What have you done in the garden today? Part 5

[MereDintofPandiculation]

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

@ErrolTheDragon We've got a hotbin and don't have rats (well we do have rats but nowhere near the compost bin).

I never put anything other than cardboard and garden waste and kitchen veg scraps in it.

We had a singular rat that managed to get into our kitchen over Christmas.

It was like playing Tom and Jerry. We had every trap under the sun, cameras, bait, poison, and flipping Houdini managed to escape every single trap until one night when I wanted a midnight snack the rat scared me, I scared the rat and it ran through a sticky trap and then flipped itself into a cage trap.

We absolutely tore the house and garden apart and spent loads of money getting our drains surveyed.

I really want a composter. I had a barrel one but I couldn't get the balance of green and brown waste right and I was hit in the face with a swarm of flies every time I went to put more in and it was absolutely grim.

I am also afraid if I got a different composter we'd invite Sue and Noel Ratford back for an all you can eat buffet. 🤢

We’ve had a rat on the bird table (I’ve since moved it) so DH has also vetoed a compost bin. But if there is a rat proof one I’d also be interested.

The only time we had rats in the compost heap was when we were short of cats. But getting a cat so you cave a compost heal is probably overkill.

I would love a cat but we have two dogs, one of whom has declared the garden a cat free zone. He’s supposed to be a ratter but let the one on the bird table walk past him.

@MereDintofPandiculation Im a Brit living in Canada (Saskatchewan prairies, Canadian gardening zone 3, winters down to -40C). It’s a challenge creating an English style garden here but possible with some lateral thinking. Don’t expect anyone to know what will grow here but it’s always helpful to get ideas and then try them or look for similar hardy alternatives.

Lots of hardy roses, a lilac, panicle hydrangea and some nepeta, tough salvias, veronica speedwell and chives so far. The garden is only little but completely empty beds take some filling.

Oh I'm really allergic to cats 😭

We've got a dog but he'd be more likely to open the front door, invite them in and make them a cupper

@BigDahliaFan I'd be very interested to hear about how you find your hotbin.

I am feeling v aggrieved after filling 2 green bins every week for months and then spending a fortune on mulch so thinking can I make some mulch of my own.

Been looking at hotbins but wondering how effective they are.

@ErrolTheDragon if you're within reach of Dalemain you're within reach of me - just about.
I like the idea of Solomon having a pet seal.

I had a party of 30 yesterday - all opened their garden under the Yellow Book scheme so I assumed they were all keen gardeners. They'd booked a guided tour. Showed them all my rare plants, expounded on the best way to propagate meconopsis, expiated at length about the most interesting specie rhododendrons. Then over tea several came with pictures they wanted identified. One was a garden centre argyranthemum and the other was a pot marigold. Another, after I'd pointed out a load of Rhodos, bamboos, cardiocrinum, arisaemas said 'Do you call this the Himalayan Garden because it's got steep sides?'
Feeling foolish now - I really should chat to them beforehand and tailor the chat accordingly. Stop me being a boring prat.
Only deadheaded roses today. This is a rubbish garden for roses, and yet we persist because in my view it's not a garden without roses. What a good doer 'Eustacia Vye' is. Covered in bloom and trouble free. A recent discovery. Also 'Tottering-by-Gently.' No vices and as pretty as a picture.

My slugs don't like Tennants. Hanging out for Peroni.

Dalemain was a break on the way back to Lancashire from a trip to Northumberland but with retirement beckoning we're hopefully going to be doing lots of short trips, so I'm sure I'd love to visit your garden sometime @MaxandMeg - it sounds wonderful.

It can be similar with gardening clubs, MaxandMeg. The most enthusiastic members aren’t necessarily those who know most about plants.

The roses here are not doing well this year. Blush Noisette (Noisette Carnée), Charles Darwin, Just Joey and Absolutely Fabulous are doing well but the others are on go slow.

