2021 - What I did today

Dentist visit in the morning for a 6 month check up, then got out the ride on for the first time this year, gave it a quick nice over check oil, battery etc, discovered no petrol so off to the petrol station. Then cut the back grass, front garden grass and then bog lane grass. All grass cuttings put in around my raspberry bushes as a mulch. There is a huge amount of raspberry runners all over the garden. Job for tomorrow. Then filled the bird feeders.

Made some more copper slug rings

I have copper rings made from an ancient bit of plumbing. As long as I remember to slip them over my chilli and pepper plants when they are small enough they make pretty good barriers.

Yours are more "real" than mine PP.

Mine consist of copper tape wrapped around a pop bottle then cut into rings, seems to do the job

Do you find that the copper tape works Broadway? and PP do you clean your copper rings before use

The rings get scrubbed with a wire brush before use. They're pretty effective unless a leaf touches the ground outside or an over zealous blackbird chucks mulch all over them!

Yesterday I planted potatoes (Charlotte) and scarlet oca in sacks, and planted up a few containers with aubrieta, fuchsia and horned pansies.

The grow-sacks are on top of one of the raised beds at the moment as I thought it would be a tad warmer there than on the patio slabs, but I may bring them indoors on Monday until the cold snap is over.

Stirred no.1 compost, started last autumn, as P had put fresh grass mowing on it, then decided to stir no. 2 compost, 1 yr old stuff, very carefully as there were rat holes and I didn't want any four legged surprises. Luckily rats had left home. Pricked out begonias, planted strawbs in the planter at last. Mocked up a cover for big heated prop in gh as temps forecast for freezing tonight and set up heater thermostat, so belt and braces there. The chillies and Tom's should be all cosy in the cold nights to come. Gave away some plants and rooted strawberry runners.

Pricked out lots of lettuce seedlings, some spinach, chard and calendulas, and repotted the five okra seedlings that were looking nice and healthy.

Planted three Pulmonaria "Blue Ensign" that arrived today.

Turned over the netted tunnel and gave the gooseberry bushes a feed

   

We did end up going out today with No.1 son, I didn't feel guilty about him not being in our bubble as it was pretty busy. Anyway, we went to Clumber Park, lived here 2 1/2 years and never been there before!

I did like this tree trunk

   

At the plot I added a layer of leaves to the 3 new RB's and mulched the new raspberry plants with grass/moss.

I was given 5 black currants with root. Most were just long straggly branches that have fallen over and rooted. After a bit of a tidy up I go 4 lovely young plants & 26 cuttings. Moving fencing strainer posts to the plot. Managed to resist the Temptation to sow seeds. Do it after the cold snap that’s coming.

A cold morning so hid in the GH and sieved a bag of LIDL 99p compost, filled 2 salad onion trays with the compost and planted 160 or so onion sets!
Moved the seedling Bijou mangetout and dwarf sugar snap peas back into the GH, ready for the cold night.
Covered the tomatoes, courgettes and cucumber with a double layer of plastic.
Sowed some DFBs and courgettes in the LIDL compost as a test - they're in the heated prop in the kitchen.

Frost again this morning, but the sun was out not a cloud in the sky, so went for a walk, and while out, the path I was walking along is about 20ft wide with hawthorn hedge both sides, I noticed that the side that gets the sun is almost in full leaf while the other is still in bud, showing how the sun helps things along, once back home I removed all the covers from the plants in the garden and greenhouse