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?

First dry and sunny day in a while. Mostly cutting back and weeding,then picking herbs for drying. The cosmos is pathetic. About 2 inches tall and no flowers. The alchemilla has gone mad and taken over the bed.

Have just come in for a break as it is too hot.

The good: DH has been watering and nothing is dead

The bad: the cannas do not appear to be growing and I think the soil isn't good enough for them

The ugly: cutting back the snowberry is far harder than I thought. It has spread much much further than I realised.

The alchemilla has gone mad and taken over the bed. I have been trying for 30 years to eradicate Alchemilla.

cutting back the snowberry is far harder than I thought. It has spread much much further than I realised.And that’s another thing I’d never plant. The house came complete with a snowberry hedge.

Oh no I've just planted an Alchemilla. It's in the 'woodland' and I noticed everything the garden designer has recommended can be a thug. I think her opinion was that nothing would grow there unless it was a beast and so they could fight between them.

Some of the snowberry can be covered in membrane. But some of it is coming out in the middle of other shrubs I don't want to get rid of. So I think it is going to be a multipronged tactic of membrane, root killer and glyphosate. I am in for the long haul.

Chuffing Snowberry! I feel your pain @AnnaMagnani It invaded the whole side of my front garden in our first house. It is quite pretty but mascarades as a delicate little shrub when it's actually a big fat thug!

we had some rain here overnight which has saved me from watering today. Hopefully my waterbutts are topped up as they've been getting low this week.

I love Alchemilla and have never bought one, it comes in on it's own.

My top tip for it not spreading is be ruthless when the flowers turn brown. As soon as you see that, cut each flower stem back to the base. The leaves will still carry on and you might get a fresh flush of flowers. But not letting it seed is the trick to it being tameable.

I've not got any of that...yet.
I did notice a new arrival yesterday, an orange Welsh poppy in the corner that's somewhat left to it's own devices (eg lots of fringecups, which I need to ensure don't spread too far)

Sigh. As I always say when this vexed topic comes up, alchemilla doesn’t flourish here. I plant it, it looks lovely for a year, it vanishes.

I too have a sole orange Welsh poppy. I’m wondering whether it’s taken on its colouring from the p rupifragum at the other end of the garden.

I love Alchemilla. I really struggled to find some in garden centres last year. I cut it back all the time and keep a jug of it on the table on the patio (I’d like it in the house with cut flowers but it stinks).

I had a lovely visit to Aberglasney but it was so hot that we mostly sat outside the cafe and only had a bit of a wander around the walled gardens. We were chatting to one of the volunteers (I noticed she was using a hori hori and was telling my friend how much I love mine). She said they are not allowed to use trowels or small forks so they all use hori horis. I wonder why that would be? I should have asked.

The hot weather went to my head and I came back with a lovely
Ensete ventricosum. It has been bloody freezing ever since.

There’s a light drizzle here now. I’d be happy if it rained full pelt, once I’ve finished my errands and am safely indoors.

I have not seen any cabbage white butterflies yet. Is it too early? Surely not (feeling for my poor brassicas under fine netting that is starting to get restrictive)

I can't grow it either. My next door neighbour has it coming up EVERYWHERE (I've just been over doing some weeding for her while she's on holiday), it self-seeds all over her garden but obviously for some reason it doesn't dare come over the fence. However, while weeding, I noticed that some sedums have come through from my garden. I'm going round to complain when she gets back..

I don't usually notice any until my purple loostrife is in bloom, it looks to still be a little way off that.
Some insects may be late this year I guess.

Thanks, Errol, that makes sense that they might be late

Refreshed a few pots. Chucked out the last of the winter flowering pansies..which still had a bit of colour but were very faded. Put in buzy lizzies which I dont really love but they are bright and cheery. Cleared the pond out a bit and topped it up from the rain water butt.
Took a few photos.

Membrane is down - and I've already made a hole in it
Never mind anything growing out the sides is going to be toast.

Other than that have weeded and deadheaded. DH has replaced our extension garden hose, and we promptly realised we need a new hose for the back and a new hose gun.

So no doubt back to the garden centre next week.

It has been affirming hearing of other people's snowberry battles. You can see that mine was supposed to be part of a mixed hedge - there is a berberis, a rose, holly and some other things I can't identify. But it became 90% snowberry. The rose and holly aren't dead but never get to be more than twigs.

Great colours!

Took a huge heap of plant pots to the community garden, who were desperately in need, and came home with some nasturtiums to jazz up the pots in the front garden.

Snowberry causes problems when it gets into the wild

I’ve got the yellow ones, wish I could get the orange as well. I introduced an orange one but it seems to have died out. Perhaps the orange is a recessive gene

My poppies have been non-existent this year. They're normally stunning by June/July, bold, red, tissue-like petals, but there's no sign of them.

maybe this year's growing conditions haven't helped....

Other than the oriental poppies, I usually only get any if I've given a bed a good digging - very much the 'disturbed soil' phenomenon

Over winter I lost Diascia, the largest of my Hoary Plantains (I love their scented flowers) and a perennial sweet pea.

I've got a perfect little water Lily in one of my barrel ponds. If past years are anything to go by it may be the only one, so it's a bit of a shame I'll miss the second day of its two-day wondrousness as we're going away tomorrow. Looking at the garden this beautiful evening I'm slightly wondering why I let DH book a holiday in July, especially as the weather where we're going (Switzerland) is dire at the moment.

Yes, I usually avoid holidays in May to Augusy

Spotted 4 dragonflies in the garden this weekend, bought some tall grass to sit behind the barrel pond, waterlily still living but looking very happy. Dug out more bindweed - think I’ll be doing this for years. Took some cuttings off mil’s hydrangea, lovely crisp white flowers, fingers crossed it works.