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Gardening

Find tips and tricks to make your garden or allotment flourish on our Gardening forum.

Rhubarb Appreciation Society

995 replies

Blackpuddingbertha · 23/03/2013 21:43

Going with Rhihaf's thread name suggestion, following on from the first rule of gardening club is thread.

Pull up your kneeling pads, crack open the elderberry wine and the blackberry gin and come and join us. No real experience or gardening know-how needed.

OP posts:
HumphreyCobbler · 14/04/2013 21:26

The star magnolia will be out by tomorrow.

I am planning a trip to Hidcote to see the tulips. I have not been for about ten years, when I had a magical trip with DH where we were the last in and basically had the entire garden to ourselves for an hour. It was heavenly.

HumphreyCobbler · 14/04/2013 21:37

I am impressed at the barbeque bertha, that IS early!

Engelsemama · 15/04/2013 08:39

Haven't taken any of the dead looking strawberry plants out yet wynken (but was going to so thanks for the advice!). Have just tidied the weeds and dead shoots out. Some new plants coming through already. Have a few in pots or that have wandered from their bed all over the patio so am going to move them today back into the strawberry bed.

I am struggling with Dutch-English translations of things like mulch/compost as I can never find what I want at the garden centre - I'm going to have to ask aren't I?

I think that potgrond is compost, or it might me tuinaarde - I don't know. Maybe someone with some Dutch/flemish knowledge will come along

Engelsemama · 15/04/2013 08:42

Humph you ahve reminded me that I must get myself to Keukenhof to see the tluips in the next 6 weeks before it closes (though i wonder how many flowers are out yet - think they have a live webcam you can look at before you visit!).

It's probably a 90 minute + drive and a friend has said she'd like to come with me so I need to get in touch with her again and make plans.

I could smell a barbeque in our neighbourhood last night as well bertha (though stayed very dry here).

LexyMa · 15/04/2013 08:45

can't help with the translations but I think 'mulch' is more of a verb than a noun. You can mulch with compost, or leaf mould, or bark chips, or gravel, etc etc...

So the time of year and style if border or pot is the deciding factor in what mulch actually is. I think for standard ornamental beds in Autumn/winter you might use leaf mould, and at this time of year I would go for compost and/or bark, providing some fresh nutrients and doing the job of weed suppressing.

Engelsemama · 15/04/2013 09:20

Thanks Lexy. I am showing off how green I am (I am a gardening numptie - never paid attention when my DM was pottering away in the garden).

echt · 15/04/2013 09:34

Strooisellaag is the Dutch word for mulch. I just googled it! Whether it's a verb or noun, or both, as in English, I don't know.

Good suggestions here for making leaf mold, though it can take two years. Wormeries are good, and you don't even have to buy the worms, in the UK, we just set up a open-bottomed compost bin, and the worms turned up on their own. Just remember they don't like citrus, onions, garlic or chillies.

Here in Melbourne autumn is well under way, almost as if it was waiting for the clocks to go back. Lots of frantic planting while the soil is warm And a treat for me: I bought two black kangaroo paw plants. They're not always easy to find, but look so strange. They'll spend the winter in a big pot on the deck so I can look at them from the sofa in spring, lovely when the wattle birds hang off the stems to get at the nectar. This is the first really chilly evening of the year; heating on and curtains drawn. Already planning the making of a third veggie bed in the spring. Smile

cantspel · 15/04/2013 09:40

Engelsemama the only things not to put into compost are meat products, cooked or raw, weeds with seed heads, animal poo or any plant matter you think might be diseased.
Things like old pasta, rice and bread will compost but will attract rats and other vermin so unless you want to be the local vermin feeding station dont compost them.

cantspel · 15/04/2013 09:44

echt until recently i thought you couldn't compost citrus as it is not good for the worms but after a chat with a fella in the garden centre i have found that to be untrue and infact some citrus is good for your compost.

