Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May: Alternative potting shed thread

[funnyperson]

On the grounds that potting sheds should admit those of all cultures here is an alternative potting shed thread. Probably makeshift and not as posh as the other one. Definitely subversive and open to gardeners of all capabilities.

trufflehunter that plot is amazing! Wow!

rhubarb I think such deriliction of duty calls for a visit to a garden centre today and the purchase of some expensive new plants!

sugar that sounds awful. Why are people so horrible? A sincere and heartfelt apology was in order, not yelling.

funny sorry about your mum's garden. People are very exploitative. My aunt has early onset dementia and no proper care because her 'D'H is more interested in her pension than her well-being (late marriage). She is alone all day and has reached the point where she is wandering into houses and crossing busy roads without any attention to traffic. She can't react to anything happening out of the routine: her house was on fire (due to her husband's stupidity) and she just sat there (thank heavens for attentive neighbours). She is only bathed twice a week and only has new clothes once a week. It is awful, but he has all the power and will not be swayed. The police have been called many times. Social services seem powerless. I don't know how we can get him to accept that she needs more care, and that this will mean sacrificing the income.

A bit late to the thread, but in reply to someone who said they missed planting oca, having given up their allotment, this was on page 1 I think, we plant ours in bags of compost. Like potatoes. So if you have space for a couple of bags you can still have some oca. The yields arent quite as good, but they arent bad. This year we have potatoes, oca, yacon, chinese artichokes and Jerusalem artichokes all in bags tucked behind the chicken run. In our previous house we had them down the side of the patio

Tons of potential there truffle!

Funny your mum's gardener isn't deserving of the title

We have had rain all night and this morning, which is a relief after yesterday's mugginess. Poor dp is on DofE with 40 14yo

My peony has been and gone (just) - it's a lovely luxurious velvety deep deep pink. It came with the house and is very well-established. I'm thinking of dividing it in the autumn but I'm a bit nervous!

Morning all - rain too here today and having a nice morning indoors for a change.

Did someone mention oca? I can't see who did above...but it can still go in now, it will grow until the frosts get it and - the key thing with oca - don't harvest it straight away, let the tubers suck the starch back and the tubers can double or even triple in size if you leave them 2-3 weeks after the frost has got them.

Oh - re mint pests I found rosemary leaf beetle on my mint the other day, but I don't think it had done any damage - it was next to the (now quarantined) infested rosemary

This morning i planted my "sugar baby" watermelon and charentais in the greenhouse amongst other jobs. We will see how they work out :)

I have melons to be planted this year too. Never tried them before but they have all germinated and are fairly well-sized now. I can't remember the variety which is annoying as I have too many for the conservatory but don't know if they'll fair at all well outdoors or not.

Lots of rain overnight here thank goodness as everything quite parched and I'm on pot watering duty for my neighbour at the moment and he has heaps of pots & baskets, it takes ages, so rain is good. For a single bloke he's a real girl in the garden; all brightly coloured flowering things that look amazing and show up my hanging basket attempts. He does have a gardener though.

No gardening for me today as I'm out tonight and have already done my nails.

Eustacia, that was me about the Oca. Thank you so much, hadn't thought of that.

FP I missed that about your Mum. That is awful and makes me very cross.

Shovetheholly, what a difficult situation. A couple of things spring to mind. First one is telling him that if he doesn't increase the amount of care provided he is in danger of SS taking matters into their own hands and applying for guardianship of her and he will lose control of her money, bit if they have been ineffective so far he probably won't believe that.

Jealous of your Peonies Hapshawl. I saw some lovely white ones early.

Other way is a strongly worded letter to SS saying that he is abusing her by withholding finances needed to provide adequate care, that she is a vulnerable adult and as such consider this is a safeguarding issue as it an unsafe situation, evidenced by the house fire and that action is now required as the situation is unsafe for them and a risk for their neighbours.

