Blooming into Flaming June

[Blackpuddingbertha]

Keeping the potting shed party going from the previous Rhubarb Society thread and all threads before it.

Please feel free to join in all gardeners, whether novice, professional or aspiring. Plenty of blackberry gin for all.

[Blackpuddingbertha]

New thread over here.

Come on over. I have

[ComeIntoTheGardenMaud]

Arf at "blimey it's Baywatch"!

[Rhubarbgarden]

There have been two ridiculously handsome young men at the bottom of my garden all week, replacing fencing and rebuilding my compost heaps. As it has been rather warm and humid, they keep taking their shirts off. I am keeping them supplied with diet coke.

Even my rather prim church-going neighbour came over all breathless, and her husband observed "blimey it's Baywatch".

I'm not ogling them from behind the curtains. At all.

No ideas for a thread title. Will mull it over.

[Blackpuddingbertha]

I've done the last two (with helpful suggestions for titles) so someone else's turn ::also lacking inspiration::

Today's observation; I know bindweed is evil but I've spent today admiring it in the countryside hedgerows, looks lovely all in flower.

[ComeIntoTheGardenMaud]

A friend of mine has a swimming pond. 'Tis glorious.

Who will start the new thread?

::lacking inspiration::

[funnyperson]

Would love a natural swimming pond. I will put it on the 'if I win the lottery' list.
Have spent a lovely day looking at an easel and watching blue fountains with DD.

[Blackpuddingbertha]

I also covet natural swimming ponds. If we were able to buy the land around us, that current owner has abandoned but refuses to sell, I wanted to put one where the old tennis court was. I am refusing to look at Rhubarb's link as I may cry. DH and I were lamenting the land last night as it's being so over grown with some type of tree that spreads by runners that soon we're going to be surrounded by an un-passable thicket. Last year we strimmed it back but it's too badly overgrown this year to try that again. It's heart breaking. The runners also come up in our lawn quicker than the grass grows, we have no idea what they are but they are very determined.

It threw it down here today...for two minutes, and was dry again five minutes later. Haven't watered today other than a few of the pots that get very thirsty. Hoping for more rain tomorrow.

Ponders the idea of white currant wine...

[MousyMouse]

I've got a new rose!

my mil brought me a hansestadt rostock from the international garden show in germany. I hope I can go when we visit in august.

[Rhubarbgarden]

Natural swimming pondporn

Echt your bromeliads sound fabulous. No thunderstorms or rain here. Am very disappointed. Everything is desperate for water and my hose won't stretch round the whole garden.

[echt]

The neighbours' watering reported upthread has got me thinking, as we're planning a big trip in the summer, into the interior of this wide brown land. Neither of our neighbours seems to have an idea about gardening, and DD is no better. Hmmm.

It's been peeing down here, and rather cold, but I see the hyacinths are coming up. The native hardenbergia is doing well. Some bromeliads are blooming: bilbergia nutans, as well as a species of bromeliad with brilliant purple and fuchsia toothbrush-shaped blooms are just starting.

[Bumbez]

That's a fair point humph mine are older now 8 and 10, I didn't fancy one in the last house when they were much younger.

I've never heard of a swimming pond that would be amazing.

White currant wine?

I didn't water last night as rain was forecast, no rain though and the heavy downpour for today has changed to a light drizzle!

[Rhubarbgarden]

Possession, not position.

[Blackpuddingbertha]

As we haven't strimmed around the edges of the lawn for a while (lazy) it's a little overgrown, tonight I noticed that the borage has actually self-seeded itself in the lawn! I've asked DH to strim around it next time so the bees get to appreciate it. I've had to remove and cut back a lot of the monster sized stuff in the veg plot as it was swamping everything else so im glad the bees will get more. I'm definitely not worrying about sowing any borage next year! I'll just let it do its own thing.

Checked on the white currant bush tonight that grows in the old kitchen garden over the fence beyond the orchard. It's laden again but I still have a couple of kilos in the freezer from last year. Any ideas what I can do with sack loads of white currants? There is a little red currant bush surviving over there too which normally only produces a couple of sprigs. Loads on that this year too. They both need a few more days to sweeten up a bit before picking then I shall strip the bushes and set up a stall.

Caught up with GW on I-player last night. I have missed Monty.

[Rhubarbgarden]

No water features here. If I ever find myself in position of a small fortune not earmarked for house maintenance/children's education then I will blow it on a natural swimming pond. I have had a hankering for one for many a year.

That and an Alitex greenhouse, obviously.

[HumphreyCobbler]

I have to google all the time Bumbez. It is very educational!

Had help in the garden today, he and DH spent all day moving compost heaps, cutting back all the catmint and the rest of the geraniums, watering and planting. I had extra children round all day and they had fun in the garden. I cooked and directed operations

We have no water in the garden, save for an old tin bath with big pebbles in the old dairy corner. It is a real lack in the garden, but I am paranoid careful about water. It is a massive bone of contention between me and DH, he wants to dig out a massive pond at the bottom of the orchard but I am resisting all the way.