funnyperson · 15/04/2013 09:59

There seem to be 2 types of compost maker: one like an upturned plastic bin called a 'dalek' and the other a cage of wooden slats.
Either seem to be fine, though I dont know if one type makes compost faster than the other.
I have the leaves-in-black-bags type of compost. After 6 months (they went in the black bags in November) they are really still just leaves in black bags, so all the garden journal talk of 'leaf mould' in 3 months really hasn't worked, but I am persisting nevertheless. I wet the leaves and turn them occasionally. I have been keenly reading labels on various 'compost maker' products in the garden centres as possibly adding some compost maker might speed up the process of generating compost. I am quite keen to make my own compost because at least I know what goes in it, and because we have lots of leaves.

funnyperson · 15/04/2013 10:01

For example there is this sort of stuff
www.amazon.co.uk/BiOWiSH-Compost-highest-shortest-possible/dp/B004Q7CHBI/ref=sr_1_1?s=outdoors&ie=UTF8&qid=1366016367&sr=1-1&keywords=compost+accelerator

but I hesitate to use it as I dont know how eco friendly it is and what harm it might do to plants or the soil.

funnyperson · 15/04/2013 10:03

You can also buy 'worms for composting' from Amazon, and again I'm not sure if they are genetically engineered worms or just common garden worms so I havent bought any. It transpires there are worms in the garden anyway.

cantspel · 15/04/2013 10:57

funnyperson dont waste your money buying compost maker. Just get your oh to pee on the compost heap as wee is full of nitrogen which is what you are buying with compost makers. Male pee has more nitrogen then female pee so works better and of course it is a bit easier for your oh to pee in the compost than you.

echt · 15/04/2013 11:22

Glad to hear that about citrus and the worms.

Second the chap peeing in the compost: I think it's a rule of Australian-ness to piss on the lemon tree. Compulsory, it's in the citizenship quiz.:o

Don't buy worms, just set up the compost bin, it's like "Field of Dreams": if you build it, they will come.

funnyperson · 15/04/2013 18:37

Hmmm. The neighbours might have something to say about the pee. Besides I dont want to give the DC any wrong ideas. Anyway we're far too uptight as a family that way. Next door's dog of course pisses in their garden all the time but nothing grows there.
I have googled pissing on lemon trees- seems to be very popular dununder. But echt I don't recall you having a lemon tree?

Maud regarding Venetian borders: how is yours coming along? What is in it so far?

The forgetmenots are flowering!

funnyperson · 15/04/2013 18:42

I laughed to myself thinking of our last neighbour's meeting (the one where they agreed to the wildflower seeds) at which I mentioned that it would be nice to have a communal compost heap in the wild area. The look of horror on the face of the very decent retired neurosurgeon had to be seen to be believed! I think if we started peeing in the garden, we would be a)found out and b)politely ignored on Sundays. Grin

echt · 15/04/2013 18:58

I have a lemon tree growing in an espaliered style against the garage wall, facing full north. It hasn't flowered or fruited yet but I'm hopeful for next spring. Now I think of it, DH hasn't wee'd on it.

Dawnywoo · 15/04/2013 20:05

The forgetmenots are flowering here too funny I love their happy colour. People round here pull them out and say they are 'like weeds' Indeed MIL says 'oh, but they self seed all over' like its a bad thing in the same way that she thinks all conifers will grow to be 50ft tall and your neighbours will complain about you to the Daily Mail or something. (heaven forbid anyone is credited with the sense to prune anything!)

Anyway, rant over. So, DD (17 months) ate my Dahlia seedlings today. I Googled toxicity first, then re-sowed only for her to dig them up again. Agggh. I swear I only turned my back for a second (she was in conservatory with me while I was watering - 27 degrees it was!)

Now, if that doesn't prove I need a greenhouse, and also need to keep everything else under lock and key I don't know what does.

funnyperson · 15/04/2013 20:11

Haha no wonder it hasn't flowered then!