Sugar - thank you so much for the advice! I really appreciate it. I think we are at the point where someone has to take action, but it is difficult because my parents and grandmother don't think anyone should intervene. They feel that if they are nice to the man in question, it will all work out OK, and they fear alienating him because he has power of attorney. Yet I can see that there is no way that he is going to provide properly for her care, hence the fact that she's walking around unwashed and unkempt. He even does really stupid things, like taking her out in his boat on their own without any life jacket (he had a heart attack about two years ago, and she would be completely incapable of doing anything to save herself if something were to happen).

It feels like a terrible thing to do emotionally, because she seems quite happy wandering round on her own and I think she will deeply resent any curtailment of that. I feel almost like writing a letter will be incarcerating her. On the other hand, anything, literally anything, could happen. She could be mugged (she keeps taking cash out of cash machines and cannot remember that she already has hundreds in her purse). She could be hit by a car. She could be attacked by a scared householder who finds her wandering around. She rushes towards animals without heed, so she could be attacked by a dog. She could be taken advantage of by anyone who recognises her disability, and she can't tell anyone what has happened because she doesn't have the linguistic ability any more. I just feel like the situation has reached a point where the risks outweigh the benefits.

What a difficult position for you Shovetheholly I think the legal position is that him not providing adequate care for her to preserve money which is available then it is Financial Abuse and the Court of Protection could revoke the POA and someone else be given Guardianship. But that would get very messy and expensive.

It can be very hard to get someone with Dementia to wash though, that has been a huge issue with my Mother. The rest sounds very worrying. Maybe the Alzheimer's Society might be able to help with this or Age Uk? Don't take what I'm saying as 100% true as it might not be but I became fairly good at navigating the system with my Mother and read a lot so I don't think I'm far off . I'm my experience SS so pushed that it is a case of who shouts the loudest sadly. There is a long thread in the Elderly Parents section, please do feel free to pop over, others will also be able to advise

Assumably he is receiving Attendance Allowance for her ? If she has that, with a diagnosis of Dementia they will be eligible for a reduction in Council tax.

Some people think the value of the house is taken into account as to whether they are eligible for care at home - it isn't, it's savings and other assets. Apologies, you probably know all this but just thought I'd put it in case.

Cut grass, did edges, watered and fed plus tidied leaves today and it all looks better.

This morning I have mowed the lawn, got all maple seedpods from neighbour's tree off lawn, cut back all geranium phaeum, (Chelsea chop), deadheaded roses, cut spent flowers off irises, pruned buddlea to shape some more (peacock shape) . Later on I will feed the clematis and plant out the borage, heleniums, echinacea and if time, other things in pots.

Allium Mount Everest are flowering here too, as in Monty's white garden, going well with mm alfred carriere and the white rimmed hosta. The alliums are good value as they dont need staking even though they are quite tall. I only plant a few and I am happy with that as otherwise the garlicky smell would overwhelm the rose scent which I prefer.

It is colder here and all the bees have disappeared!

Crambe cordiflora didnt survive here, I suppose because the soil isnt alkaline enough, so I think I will plant more ammi . Not sure whether to go for ammi majus or ammi visnagi.

Commiserations and ::supportive shoulder rub:: to all wrestling with the difficulties of elderly relatives.

I've just caught up on GW. Monty's writing garden was looking lovely, I thought. My freebie alliums (Modern Art) don't seen to be doing well. They're lying down, probably because they're in a sunny spot where local cats like to sunbathe.

Thank you for commiserations, maud and to others re mums garden troubles, it is really nice to have support, makes one feel stronger somehow.

Alliums must vary in their floppiness, as the allium spherencephalon are now in bud: they are quite floppy, and a large number got 'weeded' earlier on in the season as they looked like grass!

