BS: How does your garden grow?

Subject: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 26 Jul 23 - 11:29 AM

I have mentioned before that our lawn is full of Heal All (Prunella Vulgaris) It is a lovely little low growing plant but a no-no for lawn lovers. Which, luckily, I am not :-) Under the Leylandii - not planted by us I must say - the red valerian grows like wildfire. Up to now I have the makings of a herbalists :-D In the bed between us and next door I have spotted yarrow, meadow phlox and toadflax. The sea holly that I dug up a couple of years back is making a comeback and the poppies that we never planted keep popping up in all sorts of odd places!

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 26 Jul 23 - 11:39 AM

The largest part of my yard is toast, but I water around the base of the house to keep the foundation in place, so there is "lawn" (grass and weeds) there. There are a couple of native groundcovers (horseherb and frogfruit) growing as much as I can encourage it, to gradually crowd out the turf.

My vegetable garden is struggling with the heat and there are more grasshoppers this year. I water deeply and infrequently (so for the veggies, a deep watering about once a week, and buckets of gray water from dish washing poured over them for a quick rescue if they're wilting too badly during the day).

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Donuel
Date: 26 Jul 23 - 12:11 PM

Chinese lanterns and ivy have taken over. At least it's not kudzu.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 26 Jul 23 - 04:17 PM

My ex was over today and cooperatively helped by picking the various tiny cherry tomatoes that I have ignored for a few days. He didn't take any home with him because he still has some from the last time he helped pick the cherry tomatoes. I ended up with an extra plant this year, and while cherry tomatoes will set fruit when it's too hot for everything else, they get to be tedious after a while.

It's time to start new squash from seed; the current ones had a pretty good run, but they've been under assault by squash beetles for a while now and are looking really tattered and yellow. We have a long growing season so I should get another crop in September and October. Eggplant and okra are just getting started and there are a few small poblano peppers; they'll really take off in the fall. It seems ironic that hot peppers are happier in the cooler weather. :)

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 26 Jul 23 - 05:36 PM

My garden is growing wild this year. A combination of a horrible April and several (temporary) bouts of ill-health* have nobbled me. All my flowery bits look every bit as nice as usual, and my grass is lush and tamed, but I've more or less ditched the concept of veg this year. I'm fine with that, the wildlife loves the scruffiness and I'll be back next year!

*Two doses of cellulitis and, much worse, a really bad two-month bout of sciatica. All's well now!

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 26 Jul 23 - 07:06 PM

There is no longer anyone at home able to go round looking at the garden but from what I do see from windows, I think Alan is doing a good job. He only does 1 and occasionally 2 hours a week and I'm sure that some parts have to be left to go wild particularly in the field but he is at least managing to keep the front part and the path at the side of the house tidy. I'd imagine that to someone coming in from the gate, the garden looks quite good.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Senoufou
Date: 27 Jul 23 - 02:48 AM

While sitting on my bench out the front, I've managed to get up occasionally and pull out some weeds. But mowing both lawns is a bit too much for me. A couple of days ago,my husband arrived home from his work at 5.30pm and suddenly declared he'd mow both lawns before having his shower! He then decided to do some weeding behind the greenhouse as well. I was so pleased. He didn't seem too tired, and he likes to see our garden looking tidy as much as I do.
Steve, I hope you're feeling better now. Sorry you've been poorly quite a bit this year.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 27 Jul 23 - 01:55 PM

I've just harvested some cauliflowers and shallots from a couple of little boxes at the back. It was fun but I don't think I'll bother next year. The local farm shop is easier and cheaper :-)

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Black belt caterpillar wrestler
Date: 27 Jul 23 - 03:29 PM

We are in danger of being snowed under with fruit again this year.

Strawberries, black currants, raspberries, gooseberries, blackberries, apples, plums, sloes and blueberries all seem to do well but pears and damsons do not. Something to do with the acidity or the altitude?

Robin

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Howard Jones
Date: 28 Jul 23 - 08:44 AM

Everything in my garden is growing like wildfire, except the stuff I've actually planted.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 28 Jul 23 - 10:02 AM

Herself complains along those lines, Howard, but rejoices when the
itinerant seed of something she likes decides to plant itself where it'll flourish. One of the favourite sayings on Gardeners' Question Time was "a weed is a wild flower in the wrong place" (in our case, said place is the alleged lawn).

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 28 Jul 23 - 01:25 PM

The basil came back all volunteer this year, after planting a packet of seeds in a large bin last year. Same with garlic, oregano, and some of the sweet potatoes. Everything else was planted intentionally. The weedy grass and nutgrass (or nut sedge) and spiderwort are all happy in the garden and get trimmed back every couple of weeks.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: keberoxu
Date: 29 Jul 23 - 12:49 PM

While the gardeners hereabouts are harvesting from their gardens,
the mosquitoes are feasting on the gardeners.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 29 Jul 23 - 12:56 PM

The phlox is getting prettier and prettier

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: keberoxu
Date: 01 Aug 23 - 08:13 AM

The garden where I am staying has got
more KALE than anybody knows what to do with --
it's growing faster than we can eat it.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 01 Aug 23 - 09:52 AM

I pulled out the squash; there was a nice crop this year but the plants were sprawled and burned up, as happens every year. The cucumber is about to be pulled, and both of those can have new plants started from seed. I'll trim back the tomatoes and they'll put out new shoots for fall fruit.

