Mary, Mary, quite contrary...

[Perpetual Man]

Garden? What's a garden?

Seriously though I hate mine at the moment. I look at it and think of all the wonderful things I could do with it, and the care it really needs and just find that time is against me.

Last year I was determined to do something and actually got some sort of foothold against the weeds, but they're back with a vengeance this year. My planned and slightly executed vegetable patch laughs at me with disdain and the green house... just done't talk to me about the greenhouse.

[Vertigo]

Hah weeds! Bane of my life. The railway line runs right alongside my garden and kindly donates brambles, nettles and ground elder in quite astonishing quantities! I am gradually getting sufficient hedge like plantings to separate us but that's doesn't seem to stop them any. Just how far can those plants run roots underground before sending up another copy of themselves

[chrispenycate]

After a very warm start to the year the couple of weeks below minus twenty didn't do the perennial plants any good at all, and burst the two water butts. Now, the climate seems determined to give us our summer drought already, and the clean, repaired drums gaze into a cloudless blue sky through their mosquito nets,

Potatoes are in, and sweet peas planted out; optimistic, yes, it could still snow in April. Tomato seeds in propagator, with courgettes and peppers. If it doesn't rain this could be very disappointing.

[Vertigo]

Pah! You just trying to wind me up Chris? I couldn't even think about planting my veg yet. In fact we are having a warm spell right now so all kinds of things that really should know better are getting started (Gunnera appearing, new growth on Pieris starting to sprout, etc.) and I just know that within the next couple of weeks they'll all get get frosted back to square one!

[Ursa major]

Originally Posted by Mouse

So tenuous that I don't get it.

The name, Vermiculite, derives from the Latin word, vermiculare, 'to breed worms'. I chose to imagine a different source of the name, that it's describing something derived from actual worms (Latin: vermis) - in this case worm casts - hence the 'cast' of thousands (of worms).

I said it was very tenuous.

[Mouse]

I like that!

[Abernovo]

Vertigo, please don't mention brambles to me. Spent the day ripping some wild growth out of the garden today. They ripped straight through my gloves. Took a dead tree down as well, which will let a bit more light in. I should finish the area off tomorrow and then I can plant next week.

Chris, we're having similar conditions here. Most of my plants survived, although some are a bit bent over from the weight of the snow that hit them.

[springs]

We are hitting the allotment tomorrow where the word weed is never used, for fear we attract even more....
A lot of work to be done, and looking at Chrispy's list, me thinks more seedlings starting too. I don't have a greenhouse, so they take over the house for about a month. the children are already groaning at the sight of them...
I have a lavender that has had some pretty serious frost damage, I'm going to hack it back tomorrow and keep my fingers crossed.

[HareBrain]

Originally Posted by springs1971

@HB, yes, all fine, in moderation. they are a bit acidic, but provided you're sticking in plenty of other stuff, accelerators (grass) some cardboard/paper etc it should be okay.

Right, I've just been over to my mum's to cut her lawn, and I've brought the clippings back in a plastic bag. My compost had better appreciate this effort ...

[Vertigo]

I had a lavender plant once...

[springs]

Not boding well then, I take it... It is looking pretty sick but a plant has to be nailed to the perch before ii give up ...

[Perpetual Man]

I suppose that although I have not been doing gardening as such, I have been doing a lot of work in the garden - clearing the ruins of the old summerhouse and building a new one. Does that count?

Did manage to clear the greenhouse tonight!

[StormFeather]

Reading this thread has inspired me! After this weekend is over (organising the school Easter Egg Hunt to take place at our local landmark of Tonbridge Castle (a nightmare!!!)), I shall get my gloves on and get out into the garden.

I did buy an eating apple tree this year - it's one of those fancy ones with 3 different varieties of apple grafted onto the one tree. It's going to be interesting to see what the kids think.

[springs]

Give it a year or so, SF; I bought 2 apples and a pear a couple of years ago, and amazingly the pear is the best of the lot - they say you "plant a pear for your heir". I love garden centers and the way they say here you go, this is ready to go. HMRPPH. Strawberrys, now....

[Perpetual Man]

Aching from head to toe, so I feel like I have had quite a productive weekend. The main bulk of the garden looks like a jungle has taken root there, but the corner where the summerhouse is... while not exactly gardening it has started to take the garden area in the right direction.

The SH is fully constructed, cleaned and painted, the lean-to I've added to the side of it has stayed up for over a week, I've installed and correctly wired the solar panel (The lights go on!) and I've started clearing the enclosed area in front of the SH, burning all the wooden crap, binning all the unburnable crap and weeding the borders (real gardening).

I've also taken the other shed apart, repaired and braced it and put it back together again.

I might even get to do something in the greenhouse next weekend!