Rhubarb Appreciation Society

[Blackpuddingbertha]

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.

Oh and don't eat there - go to the Daylesford Organic cafe on Pimlico Road instead. It's my annual treat to go there for lunch after my morning at Chelsea. Tis truly lovely.

My Chelsea trip is don't go and spend the ticket money on plants instead, but that is because I am a short arse petite and got trampled underfoot, the only time I went to Chelsea! Seriously, have a lovely time. Eating at Daylesford Organics sounds a delightful idea.

I have never been to Columbia Road. Woe is me.

Err, Chelsea tip.

Get yourself off to Columbia Road this Sunday then Maud

I've never been, I might this weekend too. MN London gardeners' meetup?

Oh the wind!! I had to re-peg my polytunnel sort of thing yesterday afternoon (a 6x2m sheet like a triangular tent along 6m of a 1m wide border). I had made slashes in the sides so it wasn't quite such a wind-catching sail, but the eddying of the gusts down at ground level in the garden is seriously buffeting it. Survived the joght though.

My dicentra (yes yes I know, but I can never remember the right name) which I just saw emerging when I planted the chionodoxa about ten days ago... is now six inches high and very bushy. It would almost certainly have been possible to divide but I think not now.

My strimmer has arrived! But not the battery pack and charger so I can't play with it yet. I went for the Stihl in the end. Bit naughty.

We're going on the Wednedsay, coached now booked. We don't arrive at Victoria till 11.45. Are we best off going to Daylesford Organic for lunch first as you can't get back in once you've gone out of the flower show can you ? Return coach is gone 8pm so we've the rest of the day. Sorry you got trampled Maud.

What's Columbia Road ? That's good your Dicentra has come up Lexy, mine all died. No prizes to guessing what Rhubarb is up to this weekend!

I bought 5 alpines for a fiver (including 3 saxifrage) on the way back from the dentist plus some perennial plugs have just arrived. Special offer from a paper, thing is I can't remember what they are and they don't seem to be labelled ....

I don't know what Columbia Road is either, Wynken.

Just dug a trench for the sweet peas. Will put some manure in tomorrow and then plant up. Both DC are off school due to a sickness bug, luckily it seems quite short lived as they both seem fine now after being sick in the lego box

Greenhouse arrives on Monday, so does wood for the plinth. I wish I was less cack handed so I could build the plinth, DH will not have time to get around to it for a while.

Rhubarb, looks like a great strimmer! We need a strimmer....

Sorry. It's a big Sunday street market for plants and flowers in the East End of London. Great fun and lots of lovely things, often good value too.

Oh this really is exciting stuff - greenhouses, asparagus, clear-outs, chelsea tickets, plant bargains and general loveliness. Hurrah for spring!

My peonies have gone bonkers in the last week, shooting up several inches and looking beautifully pink and defiantly standing proud (ha! take that, wind!)

The daffs have burst into bloom on the bank that runs between us and the field, my saxifridge is covered in flowers and my chard has germinated in the greenhouse! joy!

For the (non-London area) country bumpkins amongst us, where is everyone else? I'm west Wales...(planning a MN gardening meet somewhere, one day)

I meant to put a grin after my comment about Columbia road, reading back that looks a bit snarky!

It all sounds lovely rhihaf. I am up for a meet up. Are you going to Malvern by any chance?

I have had a nice afternoon weeding in the garden. My tulips in a tub by the front door were closed this morning but have all opened up in the sun today.

I have had fun using my Opinel knife to carve up the hostas that I am dividing, potting up and taking to the plant sale. It may take weeks for my hands to be clean again!

Sick in the Lego box Highly jealous of peonies as have one which doesn't ever flower . And of Hostas thinking about it as mine all got slugged. Columbia Road sounds great. I'm down in Dorset Rhihaf.

I've potted up my mystery perennials and been tidying up the greenhouse . Isn't it lovely to be outside without lots of layers on.

Oh it's joyous, Wynken. I only had to come in for 5 minutes when we had a brief hail shower.

Arbour now finished. Too cold for wine tonight though. Does anyone have any garden light recommendations? I'm fancying making it all twinkly.

My tulips are still way off flowering too. Daffodils are getting close though (shady spot so takes them a while). Is it just me or do the daffs all look particularly tall this year?

I have leeks and onions germinating in the garden finally & all my runner beans popped up in the conservatory today . Still no asparagus, I am talking to the bed in an encouraging manner every time I pass it; will that help?

Never heard of Columbia Road either but sounds wonderful.

I'm in Sussex, recently moved down from London.

Wynken I don't think there's much in it re Daylesford - depends on if you are most likely to be hungry before or after the show! They're open till 8pm.