It all needs to be done early (7am or before) to not overheat.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 01 Aug 23 - 11:29 AM

I've just been reminded by the request for Old Dame Hollyhock above the line: Our hollyhocks, much to Herself's dischuff, delight in sowing themselves in the cracks between our patio paving stones. She's attempting to herd them upwind into the flower beds, but so far with limited success. Meanwhile, we've seen neither hide nor hair of those she hand-sowed in said beds.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 01 Aug 23 - 02:04 PM

With the recent spell of soggyness I have not been able to mow the dandelion patch. It's getting quite meadowy!

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 01 Aug 23 - 07:35 PM

my garden is 4 windowsills with standing & hanging plants. The north facing window has 9 beautiful zygocactus & the last of the mid-year plants (shocking pink), has finished flowering. I now have to wait til the christmas cacti start. They look beautiful behind the sheer lace curtain.

My other 3 windows face the apartment block next door. In 1917 4 terrace houses were razed to make 2 four-storey blocks with a courtyard which once was full of amazing plants, alas the owner retired to a house on the the north coast where his garden grows happily!

The east facing windows contain hanging & standing green plants plus a rescue plant - some leggy red geranium pieces that survived falls from council's hanging baskets!

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Senoufou
Date: 02 Aug 23 - 03:45 AM

My very Norfolk neighbour-across-the-road, Ruth, makes me die laughing at her malapropisms. I sometimes wonder if she does it deliberately, but nonetheless it's so funny. She calls my Alliums 'aliens', my Spirea 'diarrhoea', my Euonymus 'anonymous' and so on. (She does loads of weeding and trimming for me, and I always pay her well, but she thinks I'm far too posh for Norfolk, and she teases me constantly!)

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Aug 23 - 12:23 PM

Anything in the garden right now is being staged and performed early. I pulled out squash, next I'll take the mattock and work over the area, and on another day I'll bring in mulch and plant the seeds. More than 10-15 minutes out there is too much. I'll have to rig a bit of shade over the bed also so the sprouting seeds don't fry on the spot. Or start them in pots in the house and transplant later.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Aug 23 - 12:24 PM

This morning the birds were impatient as I cleaned out the concrete bird baths. I used vinegar to kill algae before rinsing and filling, and every time I turned away to get something there was another bird on the lip of the vessel, thinking about taking a taste. Now the baths are clean and inviting and no one in sight. (Mudcat is crashing w/ more than 1 paragraph today.)

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Donuel
Date: 02 Aug 23 - 04:19 PM

The difference between corn picked 2 minutes prior to boiling and any other corn is that it is a different food. It is very sweet.
The same is true of peas.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 03 Aug 23 - 11:43 AM

> Now the baths are clean and inviting and no one in sight.

You washed away all the nice flavour, SRS; no wonder the birds turn up their beaks at it. Cats are much the same, in always preferring the taste of puddle to the chlorine which humans insist on polluting their water with.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 03 Aug 23 - 12:00 PM

Chlorine isn't good for anything in the yard and would end up in the garden if I used it on the birdbaths. Vinegar when diluted in water has a fertilizer effect; full strength it has a weedkiller effect. Killing algae. I could also use hydrogen peroxide out there.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 03 Aug 23 - 01:19 PM

Herself once asked our vet why our cats preferred puddle to any water we put in their drinking bowl. It's not enough to poison humans, but They dump chlorine in piped water to stop fungal growth and suchlike in the pipes; in summer, there's enough that even I can smell it. Cats' noses are much more sensitive ....

Give it a few days for the traces of chlorine (and vinegar) to dissipate, SRS, and methinks the birds will be back.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Senoufou
Date: 05 Aug 23 - 03:25 AM

I have a very naughty pigeon that visits our birdbath. After he's had a drink, he does a poo in the water, so I have to go out there, empty the birdbath, scrub it out and refill it. Grrr!
Our next-door neighbour Ashley came round last evening with a huge bag of lovely runner beans for us, which his wife has cultivated in their back garden. Delicious!

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 05 Aug 23 - 04:02 AM

If you have a soupçon of boiled water left in your kettle after making a cup of tea, let it cool and give that to the cat. It no longer contains chlorine. Works for Polly the cat in our house.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 05 Aug 23 - 10:40 AM

The birds return as soon as whoever is filling the birdbath moves away, usually. Letting water with chlorine in it sit there for birds invites problems for the birds. The amount already in tap water is more than enough.

I fill a pitcher with water from the filter on the fridge, and it sits out for a while until I pour it into the kettle. That also lets the chlorine off gas.

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 06 Aug 23 - 07:55 PM

Strawberries now finished, but raspberries still coming. Masses of lovely sweet peas!
French beans and courgettes doing well, runner beans not far behind.
Hanging baskets and big tubs looking good.
Husband does all the gardening here, as well as keeping son’s and daughter’s gardens under control and watered enough!
And, not in the garden, but out and about, looks like there will be a great blackberry harvest this year!

Subject: RE: BS: How does your garden grow?
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 07 Aug 23 - 04:47 AM

Our blackcurrants are so plentiful this year that, despite Herself giving punnets (or whatever) away to everybody in sight, she has given up and left the currants on the plants; so I can pick myself a handy snack when I'm mowing the weed patch. Meanwhile, she forgot to pull the rhubarb this season until the flavour had largely drained away.