A rather nice thing has happened since I mentioned next door's weeing dog. Shortly after I posted I heard voices and hammering and excitement from next door. I looked out the window (no net curtain to twitch so only a discreet stare) to see three of the four boys digging the beds, (to a depth of 1 inch) followed by edging the beds with bamboo edging followed by planting of blue hyacinths in flower, and tulips in bud, followed by hacking pruning of roses and mowing of lawn. It is their mother's birthday shortly, and I am fairly certain this would be a birthday present for their mother. They are aged 18-12 so it was a lovely sight- they were very intent on getting the bamboo edging just straight. So much in the spirit of National Gardening Week! I thought of taking some seeds and compost over, but then thought the better of it as they are so obviously and justifiably proud of their plans and work!

funnyperson · 15/04/2013 20:13

dawnywoo I suspect the dahlia seedlings are harmless. Indeed some dahlias are edible. The squirrels round here love to eat dahlias and lilies and tulips. They leave the narcissi and snowdrops alone at least.

funnyperson · 15/04/2013 20:29

dawnywoo sorry after today I will not post for a week but I just wanted to say that when the DC were little I made sure to plant nothing poisonous just in case the DC or pets ate some by mistake. (DC and pets were always messing about in the garden)
So laburnum and aconite(monkshood) and foxgloves (digitalis) were out but marigolds and nasturtiums were fine.
Here is a nice list of edible flowers
homecooking.about.com/library/weekly/blflowers.htm

HumphreyCobbler · 15/04/2013 21:05

I too have found that leaf mould is not as quickly made as the books say it is.

Had a lovely time potting up in the open sheds - it is brilliant finally having everything to hand. We even have a DH height bench and a Humphrey sized bench Grin. Still have not ordered the greenhouse, thought we had found one that had higher eaves than the other. Then I noticed it was exactly the same photo as the previous one we were looking at. Turned out the the extra height was a misprint

It was a busy day today, we had a guy in to help and he and DH dug over the turf in the last irregular bed in order to prepare for the wildflowers, the other irregular bed with all the geraniums was mulched and the turf taken up either side of the path through the crab apple walk so that we can plant the box hedge. The crab apples show signs of blossom. I salvaged all my rose geranium cuttings as well as various other scented geraniums that have barely survived my hyperemesis neglect. I also bought a saxifage from Wilkinsons (have left label outside and can't remember which one), it was £1.98, as well as three trailing ivy for the shelf in the verandah.

echt - I love the sound of the wattle birds.

Blackpuddingbertha · 15/04/2013 22:00

No sign of the forget me nots here Sad. I let them go where they want in the patch of lawn they come up in and won't let DH mow them as I'm rather partial to forget me nots. In good years we get a carpet of them in the orchard.

I have, however, today noticed that I have a hellebore about to flower! I'm shocked as these are the offer seedlings I got a couple of months ago so hadn't expected flowers until next year. Interestingly, the one flowering had its stem bitten off experimentally by a rabbit (who then decided that they weren't good to eat) as soon as I planted it. It then grew a mini stem in replacement and now the flower. I think one other may also flower and that was a bit dodgy looking too.

OP posts:
Blackpuddingbertha · 15/04/2013 22:01

I have saxifrage. They've never flowered. Hoping they'll prove a bit more successful this year now they're a bit bigger.

OP posts:
Rhubarbgarden · 16/04/2013 13:01

Hi, I haven't had chance to do anything in the garden for a few days. But nice to read what everyone else has been up to. I did have someone in yesterday to remove the ivy and brambles from the orchard walls though, which is a huge improvement. It had reached epic proportions down in the north west facing corner and now it's gone it's left a big gap so all the cars coming up the road can see straight in. There's a yew hedge along the west facing side but it stops about six feet before the corner, as there were several monster overgrown laurels there, plus the ivy craziness. With the ivy gone, and the laurels mostly cut back, it's horribly bare. Fortunately I've got three or four yew plants left over from the other hedge planting so I'll bung them in the gap next time I get chance.

Then I've got to decide what to do with the newly bare walls. They are north and west facing (house wall makes up south facing side - got wisteria and a rose on that). Any suggestions? I'm planning to do peach fans on the other side of the east facing wall; they'll be on the drive side rather than in the orchard but hey ho.