What have you done in the garden today? Part 7

[Jimmyneutronsforehead]

Continuation thread from MereDint's previous threads.

I've watered the pots and topped up the bird bath for about the third time today, those starlings love the two baths I have in the garden, there's water everywhere. My everlasting pea is in bloom, on the packet it was bluey/purple colour but it's actually white. It comes back each year and the flowers are very pretty.

I checked my roses that I had cut back after flowering and Charles Darwin has six new heads on it, I'm so thrilled, I bought it for the garden as remembrance of my aunt who died back in April. All the other roses I cut back are showing signs of new growth so I'm hoping for another lovely display of blooms and fragrance in the coming weeks.

I’ve just been to the Botanic Gardens open day. I really should not have bought more plants, but 3 heucheras is manageable. I got some good advice about my poorly apple tree and then the people invited me over in February to make some grafted clones in case it dies. So pleased. Just got to keep i5 alive till then.

I know! I'm looking at it like what a fresh slate, but I know both of us would struggle to keep on top of all of that until it eventually dies back.

He's got mobility issues because like a silly bugger he jumped and fully severed his left patellar tendon, then it took over 2 weeks before they got him in for surgery because of it, then hes had an overgrowth of scar tissue and cannot bend push or pull and here I am with hEDs CFS and autism just happy my beans are growing in my raised beds meanwhile watching dock plants absolutely decimate the very back of the garden.

I feel like this year has been really challenging to get into the garden and really muck in and give it a dedicated few weeks and this heat is knocking me for six.

We do actually have a robot lawnmower that we bought years ago and have never used because we don't have an outdoor charging port and the garden isn't very level and we're a corner house with paths all through our yard. I have considered loaning it out to him on account of it being unusable but its not very convenient because we'd have to bury a boundary wire, although it would mean we could just keep it regularly cut down with no effort.

The lady who lived here before just had sheds in the back garden, so when he went to view the property it was just dry compacted earth, with big square desolate patches and the odd tuft of grass that was begging for sunlight.

I'd love to get stuck in though. I want a nice little circle with a dining area, just surrounded by perennials.

@Jimmyneutronsforehead sympathies. DD has hEDS and it’s had a huge impact on her life. I suspect I have it too (can do all the bendy finger stuff etc) but nowhere near as bad as her although it’s catching up with my joints now I am old. Heat is a bugger for us both.

Been busy today pulling out the wooden edging from a border as it looked awful and generally weeding. Stuck some nicotiana from the local garden centre in to fill gaps and pulled up a sickly rose which I’ve stuck in the bed of doom - it’s an old greenhouse base and I never know what to do with it as it’s awkward to get to so everything l(old pots, bulbs etc) gets emptied in there. I get some nice surprises sometimes- a lovely pink astilbe has popped up and what looks like gladioli are shooting.

Very little today. Planted out a couple of trays of bedding plants into pots for a bit of colour,cut down the ornamental poppies to dry the seed heads, and picked yet more chamomile for teas.

I cut back and tidied the edges of my winding path. It wasn’t on my list of urgent jobs, but I kept snagging myself on the way up it, and it looked awful, undead headed roses, floppy crispy geraniums, brambles etc. I’ve done 2/3rds, wondering if I can quickly do the last bit which is by the back door, so I would feel the benefit, but I’m so hot. Think I’ll go out tomorrow, 1st thing. I like undeadheaded roses as a phrase, not sure where the gap should come!

I swept the patio of leaves. Cut back some old plants that were dead and unsightly. Removed all the leaves from the lawn. Planted some new grass seeds in bare patches. Pulled up some weeds. All in all the garden is looking a lot neater.

I also cleared up a load of cat poo and fox poo from the bare bits of lawn. Horrible job but glad I’ve done it.

Gave the seedlings a very good water before the sun got too much. My poor cosmos looked fried but within half an hour of a water all perky again.
I gave all my sweetpeas a good trim as hadn't cut flowers from it for a couple of days, plus all this got weather has made it start to look a bit crispy. I shall see if it produces any more flowers of if maybe it's on its way out. I'll be sad but I have had so many little vases of flowers from them over the past few weeks.
I deadheaded the verbena as I didn't realise was something you should do until reading an article about it this week

Today despite the heat I am actually determined to get something done in the garden.

