What I Did Today Archive 2009

[Newbie]

Cut grass, edged grass, hoiked, chopped & deadheaded in one of the flower beds, did a tiny bit of weeding then went inside & made a batch of Raspberry, Blackberry & Apple Jam.

[Snadger]

Haven't posted on this thread for a while but it doesn't mean I haven't been busy.
Building a coop INSIDE a shed joined to a large greenhouse. The coop will be the winter quarters for some 'less than hardy' chooks and the empty greenhouse (in winter) will be their run.
Just about finished the coop only a skylight and the roosting bar to go in it.
Scrounged a half glass door which was missing it's glass for the entry from the shed to the greenhouse. Used a sheet of perspex for the top and fitted it today.
Also making a way out of the greenhouse to a yet to be built small run for if we have the odd sunny day throughout the winter. Just need to sort out a pophole to the outdoors similar to the coop pophole and a lick of paint will see it finito!
Gee day tomorrow though.........got some time off work and I must tidy the double garage!

[kevnsue]

Stewed some blackberry,apple and damsons this morning then this afternoon had 2 hours of full on fun on my quad bike(suzy 450 ltr)now resting ready for work tomorrow.

[wellie]

I totally share that sentiment Snadger. I've harvested Autumn Bliss Raspberries again today, I've dug trenches and ferried well-rotted farmyard manure from there to here, Trousers has felled trees, we've dug new fruit and veg beds, removing endless bucket-loads of stones, and admired what we've done at the end of the day with a G&T and a nice cold glass of Pinot Grigio. X

[Jeanied]

Went to the lottie today to gloat - no big tasks to do, no messes to sort out! Sowed a small pocket of limnanthes, a large area of autumn green manure - tested out carrots (too small) and radishes (too big). Picked 3 corn on the cobs for supper. Snipped the flower heads off the basil and some leaves for pesto. Passed on runner beans - too many of them recently. Took home a bunch of lavender - oh and watered the compost heap and topped it off with a new 'duvet' (old double duvet, sealed up in black plastic, black duct tape on the outside to seal the envelope) back home for a G+T (don't tell anyone)...

[Gro-Bag]

Harvested a few measly poatatoes from a shady bed and lots and lots of runner beans, which were mostly added to the growing pile in the freezer. Threw the trimmings for the hens who had a great time chasing and eating them. Picked a few more courgettes, some sprouts of broccolli and tomatoes from the greenhouse. Ate poached eggs on toast for lunch with eggs from my hens, and roasted veg for tea topped with mozarella - mmm-nmmm tomatoes, beans, courgettes and purple sprouting broccoli adn herbs from the garden, onions, garlic, aubergine, and pepper from Tesco - will try harder next year : ) (I know it's too early for psb, but the broccolli doesn't...)

[kentvegplot]

Yesterday, started the clear up for Autumn.

I harvested the ornamental gourds which I grew this year - 13 interesting shapes to use for harvest festival. Cut the last pumpkin and put it in the greenhouse to finish curing, then cleared the stems. Removed the frames on which tall peas were grown and cut off some of the ragged stems from rhubarb. Spent over 2 hours weeding the 'low-maintenance' garden at the front, pulling up pelargoniums which have given up for the year.

Harvested mizuna, mibuna, lettuce, rocket, the last cucumber, red peppers, spring onions and beetroot ready for tea. Large glass of red wine as reward..

[Two_Sheds]

- brought home lots of dried beans, also lots of shelly beans (ripe but not dry)
- had to water parsnips, as still no rain (we've had one shower in 2 months)
- brought home lots of pumpkins to dry off on patio/inside greenhouse
- recut the back lawn into a proper circle, and planted 100 daffs round it
- grubbed out lots of dandelions & filled the holes with grass seed
- planted calla lilies into the border, also cordyline (I know I'll regret that)
- trying to reduce the amount of pots on the patio, as watering is too time-consuming
- watered beds well and mulched with last year's leaf-mould (it's done already)
- picked another box of blackberries and found a huge supply of rosehips nearby
- sowed Phacelia green manure where the pumpkins were
- sowed Chinese Veg - 2 rows - for the slugs, as is traditional
- planted out a tray of Offenham Flower of Spring: bit late, but it has 2 choices

[bramble]

Cut down a clematis, a summer flowering jasmine and a climbing rose, all of which appeared to be taking over my flower border in the last 12 months or so. Did'nt ever realise how wide my border was until I took all that lot away.
In the afternoon made 12 lbs of raspberry jam and 8 lbs of bramble jelly. Am absolutely shattered but feel like i've done a good days work.

[ginger ninger]

Set some blackberry wine off, made blackberry jam, blanched and froze 6lb of runner beans, dry roasted an onion squash for a risotto, (which I might add was yummy) cut 4 more of plant to ripen for storage.

[bramble]

Made another 12 pots of raspberry jam today. Thats all of my raspberry supply used up but I have absoutely loads of blackcurrants in the freezer waiting to be used up and quite a few bags of plums. I have to say my fruit harvest was very good this year. I had bumper crops from all my fruit bushes.

[wellie]

Today, I mowed our front lawn, and the woodland lawn, and reluctantly sprayed the lawn weeds with Verdone. (See Wellie shake her head..... believe me - it HAD to be done...)
And mowed all of the grass paths in the new Kitchen Garden in the back garden, and the other side of the fence in The Sheep Sick Bay bordering where the new Asparagus Bed is going to be.
Thank you for Listening.
X

[Newbie]

Not much gardening wise, trimmed a load of mildew covered leaves of the "Wee be Little" Pumpkin to find there are still seven fruits on it (5 already picked & cured), noticed that there is a load of PSB & Raab brocolli ready for picking, admired the French Beans which also need picking too, made a mental list of "to do in the veg patch," picked some tomatos in the GH and had a little water. Also this morning, my kind friend who a couple of weeks ago gave me over 8lb of plums & damsons gave me nearly 5lb of small, crisp, sweet, dessert apples - what to do with them all, apple pie?

[StephenH]

Having constructed a leafmould container out of bits of old fence paling, bamboo shoots and apple-tree prunings (nice 'n' sturdy - should stand up to anything short of a mouse farting within six feet of it) a week or two ago, this morning I started to fill it with leaves from under trees in the neighbourhood. It's now about one-third full (its total capacity is about a cubic yard), but the leaves are not packed down as they ought to be, so I've got some way to go yet. Still, we are still early in the leaf-fall period, so I should have it full, packed down, and brimming over (to quote one of the gospels) before long. I got some grass-clippings in with them, which, according to the article on p.14 of the October mag., is good, as it speeds up the process.
About a week ago, I broadcast green manure seed over my vacant beds and lightly forked it in, but nevertheless I think the local avian hooligans have nabbed the lot. We shall see.

[Snadger]

After being locked in the hoose by the missus for two days laying laminate flooring I eventually managed to escape to the allotment for some much needed maintenance!

Gathered some spuds, a cabbage and caulis for tomorrows dinner, plus the never ending raid on the courgette plants. Have a mountain of courgettes already but the plants are now mildewed...........so that should slow them down a bit!
Planted the last batch of leeks, some more japanese onions, some Channel Island walking stick kale, some Spring Cabbage,some Tosana De Niro kale. Harvested some broadies and some mangetout for seed for next year.Did a bit of weeding and took off some of the wilted bottom leaves on cabbage,sprouts and swede which the chooks made short work of.

A pleasant day weatherwise and a fullfilling day workwise, I left for home with my spoils a happy man!