Gardening/Allotmenting

[Drago]

You could argue back to her that the water companies have a moral duty fix the loss of up to a quarter of pumping capacity through leaks. And then cross yourself as you mention her living in sin.

 

[biggs682]

It won't be long till we have some red tomatoes ready

 

[Elybazza61]

Had a mooch around the garden this afternoon so some pics of some plants not ravaged by the heat.

Hedychium x moorei 'tara'

Cautleya spicata 'Arun flame'

Pseudopanax lesson 'Moa's Toes'

Yucca glorious variegata flowers (actually going over now)

Begonia grandis 'Heron's Pirouette'

 

[Red17]

Good crop of greengages this year (my favourite fruit) and the first couple of sweet potatoes ready. First rain for 2 months here yesterday, but hopefully won't cause the rest of the fruit and tomatoes to split

 

[Red17]

Colourful selection of tomatoes picked today

 

[biggs682]

Harvested our first potatoes today but disappointed but better than nothing

 

[briantrumpet]

I got a new Spear & Jackson fork today to replace the wholly inadequate Fiskars fork with pressed steel tines that bend like Curly Wurlies in the sun. So I finished digging the hole ready to plant an apple tree root at Christmas. Then I pruned the wild prune trees, and the Fiskars secateurs broke, as the plastic handles aren't reinforced to the end. Are you seeing a pattern here?

Anyway, here are two pictures, one of Fiskars failures, and one of my handsome fork and the apple hole (filled in till planting time).

 

[biggs682]

Some aphids on one of our rose bushes , some more detailed ones in the ' wildlife ' thread

 

[biggs682]

Rear lawn has been cut first time for ages

 

[Emanresu]

Talking to one of the gardeners where I help out, she mentioned that worm numbers are well down this year due to the heat and lack of rain. It's not a subject that had occurred to me but I find you can actually buy earthworms to 'top up' the soil. It's about £50 for 200 or the price of some decent steak. So before I spend the steak money on worms, has anyone tried adding worms to the soil?

 

[annedonnelly]

Lots of soil lacks worms because the soil quality is poor. If that is the problem then adding worms is probably just sentencing them to death.

Don't worms go deeper in the soil when it's dry? You might find that they reappear once the soil moisture increases.

 

[Emanresu]

Lots of soil lacks worms because the soil quality is poor. If that is the problem then adding worms is probably just sentencing them to death.

Don't worms go deeper in the soil when it's dry? You might find that they reappear once the soil moisture increases.

That might explain the tonnes of earth that has been delivered which we have to spread before the frost. So more earth and forget about the worms.

 

[OldShep]

The worms will come if you provide something for them to eat. Organic matter is what you need. Grass cuttings, leaves, veg scraps, cover all your bare soil with these and enjoy your steak.