The ups, the downs and the insides out of growing your own in 2024!

-taff

it'll be fine, use it.

Suffolk_lass

Yes!-taff said:

it'll be fine, use it.

nothing wrong with microbes in compost

DD265

We finally had a few days of decent weather, and on Friday/Saturday I was able to get the final trees (apple) moved to the banking. I realised that I wouldn't easily fit all 5 up there and be able to get them a decent amount of sun, so, I decided that I won't keep the 3 trees that will outgrow the plot (they're on dwarf? rootstock - will hit 10-12ft at maturity) and instead bought 1 from the garden centre to add to my other two 'patio' trees. I also bought some in-flower bedding plants (pansies, mainly) because I've seen some bumble bees about, and put those on the banking too. For now, there's not much else to be done until we get a good week of dry weather to be able to make progress on the shed.

At home, I need to remove a rose, some shrubs, and a couple of Jasmine. I'm quite sad about one of the Jasmine's - it's been in 3+ years and only just started thriving - but it doesn't 'go' with what we're trying to do with the garden. I'm half tempted to try and grow it up the allotment shed or something, but then I think I ought to do something edible instead. I get very attached to my plants, and don't like letting them go!

KajiKita

@DD265, nothing wrong with growing the jasmine up the side of the shed. It won’t take up much room foot print wise, will offer lots of habitat for wee beasties and when it flowers, will attract pollinators and bring you joy. Sounds like a win-win to me …. 🤷‍♀️😊😉

KK

Suffolk_lass

@DD265 unfortunately pansies are not much help for pollinators, thanks to horticulturalists in-breeding to get bigger flowers. The best (flower) things at this time of year are snowdrops, hellebores and then crocus. Willow is brilliant with it's yellow pollen drenched buds. Even though it is wind pollinated primarily it's great for all the bees that are out early. Last year's queen bumbles are looking for places to build their nests and starting to lay. Over here our honey bees are building up, bringing in pollen for the principle protein source for the new larvae, but feeding primarily on their stores for honey

kimwp

I have a willow in my garden. It takes up loads of space, is a weird shape from needing to be cut back when it was going into the neighbour's garden and the branches hit the top branches of my apple trees, which can't be good for them. But early every year it is filled with bees, so I can't bring myself to cut it down.

rtandon27

Our winter flowering jasmine grows up the side of the house and is supported over the right of way path and onto the roof of the summer house.  It's prolific and gets a good hack back after it finishes flowering!  Comes back every year, stronger than the year before - I see it as easy win gardening!

There are signs of spring poking out in the soggy garden - daffs, narcissi, hyacinths, primroses and the small unfurled tufts of leaves on the bushes.  Amazingly, our bay topiary which was decimated by something munching on it last year has recovered and has all kinds of new leaves - so glad I didn't get around to digging it up in the autumn.  Our two box bushes however either succumbed to blight or caterpillar late last summer & I was hoping they would come back on their own, but looks like they will need digging up and replacing with something.

alicef

I'm lifting, splitting and replanting snowdrops.   Most of the roses have been pruned, (except the climbers so I  need to get a wriggle on).  I've pruned the vines.  Sown onion seed has germinated - I've removed the trays from the propagator and plonked them on to windowsills.  Germinated tomatoes need potting on.  Started to clear the fruit cage - the netting has had it and I don't think I'll replace it - if necessary I'll net individual currant bushes.   Will wait another week before I plant out the broad bean plants.  Need to decide what to next use propagator space for. 

  

FreeBear

Well, the plumcot that I put in last year is flowering quite well (buds appeared a couple of weeks ago). Got a couple of cherry plums in full bloom, so there should be some cross pollination. Will have to wait and see how many fruits set.

ArbitraryRandom

Hmm... my potatoes don't seem to be chitting. They've been on the windowsill for maybe 10 days now and there's nubby bits but I've got more sprouts/roots on my supermarket eating potatoes than these seed potatoes. 

Anything I can do to encourage them (I was thinking about putting them in a clear bag as a greenhouse effect) or leave them a bit longer, or just plant them?