Dementia is so hard even when there are supportive and helpful people and systems in place, so when there aren't... it's so difficult

My grandmother has worsening dementia and she watched her own mother covering up and refusing help for dementia, and being taken advantage of, so she is very open about what she can and can't manage though as the dementia worsens this attitude is less in evidence as the disease and confusion take hold. It did make it a lot easier in the early stages though when she and my grandfather could make plans and put support in place (and they can afford to). So it's difficult but not as hard as it could have been. Sympathies to all

been just been deadheading so here's some flowers for everyone affected by Dementia.

Still an absence of germinated french beans round my beanpoles

That's gorgeous, SugarPlumTree. Like a Fantin Latour still life.

Happy Sunday ladies . Hope the weather is as nice with you as it is here. I have fallen off the thread again, so sorry, but I think about you often and love seeing some of you on FB. I must do better at coming on here. Between baby and two new kittens (and the fact I still have nothing remotely resembling a garden to work with!) I haven't had a lot of free time. But some of last years hard work is coming to fruition now despite utter neglect!
My Aldi climbing Icebergs planted around the stable door didn't establish in time last year but this year they are thriving! And DH has become very romantic and taken to bringing me up the odd bloom to the house so my hard work has paid off! Almost all my abandoned pots are flowering and my DA Austin roses too. Plus the lilies I potted up in March are starting to come up. These all make me happy and remind me that I must not lose focus on my dream garden plan! But best of all the wildflower bank, which never turned out as it was supposed to is nevertheless a mass of wild daisies, poppies and I don't know what else, and teeming with birdlife! I will pop some photos on FB soon. Hope you are all well and I promise I will catch up with thread very soon xx

Hello, Castle! It's been rather grey in London today, but quite warm. I'm glad your plants are thriving and well done to your husband on the romantic gestures.

::drops hint to own husband::

I have acquired a gorgeous new plant. I was admiring a new (to me) plant in a friend's garden - philadelphus, probably Belle Etoile - and she offered me what she called a cutting. It turned out to be a stonking great plant and will be going in the rather unpromising area between the compost bin and the lily pond in a tin bath.

Oh I would like to see some photos Castle when you have time. Hope Baby Castle is well.

That was a good result with the plant Maud. Think DH would be too scared to cut any flowers in caseI told him off, I'll tell him he is welcome to if the mood takes him.

Just planted out last of the Dahlias bar one, they'd been sitting in a true and I thought they were looking a little nibbled. In the bottom I found a slug nearly as wide as it was long.

First of the lupin seedlings I rescued from the reduced shelf last year is flowering. Mr Shakespeare is showing a lovely bloom and the Crocus rose has its first flower. The sweet peas sudden,y took off a week or so ago. Was walking past the Cornus md got a lovely waft of scent, realised there was a honeysuckle entwined in it which was a nice surprise. Still not Peony day though but tantalisingly close now.

Anyone grown Kohl Rabi ? How have you used it when ready?

Is kohl rabi that big nobbly lumpen thing? I've never grown it but would be intrigued to know what one does with it!

We have loads of fat slugs here. Most of them seem to be hanging out together in the compost bin and I kid myself that, while they're in there, they're helping the composting and not eating anything else. ::fool::

I grow kohl rabi every year SPT. I eat it raw in salads, it's lovely. I also use it for crudités for dips, like I would cucumber. I also just love growing them as they're really unusual looking plants and oddly comical.

Took my poorly head out into the garden this afternoon and planted out some stuff. Tidied up the veg plot & picked loads of leafy salads for tea. DH dug me a hole for the acer so that is now planted by the pond. And I pulled up all the weeds in the narrow strip behind the DDs play area up against the fence and planted it with iris and day lilies that had outgrown various spots and places elsewhere. I don't know how they'll do there but it looks better than the weeds!

I stuck the fat slug in our compost bin and have much the same theory :: also fool::

Yes Kohl Rabi the big nobly thing. I think by thr nsme that the Germans might eat it and feel I should therefore innately know by virtue of my genes, but I don't..