A garden is a lovesome thing, God wot!

[MaudantWit]

Join us for ongoing gardening chat in the MN potting shed. Blow the cobwebs off a deckchair, help yourself to a glass of elderberry champagne and tell us about your garden.

Long Meadow not in my patch I fear...

Ppeat - I Like the sound of your pig troughs.

I'd like running water rather than a pool, as I like the sound and I don't want anything I have to worry about the DDs drowning in. I also want a light, because I am naff.

Camel -lovely dahlias. Mine finally have buds!

ROFL at is my extension finished, I wish! We started, as my neighbours (end of terrace) were having work done so they let us have access through their garden to do our groundworks (dig up patio, make big trench, fill with concrete). We also had to dismantle our shed - so my garden is a muddy mess with bits of crap all over it. Plus DH can't get to the mower (in the small falling down shed under lots more crap).

Once we'd done that, we realised we'd changed our minds about the layout and windows and doors, so I've had to go back to the architect to get new plans . Basically, I really want the kitchen to overlook the garden and have big wide doors opening out onto it. I'm In a conservation area, do getting new plans approved may delay us even further.

So house & garden are both a bit of a mess - but next year it's going to be wonderful

Bertha - I saw a sad sunflower for sale for £8.50 at Victoria stn today

Are sweet peas over then? I thought maybe mine were going to continue flowering for a bit.
Congratulations nightshade!

I potted on the tiny little perennial seedlings from t and m through GW July offer. (geum, nepeta, scabiosa, etc: should be safe) They are sending me a replacement for the dead lavender which is nice. I planted out various other stuff on the grounds that plants are drying out so quickly in pots at the moment that they are safer in the ground especially if I water them through August.

The Canna lilies in pots have suddenly taken off and I think the pots I have used are probably far too small!

NANN you are tempting me to create a pond. My sacred water lilies alas got slugged or something in their plastic bowl, but perhaps if I had something a little more like a real pond they might survive if resown.

I remind myself that London florists are trying to make a living too, but florists' prices here can be shocking. The mum of one of my Brownies works for one of the most famous ones and has promised me a discount if I visit her shop. I am very tempted, as it'll be a very different experience to our high street florist.

Oh yes florists round here are expensive too.

Has anyone any ideas for a new thread title?

Bertha that sounds like a fab job. Do they really charge that for sweet peas?! My little fantasy of creating a small cut flower business in the orchard suddenly looms large again...

The offsets from the Auricula that I bought at Chelsea seem to have finally taken. Or it could just be that they have finally decided that the downstairs loo windowsill is acceptable, after trying and turning their noses up at a number of other locations around the house. This house is not well endowed with plant-suitable windowsills.

Their parent plant remains relegated to outside, as it's red spider mites are proving tenacious.

Gosh, are we near the end of the thread already?

My sweet peas are definitely not over yet. What do you think I'd get for my wonky stems in London in August?

The grower gets pennies per stem. I think they do alright though. A million stems...adds up.

Its not it's

I am just trying to visualise a million stems of sweet peas.

I was trying to imagine the smell.

Probably shouldn't do this but this is the sweet pea place

Yes, I'm hoping and assuming these are the fragrant varieties.

at the price of sweet peas. I watched allotment challenge and to get superior sweet peas they need lots of room, unlike mine scrambling up an obelisk.

Oh yes. And they're straight too.

That must be a heavenly place to work. Is it under poly tunnels?

This was sweet pea heaven. Essentially hydroponics so all feed needs met via system, perfect environment and no greenfly. They also layer them to get straight stems. Strings up to 3m high.

Yes, poly tunnels.

Whoops, no, sweet peas were glass houses.

Hello

I tried to grow sweet peas in a hanging basket, but I think I've killed them Is this the right place to come for help? Can they be saved? I love sweet peas They are beige and have stopped growing.

I have to say, LadySybil, that beige does not sound at all good. Are they papery and crinkly? If so, they've probably passed the point of no return and died of dehydration. If there is any green left, you could try cutting back to that point in the hope they'll sprout new growth. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

I was thinking to continue to tie my sweet peas in, snip off tendrils, and layer if not too late. ladysybil they need food and water if they are alive but others less ignorant will say whether we can expect more flowers at this stage.

Thread not over but might be by the end of the week!

I mean
beige=dead
green=alive

Nope, no green. I'm a sweet pear murderer!

Ok. I'll buy some more, and won't put them in a hanging basket. My garden is surrounded by fences, a wall and has a couple of cherry trees and plum trees. There's also a caster oil plant taking over and something with purple flowers (like lilac, but deeper purple) which attracted hundreds of butterflies last year but nothing this year. Is there a better place to plant them?

Potted flowers are cheap as chips here. I'm thinking of planting a pussy willow and a forsythia next year. I remember them growing in my garden when I was a small child and I'd sit under them with a book.

Sorry for withering on

Thank you