The gardening thread

[Bunnylump]

OI
You can go off people, you know... And being as how you are a little orange flower I might have to threaten you with a lawn mower!!

[Cenwulf]

I have a garden, but it's without a lawn. We have an assortment of flower beds and a greenhouse. As well as the roses, camellias, house leeks, hydrangea and magnolia (amongst others) we've currently got some veg growing as well: some in the greenhouse and some outside.
The tomato plants are doing well, though they're not at the fruiting stage yet. the runner beans are climbing steadily, and the salad leaves are thriving. Still some trouble with the lettuces, as the first lot didn't come up.

[chazzie]

That's my sort of garden - flowers and veg but no lawn that you have to keep mowing

Cenwulf - are you sure you're not giving a little too much info for our bunny friend....... I can feel some scheming going on to get at those lettuces

[giraffe]

so how many points do you score in cricket for hitting a rabbit on the head????
Is it bonus points for accuracy, or minus points for cruelty?

Five if the bunny is hiding under a spare helmet!

[chazzie]

I've never really been into cricket - but this gives it a new slant

[Bunnylump]

Hmmm.

Plotting revenge...

[Laura]

Serious info search now folks. My sister's birthday is on the 27th June, and when we were little, my grandad always 'raced' to see if he could get a ripe tomato by then (because he was a softie, and knew he wouldn't win). I want to know if anyone can manage one by saturday. It's probably possible further south than we are!!!

[chazzie]

I have one cherry tomato (first time I've grown tomatos this year) that is getting close to ripe!
I keep moving its pot round the garden to get the sun on it!
Dont know whether it will be there by Saturday

[Laura]

Are you furthrer south than Yorkshire?

[chazzie]

Just a little bit Sitting on the South Coast - not far from Southampton

[Bunnylump]

My stupid tomato plants haven't even flowered yet.

[chazzie]

Popped into see my parents on route back from a meeting this pm, and the sister plants of my cherry tomato! have some ripe red tomatoes. So red toms in Chippenham!

[Bunnylump]

I've just eaten a massive bowlful of strawberries from my back garden. YUM. (Mind you the slugs have eaten a massive bowl full too by the looks of it. I can't put down slug pellets because the stupid cat eats them.) Oh and before someone suggests bowls of beer embedded in the ground, no, she drinks them too.

[clvrlad]

how about salt


dont you like slug fireworks?

[gill216]

My garden at home is the slug and snail M1. I spend fortunes on pellets that are animal & child friendly because our neighbours all have pets and / or young children around who on occasions are tempted to explore our garden.

I have solved my problem this year. Anything the slugs eat has been transported to our caravan on the East Yorkshire coast. Not a slug snail or butterfly on site. While others have beautiful pots of flowers Gill has lettuces, sprouts peppers etc. I have applied the same tactic in reverse. The seagulls keep digging out my bulbs from the pots that held them so I've brought them back to Leeds. Tumbling tomatoes (flowers but no fruit yet) and strawberries doing well in both places and I think my potatoes are ready too.

[maisie ladybird]

We have both slugs and snails in our garden, but we also keep hens who absolutely love slugs and snails, so when we see any we just get the trowel and flick them over for the hens to eat - a bit gruesome, I know, but it works!

[MBH]

Have you got a couple of spare hens maisie??? Sickly, Slimey Slugs and Snails all over here

When I'm out in the garden for Jennie, I give any snails I find a cheap flight into the farmer's field next door. The flight is great, but I don't know what the landing is like.

[Scurra]

Sickly, Slimey Slugs and Snails all over here

Don't you come with bonus free Puppy Dogs' Tails as well, MBH?

[Bunnylump]

You're next to a farmer's field MBH?* And the slugs prefer your garden to whatever they're growing over there? Now that really is poo.

*Lucky thing.

[MBH]

Some while ago, Starbucks were selling small potted Sunflowers in aid of charity, and I was duly called out with the car to 'collect' our new friends. 3 small green stalks of varying height (largest was a foot tall).

The tallest seemed to be trying to grow away from the attacking slugs and other pests. When he was tall enough to need a bamboo pole he was name 'Spike'.

The middle one withered and died, eventually vanishing entirely.

The smallest one we thought was going the same way, but it did actually survive and keep growing - at a much reduced rate. {I've called him 'Spelk' - that tells you something}

It's been facinating to watch the race up the wall of the garden shed, and this past week has seen the full flower on 'Spike' open up to the world. Little 'Spelk' actual has a head developing, and will look good when it opens as well.

Here they are:

Spike and Spelk.JPG (55 KiB) Viewed 1960 times