What I Did Today Archive 2008

[porridgemaker]

Drove to Mt Cook national park for a few day tramps I found strawberry plants! Maybe Alpine strawbs, or maybe someone biffed one a few years back! I pulled out 18 little suckers...under the pretense of them not being native! I've put them in pots, they're looking rather offended atm, they've been wrapped in wet newspaper and plastic since yesterday
m

[Wren]

Harvested my pot grown Parsnips . I am chuffed to bits with them! 12 very nice size parsnips

Wren

[Newbie]

Recieved an early xmas pressie from my parents - a redcurrant & a gooseberry bush

[perkin]

I scrubbed down the greenhouse staging - it's all looking very spick and span in there now. Then I harvested 2 parsnips - the only ones which germinated. It's my first year so I'm hopeful of bettering that in 2009. Am taking said parsnips to my parents' place for Christmas so everyone can have a smidgen of home grown goodness.

[pigletwillie]

After visiting melton market, I have now started the dry cure for my whole leg of pig. At 9kg it will have 27 days curing in salt.

Inside home I have made peanut brittle, chocolate dipped crystalised ginger, royal fudge and a huge batch of sweet chilli sauce.

The logs are in ready for Christmas day and we are now just about set for some relaxation tomorrow.

[Sanjo]

Turned out my first bag of greenhouse potatoes. Not brilliant at a pound and a half but still pleased. They were planted in sacks in the garden 6/8/08 and moved into greenhouse at end of Sept. Have another 3 maybe 4 sacks to harvest. Also planted up another sack with some rescued Desiree. May come to nothing but hasn't cost me anything. Also half pound carrots from ground in veg bed. Still usable if a bit odd looking. So Chrissie spuds this year. My OH is most impressed!!! HAPPY CHRISTMAS ALL. Sanjo

[Flummery]

Dug up some parsnips an pulled some mixed greens (and reds) for Christmas dinner - chard, black Tuscany and red kales - and some red cabbage and Jerusalem artichokes for Boxing day.

[vegnut]

Pulled 2 celeriacs for tomorrow with a few khol rabbi. Also painted jeys fluid all around the frame of the greenhouse to kill any bugs.

[Newbie]

Got the parents staying all week for xmas so Dad made himself useful today (i.e. staying out of the way!) whilst mum & I prepared for tomorrow, by pottering in the garden. He planted my 2 gooseberry, redcurrant, blackcurrant & raspberry bushes/canes and also finished bubble wrapping my greenhouse. Although it worked out a length & a half short - Good old dad.

[craftyslh]

Cleared out the old tomato plants from the greenhouse, then scrubbed down the glass and metal with hose and brush. It's really cold here, so I had bright pink fingers by the end. Also managed to wash off the white out that dad had painted on a couple of years ago, wow the light in there is much better now.

Daughter has been making some paper pots for me to sow into, planted up some more garlic in them and put them in the cold greenhouse.

Trying to organise my seeds for the next year, not sure the best way, I seem to have so many different packets that I picked up at the Wyevale sale and other garden centres, I want the garden to be so productive this year that I don't have to buy any veg.

[Marthaclematis]

I did lots of general tidying. Swept the patio, cleared the pots of decaying leaves and moved stuff into the SW corner near the house for shelter. I also cut back the last of the gladioli leaves as they didn't die down like daffs do and (very late I know!) put away the table and umbrella. Nothing else to do now except cut some more of the clematis - I started today but it got a bit cold and dark. I'm pleased to know that this is THE darkest week and that in eight weeks time I'll have half an hour of light in the garden when I come home from work. I'm looking forward to all the spring bulbs.

[Snadger]

Just as an aid to whatchamacallit I sowed Kelsae onions (20) Golden Bear onions (20) and F1 shallot seed Matador(20) and brought them home from the allotment and popped them in the propagator on the bedroom windowsill.

As I took the cover off the propagator and felt the dry sand in the bottom it felt warm. I moistened the sand put the three pots inside and pulled a few books out from the bookcase which is in front of the socket.

IT WAS ALREADY SWITCHED ON!

I't must have been switched on since last spring.........with nothing in it!

It'll probabbly go off now that I need it!

Mixed some cement up and after making myself a wooden template out of some pine cladding (remembering my 3-4-5 triangle from trigonometry at school made it 4'0" X 5'4" X 6'8"") then put a layer of breeze blocks along the top side of my cold frame and squared them up nicely with my template.

Thats 3 weeks and 2 sides done!

Well I know that it takes a bag of sand for a side and end and as soon as I scrounge another bag the rest will get done!

Collected 7 eggs in the morning and another 2 eggs in the afternoon and the chooks were treat royally to a clean out of shed, disinfect shed, one blown cabbage and two broccoli plants along with mixed corn and the batter off my chips from the chippy!

[aylithuk]

Normal tidy up of the garden and checking to make sure the cats haven't dug up the bulbs.

All 8 of my Broad Bean plants are growing and looking very healthy.

Watered all my pots to make sure they hadn't dried out and also covered my plants with some fleece for the winter frosts.

[Newbie]

Got rid of our visitors so finally was able to get out into the garden. Planted 40 Tulip bulbs (Spring green), 40 narcissus bulbs (tete a tete i think), crab apple tree (red patio variety), Beauty berry, Clematis (new xmas flowering type) and a cordelyne into the new flower bed. Planned to do loads more but digging the holes was so tiring due to there being loads of bricks & rubble to dig out too so thats all for today!

Still to do...

Prune apple trees,
Clear weeds from around apple trees & mulch,
Mulch newly planted fruit bushes,
Dig over other new flower bed & plant,
Assemble new bird feeder station,
Plant out onions & garlic,
Sow onion seeds.

[Herbie]

Today I managed to mulch three beds. Ordered my seeds, onion sets and seed potatoes ready for new growing season. Sorted my seeds out, ready to plan what I will be growing where.
Designed another raised bed ready for O/H to buld when its a bit warmer.

Herbie