Gardening update

guinnessaddick

lady leitrim osteospermum from my garden.

N01R4M

Have recently bought myself a telescopic pole lopper (for tree branches) and a hedge trimmer, and both are getting a lot of use - the back garden has 4 ft high beech hedges either side, and a wooded area at the end, where I've been clearing an excess of squirrel-planted hazel saplings and pruning a holly and a bay tree.  The "green" wheelie bin fills up all too quickly, and I'm begging additional space from my neighbours.  However, it is all worth the effort.

Covered End

N01R4M said:

Have recently bought myself a telescopic pole lopper (for tree branches) and a hedge trimmer, and both are getting a lot of use - the back garden has 4 ft high beech hedges either side, and a wooded area at the end, where I've been clearing an excess of squirrel-planted hazel saplings and pruning a holly and a bay tree.  The "green" wheelie bin fills up all too quickly, and I'm begging additional space from my neighbours.  However, it is all worth the effort.

You need a telescopic pole lopper for a 4 ft hedge?

Solidgone

jonseventyfive said:

Nice bit of cactus action got a fair few myself, however since going to Ibiza this summer, I'm having a go trying to get some cannabis seeds going that some how turned up in my case. 

Cannabis is easy to grow (a friend told me) they just need a lot of water. Also another tip is to wire the lighting up to the next door neighbour’s electricity or directly to the nearest street light otherwise it will cost a fortune. 

I brought  a couple of cacti back from the canaries and now realise that it’s a pain handling them. One of them was only about 8” high when I brought it home and now 1’6”. It sits on the window ledge leaning against the window doing its own thing as I can’t move it. So be aware!

Solidgone

N01R4M

Covered End said:

N01R4M said:

Have recently bought myself a telescopic pole lopper (for tree branches) and a hedge trimmer, and both are getting a lot of use - the back garden has 4 ft high beech hedges either side, and a wooded area at the end, where I've been clearing an excess of squirrel-planted hazel saplings and pruning a holly and a bay tree.  The "green" wheelie bin fills up all too quickly, and I'm begging additional space from my neighbours.  However, it is all worth the effort.

You need a telescopic pole lopper for a 4 ft hedge?

Yeh - I'm another shortarse!  Even Solly towers over me.

Oddly enough, the lopper is for the wooded area, which contains mature trees...

Dippenhall

Spuds out the ground now finding room to store them.

jonseventyfive

Solidgone said:

That's a cracker, but what is going on just below the waist. 

guinnessaddick

Took the decision this year to get rid of the lawn at the front and let go go wild, threw some seed down a few months ago. It’s attracted a lots of bees and insects.

lolwray

Fantastic ^

charltonkeston

guinnessaddick said:

Took the decision this year to get rid of the lawn at the front and let go go wild, threw some seed down a few months ago. It’s attracted a lots of bees and insects.

I think that was a brave move to do something to a front garden that many would shy away from. It could have ended up a weed patch like some of those on Gardeners World. 
It takes a considerable effort to do and maintain what you have done there. 
My front garden experiment was to grow chilli plants in with my bedding plants and cannas.  My front garden gets absolutely baked so ideal conditions, I thought the reds and yellows of the fruit would look a bit different among the normal flowers. 

jonseventyfive

Not much happening on here, so I thought I'd show you a picture of my old man,, he's about 20yrs old but I think he may be gender confused, something is going on below the belt line.

meldrew66

Why is my lawn covered with hundreds of 'worm casts' this year? It's never been like this before and is a pain when walking on it or mowing the lawn as the casts become dirty splats when you tread on them. I've tried picking up the earth to reduce that but they come back and it's now getting out of hand. Someone said I should 'roll' the grass. Is that going to solve/reduce the problem? Helllllllppppppppp!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

....apparently, this is the answer:

ME14addick

@guinnessaddick what an amazing sight that must be, well done, so much better for the environment than a sterile lawn or concrete.

charltonkeston

meldrew66 said:

Why is my lawn covered with hundreds of 'worm casts' this year? It's never been like this before and is a pain when walking on it or mowing the lawn as the casts become dirty splats when you tread on them. I've tried picking up the earth to reduce that but they come back and it's now getting out of hand. Someone said I should 'roll' the grass. Is that going to solve/reduce the problem? Helllllllppppppppp!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

....apparently, this is the answer:

I would use a stiff broom, (witches style) and just brush them out. Worm casts, so I've been told, contain nitrogen which would probably save you the expense of the above. 
Its a continual battle with nature and you will probably lose.

Raith_C_Chattonell

I've always thought worms were good. 

It proves the earth is in good condition and the worms provide aeration.  The worst enemy of lawns is compaction. Their casts can be brushed away.

https://www.rolawn.co.uk/information-centre/turf-lawns/lawn-aftercare/earthworms-in-your-lawn/#:~:text=Underneath the lawn, earthworm activity,needed for healthy grass plants.

 

charltonkeston

3 pictures of my grass. April rake out and top dressing with a bit of seed. May and now. Nothing special,a mix of different grasses which I’ve tried to grow over the last few years. The weeds keep appearing as quickly as I remove them. As long as it’s green I’m happy. 

jonseventyfive

Cannas look great as well.

charltonkeston

jonseventyfive said:

Cannas look great as well.

Thanks but they are all but finished flowering now. Those ones were split in the spring. We chopped them up into clumps with an old wood saw and just put them into pots. I thought some would not grow but they all did, they must be weeds in their natural habitat. The ones in the picture were spare, along with loads of others, hence the reused plastic tubs. We gave away about a dozen pots.  We put 7 out the front where the sun shines all day, the purple leaf ones grow wild with plenty of flower spikes and get about 7 foot tall. Easiest plants grow, you can’t feed or water them enough, absolutely indestructible. 

jonseventyfive

charltonkeston said:

jonseventyfive said:

Cannas look great as well.

Thanks but they are all but finished flowering now. Those ones were split in the spring. We chopped them up into clumps with an old wood saw and just put them into pots. I thought some would not grow but they all did, they must be weeds in their natural habitat. The ones in the picture were spare, along with loads of others, hence the reused plastic tubs. We gave away about a dozen pots.  We put 7 out the front where the sun shines all day, the purple leaf ones grow wild with plenty of flower spikes and get about 7 foot tall. Easiest plants grow, you can’t feed or water them enough, absolutely indestructible. 

Same here, I started with a couple, years ago, got loads of them now , I need to protect in winter though, up here.