Humph's Happy Horti-cult: harvesting, preserving, mulching, leaf-gathering, bulb-dibbing, seed catalogue-surfing and hunkering down for winter

[Lexilicious]

Following on from the original March to August thread. For all - whether still gardening through the winter or planning to sweep the shed, hibernate, sharpen the tools and get started again in the spring.

Happy gardening again!

When do all you experts out there plant your shallots? I was going to start them early (I've got some time off work in Feb) but now I've seen the weather forecast and I'm wondering whether to delay until March. Do you plant anything at all in Feb (onion/garlic/early broad beans)? Or would I be better just spending the time having a good clearout?

Same problem with cat poo in my raised beds in the garden. Every night. I tried cat pepper and citronella sticks to no avail, so today I have put lots of prickly prunings strewn over, and some upright. I'll see how that goes.

hello everyone

just got back from a fellow mner's house - she has given us LOADS of snowdrops in the green How fabulous is that? They come from a field she will use for grazing so she told DH to help himself. I hope she meant it, he appears to have taken her at her word. There are nine clumps .

We will put them in all around the crab apple walk.

pourmeanotherglass - hopefully someone else will be around to give some information about shallots. I am not what you would call an experienced gardener....

I have heard that moth balls are good at putting cats off. Have not tried it myself. Also that burying a balloon just under the surface is a good idea as it scares them off when they pop it

Ooh good, fellow gardeners here for a chat.

I would be fairly bold about planting onions/shallots, but be ready with some fleece in case of a very hard frost.

I spent a very satisfying couple of hours tidying up - removing fallen leaves from the beds (I leave them as insulation, but now that things are starting to push through, don't want rotting leaves on the crowns of emerging plants), potting up seedlings that are in the wrong place. The free plants that came from GW magazine are beginning to shift, so I'm mentally planning what's going where (and what's going to the gardening club sale because I don't want it at home).

More on cats - a turbo waterpistol, if you're a good shot?

Oh, oh, oh. Hellbores now starting to flower and some snowdrops too. Crocuses in what used to be the lawn but is now a mix of moss, weeds and bald bits.

::Must try harder with lawn::

I can't get worried about lawns - as long as they are green I don't mind the moss. I have a few crocus out but the hellebores are going for it. They are one of the few things we kept from before, and there are two huge clumps. I really wish I had got around to splitting them last year as they would have looked fantastic now.

Exactly, Humphrey. I don't mind the moss when it's amongst the grass but when the grass has gone AWOL and there's only moss and creeping buttercup it's a bit grim!

I think there are a few hellebores still to make an appearance. Last year I had enough to pick them for the house. There are always lots of hellebore seedlings at our spring plant sale - I think I'll buy as many as I can, to fill gaps.

I've got mud with the occasional bit of grass and moss

Maud and Bertha, sorry I vanished and hadn't sent the Oca. It's in envelopes now with address labels so will go off very shortly. All been a bit manic as starting work this week.

That's really kind of you, Wynken. If you enclose your address I'll reciprocate with some lucky dip seeds!

Thank you Maud, that would be lovely. Have PM'd you.

The Oca don't look very impressive just to warn you but I think that was lack of frost this year which I'm sure I read they need. Nothing to do with my gardening skills obviously, absolutely not !

Came home today to find that DH had planted the snowdrops. They look fantastic, he split them up into about twenty small clumps at one end of the crab apple walk, leading into what we optimistically call the woodland garden bit (in that there are a couple of ferns and it is shady).

Have def decided to do the three sisters planting on one of the beds of the round veg patch.

Do you think the three sisters planting could become like naice ham, a way of identifying MN gardeners? After all, we may have lurkers!

I don't seem to have enough snowdrops, in that I am sure several clumps have vanished. Ho hum.

Now I have snowdrop envy. Must get some for next year...

I do have moss though, lots of moss.

Thank you Wynken - sure I can't persuade you (or anyone else) to have some jerusalem artichokes?

I think I've decided to put a long, skinny but deep raised bed in along a fence to house the asparagus (haven't told DH yet) as I think this may be cheaper than buying pots big enough. DH is away this weekend, I may just take the opportunity to get the tools out and construct it while he's absent and see how long it takes him to notice

Oooh, I'd like some Jerusalem artichokes. I have a few whch have lingered in the pot since last year, but will always be glad of more. I can send you some lucky dip seeds in return.

::snurk:: at building a raised bed and waiting for dh to notice. I wish I had the diy skills to do the same.

I expect DH has nicked your snowdrops, he has form.

We must put in asparagus somewhere.

::Lady Bracknell voice::

Are you saying your husband is a felon, Humphrey?

he would given half the chance.....

he took up FlopEmOuts offer of some snowdrops rather, er, enthusiastically and in a wholesale manner. There are loads of them!

Ah, but it's not felony if it's by invitation even if liberties were taken.

Maud - PM me and I'll dig you some up and send them on. Let me know roughly how many you'd like

Not promising my raised bed won't end up wonky but I'll give it a go. We also have a friendly sawmill at the end of the track who will probably cut some stuff down to size for me if I ask nicely and pay so all I'll have to do is screw it together.

I have wrapped up my broad beans in some fleece in an attempt to keep them cozy. They are not looking that well . Putting fleece over two foot high beans in a freezing north wind would have been quite comic if my hands hadn't been in quite so much pain. DH helpfully watched from the kitchen window...

I think that's known as providing strategic direction and oversight, Bertha.

I did the fleece too but it was easy to just lay it over them... because I haven't got them tied in on poles/netting. Was I supposed to? oops.

Also dug up some bulbs which were emerging in the veg side if the garden. Some snowdrops and some with straight leaves but no buds yet. I heeled them in on the flowery side and hope for the best. Ground was frozen even at 4pm though, all sort of chunky.

Oh, was that what it was Maud? I swear I could see him laughing.

My broad beans are tied to short poles Lex as the winds a few weeks ago were not being kind to them. However today I added more hoops and then tried to wind the fleece over, around, across the hoops and tie it all in whilst it all flapped about and I froze. All I can say is I'd better get some beans out of these plants! Not even sure I like broad beans just thought I'd try it as an experiment this year. If I knew they were going to be this namby pamby I'd have thought again. Can't be doing with fussy vegetables.

well DH loves broad beans so I'm hoping for a great crop. Also sowed Alderman peas which are looking well, will have to figure out how to string/pole them up in a month though.

I am stuck at home for the next day or so because DS has chicken pox. May get out in the garden, or just gaze wistfully at it from inside...

REMEMBER TO FEED THE BIRDS EVERYONE!!

Oh help, Fothergills catalogue has arrived, lots of perennials in it. Don't let me buy anything.