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Post by Rosie on Dec 6, 2017 8:49:04 GMT
Last year I had a small plastic greenhouse inside the tunnel and I used a biggish candle to keep it warm, worked a treat!
I actually got outside for a while yesterday, I got my Rems Favourite tulips in, garlic planted and moved the Fuchsias into the garage for protection against the coming storm Caroline,
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Post by SueA on Dec 6, 2017 9:04:32 GMT
I would have been worried about the candle falling over & setting fire to the plastic or getting too hot & melting it Rosie did you have it under a pot or in something? I don't have electricity in the greenhouse so the candle under the terracotta pot idea appeals to me. The set up you put a link to grindle looks a good idea but I've only got one loaf tin & I'm going to bake my Christmas cake in it soon! Got in the garden yesterday afternoon & planted out about 250 alliums & 140 various pushkinias, chionodoxas & brodiaeas. Only the massive bag of crocuses to go now!
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Post by grindle on Dec 6, 2017 9:51:18 GMT
better not use that then SueA I guess anything will do even standing them on a stone floor as long as the pot is raised up. The tea lights I had didn't go out this time, but they were short lived ones, I'm waiting until the bigger ones come, hopefully they will t hen last all night
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Post by Rosie on Dec 7, 2017 8:25:32 GMT
I had it on a large dish SueA, the candle was about 6/8" in height, I didn't put a pot over it. The greenhouse I had in is quite a large hexagonal one.
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Post by SueA on Dec 7, 2017 8:29:38 GMT
I got out & planted all 435 crocuses I had in the kitchen cupboard yesterday. I used my edging spade to make slits along the lawn edge around 4 inches in, lifting the turf slightly & then pushed 5 crocus corms/bulbs in each one & stamped the turf down again so I'll have a sort of dotted line of them. I'm hoping they'll spread & look more natural eventually, that's if the squirrel doesn't find them & dig them all up first!
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Post by grindle on Dec 7, 2017 8:43:55 GMT
that's a lot of bulbs SueA even if the squirrel does find them I doubt he'd be able to eat all that lot
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Post by SueA on Dec 7, 2017 8:48:02 GMT
It's a greedy little thing though grindle & there are more holes than lawn at the moment as he's buried acorns & peanuts eveywhere, good aeration for the lawn though!
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Post by Geumlover on Dec 7, 2017 20:52:48 GMT
Almost cut down all the perennial stuff and shredded it. Still got the ferns and the Hellebores to do. Oh and the huge Miscanthus which has about 500 inch thick stems.
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Post by sweetpea on Dec 7, 2017 21:09:12 GMT
nothing today its gey dreicht
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Post by SueA on Dec 8, 2017 8:51:36 GMT
It was very grey & breezy here but I did go out as I'd found a couple of pots of tulip & one of a few daff. bulbs in the greenhouse which I'd lifted from last spring & decided to pot them up. Took a few cuttings off a 'Twice in a Blue' rose to see if I can get one to grow for the lady across the road, I gave her a 'Rhapsody in Blue' one from a cutting this year as she likes the blue/lilac ones in my garden. I decided to have a go at the U.S. version of the plantpot heater idea you put the link to grindle, I improvised using an old enamel pie dish & some chicken wire instead of the loaf tin & cooling tray & used the two different size pots with the hole of the smaller inner one blocked with an old 'round' pound coin O.H. had found (they'd used a 'nickel' on the link). It seemed to work a treat, I lit them about 2pm as I wanted to check it in daylight & it was still lit around 4&1/2 hours later but had gone next time I looked at about 7.45, took the chill off so probably will be useful. Took some pics., greenhouse floor looks a mess even though I did clean in there the other day - moved dirty bricks & full pots around to make room for the heater - that's my excuse anyway!
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Post by grindle on Dec 10, 2017 5:06:32 GMT
that looks great SueA I think that's the idea to just keep things frost free, I did use the longer tealights during the day but forgot to replace them for over night but at least they didn't go out like the first lot, I'll try to remember to do it tonight if I can find my way up the garden in the dark
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Post by SueA on Dec 10, 2017 9:26:06 GMT
I got some '8 hour' tealights from the 'Pound & more' shop 25 for £2.50 yesterday & tried them in the evening last night & they were still going when I went to bed, the only problem is like you I have to get a torch & find my way down the garden to light them but it is a good idea, thanks for posting it grindle.
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Post by Bess on Dec 12, 2017 23:25:03 GMT
The only thing we've done in the garden the last few days is feed the birds and make snowmen. Having to keep all the succulents (for my sis-in-law's wedding in April) warm in the greenhouse has been worrying the life out of me - it would be the worst winter we'd had in ages, wouldn't it, this year? I've got a fan heater on a thermostat in there, which is costing me a lot more than a few tealights I suspect, and the baby snapdragons, campanula etc that I've got in there too really don't seem keen on all the extra heat. Also, these are the steps to my greenhouse lol! This happened to my favourite little conifer tree - do you think it will recover? We knocked it off a few times but it snowed for 24hours so just kept getting plastered again!
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Post by Eli on Dec 13, 2017 8:14:05 GMT
That's worrying for you Bess, fingers crossed the succulents will be all right. They don't need very high temperatures in the winter and as long as they're dry they should be all right I think. I had some out in the frost and they seem to have endured it without any damage.
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Post by SueA on Dec 13, 2017 9:26:25 GMT
You'd better take your ski poles to go to the greenhouse with Bess! I would think your conifer will be fine if you keep knocking the snow off as they're very hardy. All I've done is swap the tealights in the greenhouse & feed the birds this week, they keep staring at me through the patio doors!
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