The 'What I Did Today' Archive - 2007

[TonyF]

Had to nip out for an hour this morning and managed to resist the temptation to visit a brico shed - bloody tourists and maison secondaire owners are starting to arrive, far too many Brits around for my liking, grumble, grumble, silly old fart, no parking at the market tomorrow.

So back home, chum turned up who owed me some time and he strimmed all the grass at the front of the house, after I'd finished propping up the branches of the plum tree that collapsed last year but are full of blossom this year.

Managed to dig over two beds this afternoon, started to organise the leaf mould bins and the composters and even managed to get a couple of seed trays sorted.

Ordered Chinese Chives and Welsh Onions from Suffolks Seeds on Wednesday and they arrived TODAY - great service.

Weather has been exceptional, even managed to fit in an hour at the birthday party of the neighbour's 5 year old daughter - great way to learn more French and now seem to have as many French friends as English which is cool.

[Madasafish]

Finished cutting down a 12metre high dead willow.. by hand (blisters!). Transplanted asters and daisies and a few tomatoes in greenhouse. Took cuttings of heathers. Replanted outside some giant tender plant which grew at random in last year's heat (I have no idea what it is...)

Burnt lots of wood.
Fed birds.
Took cuttings of lavender.
Checked clematis cuttings. Trained new clematis up trellis it is refusing to grow up.!

Trained hawthorn hedge at front using last year's shoots to fill gaps in hedge.

In betwenn times washed all external windows and welded wife's exhaust which had a split flange at a joint and was rattling at start up (only then).

Hoed all flower , strawberry and vegetable beds.
Gave dose of ericaceous MiracleGrow to blueberries/rhododendrons/camelia and magnolias.

Mended vacant neighbours fence (damaged by winter storms.)

[pigletwillie]

Today I dragged myself out of bed and finished off the polytunnel door frames in readiness for extra hands in the form of Piglette and our daughter to arrive to fit the plastic cover.
A big brucie bonus was my nephew turning up with a beast of a rotovator so I got him to do the inside of the tunnel before it was covered along with a few other beds and the new plot.
Many hands make cover fitting easy and within 40 minutes the cover was on and the two long sides secured. Whilst I folded in the ends and secured them Piglette planted 8 fruit trees on our new plot making a small orchard. By late afternoon the cover was finished with just the doors to cover and hang which I will do over the next few days.

The finished tunnel is 13' x 20' and has double doors both ends, crop bars and vine wires fitted. With the exception of the cover and timber for the door frames and doors, everything was recycled.

Total cost £168.78 A bargain.

[Waffler]

Welcome Madasafish!

Didn't feel I achieved as much today as I would have liked.
I sowed statice and everlasting sweetpea seeds. Also soaked regular sweetpea seeds but forgot to plant them!
Did hours of digging on 'the patch' and dug half a trench for the potatoes before OH arrived home from work and that put paid to that.
Also watered everything, fed the birds and made and decorated a simnel cake.

[nick the grief]

today I planted 3 rows of Shallots and my 2md early spuds. and a bit of judiscious hoeing and lots of tea drinking.

Tomorrow I shall put in the last half row of shallots & add half a row of caulis I think.

[Squash Muppet]

Another lovely day today! Sowed dwarf french bean 'ferrari', pumpkin, crown prince squash and gem squash all under cover. Spotted a broad bean germinating. Also spotted two more garlic shoots - yay -

Dug a trench ready for my pumpkin plants to go into.

Went to the garden centre and bought way too many seeds. Good grief!

Squash Muppet

[Seabreeze]

I managed to move the new nectarine tree, in its large terracotta pot, on my B&Q folding sack-type truck, out of the greenhouse, and trundle it along the paths to a sheltered, south facing spot outside of the stone shed.

After that I emptied some more terracotta pots of old, and very woody, but nevertheless sprouting pelargoniums, from the patio by the back door. The plants were completely unscathed having endured the only two nights' of very light frost we have seen all winter. New pelargonium plants, about 12in tall, that were taken as cuttings last November, now take their place.

The grapevine on the pergola over the patio is bursting with leaf now, and one of the newly planted pear trees is opening its blossom. I am trying to defy convention and make a small espalier of it.

Also as part of the greenhouse clearance I emptied the dustbin of potatoes, tomato and melon plants (!) mentioned yesterday. We ate some of the new spuds for supper tonight and they were fantastically fluffy. The skins came off almost completely as I gave them an initial wash under the hose...

I transplanted nine of the tomato plantlets, which are about 4in tall, into pots. They will be moved into open ground before long. I also salvaged the melon (?) mentioned yesterday, and another melon (or courgette) from the dustbin, and transplanted to pots. I then upturned the dustbin onto the garden to empty the remaining soil... forgetting that when I planted the spud scraps in the bin I had put a couple of inches of polystyrene chips in to assist drainage. Thank God it wasn't windy!