I dug out eleven more barrow-loads of compost today. It's seriously compacted now I'm getting down towards the bottom. I had to dig out three brambles too.

Had fencing man round to quote for replacing a length of rotten fence. Fencing man is very handsome

I like the sound of your knife, Maud. I would like a decent gardening knife.

I am another sussex gardener. Been down here 15 years now as we moved from surrey when i was pregnant with my youngest.
Rhubarbgarden if your quote comes out too high i know a very good fencer who is very reasonable. I dont know if he is as handsome as your man though.

Thanks!

:: Arf :: at handsome fencing man. Be warned that the landscaper who messed up my garden path was handsome, too.

My daffodils - Thalia and something else - have finally flowered this week and are very tall too. I have some tulips that are close to flowering but most I reckon are a fortnight away from flowering. Those in the permanently-planted window boxes seem not to be coming back this year. Boo.

I do recommend Opinel knives. Less sure now of Hayloft Plants as two of my penstemon cuttings have wilted - is there any hope for them? Perhaps I should separate them from the others, before they succumb too.

Thanks Rhubarb, we'll play it by ear. DH is originally from Sussex and has family there. Congratulations Bertha on the Arbour. Fingers crossed for a better weekend so you can get out there.

Which of the knives hav you got Maud ? I don't know about the Penstemon. I potted up 4 cuttings recently which looked fine for a bit, but two now have collapsed. I guess best to separate, better safe than sorry .

I am intrigued as to what comes up this year. In addition to the 24 mystery perennial plugs (4 different varieties) I have just found two pots from a plant sale last year that I didn't plant and they've now sprung back to life. They are also without labels.

My daffs seem quite tall thinking about it. One solitary tulip is out. It's white and a bit puny so not making any impact. Hope the rest hurry up. Sun's out and I'm not working. Have the urge to paint the garden table and go to the allotment but know I should crack on with the house as my Dad is coming tomorrow.

A snail has eaten my newly planted clematis. Is there any hope that a new shoot will come up from the roots ?

Arbour sounds lovely - I wish I could see a picture. Any news on the photo front from MNHQ?

The daffodils in the pots along the boring wall are really brightening things up, so pleased we did this. There are about 12 pots, evenly spaced along it. Spring green tulips will come later. The only thing spoiling the view is the large heap of stone that is the bell tower DH bought a couple of years ago. I think he plans to extend the garden into the orchard and to plonk it there eventually, but until we have built the track through the orchard we have no way of getting it down. So there it sits

Can anyone recommend a book on plant propagation? I am looking forward to getting stuck in now that I will have a greenhouse. DH is so focused on the hard landscaping and planting, he has such clear ideas and carries me along with the force of his conviction and I find that I need an area that is mine, all mine so that I feel I make more of a contribution than just the housekeeping gardening/tidying/weeding etc. Having small children also seems to take up an awful lot of my thinking space, does anyone else find this? I get stuff done but I need some quiet time on my own before I can THINK of what I need to get done!

Humph - totally know what you mean re thinking space. Gardening is when I process a lot of stuff mentally, but obv only when DH or somebody is watching DS Have no idea where Malvern is, sorry! My geography, along with knowledge of flowers and public gardens, is generally zero.

Bertha - what about twinkly fairy lights? I think I saw some LED ones in Ikea the other day, I've used LEDs for Xmas outside (3rd yr now)and have never got round to taking them down , but they're still going strong! Arbour sounds luuuurvely.....(goes into lovely bucolic daydream)

Wynken - my peonies are from Poundland! Stuck them in and they just carry on, despite dog's best efforts at trampling new border. Have 3 in multipurpose compost in new bed, and last year stuck them in existing very heavy clay. They've all come up, somehow

Maud (or anyone really!) is it too late to divide hostas? I have a huge one that's just got tiny shoots on (less than an inch high) but it's so old that i can't get a spade into it... any tips?
thanks x

My boys are now 15 and nearly 17 so the only thing i have to think about for them is if there is enough food in the fridge to keep them going.
On the plus side of having teens is you no longer have to worry about footballs trashing the plants and i get cheap labour out of them for things like fence painting and lunging heavy pots around. Otherwise they tend to think of me as the mad plant lady and do alot of eye rolling at me if i try to show them my lastest purchase or flower in bloom.

Humph, MNHQ like the picture idea but it takes time to put on the Tech to-do list that's all...

And oh god yes I agree about needing a sanctuary from small child/ren. My shed has just enough room to sit, partly hidden by the potting bench, and be able to access the drawer with all the labels, magazines, wish lists... All I need is DH to talk to the electrician nd get the spur laid across the lawn so I can have power in there for a radio and gin fridge kettle. Then I'll start lusting after electric propagators no doubt...!!