How does your garden grow?

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Mo
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Re: How does your garden grow?

Post by Mo »

Hmm. I'm trying to get rid of all the brambles.
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Sunny Clucker enjoyed Folk music and song in mid-Cheshire
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Spreckly
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Re: How does your garden grow?

Post by Spreckly »

Because of a frost warning, the bramble has spent a second night in the wash house.

I have cut back some roses in the churchyard, and also in my garden, just hoping I haven't killed them off! Edged two flower beds, and removed some dead grass around one of my roses. Everything is springing into life, it is so lovely. On the down side, birds are flying everywhere, rooks from the trees in the old vicarage are causing a fair bit of mess at present, there are far too many of them and also far too many wood pigeons, who had been pulling some of my young plants up. These are now covered up.

Miniature daffs at the front of the bay window are in flower, a lovely sight. It looks as though we are in for a settled spell.
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Mo
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Re: How does your garden grow?

Post by Mo »

I've got a mini daff out too, the rest of the clump has got rather overwhelmed - I think Jim planted 3 things where there was room for one, and a lot planted themselves too - brambles, berberis, buddleia. 5 years of neglect on my part hasn't helped.
Dance caller. http://mo-dance-caller.blogspot.co.uk/p/what-i-do.html
Sunny Clucker enjoyed Folk music and song in mid-Cheshire
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Spreckly
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Re: How does your garden grow?

Post by Spreckly »

I found some berberis growing in a clump of something else. We got rid of the one in front of the downstairs toilet window, but it has started shooting again, so that is a task waiting. My pink camellia is full of buds, and some have already opened.

The bramble is back in the wash house for the night.
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Spreckly
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Re: How does your garden grow?

Post by Spreckly »

While Angel was pottering in the garden first thing, I tidied two Hydrangea pots up.
These were cuttings which Ted took several years since, and I don't want to lose them, but they are so hungry for water in the summer. One of the pots was hiding a bramble briar, which I managed to dig up, and pot up. I wonder if it will die off, or surprise me, and bear fruit.
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Mo
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Re: How does your garden grow?

Post by Mo »

Very hard to kill brambles. Just don't let it get out of hand. They root where they touch, trip you up when you walk round the garden and prick through the thickest gloves.
I've been trying to kill a berberis for 5 years. Not sure if it self seeded or if Jim propagated it, but it got it's roots into the drains and caused great problems. Kept chopping green bits off it and sawing off branches. Last week my daughter mentioned that she had Jim's Alligator Saw (jaws like a lopper but one side a chain saw), so I borrowed it back and had a go with some trepidation. Amazed how easily it cut down what I had been struggling with. But by the time I'd done that and a dead Broom I'd had enough.
Must remember to take my green bin to the end of the lane later - first collection tomorrow since Christmas it and another barrel are full of brambles.
Dance caller. http://mo-dance-caller.blogspot.co.uk/p/what-i-do.html
Sunny Clucker enjoyed Folk music and song in mid-Cheshire
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Mo
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Re: How does your garden grow?

Post by Mo »

The green bin is now empty, the black barrel full to overflowing. Plenty more to fill the green barrel but no more energy just now after an hour pruning and moving big branches.
i look in one direction and think I'm getting somewhere, but if I go another way round there is loads shouting to be done.
Dance caller. http://mo-dance-caller.blogspot.co.uk/p/what-i-do.html
Sunny Clucker enjoyed Folk music and song in mid-Cheshire
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Mo
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Re: How does your garden grow?

Post by Mo »

Like LL I couldn't resist veg growing. Just put some seed potatoes to chit, and started digging over the patch - still very claggy so not east to weed.
Things were drying out a bit, but we had 2 days rain last week and the bottom of the garden is a bog again.
Contractors from Scottish Power came to cut some of the holly hedge where the cable crosses it.It has grown very high, they didn't take much off it.
Dance caller. http://mo-dance-caller.blogspot.co.uk/p/what-i-do.html
Sunny Clucker enjoyed Folk music and song in mid-Cheshire
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Spreckly
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Re: How does your garden grow?

Post by Spreckly »

In sheltered areas, I have seen violets and forget me nots flowering. In my garden I already have aubretia in flower, and outdoor hyacinths showing colour. Lots of daffs and hyacinths in bloom, and to my surprise a third aconite flowering.
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Mo
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Re: How does your garden grow?

Post by Mo »

Loads of daffs in bloom and a couple of clumps of primroses. + a pink shrubs 7 a witch hazel. The Crocus & hazel catkins are over.
I've plodding slowly on with the veg patch - didn't weed it last year so the clumps of grass are well established.
As a slightly less energetic task I'm dealing slowly with the brambles, ready for the next green bin day.
Dance caller. http://mo-dance-caller.blogspot.co.uk/p/what-i-do.html
Sunny Clucker enjoyed Folk music and song in mid-Cheshire
Gwenoakes
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Re: How does your garden grow?

Post by Gwenoakes »

You ladies have made me feel very lazy, so yesterday I went out and cleaned the chickens out and did lots of pruning of blackberries etc.
Terry emptied the compost bin onto the raised beds and round the front hedge line.
Came in absolutely shattered, but felt very happy too as it was such a lovey warm sunny day.
Best bit was Clare doing a vegetable curry with rice, so no cooking for me. )like(
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Mo
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Re: How does your garden grow?

Post by Mo »

Being outside especially when the sun is shining does lift the mood. And the company of my robin, where-ever I am in the garden he (she?) comes with me. Yesterday just one, alternately searching the ground I'd forked and singing on a nearby twig. There were 2 together the other day (wonder if the other is brooding).
Dance caller. http://mo-dance-caller.blogspot.co.uk/p/what-i-do.html
Sunny Clucker enjoyed Folk music and song in mid-Cheshire
Gwenoakes
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Re: How does your garden grow?

Post by Gwenoakes »

I think part of my mood lift was because I managed to do lots of things that I have not done for ages with my knee playing me up so much, so win, win.
Today I dropped something and usually I would have asked someone to pick it up for me, but I pick things up myself now, so another good reason for being happy.
They do say with Robins that they are very territorial, but only if there is a limited supply of food. We tend to get up to 6 in and around the garden, usually all at the same time too.
Another bird we have a lot of is Blackbirds, I counted 12 I think it was on the back lawn last year at the same time and their numbers seem to be increasing this year too.
Blackbirds are not always my friends though as every time I plant my two pot sinks they come and rake everything out, regardless of what I have planted, so I have put some lavender and daffs in this year and so far they have not touched them, fingers crossed it stays that way.
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Mo
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Re: How does your garden grow?

Post by Mo »

I used to get frustrated at blackbirds when i grew strawberries. Having to cut the net to untangle them. I get lots of them in winter + fieldfares & other thrushes, eating my windfalls.
There has been an interesting discussion about robins on a Facebook bird Identification group. Apparently continental robins are paler, more orangey-red than resident robins, and ours are at there reddest in autumn, after the moult. Well we know how hens colours seem to change with new feathers, and horses too.*

*Yes I know, it's the guard hairs that make horses look darker in their new coat, rather than the feather tips that will get worn away
Dance caller. http://mo-dance-caller.blogspot.co.uk/p/what-i-do.html
Sunny Clucker enjoyed Folk music and song in mid-Cheshire
Gwenoakes
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Re: How does your garden grow?

Post by Gwenoakes »

I used to put very small holed wire over the strawberries and that worked. The blackbirds used to sit on top of it and do a little dance, I think possibly they thought it would bend like netting does when any weight is on it,
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