[secretscwirrels]

I have a smallish pond. It shelves for wildlife and last year I was given two water lilies for a birthday present. They are flowering now and are stunning. One is cream with patterned leaves and the other is yellow. I did keep the packet with the name on but I've lost it. It lacks a fountain though, I have been looking at solar powered ones.
I just watered up next door. There are 62 containers .
I have ruthlessly pruned my petunias and verbena in the hope that they will survive the lack of dead heading and recover when I come back from my holiday. I haven't grown petunia for years as I got fed up of their stickiness and constant need for dead heading, but this year I have tried them in a couple of window boxes are they have been wonderful.

[Bumbez]

funny that sounds lovely I had to google those plants I have to google most plants

rhubarb Shame about the delay in your greenhouse- I have a cheep lidl one that does the job but I definitely don't recommend. I lost a lot of seedlings due to wind wobbling them off the shelves.

secret your garden sounds lovely. I think I've found a house sitter / garden waterer for the week in August we are away. A colleague who fancies escaping to the Island.

Bertha hope you had a good time.

nann Kew gardens wow

Does anyone have a water feature? I was at a friends new house who has one and the sound was heavenly.

[Rhubarbgarden]

Funny that sounds like a beautiful combination. I love Macleaya cordata.

[funnyperson]

Maybe an edging of chives which I will let flower

[funnyperson]

It sounds like you always ask your neighbour to pick your beans!
Everyone seems to have brilliant raspberries this year. I bet if I planted some next year it would guarantee a wet summer.

I went to a lovely ngs garden up the road today, with acanthus mollis growing happily in the sunshine, purple and silver and white all at once.

Anyway growing in this garden was Macleaya cordata , a wonderful structural see through plant, and I think I may have solved the delphinium issue. My delphinium seedlings won't flower this year, they will flower next year and so I have decided I will plant them out the front with Macleaya cordata, thalictrum and lavender (as its on special offer). Next thing is to decide what veg to grow alongside- probably james wong's yellow french beans www.suttons.co.uk/Gardening/Vegetable+Seeds/When+to+Sow+Vegetables/Vegetables+to+Sow+in+March/Bean+Dwarf+French+Seeds+-+Valdor_197569.htm
and some raspberries.

[secretscwirrels]

My raspberries are summer ones and 2/3 through I would guess. I was thinking of planting some autumn ones but I am surprised they are ready in July! My lettuces are also bolting. I've struggled to get some replacements germinated, I think I will have to resort to planting a box of supermarket living leaves
I am going away for 10 days this week. Neighbour 1 is going to overlap and neighbour 2 is going to cover watering until she gets back. But my beans are all going to be ready in a few days. I have asked neighbour to pick them but she always forgets.

[Blackpuddingbertha]

I'm back. A quick once over of the garden before it went dark was both glorious and tragic. My neighbour has seemingly done a great job with watering the veg plot and pots but the bean arch and the long bed have suffered. One end of the long bed is looking unrecoverable but I will drench it tomorrow (DH has promised to go and get me a longer hose so that it reaches to the end) and do some strong hoping that it recovers. I think this week was a tough ask for neighbourly watering stamina.

The veg plot has gone bonkers although loads has bolted. I have lettuces a knee high. The DDs will be happy to do some cropping with me tomorrow but their interest is difficult to hold beyond that. They like exciting bit of gardening.

First raspberry eaten tonight. Although I only have Autumn fruiting canes so I'm a bit , is this normal? Quite a few more coming too.

[funnyperson]

Both the DC liked planting out pansies which had finished flowering (my level of gardening ability at that stage) and making dams watering the lawn.
DS grows chilli plants and herbs on his windowsill in hall, DD grows clematis bijou, and helped me plant the vegetable trough, but her main current interest in gardens is to sit in them with friends.
Is one supposed to cut sweet peas, or layer them, or both, and if layer them, how does one do it if they are growing up a tripod?
Happy gardening today. I cut back all the valerian and geraniums and planted 6 of the plants (gillenia trifoliata, clematis Countess of Wessex, an aster and some anchusa left over from Sarah Raven's blue border) .

You lot will scoff, but my delphiniums grown from seed are still in pots because I cant think where to plant them. They need sun, apparently and there is no bit of my garden which has lots of sun except the front and I'm not sure how to support them there (assuming they flower)

[ComeIntoTheGardenMaud]

It's our summer show today, too. I have raked in £3 in prize money.

DD scarcely knows where our garden is, but she gardens enthusiastically at school.

[secretscwirrels]

It's easy to encourage horticultural interests when they are little. I used to love that time of year when we could go round shaking seed heads and collecting autumn leaves. Sadly once they hit teenage years they are less easily impressed!
When we go round gardens all the old ladies always comment on how rare it is that a teenage boy is interested.He watches garden programmes with me as well, but his interest is purely theoretical, he's a grunty, room dwelling troll the rest of the time.