What did you do in your garden today?

[brantelyolivia1320]

I thought I would be preparing to put rocks, plants, soil etc in the garden today. Our forum has people from all over the world. Here's the question... What did you do in your garden today?

 

[Sean Regan]

I mislead people yesterday, what I bought were heathers. I may buy some more hebes later, so I can ring the changes with the troughs, as they are in a prominent position. I painted them today, after giving them a good clean. I was pleased to see there was no sign of any rot developing.
So as the weather's warm, I might put them out tomorrow.
Checking the camera cards, I saw that there was a young fox on the patio last night.

 

[Esther Knapicius]

18 degrees here, went out and filled bird feeders and suet containers, fingers got frost bit doing that little chore. So inside for me. tonight going to a Robert Burns party.

 

[Sean Regan]

I gave the wooden troughs another coat of paint this morning, it only takes the second coat a couple of hours to dry.
So it's all done and dusted. A bit of colour in a presently bland looking garden.
I've put one of the trail cameras back on its post in one of the troughs. I use it to keep an eye on 'arry the 'edgehog, when he's out and feeding overnight. Of course, there's no sign of him yet, too early... (provided he's survived the winter),
I've done my best for him, as his "winter house" has extra insulation. But it was bitterly cold a few weeks ago.
I've resisted checking on him, he's either survived, or hasn't and we'll know by mid-March. I'll put his cat-proof feeder out in a couple of weeks with some dry and semi-moist hedgehog food. If he comes out before then, I'll know as I've put a tiny bit of hebe pruning in the entrance of his house which he'll push out of the way if he comes out. He knows there will be suet pellets and bits of fat balls in the ground bird feeder if he's hungry, as he's been in it before.

I transferred the plants into bigger pots, the three just fit into the troughs. They are sitting on plastic saucers.

The patio needs a good jet-wash and a bit of re-pointing in a few places, but that will have to wait for a couple of months.


I wired up the smaller of the two acer palmatums. I don't like them to spread too wide, as the shade they make encourages moss growth on the lawn. There's no point trying top do anything with the top growth for the moment, "as it will do as it likes." I'll wait until the foliage is all out and prune off any "untrainable" growth. The object is not to remove anything which would leave a "hole" in the canopy.

 

[Sean Regan]

I put it down to I've probably not enough to do, as it's still too cold to do anything in the garden, which would just be a bit of tidying anyway.

We had these troughs in front of the summer house for about ten years, but the bottoms rotted on them. So there's been nothing here for about three years.

So I decided I'd get some new ones.

I had a long search on eBay, checking on dozens of these sort of troughs. Many "I wouldn't have given house room." Why do vendors sometimes photograph stuff that is poorly constructed?

Anyway, I eventually found these. The space either side of the summerhouse steps is 90cms, so I needed ones that weren't longer than that, as they'd look a bit naff if they stuck out either side, or were too short.
They are very similar to the ones on the patio, with the sort of base that will allow water to drain through. I'll give them a couple of coats of Dulux Woodstain. They should be here by the end of the week. They appear to be quite well made. But like the others they're probably assembled with a nail gun, so I'll reinforce them with some screws.

I'll get some new hebes for them in a few weeks, the original ones in the patio planters don't look as if they've survived "the big freeze."

 

[brantelyolivia1320]

I thought I'd start a new thread that could be continuously updated by anyone any day of the year.I am in my garden all day today. As I mentioned yesterday, I planted some native plants around the outer edges of my vegetable garden. I transplanted violets from my yard into my local garden in hopes of attracting more Greater Spangled Fritillary. On top of that, I also added two shrubs to the front of the house. They look beautiful. I am interested to see how they grow.

 

[mikejohnson]

I planted 4 new seedlings in my garden today.

 

[Sean Regan]

Where's the photos?

 

[Sean Regan]

I've done nothing today except spend more money.

I went to Dulux to get another 2.5 ltrs. of Woodstain. £72. It'd be cheaper on eBay, but I couldn't be bothered.
I'll only need a bit of it for the new trough, but the tea-house and the posts of the pergolas will get a coat. They really don't need it, but the weather during the winter makes them a bit dull. But I'll leave it until April.

Then went to the garden centre for three more bags of ericaceous compost, £16. But I'm ready for when some hebes come available.

I'll finish painting the troughs by the week-end. The old hebes, I'll remove from their plastic pots and plant them along the narrow border between the tea-house and the shed and they can take their chances. It won't matter if they've been killed by the frost.

I'll have their six plastic pots for the new hebes when I get them, they'll need a good wash out. They look a bit tatty, but they won't be seen in the new troughs.

I'm not happy with mimosa we bought, which arrived at the end of last week. It looks decidedly tatty and is losing leaves. Probably frost damage, but "I'm not having it." I sent a photo with an e-mail on Friday. I sent another photo I took today where it looks even tattier.

I've asked "Garden Plants on Line" to collect it and give me a refund. They actually have a good selection of established plants on their web-site.

 

[Esther Knapicius]

Just more leaf removal.

 

[Sean Regan]

Surprise! Surprise!

The troughs I ordered yesterday on eBay arrived this afternoon. I guess such firms aren't that busy yet.
They were packed in substantial, dedicated cardboard boxes with the company logo on the side.
They look as good as the illustration on the website. Like the ones I already have, they're fitted together with a nail gun. So I'm going to Wilko's for some screw,s I need about thirty for each and I haven't enough. This will make them "future-proof," as gun nails eventually rust and I have visions of trying to move one with the pots in it and bits coming off a few years down the line. I've also the feet to make, so that will be it for today. It's golf tomorrow and shopping Thursday morning, so I'll start the painting Thursday afternoon.

