Trowel and Error

[Mountain Goat]

That's a pity, I am dying to give them away. I might take some over to my other neighbour tonight as there have been police cars down the road (no sirens/lights but multiple cars) and I bet she knows what's going on.

Good work with the lavender, and great news about the bargain obelisk. I have inadequate home made bamboo wigwams that are not really tall enough. I have taller canes I could use but the sweet peas are attached now. I just finally planted my ranunculas, aren't they weird things?? I had to warn J I had left them soaking in the utility room as they could have been mistaken for an infestation of some kind.

[Bat Macdui]

Look at your lovely greenhouse! I covet it enormously.

I want to know what the infesting ranuculas look like, too.

One of my astrantias has germinated. the rest seem to be chilling a bit. I am deeply pissed off with weekend weather forecast. I may just put my full hill walking waterproofs on and crack on anyway.

[Mountain Goat]

I didn't take a picture of the soaking ranunculas. This is the sort of thing:



but imagine a group of them, plumped up from a 12 hour soak, floating around a pyrex bowl in the utility, looking like a cross between sea anemones and angry little crabs.

Thank you, I would recommend instead getting a plastic one that you can sling together in an hour.

Oh good for your astrantia. I still have no movement. I've forgotten when I planted them now, I made note at the beginning but that's gone out the window now.

Is the weather going to be bad again? I am ill and have had to cancel/postpone my lovely plans but the upside was that at least I could get on with some planting.

[Bat Macdui]

I love them. Mandrake power.

My astrantias hadn't sprouted, they'd grown some beautiful fungi. I am undeterred, I have started again, with the potting compost less damp. I've potted on my rubdeckia this morning, and started some dwarf sunflowers (I love a sunflower). And I have ordered some honesty seeds for the shady bit at the back, and some more cosmos for the middle bit and for some pots. I am hoping for a dry Bank Holiday weekend, so I can get properly underway. I have a white hosta and some geraniums coming from my Mum's friend, so there will at least be some GREEN coverage this year.

[Mountain Goat]

That sounds like a bloody astrantia. Still nothing from mine, the seed packet said it might like a warm/cool/warm cycle so maybe I should put them in the garage for a bit or something.

Oh good going. I started some sunflowers last week too, some random ones I got in a seed lucky bag. I also have a million seedlings right by the bird table, same as last year. What colour cosmos? I have lots of white this year and some "apricotta" which is more pinky than peachy to me, plus some bright red (for a totally different area). They germinate really quickly at least which is cheering after astrantia. Oh my zinnia have germinated (very quickly) - I'm not even a big fan but they're useful for jamming into a boring corner and they were in my random lucky bag. I got some honesty seeds too without realising they're biennial so won't do anything till next year.

I did more planting, and there is a patch at the front of the house where everything is looking like it's struggling, and I have reason to believe it's vine weevil. Anyway they'll be past larvae stage soon so doing no more harm and I can't nematode them till September so I'm just feeding everything madly and hoping I can boost them up to recover any root loss. Failing that I'll jam in a load of annuals for this summer then try to deal with the root (ha!) issue in the autumn.

[Bat Macdui]

I have moved astrantia: part 2, the revenge to the kitchen, which is definitely more in a hot/cold cycle than the dining room. We shall see.

My cosmos are white. I am not even trying planting planning to colour, I am just doing stuff and seeing what happens. This is all going to go so well. My potted on rudbeckia are doing very well, though, and the delphiniums are having a little spurt, I am going to pot them on at lunchtime, then their starter pot is free when my next lot of seeds arrive later this week.

[Disco]

This year I have successfully recognised nigella seedlings instead of panicking they are mare tail or horses tail whatever it’s called and yanking them out.

[Disco]

This year I have successfully recognised nigella seedlings instead of panicking they are mare tail or horses tail whatever it’s called and yanking them out.

[Mountain Goat]

Congratulations, I am doing the opposite and letting probable invasive weeds thrive just in case they're my dahlias or salvias coming back, even though they don't look like them.

I might do the same, this room is warm and they're above a radiator. Maybe I need to put them in the fridge?? I don't know. I am mostly wondering if anywhere sells this colour as small plants because I'll take that.

I think your strategy is wise, plants are going to plant and not obey your colour scheme anyway, the lynchpin colour will die, something will come up a different colour to the packet and that tiny burst of orange will take over everything. I love a rudbeckia, mine have come back much bigger than last year which pleases me.

My greenhouse is full and nothing much is quite ready to move on, hopefully I will be less contagious soon so can take some plants to neighbours at least, I'm a bit grid locked as it is.

[Mountain Goat]

Klaxon: neighbour 1 has been round and taken away three tomato plants, he only came to drop some parcels off and struggled off back home with his arms more full than when he arrived.

[absley]

Good job, Goat! And interesting to see the ranunculas - I saw a few bits like that in some old compost I was reusing, I wonder if anything unexpected will emerge!

My flower seeds are slowly emerging - I shut the greenhouse door which has probably made the difference, who knew!

[Disco]

Does anyone know what this is? It has appeared.

[emma_p]

It looks like an anemone?

[Mountain Goat]

That was my thought too. So pretty.

[Disco]

ah yes! Now I remember buying and putting it in the ground. It must’ve been the day I planted 50 tulip bulbs and 10 alliums. I wonder what else I’ve forgotten!

[Disco]

Thank you!

[Disco]

It’s opened! As have finally my green tulips though the aphids live them so that’s inhibited them. Final days of my monstrous tulips.

[Mountain Goat]

Oh god I absolutely love that green tulip and need it in my garden next spring

[baargain]

Oh shit

IMG-20240505-WA0015.jpeg

[Demelza]

That's an impressive amount of asparagus! And those tulips are lovely. Disco. My lone tulip is still going (joined further down the garden by a lone freesia – my bulb planting must have been very random last year!)

Yesterday was warm and sunny, and I got lots done – sorted out pots, planted some container carrots and planted out a mock-orange and some geraniums. It looks like we need to get a wall rebuilt rather than just repointed, so I've been putting pots in that border rather than planting things out. It's topping down again today but at least everything is getting watered in.