What have you done in the garden today Part 4 Spring 2024.

[MereDintofPandiculation]

What have you done in the garden today? What went well? What surprises have you had? What could have gone better?

I have the same thing with some seeds, they are determined not to germinate. It's always worth trying a slightly different set up, maybe put a plastic bag or clear plastic pot over the top to trap moisture, move to a different windowsill etc. If that doesn't work then I just chuck the lot out onto a raised bed and wish them luck.

@SarahAndQuack could you run a rampant rose through the morello - disguise the new brutal chop a bit?

I mooched in the garden in the hour between school and swimming lessons…planted up some dahlias, some tiny hostas I got free, potted on a few heucheras, discovered a happy self seeded Erysimum in with one of last year’s pelargoniums (all survived the winter) so separated them.

This evening I bought a couple of tree hibiscus and a Kilmarnock willow tree…

Yes I think I will be wishing them luck sometime soon!

I like the idea of disguise! But I think it'd better be something non-prickly, and not too vigorous (it is only six; it's not big and the wall I'm training it on is not big either). But I think I might try a clematis?

@SarahAndQuack clematis sounds ideal.

I planted miscanthus graziella, clethra Ruby Spice and a buddleja that I’ve grown from a cutting off one of my big bushes. Cleaned out the sand and water trays and mud kitchen equipment. Finally sat in a tiny bit of sun with a cup of tea.

Got back this morning after 4 days away in Galloway visiting Logan Botanic Garden and Castle Kennedy. Bought a 2nd cercidiphyllum because I wanted a multi-stemmed one, and a rhododedron impeditum. Found there'd been a slight frost in my absence and some borderline hardy rhodos had been spoilt but others not touched at all. Camellias not touched.First meconopsis came out while I was away, but they're flowering on too-short stems. I wish they'd wait a bit. It's 'Marit'.

Ugh! I’ve been sorting through my empty flowerpots etc, tidying up and trying to get some semblance of order now my greenhouse has gone- how do you all store empty ones? Umpteen snails have been ejected over the fence into the woods where I suspect they’re racing each other back up the very steep slope and under the back gate 🙄to wreak revenge on my hostas 🤬
DH has finished laying the base for a new shed, which will arrive Thursday along with the summerhouse which is replacing the greenhouse.
The shed will be a tight squeeze so goodness knows how we’ll construct it!
Luckily I’m paying for the summerhouse to be assembled (following Friday)
Everything’s growing well at the moment, including the weeds.
I need to get on with varnishing my potting table so it can stay outside, with a cover on it, but it’s too warm for me to do in the sunshine at the moment.
I have some very neglected salvia babies that overwintered outside and are looking very pathetic. I hope that they recover.

I’ve planted out some hollyhocks today as well as clearing a couple of beds.

No much in the actual garden but I've put together a set of shelves for the shed, I'm going to do another set in a minute and then tidy the shed and put things away that have been left lying around because the shed is a mess.

We spotted a fox in our garden 2 nights ago so today has been mostly fox proofing the chicken run. We've gone all over it with welded mesh, just one more little bit to do now. My cosmos and sweetcorn seeds are through and the mang tout seedlings are ready to plant out as are the tomato plants, enough to keep me going on Monday. Tomorrow we are out

Sat in the ☀️

Planted out some of the dwarf cornflowers which are looking robust. Planted out young lettuce for the slugs to eat. Hauled yet more weed out of the pond. Cleaned out the summer house, lit a fire in the fire pit, and am now in said summerhouse with fire and bottle of wine.

Potted up the contents of the propagator and reloaded it with compost and sowed a new batch of seeds. Checked over the greenhouse. Mowed the lawn for the first time this year.

@Tiddlywinks63 Spare pots are in big plastic boxes under the greenhouse staging. And in random piles around the garden and on the greenhouse floor.

saw a goldcrest. It flew into an apple tree just in front of me and spent several minutes hunting insects.That’s three times over tge last couple of weeks that I’ve seen it up close

Jealous of the goldfinch. I potted on my beans and peas, I would normally have started hardening them off, but it’s too cold. I’m reading the Garden jungle. I’m on a slightly boring bit about insecticides in the US. But the apple stuff had me looking up apple trees. I am hoping that this book will perform some lovely confirmatory bias on me so that I understand my messy , lacksadaisical style is actually best and I can stop feeling guilty. A friend saw my precious mason bees going into my house brickwork today and was horrified, they will eat my house apparently. I explained they are great pollinators but she clearly wasn’t convinced.

Spent several hours trying to eliminate huge patches of boltonia candicans from my white border. Wish I'd never planted it. Planted some white foxgloves. Planted three arisaema sikokianum and rescued another already here. Repotted pelargonium 'Lavender Lindy.' Spent ages staring at pots of primula seedlings willing there to be germination. There is, but not in the pot I really wanted.
I wish I could grow hollyhocks🙁

We came across some wine half-barrels in our local garden centre so bought a couple of them to replace the ones we currently have that are crumbling and the metal braces have rusted away .

not sure if I'll have time to treat them with wood conditioner, that may need to wait until next week. We need to drill drainage holes in them too.

Gorgeous day here. I’ve been mulling over the plans for our hard landscaping and decided I want to change a few things. DH is despairing of me but to be fair he’s messaged the landscaper and warned him. Things are beginning to look so much better now the trees are in leaf and things are sprouting that I want to keep more things - part of the plan was to take up the old pergola and greenhouse base and lawn the area but I think I will keep or replace the pergola and convert the greenhouse base into raised beds.

Snails seem to be absolutely decimating my seedlings. There are just so many of them! Every time I open up the mini greenhouse there is another snail in there.

I sowed some sunflowers, courgettes and dwarf beans today and will keep my fingers crossed. I also earthed up the potatoes and gave my potted acers and camellias some ericaceous feed.

I really need to do some weeding, hopefully tomorrow!

No gardening - we had a much longer day trip than usual to visit Muncaster castle. Good time of year for the huge (in number and size) collection of 'Sino-Himalayan' plants plus a wonderful bluebell wood. And a very good raptor display including a bald eagle and a rather charming trio of teenage vultures.

@GameOfJones i battled constantly with snails in my greenhouse, we have very stoney soil and back onto woodland so they’re a constant pest. They’ve decimated my tulips in pots this year and I find dozens of them under my raised pots 🤬
I have resorted to using pellets in places simply because it seems that nothing is safe from them this year!

@Zebracat Jealous of the goldfinch Was that my goldcrest you were jealous of, or someone else’s goldfinch?

I haven’t even sown my French and Runner beans yet, though they are next on the list.

@MereDintofPandiculation Iknow I wrote gold crest. I have a very dictatorial predictive text.. sorry, still jealous .

I spent two blissful hours weeding in the sunshine this morning. I have new hearing aids so being able to hear the birdsong was wonderful. We have a few goldfinches around but sadly no goldcrests although there was one admiring himself in the wing mirror on DHs car last year. No sign of him so far this year.

DD has gone back to university, so I have repurposed her windowsill as a seedling nursery!

Meanwhile, at the school allotment, Year 6 have planted 2 types of radish, Year 2 have planted beans in the greenhouse and Reception’s sunflowers are already 10cm high.

Just when I thought I’d potted on all the seedlings, I’ve noticed several other trays languishing in the dining room. And I’ve run out of pots again. Argh.