 

[Oliver Buckle]

I planted 4 new seedlings in my garden today.

What of?
Your winter must be much shorter than ours, there was quite a frost on the grass this morning and the greenhouse thermometer told me it went down to minus two. It only reads in whole numbers though, so it was probably up to half a degree warmer, the forecast hadn't been for nearly so cold or I might have put some heat on.

The missus brought me back some RAF tomato seeds when she went on holiday to Madeira and I put a few in the propagator the other day. They have come up, so I will probably pot them on. It looks as though it is almost a beefsteak, and it says they always stay a bit green.

Went to the local garden centre yesterday and got a couple of bags of farmyard manure and some moneymaker tomato seed. I grow others as well quite often, but they are a good reliable staple, though the variety must be over a hundred years old by now, even older than me

Wow Sean, that is getting on for thirty quid a litre, spread it thin.

 

[Sean Regan]

I got a bit done this afternoon, Drilled and screwed all the joints to re-inforce the troughs. Particularly the base, which only had two pin nails at each end of the batons. I can otherwise imagine sometime in the future, me picking one up, with three full pots in it and them falling out the bottom.

It felt a bit damp, not wet. Probably stored in an unheated workshop. I noticed a bit, as the screws were drawing in some of the batons. But they are now in the "freezer room" in the garage, which is dray and warmer than outside, so they should dry out before I paint them.

I fitted brackets under the mitre joints of the top, as I did the other two. I can see them curling up like Dead Sea Scrolls over time, as there was only one pin nail joining the two faces together.

I made some little feet for them.


I like to use stuff I find in my garage where I can, Just bits of thick dowel and some re-used polypipe.

 

[Oliver Buckle]

But they are now in the "freezer room" in the garage, which is dray and warmer than outside, so they should dry out before I paint them.

One thing about this cold weather, the air is dry.

I have had a very nasty cough for some time, realised how little gardening I had been doing when the touch id worked on my phone.

I have seedlings coming on indoors though, Has anyone grown RAF tomatoes? I have eight seedlings just potted on. Cauliflowers potted on and looking good, except for one that is obviously something else now it has grown a bit. First basil doing well, waiting on Ailsa Craig toms and replacement broad beans, snow and well below freezing nights played havoc with them. Moneymaker toms and cucumber to go in still. The missus bought some 'Cucamelons', grape size fruit taste like cucumber with a hint of lime, we shall see.

Ordered some peroxide, little flies coming from my potting compost. When we finally get a new microwave I am grabbing the old one to sterilise stuff before I use it.

 

[Sean Regan]

Just a couple of hours today. Took the dead looking hebes out of their pots and replanted them in the long narrow bed under the wisteria. I'm not hopeful of four, a couple of others may survive. The lavender I bought last year doesn't look is if it survived the frost.

Checked on the new troughs, they've gone a bit dull looking as expected. The first coat always gets partly absorbed by the wood. These smaller troughs will only take two pots each of a decent size. I won't put in three smaller ones.
I'll leave it until Saturday before giving them a light sand and a second coat. I filled in the gaps between the mitres on the top with wood filler before painting them.
I washed out all the spare plastic pots. Then had a general clear up of bits of next door's trees and leaves etc.,

 

[Esther Knapicius]

more leaf removal. always different areas. bulbs are appearing everywhere. still need to prune down a few more hydrangeas---I like the look for winter interest when soft snow lays on the spent flowers, ----but so far hardly any snow.

 

[Oliver Buckle]

Added a bit more wood to my trench and then shovelled the earth back on it, levelled off over the three trenches dug so far and put edging round it to hold the earth back.
Planted some salad cress seed I found, don't know how old it is, I shall see if it germinates.
When I came here there was one bed dug over, so I popped the rhubarb I had brought with me into it. I now have rhubarb growing elsewhere so I dug it out and dug over the bed today. It has some quite good soil, but I'll amend to add nutrients and try tomatoes in it I think.
Topped Up the heating in the greenhouse, it's been cold lately.
Tidied Up the bed with chard growing in it and covered it, I think the pigeons have been eating it, and tidied up beds tend to attract the badger to dig for worms, hopefully we will get a bit more off it, but I must plant some fresh, I have the seed.

 

[Esther Knapicius]

just a quick leaf removal of another area this morning to drag to the woods. then get myself ready to go to a farmers market.

 

[Meadowlark]

Potato planting time. Planted about 5 different varieties two days ago and 5 more different varieties today. I have Just a few remaining varieties for planting next week. Hoping to find the best red, white, and overall potato for my area.

 

[Sean Regan]

Finished painting the new troughs.

They are drying out in the garage.

They've had two coats, inside, outside and underneath. A bit, "belt & braces," but it's best to be safe.
They'll be positioned here, either side of the steps.

But the overhanging roof will mean that rain will drip off the edge of the roof into the troughs. So they'll often be wet, as were the old ones, but they weren't made as well.

That was it for the day. No big jobs planned until March, when I'll jet-wash the main patio and the paths and do any re-pointing where necessary. That's always a pain, as to try to match the colour of the York stone, I need cement, silver sand, yellow powder cement dye and plasticiser.