Gardening thread 2020

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Hired a large rotavator today - the land extension work on the house left a huge plot of damaged (council) land beside our house that the landscapers should have fixed, but didn't (long, tedius, annoying story).
So I picked out all the rocks and turned it all over today - then levelled, seeded and lightly compacted. Hoping it turns it back to decent asap as its a bloody eyesore and I'm sure the neighbours (polite about it as they have all been) are sick of seeing it looking like no mans land.

Also had to the do the same with a 5x3m patch in the back garden that was never levelled properly last year - including finding a trench of cement a foot wide and about 10m long (i know, i know!) that used to be the footings for a brick border that I removed last year - digging that out was fun.
No energy left to finish that though - so cleaned the rotavator ready for collection in the morning, and assuming my back isn't totally fucked in the morning, I'll go back out and level that off and get some seed down on that too.

Then finally, after well over a year since asking the council if I could buy some land, the project will actually be finished.

Its a hell of a lot of hard work for a fat lad though, I'm utterly bollocksed now.

Then I need to fill the borders (sleepers) with top soil and a little compost, and look to start growing some scran.
 
Got some patch magic to put down, the grass is really coming away now so I'm going to give it a cut over the weekend and try to fill in some of the patches.

If we end up locked in for a while I can see me having to build some decking at the bottom of the garden for somewhere to sit outside.
 
box2box said:
Cracking weather forecast for next 7/10 days. Good time to sort out the winter debris, still a little early to cut the lawn I reckon....
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The main problem at the moment is the high pressure bringing the lovely sunny days also leads to clear skies at night and the threat of frosts so be careful planting anything delicate out. I do plan to give our grass a top cut, but looking for the days where night temperatures aren't going to fall too far.
 
Strategy:
  • Front garden: rewild
  • Back garden: for veg and sitting out - let's hope we at least get a lovely summer
BACK:
Compost bin has been emptied and spread on what will be this year's veg patches.

Mr P has put the mini greenhouse up. I've filled a load of seed trays but not planted up yet as the compost was cold and wet. Popped them into the greenhouse to get a bit warmer for a couple of days. Will then plant with veg seed.

I suspect a pond may go in at some point before too long if lockdown continues for months.

FRONT:
Someone's coming to remove the horrible Cypress Leylandii hedge that marks the front garden boundary in a couple of weeks. This was arranged ages ago and it's great they can still do it - they don't need any contact with us at all. We will replant with native hedge species: hawthorn, field maple, briar rose, blackthorn.

Wildflower seeds to go in the front garden at some point.

Am on a no-mow thing with the front lawn. Hard to describe but the front garden is - unusually - very private as you have to come down a little path to get to ours. It has a beautiful corkscrew hazel in the middle. So if we let the lawn go no one will notice and if we encourage some native flowers they'll look lovely around the hazel.

Huge and beautiful camelia which is covered in glorious blowsy pink flowers at the moment to be cut back once flowering is over. Not too much but it's too big for its location at the moment.

There's an embankment verge out the front which is not ours but no other bugger ever walks past it except the postie and visitors so we're going to plant this with brambles to get our own private blackberry patch.
In my dreams I will have a row of step-over apple trees like I had in my last garden. They were my pride and joy.

In other news, the olive tree in a pot ... HAS OLIVES ON IT. That's a first for me. The 4 different varieties of clematis montana planted last year along a very long fence look like they're going to be magnificent. Started the rewilding thing out the front last year with some primroses, bluebells and fox gloves. The primroses are up and magnificent. The bluebells are sprouting. The foxgloves are forming busting little rosettes. The corkscrew hazel has four birdfeeders on it and is like Piccadilly Circus with finches, tits, spuggies and robins. Red kites wheel overhead.
On rewilding, I will know I have won when we get hedgehogs back. May speak to the neighbour to do hedgehog gaps in our fence so they have a run across territories. He's a gardener too so he'll get it.
 
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I've just planted my front borders with a mix of loads of different wildflowers. A real mix up - cost a bomb like, which is ironic. Its a typical front garden onto a path beside the road for the street, so I am a little concerned that it'll look messy while it grows in.

Also got 25 portugese laural plants in the porch ready to plant on the outside of our fence (yes, on the council land lol) - I rotavated the turf earlier to aerate the soil to help them take root. I'd sprayed roundup last week too, so the grass won't grow back and stifle the hedge.
 
Carrot seeds on, pea seeds on, courgettes started, beetroot started. All the greenhouse to help them on a bit. Need to get a few seed potatoes for my tubs. I'll be mostly using up the home compost this time.
Also got lots of flower seeds collected from last year.
 
PTR said:
What is in it at the moment?
What do you want to have in it?
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grass, rotten hedge stumps, flagstones. I'd love a border / flowers / pretty stuff lol - I once went out to try and dig up a border, the spade wouldn't go through the f***ing soil even with my 20 odd clem bearing down on the bugger.
 
look out piano said:
grass, rotten hedge stumps, flagstones. I'd love a border / flowers / pretty stuff lol - I once went out to try and dig up a border, the spade wouldn't go through the f***ing soil even with my 20 odd clem bearing down on the bugger.
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Sounds like what I've been up to recently.
A 4 prong fork can break up the ground far easier than a spade can. Or you can rent a small rotavator for a day for about £75 (all in) and blast it.

My plan usually starts with stripping everything out and getting back to a blank canvass.
 
Eugh, that wasn't fun. The patch I couldn't get to with the machine is tucked away between the fence and the decking - so the sun doesn't get to it - so its still wet unlike everywhere else. Turning that over for seeding is going to be a nightmare. Did what I could to uncompact it today, hopefully that'll help it dry out a bit by tomorrow afternoon.

Had to brace the fence in both directions earlier - the wind was about to bring it down. Needs 8 new posts putting in ASAP :(

Managed to get one smaller patch of soil levelled out today. Not sure how much energy I've got to get it all done though, my muscles are fooked.
 
spitfire said:
Managed to get out turning the plot over this afternoon. Absolutely lovely to be out in the sun and fresh air on a weekend. Bit chilly mind in the wind.
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Likewise marra.
It was good to get out there along the allotment and get some fresh air.
As you say, it was a bit chilly, but the ground was quite good to turn over.
 
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