Yes @GertrudeJekyllAndHyde that was a lesson I learnt long ago. Most are only here for the tea. However the organiser will always gush 'Oh yes. We're super keen gardeners. Positive plantaholics.' Cue a lot of folk who are a bit dodgy on their pins, don't want to walk round the garden and only brighten up when cake appears.
Except for the one who insists on showing you 45 photos - that's plant by individual plant - of her not very interesting garden. At the end of the day I have trouble unfreezing my face from the rictus obligatory smile.

And then you sometimes get someone who genuinely loves plants, is curious and appreciative, and that's just lovely.

((Sniggers)) Oh gosh. I’ve always had ambitions to get into the Yellow Book (we would have the most excellent cake) but perhaps I should rethink!

Had a quick look at the hostas and fingers crossed, the felt is working.

The central leaves are growing and no signs of nibbling.

Went out for a few minutes at 7:30 to finish off the forget-me-nots....
Two hours later various other weeding, deadheading, propping up, chopping back and (attempted) training in of climbers accomplished. I do love this time of year when the evenings are light enough to potter, accompanied by the song of blackbirds and thrushes (and at one point the cawing of a pair of corvids efficiently herding a buzzard out of the area).

Is it heretical to have decided I'm not a fan of jasmine? DH likes it (though I think it's the glasshouse type he really loves) so we've one on the back fence and one on a side. I found the latter throttling a rose... honestly i think it's got worse manners than bindweed and arguably less attractive flowers. I thought I'd been doing well at training it along the wires I installed earlier in the year but I've evidently not been diligent enough, and now it's hard to reach as the border in front is at peak fullness.

Your story of the gardening group made me smile @MaxandMeg. You enthusiastically launching into your lecture and your guests bringing you right back to basics 😀.

Errol planting a jasmine one end of a pergola is one of my biggest garden regrets. It’s a total thug and has dug its way under the paving stones to come up the other side and throttle a rose.
Apart from Buff Beauty, the Generous Gardener and an apricot one, all our roses are very poor this year, a couple haven’t even flowered at all.

Feeling foolish now - I really should chat to them beforehand and tailor the chat accordingly. Stop me being a boring prat. Nonsense. Serves them right for opening their gardens under false pretences. <Lynda Snell sniff>

@ErrolTheDragon the jasmine in my garden has wreaked my willow fence and it shows no signs if defeat - cutting is down was a horrible job. A total thug in the wrong location!

honestly i think it's got worse manners than bindweed and arguably less attractive flowers. Don’t think of replacing your jasmine by a Lonicera henryii. I’m in bad odour with next door’s gardening because of nearly throttling their 40 year old Bramley, and I’m having to prune every fortnight or so to make sure I don’t do it again

Everything seems to be taking ages age to flower this year, maybe the lack of rain and heat are a factor. My sweet peas are still not flowering, tomatoes are only just showing signs of flowers, my bedding plants are only just starting to show signs of flowering and my hanging baskets are definite looking less colourful than I'd expect.

I've got a friend who lives on the Isle of Wight and her garden looks amazing, mind looks like it's about 2 months behind Hera

The Linda Snell sniff is part of my repertoire, too. I once encouraged MrJekyll to drive us to quite a remote garden open for charity (not, I hasten to add, the NGS) and found it was rows of regimented bedding plants. And not even attractive bedding plants. Sniff.

My jasmines on obelisk and fence need cutting back again but my bugbear is the honeysuckle which is coming in on both sides. Sniff again.

I've got honeysuckles too, but they're a bit easier to get at to sort out.
Well, I've just noticed one ascending the neighbour's conifer but I doubt they know or would care too much.

I've a fair bit in flower now - oriental poppies and geums, delphinium, a peony (albeit not many flowers), centaurea , Erigeron, some alliums, some of the roses and some of the geraniums. Particularly good just now are the Anne Folkards, which are really benefitting from proper support rather than sprawling around.

Some of my sweet peas are making good growth though not flowering yet.

I’ve tried to grow a Jasmine up my pergola and it died back and is only now showing new life! I’m planning to move it to a sunny fence instead in the autumn as it clearly doesn’t like where it is now ! Never had any flowers.

I’ve got a green Johanna compost bin and it’s made compost despite me doing very little to it . And so far I’ve not seen a rat - and neighbours all have chickens so there are def rats around.