowered and here is the proof.



I'm doing something right at least! 
I agree with those balking at the cost of visiting gardens and the prices charged for tea and cake nowadays. The ones I went to here on the 9th were £6 to visit all 6 gardens but then £2.50 for a lukewarm plastic cup of stewed tea and £2.50 for not very nice looking cakes which I didn't try. 
Great looking alliums Dusty and Farway and interesting theory about the cannas attracting zombies, I must start scrutinising the background of anything I watch on dvd to see if I can spot some interesting plants. I've already started noticing what's on the bookshelves in the housebuying thread especially the cookbooks.

twopenny

Hmmm thinking of all those weeds and how to use I looked up 'mini shredder' but wow the price.

Then I found the laid back gardener blog and it had an idea. I'd rather use a real strimmer though.

I thought the idea of a blender interesting

https://laidbackgardener.blog/2023/11/19/how-to-shred-leaves-without-making-a-hole-in-a-garbage-can/

wort

2p that was an interesting link, I just thought why does he not just buy a leaf blower thing, mine sucks them up then chews up the leaves , having said that I barely use mine as I find it unwieldy, but that’s probably just me.
YBE I must have missed your accident with the weather bobble , that’s a shame 😥
Dusty I had a mirror /window only a cheapy one from home Bargains but it blew off the wall.🙄 I like the open effect of that one. I can match the aphid pic unfortunately 😫
Envious of your trips round gardens ,that would give me something to do whilst recovering, but I’m not sure I would want to pay £10!  

Saturday was a complete washout so did not move from couch all day . Yesterday managed a walk round the block and the sun was out windy but not cold, so sat in the garden with a book for an hour or two. It rained early evening and night. This morning is grey , though no rain forcast .
Im having trouble with my back not being comfortable after sitting so much particularly in bed where I also need to sleep sat up. I can’t seem to get the right configuration of pillows .

pink_poppy

Urgh, had a rotten weekend feeling ill and still feel ropey this morning

Lovely alliums - I could do with a garden full of them.

Shame about your weather thingy, YBE. It sounds like you made a good decision re. the marriage, even if you did lose out on his pension, sometimes it's just better to get out asap. The mossy 'log' in my baby blackbird pic is actually a roof ridge tile (I think they're called that) and it's the edge of the pond that the previous owners put in. Apparently they wanted to re-wild the garden (& then move) so finding that out recently, I don't feel so bad that we're still struggling to get it under control. I still curse them on a regular basis though...

twopenny, I was watching an old Beechgrove episode from my sickbed and George said that every garden should have the Gertrude Jekyll rose that you've mentioned before

Well done on the tom flowers, goldfinches.

Right, back to my sickbed...

YoungBlueEyes

Well the Open Gardens didn't do anything to float my boat this year. Mind the big house with the rusty haired girl is doing this Sunday rather than yesterday, so maybe that'll produce something note-worthy. I don't know if yous have raised my expectations and made me used to the good stuff now, or if I just didn't have a scooby last year so everything was amazing... Lovely Neighbour said a lot of the gardens were the very same as last year, no new plants or layouts or ideas. Dear too. Local shops were selling tickets for £5 (not actual tickets, they were a printed map of how to get to the gardens that they put a sticker on to show you'd paid), but a few of the larger houses were charging another £5 on the door gate which I thought was very nawty actually. Then a coffee/tea/squash and a wee bun was £5. I know it's all for charity but still. Reminded me of the advice a lad gave me when I was a poker player and needed sharpening up - you can shear a sheep many times but skin him only once. Seems that applies to gardens too for it was very quiet, despite the weather being alright. But I did get a few pics so I'll put them up after this.

When I see another Galileo bobbin I'll lift it cos I did like it. House still has a petrol whiff about it though. I'll have to sit it on the mantlepiece so it's safe next time The worst thing was I couldn't even blame himself cos he was still in bed at the time ha haa! 

OT well it’s damp but bright and calm here, rained overnight though. Not a bad day possibly, well only a little/some/no rain in the forecast :rolleyes: