Planted out the last of my courgettes yesterday and I'm finally up to date with sowing and planting
Up at 7am and in the garden by about half nine. I feel like I've done loads, but I've hardly done anything on my to-do list!
I've mulched the beds that were just soil with compost. I've also spread some bark chippings as paths between beds. I've already used up two of my three bags of chippings and they haven't gone terribly far. I've scattered some Grow-more around (I was hoping not to need it, but the compost really hasn't been great this year). I've chopped down a fuchsia that I wasn't keen on - it's the first shrub to be completely removed from the garden (well, I say removed but I've not dug it up so I suspect it will send new growth out yet). I've done some watering. I've also sat and sorted through a huge pile of prunings to save any decent sticks that can be used for support. Then I sat and chopped up some of the rejected prunings to add to the compost pile.
After all that, I'm ready for a break. However, I won't get back to the things on my to-do list as we're celebrating my Mum's birthday this afternoon (she spent her actual birthday dealing with funeral stuff). I just have to stay awake now!
Planted some Kew Blue and Kentucky Wonder CFBs in the bean house and two courgettes in front of the beans.
Did some buttercup & dock pulling in order to realign a path so that I can grab a bit more growing space in the original path.
Had a Barre session this morning after walking dog.
Then to allotment where I dug over a bed and de-stoned and weeded it. Sowed three rows of carrots in prepared bed.
Then back home where I walked dog again and prepared and ate lunch.
I added chilli flakes to the batter mix for the yorkies and it was a success. Turned boring yorkies into summat special!
Dedicated the day to the flower borders, the veg patch sulked. Dug up and composted the wallflowers, weeded round bits and bobs in flower. Surprised to find some of last year's bedding dahlias have sprouted into growth. Made a mental note to tell Veggie that she was right (no matter how hard it is to do so) the mimulus I'm still rather fond of has self seeded in all the crevices of the patio flags. P digs them out and I replant them somewhere else. We'll be overrun by the things. It's so dry notwithstanding a bit of rain, at this rate we'll be recycling bath water.
Brought all my branches I cut down yesterday to he bog for natural composting.
Then strimmed around and tidied up my boxus hedge. It needs a good feeding and watering I hope to get that done tomorrow evening. Repaired my fence and my postbox that my friend manage to knock off the fence and bashed it with her car. Did more damage to her car than my fence and postbox
Yesterday did the weekly direct sow list (parsnips, beetroot, coriander, amaranth), planted out some pea beans that I'd missed, cleared the first batch of broad beans, put weedkiller down where a new bit of drive is going - tried hand weeding but the surface is compacted stone & clay and baked solid
Cleared all the pots of plants that damped off or fried during the heatwave. Pricked out lettuce, red cabbage & cucumbers.
Today planted out cabbages (a mix of earliest of all, pointu coeur de boeuf and greyhound) there were 12 survivors from the sixty I'd pricked out. Fed all tomatoes, chillies, peppers, aubergines, courgette, squash, cucumbers, melons in the ground. Made more comfrey tea. Pricked out zinnias. Dead headed roses and weeded the rose bank. Degunked the pond.
Yesterday I checked on my experimental/ sacrificial plants at the site. They’re still there . This is good.
Spent the rest of the day milling more cladding. Just 150 boards to go.