Could not sleep a wink last night even with 2 fans and an ice pack so I'm just going to run myself into the ground today and pass out.

The bedroom is prepared, I've put a cool blanket on the bed, more ice packs in the freezer to put in front of the fans, and now I just need to burn the energy off.

Did a little inspection and my dwarf apple tree is tipping out of its pot so I am going to cane that up, prune the raspberries back because this years canes are spent. I'm glad I didn't dig up my hollyhocks now because despite the rust, they're giving me the tallest sturdiest blooms.

My neighbour has a weed growing in this little no man's land bit that he technically owns but can't do anything with, and when I catch a glimpse of it, it looks really pretty but I can't get a good photo to identify what it is so I'm going to get the steps out and see if I can peer over the fence.

Apparently we are painting decking etc and moving cables outside. Whoopee.

I've pruned my wisteria down to 2 stems but i am considering pruning it down to just one stem. Mostly because one stem is doing what I want it to which is to climb up and the other looks like it was pruned at the garden centre it came from and so has grown a lot of overgrowth right at the end making it really top heavy. I don't want to chop all it's leaves off though and leave it weakened.

I started watering at 8:30 a.m. and just finished.

Edited to say when I say "finished" I mean "watered as much as I am prepared to water at the moment", whole beds having been left for now and squash beans greenhouse plants and flowers given special attention

I deadheaded a single pansy plant, picked a couple of raspberries and wild strawberries. Refilled a couple of water bowls for wildlife and cats (saw two snails drinking from one last night - promptly dumped into the snail bin). That'll be it for today, far too hot!

However, I will be picking up a free water butt this afternoon - at 3pm, on a bicycle, 20 minutes away... Wish me luck 😅

@Zebracat I quite like the idea of undead heading roses, a zombie rose that comes back to life when you've neglected it for a while. One may have to sacrifice a nibble of blood as payment.

Ha, I have just moved a nearly dead rose so maybe I am undeading it.
Decking in place, cable in place, off to the tip. It’s hot but not as hot as expected, more muggy here.

Will paint decking later.

Back out watering-- forgot the hydrangea hedge, poor thing.

@Agapornis . I definitely paid in blood, my arms are in ribbons.

I strimmed the back garden and chopped back some brambles at the wild end of the garden. I was all set to water my containers (it's been very humid here), but then it started raining and there are some very black clouds in the sky. So I think we're in for a downpour. Possibly some thundery showers? Pleased I got my work done before the rain came. I never thought I'd say this, but I wish the temperature would drop a bit. It's not exceptionally hot (my phone says it's 19 degrees). But it's very sticky and clammy.

Yep, I was right about the downpour.

I’m so envious. It’s still 30-plus in the SE. Can’t stand it and looking forward to Wednesday when it’s 10C cooler!

I dream about lovely sunny weather but when the temperatures soar, I just can't handle it at all. It was mid 20s here last week (or possibly the week before) and it was just too hot. Everyone was complaining about the lack of sleep.

Officially 33 degrees here, felt higher, quite a nice breeze at least.

One can indeed transport a water butt on a bicycle, with bungee cords. I must have looked a sweaty mess upon arrival, they offered me water. Car traffic gave me lots of space on the way back, makes a nice change for London

Managed to prune the wisteria and half of the raspberries. The others are blockaded in with 300litres of compost.

I ate a fig that looked ready, it was not. Or maybe it was and it turns out I just don't like figs.

Managed to sneak some pictures of the pretty weeds in my neighbours patch. Turns out to be a variety of great dock 💀 I shan't be having that in my garden. I'll attach photos.

Invited my mum over to look at mt hollyhocks and we stood there for 5 minutes just saying to eachother "yes that's a nice hollyhock" before pulling some radishes up and snacking on them.

The pool water was 28°c so have had a couple of dips but neither lasted long because my hair kept getting wet.

Then I had an ice lolly and watched the bats fly about. Been nice to see them as we have seen less and less of them since neighbours a few houses up got those cat deterring sonic alarm things. I haven't heard them this year but I have assumed that's because I'm aging and it is a sound you stop being able to hear as your ears deteriorate but maybe they've just stopped working.

Didn't attach the photos. Silly me.

@Jimmyneutronsforehead that first photo looks like burdock. My dog got quite a few stuck to her on various woodland walks. They sort of explode into the fur making it very difficult to remove.