Our compost boxes are home-made and stackable, made from old floorboards. I cover them with some old double-glazed window panels. There is no aeration between the planks but I do turn the contents regularly. Much to my surprise, there is another box load of compost ready. The consistency is brilliant although I do feel the need to put it through a large mesh sieve, and chuck the residue (bits of stalks, mainly) into the second compost bin.

Three pots of strawberry plants sit in the greenhouse now and Catherine (Mrs Seabreeze), who is wheelchair bound, is in for a treat as the fruits are swelling and reddening as she watches them. Spurred on by the sight of these, I sieved some more compost and mulched around the strawberry plants that are growing out in their own raised bed. Then I turned the hose on them for good measure.

I have filled one of the compost bin frames full of soil and compost and sewn it full of leeks... to be transplanted when they are still quite small - when the ground is ready.

Six Sand Martins flew over, in off the sea. The first ones I have seen this year.

The brassica bed is almost bare, with only a line of cabbages sewn. I planted out most of the current cut-and-come-again leaf plants and lettuces in the brassica frame and have covered the line of seed and these with a net-type cloche.

All my other lines of seeds have branches of willow strewn over then to keep any straying cats off. I cut the willow before the leaves come out for this purpose and to keep the trees, that are beside the pond as 'tight bushes' which attract migrating warblers in April / May. Speaking of warblers, Willow Warblers were singing both yesterday and today. They won't stay here in our immediate neighbourhood for long, but they are a real pleasure as they pass.

[johnty greentoes]

Bought 3 small goosberry plants and potted up. Should fruit in 5 years!

Bought grow bags and tom plants for front porch. I love the smell of toms when I get home!

Repotted all 15 of my son's cacti - with his help and filled his bedroom window sill with them.

Continued to admire the miracle of germination taking place on my living room windowsill.

In wonderful sunshine read 100 pages of The Sea, The Sea (Iris Murdoch) totally wonderful. Despite straw hat I seem to have a red head!

[heebiejeebie]

Yesterday:
Bought farmyard manure instead because I could only just lift the bags of sand and gravel. It'll probably be better anyway! Also bought another water butt to go by the cat-run to collect the run off from its roof. Didn't get the guttering and down-pipe yet as my car is a bit too short for long plastic pipes! May need to chat up a neighbour... or just walk there and back! I got a new hand fork too - a decent one with tines that shouldn't bend. My cheapo one has been driving me nuts.

I finished forking over the brassica beds and removing roots but didn't plant anything yet - I'll fork in the manure first. By that time I was a little back-weary so rather than weeding the onion bed I planted some more seeds in the plastic cold-frame. It's full of pots and trays now )

Today:
I *will* get those onions in!

[Flummery]

Yesterday I dismembered a dalek bin - fantastic compost. I used most of it on the fruit bushes and the damson, which is in flower now and looks gorgeous. The rest has been piled on the bed where I shall try the 3 sisters method with squashes, beans and corn.
Today I finished planting out my peas under the pigeon proofing. Stopped for The Archers Omnibus then back out for the day. I LOVE a sunny Easter!

[Kimbo]

Yesterday - mowed the small lawn and part of the big lawn (in between raised beds).

Today - breakfast in the garden then strim the bits I couldnt mow in between the raised beds yesterday. Strim the bits where my other two beds are going to go when they arrive from linkabord next week. Pot on some herbs that have been growing on the kitchen windowsill.

and finally sit and rest in the garden for a change, anything else that needs doing can be done tomorrow.

[Bex]

Yesterday, I planted 20 tubers each of rocket, bonnie and pink fir apple potatoes - back-breaking it was. Also did a lot of weeding between garlic and onions. Pleased to see that the lettuce I planted last week have germinated.

Today - dug a small bed and placed my tent cloche on it. This is where I am hoping to grow my aubergine and a couple of chilli and tomato plants. Dug another bed and planted some carrots, radishes and parsnip.

Tomorrow I am planting my sons potatoes that he bought from Ryton (only 8 tubers) if the weather holds out.

[has-bean]

trapped nerve in digging shoulder so no heavy work for me. Mowed lawns tho and watered the greenhouse plants went to allotment - thankfully 200yds from home
and gut rakke and about to sort the pile of soil i excavated for greenhouse into flower beds so the gf can come and plant in em. Never raked left handed before but cant be as hard as playing pool that way. Speaking of pools gotta filll bird bath - happy easter shd be Pimms o clock soon

[seasprout]

Hump.

Painted the Fence in the front garden, it took me a whole Archers Omnibus.
Mowed the lawn in the back garden, watered a couple of things then got smoked out by inbread moronic neighbour who is still currently burning every bit of greenery they can find.

Spent rest of day in house, in a mood.

[heebiejeebie]

Brassica beds have now had manure forked in. Just waiting for the seeds in pots to germinate. Meanwhile, spending time bashing the lumps out of the soil. Borrowed one of the beds for some mystery potatoes that I found well-chitted at the back of the outhouse. Planted the JAs at last.

Turned the full compost bin into the empty one. Lots of woodlice, some wrinkly old spuds trying to grow.

Didn't get round to planting the onions though!