Any ideas for things I can do with biscuit crumbs? 
I’ve got a lot! I brought 2kg of broken/ mis shaped biscuits. For tea breaks on the build. Obviously there was a lot of very small bits & big crumbs in the bottom of the box. 
I know they’re perfect for cheese cake base. Anything else?

Hi all,

I've been lucky enough to acquire a garden that is not only long, it's fairly wide too - what a change from my postage stamp back garden at my Victorian terrace!

So, I have a back garden with three sheds, one greenhouse, one open summer house and more water butts than I've ever seen in one place! The length of the garden is probably a good 100 feet, but I'm just guessing. It's east facing if you stand with the house behind you, and the north side of the garden (on your left) gets sun from first thing until about 4pm at this time of year.

The far end on the right is a MASSIVE chicken coop with two chickens that we have inherited from the previous owner - very good layers. There's an extra little coop that has been used for bantams where I keep the chicken that I brought with me, for now.

The garden has a pond in the middle of a good size, with goldfish and water lillies in it, with acers and roses growing around it. There's a few bushes and roses and the dreaded buddleia around the edges, but that's it.

I'm hoping to cover a third of the lawn with veg and fruit beds. I have an idea of design, but I feel the need for advice from people that have done this before.

Where do you get garden design ideas and principles from? The web? Books? Titles would be great

Where do you get inspiration from, how to organise colour schemes, how much to dedicate to perennial fruit and veg compared to sow/harvest kinds of beds etc.

Please throw all your knowledge, skills and common sense at me

Hi Admin/Mods

A while ago Veggie explained a way of doing a more in depth search, and yup I can't find it

Any chance this can be explained again please, and perhaps saved in a guidelines area?

Can any of you suggest some good houseplants I could start now please? (either from seed or cuttings).
Already thinking about being cooped up indoors for the winter, with nothing to tend (other than the other half, and the two kitties  Fergus and Fitzroy).
Is it too late for coleus?

Got three patty pans planted. Loads of flowers, but not a sign of a patty pan. My courgettes are in full swing (Defender, Orelia, Goldmine, Midnight, de Nice Rond and Zephyr) 
Shall I give up and rip them out or “have a little patience” as the Take That song goes?
It would give the others a bit of space to spread.

It was recently my birthday (for my 30th I went to Paris where the French kindly put on a big parade and fireworks display). 

I was gifted these shorts and also a pair of trousers with very similar pockets.

https://www.scruffs.com/workwear/trade-shorts.html

I have been using them a fair bit for various jobs the last couple of weeks and so far they are very good. The material is pretty water resistant, appears very hard wearing but isn't as stretchy as some trousers I have. 
The pocket options are great, I wasn't sure about the front flappy pockets at first but they are turning out to be very useful for bits and bobs. Also there is a long thin pocket made of fairly robust looking fabric on the outside of the right leg which fits my hori hori perfectly which is turning out to be very useful.

So does anyone else get a rash from picking DFB ? Or am I just delicate & sensitive    .

         

It’s not much of a rash and it’d gone within half hour. But it was noticeable an felt a bit prickly.

Well I’m back. Good old France Telecom have decided to install Fiber Internet all was going well until they hit a problem. As a result there are a lot of people in our area with out phone or internet for the last month! Anyway they have now given us a Dongle so we are back in line but still no phone. Lord knows when we will be reconnected proper!

Saw this and thought I should share it.
It seems that the companies "Garden Gear" and "Happy Beaks" are sister companies of T&M and calls to their Customer Service helplines are charged at Premium Rate - this has been unlawful since 2014.

Read more at:-

https://www.theguardian.com/money/2021/j...D1YZyqvLUQ

At the edge of my lawn to the hedge I have a small slope which is annoying to mow. I've left it to grow long this summer mainly due to laziness and a few wild flowers including red campion and some others I can't name have popped up. It got me thinking could I make a mini meadow strip? 
So my plan is cut the long grass back hard, heavily scarify the area to open up bare soil patches and sow yellow rattle alng the ridge at the end of this summer. Then allow that to get established next year only cutting the grass early in year then in August (or after yellow rattle has set seed). I may at that point also add some wild meadow seeds or leave that until spring the year after. 
Anyone think I shouldn't bother or do something differently?