What I did today - 2016

[Martin H]

I spent today round the sister-in-law helping clear her garden. Second attempt this week! The garden was overgrown with green alkanet because it brings her out in a rash if she touches it. So over the years of being left alone it's got its long roots down.

Still I've got the paths cleared, the hard standing where the new shed will go, the two empty vegetable patches and a flower border.

The next visit will probably involve putting up a shed, but until then I can get back to my own gardening. My allotment is an awful mess, maybe I'll spend the day there tomorrow!

[Bigmallly]

Just had an 'our in the sun ripping out the last of the outdoor Toms. All blighted so no more outdoor ones next year. Beds cleared & weeded, raked over ready for either manure or any plants I may have.

[Nannysally99]

Spent the morning knocking up an external pond filter out of an old waste bin. Works like a dream & the water coming out of the filter is crystal clear. May take a while to notice any major difference in the pond though.

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Will we get an appearance of fish tv then next year BM?

[Bigmallly]

Fingers crossed Sal, Ideally, I need to get power down to the pond so the filter can run continuously. At the mo I can only run it in dry weather as I'm having to use a 50mt extension......We'll see.

[Dalrimple]

popped into my local wilko's this morning and got a result! all their brands of seeds where advertisered at 10p and branded seeds 50p per packet,so I got ten packets but when I got to the till the lassy serving said they were still coming up at £1 a pack she got the manageress who tried to tell me they were listed to early ! well says I thats false advertising and I got them all for a £1 ,whist I was paying for them she came past with red sale signs and a red face . lol.
it's worth keeping an eye out cos if thev'e got the signs it won't be long before they let em go for sale price ! atb Dal

[SusieG]

.......breaking news......... DH got in from work before me today and (( ''''shocked voice''' )) had found my loppers and cut back the stuff growing wild from the front trees that overhang the road .....
Granted - I then had to cut it all up and stuff it into the 'green bin! ~ but, hey-ho, a little something less for me to do.....

I'm still reeling from the shock of it all .....................

[happyhumph]

Finally got to do something other than harvesting (not that I'm complaining about that!)

Took leaves off toms, & dodgy ones off cucs. Sowed some sweet William seeds, have loads left which will be chucked on the flower beds to fend for themselves.

Fed greenhouse plants, & hoed veg plot. Took a bit of doing as some of the weeds were a bit big for a hoe.....

[Jay-ell]

Popped into JTF and bought a few 30 litre plating pots with handles - should do for my 1st early spuds next year, or toms or peppers.

back on the plot I continued work on the demolition. Decided to pop an exploratory trench through the corner to cet an idea of the layers I've yet to go through.

1. MDF followed by
2. carpet, plywood,
3. thin plywood
4. a mosaic of plywood, fence slats, chipboard and MDF
5. thick plywood
6. fence panel
7. aggregate
8. triple layer polycarbonate sheet offcuts
9. brick fragments
10. gravel filled soil

Done a bit of weeding an hoeing. Planted out kale, cleared a couple of beds. Checked my pumpkins - nice.

Had a pile of weeds that had been set to wither which needed to be moved to the compost.Must have left them too long as they're almost composted now.

[Jungle Jane]

Yesterday I sorted out my swede/pea patch,added a teepee/string support for the peas,they're only about 2" tall & planted out about 8 more swede seedlings that I had growing in coir pots. Butterfly eggs are on my tiny swede seedlings! I've made about 10 fake butterflies using an old school shirt & string on sticks to trick the butterflies that my swedes are taken. Also crushed eggshells around them to keep the slugs away & BfB around the whole lot. Went out last night & found about five baby slugs on the patch eating my seedlings so that didnt work.

[Containergardener]

Sighed a lot...
Weeds
Pruning that needs done
Grass needs cut but saturated from fields draining through it
Courgettes , I've managed to pick one, 3 munched to sludge by slugs
Frog (probably from a tad we rescued )in kitchen
Roses battered by wind
Runners ..picked 100 today, what to do with em all

Plus..
Picked fresh ripe toms

[Small pumpkin]

Dug over my empty spud bed, spread 6 barrow loads of well rotted farmyard manure over it. Then covered it with weed fabric, with lots of rocks on top. The bed can now have a well earned rest till next season. Harvested stuff.

[Snadger]

Harvested a bag of gooseberries. Tomorrow I will harvest a bag of blackberries.No idea what to make from each or whether to combine them?

[Jay-ell]

Dug up the chives from the back and planted them to make a 1'x6' chive edge to a path. Couldn't be bothered to plant out individual chives as I want a reasonably instant effect so I packed the bunches in tight - good job really otherwise I'd have had to plant the entire plot at 1 inch spacings, the bunches aren't even that far apart. Pulled up the self seeded chives in the bed and packed them into 3 9cm pots.

Hoed and weeded the ex-chive, onion ans shallot beds. Sowed green manures into two of them. Guess I'll sow broad beans in the other later this year.

Done my first onion plat.

[Martin H]

I have been rubbish this summer. But today I decided to start reclaiming my allotment from the weeds.

I made a decent start, pulling up lots of four foot high seeding fat-hen, big clumps of nettle and black nightshade plants with lots of ripe berries on. Also I dug up all my blighted potato plants and carted them off in a black bin bag.

I did manage to harvest a cabbage, some runner beans and a few late strawberries while I was there. And some bunches of flowers for the house.

Maybe I'll go back tomorrow and put in another shift. It doesn't half need it!

[Scoot]

Was out this evening collecting my first bucket of horse manure from the local fields. I'll be spreading it on my garden after everything comes out the garden. Of course I'll be collecting many more buckets yet. I think i got about 15 buckets last year which is 150 ltrs.