GreenFly - A 'flylady style' gardening thread with weekly tasks to tame your garden

Cherryfudge

Could you put a link to your photos please @EssexHebridean? I've been searching, but obviously not in the right place.  

I like the thought of a salvaged wine box for herbs - very on-trend and practical too.

I spent about 40 minutes clearing a few more inches of the patch by the back door: it's a tangle of roots, gravel and bits of plastic. There's a largeish pot prepared for some blue geraniums but I haven't yet got access to dig them out though I'm only inches away! I was too tired to go on so I pruned the Mock Orange: I might have been a bit severe with it and it looks depleted, but last time I pruned it I got such vigorous new growth that it got too big.

EssexHebridean

There's just one of the wine boxes planted up on my diary here:  https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6471208/and-now-we-go-again#latest 
More garden stuff (and other bits) on my blog too though... https://photozone72.blogspot.com 

The wine boxes were SUCH a great find - and now they are painted up I just love the way they look too! 

Also love a blue geranium here - are yours the lovely floaty rambly sort of ones? We nabbed one of those for the front garden the other week - we had one at the flat but couldn't really dig out out to bring to the house with us,. sadly, as that was a beauty! 

kazwookie

Well another 6 strawberries found, we won't get fat today  

Plus I've dug up 3kgs of spuds, which is good going, considering I never planted any this year, according to my NND they are known as volunteer spuds.

Also another 1kg of rhubarb pulled.

So over all happy with today work.

greenbee

How's your plan for an IBC going @kazwookie?

I had no luck getting any help from the company I already have an irrigation system from, so did some more searching and found a UK-based company who make solar pump irrigation systems. Emailed, they called back within two days, asked me about the current set-up and have worked out what bits I need (don't have to buy a whole kit). So hopefully that means I can start using a pump from the 3000l of stored water I have behind the shed. 

Strawberries are over, much to Stinky's disappointment, but I have bags and bags of them in the freezer for later in the year. Not many blackcurrants or raspberries, but more gooseberries than expected (will continue to pick and freeze, then cook all the random bits up together to freeze and use later in the. year). Broad bean crop wasn't great, but they're one of my favourites. I need to cut them down and will leave them on the bed as mulch until I work out what's going in there. Peas were good, spinach bolted, and the chard looks like doing the same. Courgettes are taking over and need cooking and freezing. Seven plants is probably five too many, and I must remember not to bother with yellow ones in future.

Cherryfudge

EssexHebridean said:

Also love a blue geranium here - are yours the lovely floaty rambly sort of ones? We nabbed one of those for the front garden the other week - we had one at the flat but couldn't really dig out out to bring to the house with us,. sadly, as that was a beauty! 

Lovely photos on your diary EH! Yes, I think our geraniums are probably the ones you're thinking of. Plant app identification says they are a variety called 'Magnificum'. I'm not convinced as they don't absolutely match the description and I know there have been similar varieties. I had them many years ago from my parents so they're nothing recent. They are lush and abundant and are taking over so slowly that it's quite surprising to see how woody and sprawled some of the stems have become.

Today I plan to continue weeding and plant a few things I've rooted. I've also stuck some young shoots of mock orange in water in the hope of rooting cuttings, but I don't know what I'll do with them if they grow!

We have a hosepipe ban starting on Friday so I'm being MS and not buying the spray nozzle we need unless I see it at better than online prices.

EssexHebridean

Cherryfudge said:

EssexHebridean said:

Also love a blue geranium here - are yours the lovely floaty rambly sort of ones? We nabbed one of those for the front garden the other week - we had one at the flat but couldn't really dig out out to bring to the house with us,. sadly, as that was a beauty! 

Lovely photos on your diary EH! Yes, I think our geraniums are probably the ones you're thinking of. Plant app identification says they are a variety called 'Magnificum'. I'm not convinced as they don't absolutely match the description and I know there have been similar varieties. I had them many years ago from my parents so they're nothing recent. They are lush and abundant and are taking over so slowly that it's quite surprising to see how woody and sprawled some of the stems have become.

Today I plan to continue weeding and plant a few things I've rooted. I've also stuck some young shoots of mock orange in water in the hope of rooting cuttings, but I don't know what I'll do with them if they grow!

We have a hosepipe ban starting on Friday so I'm being MS and not buying the spray nozzle we need unless I see it at better than online prices.

Spray nozzles for hoses - at the risk of knocking anyone off the MSE bandwagon, if you have a decent sized T3sco nearby they are selling off their garden bits and that includes various attachments - we got a connector we needed for 60p a couple of weeks back, and I noticed they had various spray attachments knocked down too the other day. 

Ventured under the died-off straggly bits of Campanula last night and discovered where all the slugs are hanging out and hiding! We lobbed about 20 over the fence, so that can't do any harm, although I bet MrEH found as many again when he went outside last thing!

In spite of the rain earlier in the week I suspect we're going to need to water again this evening as it's been roasting here again today. At the very least the pots and troughs will need it! 

kazwookie

@greenbee ibc on hold for now, as shed needs moving, the shed is on its last legs so when I replace it, then ibc will be installed / purchased / linked up to guttering.

EssexHebridean

First kale picked last night - although MrEH did have to rip out some sections of leaves the undersides of which were decorated with bright orange eggs we presume from the large white butterflies which have been all over the place this year.  I also noticed that the trough of basil I sowed a few weeks ago is really starting to take off and I should be able to make a further harvest and some more pesto before too long. 

Apparently one of the courgette plants has signs of a small fruit forming so this may be the tip of an iceberg - I need to keep a careful check on the cucumbers for needing further tying back to their frames as well as we really want those to climb this year to minimise the fruits being eaten by slugs etc. Again - we already have signs of fruit forming on one of those. 

A note of concern is that a lot of the runner bean flowers seem to be dropping off without any sign of actual bans forming - hopefully it's just that there were a lot of flowers so they are naturally thinning themselves out, and the plants will still crop OK. 

The chinese cabbage seeds I sowed at the weekend are already poking through which is impressive - hopefully the pointed ones will follow suit reasonably soon! 

Farway

EssexHebridean said:

A note of concern is that a lot of the runner bean flowers seem to be dropping off without any sign of actual bans forming - hopefully it's just that there were a lot of flowers so they are naturally thinning themselves out, and the plants will still crop OK. 

Heat can cause this, and with this weather I'd guess that's the case

I used to grow both French & runners, they prefer different, cooler or hotter days / nights weather, so if one gets the hump the other should be fine

EssexHebridean

Ahh interesting - thanks Farway - that makes sense as the bush (french) beans seem to be thriving! Hopefully we've a few borlotti's in the mix as well, and I suspect they may also not have any complaints with the weather currently!