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Post by derekbrooks on May 8, 2020 21:16:31 GMT
Went on the allotment this morning and again after our walk this afternoon but all I have been doing is weeding. Weeded the dahlia bed and the path in front of it then started doing the path behind it . Not many weeds on the bed but the paths had more particularly the one at the back which I have not finished. Brought home more shallots and rhubarb. This evening I repaired the T post. It only needed two more screws putting in. I then finished fixing the wires up and put about half of the canes in. The canes are attached to the wires using V clips.
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Post by derekbrooks on May 9, 2020 20:23:00 GMT
Went to school this morning to see if anything needed planting or any seeds sowing. There were some brassicas ready for planting and I could have sown some root crops but the beds were rather weedy so I decided to spend the time weeding them ( as though I haven't enough weeding to do on the allotment!)I weeded the root crop bed and started the brassica bed .There is a form there for sitting on but you can't sit on it because it is surrounded by nettles. There is a shed full of tools but no shears so I couldn't cut them down. 18 plugs of trailing verbenas and 90 impatiens came from Suttons. They were in good condition, unlike the last ones that came. After our walk this afternoon I potted the verbenas into 3 inch pots and transferred the impatiens into cell trays. Went back to school this evening with my own shears and cut down the nettles round the form and finished weeding the brassica bed. If I want to go to school anytime I go when I can get my car on the car park which has meant weekends recently but now it is lighter longer I can go in the evening if I want.
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Post by derekbrooks on May 10, 2020 21:36:27 GMT
Not as much time today but I finished fixing the canes up attached to the wires for chrysanths. I started taking the chrysanths from the frames but when I had got a few out I changed my mind because it was very windy and they were being blown about. They are safer still in the frames till the wind drops. The dahlias are taking up a lot of room in the greenhouse so I could do with putting these in a frame but there is not much room till the chrysanths come out. This evening I have potted about 20 rooted surfinia cuttings into small pots.
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Post by derekbrooks on May 11, 2020 20:11:31 GMT
Went on the allotment this morning and continued weeding the path I was doing last time I went but still not finished it. It was not as windy today so after our walk this afternoon I finished removing the chrysanths from the frames and put each variety in a separate box. I started planting them and again this evening and just managed to finish them and tie them all to the canes. There are 91 altogether. These are all disbud varieties. The sprays are planted on the allotment . One of my next jobs will be to get the bed ready for these.
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Post by derekbrooks on May 11, 2020 20:19:09 GMT
Chrysanths all planted. You can see the T post to which the wires are attached and the canes fastened to the wires with V clips
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Post by Cat on May 12, 2020 9:42:14 GMT
Have you had any frost/frost damage? We have been lucky so far.
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Post by derekbrooks on May 12, 2020 21:55:25 GMT
No, Cat we haven't had any frost damage. This morning I went to the allotment and finished the weeding I was doing yesterday then I got the spray chrysanth bed ready for planting by raking in some growmore and hoeing it. This afternoon I removed the plants from the frames and sorted them out putting each variety in a separate box then I went to the allotment and fixed the canes up for them. This evening I went back and planted about 30 (There are 55 altogether)so I hope to finish them tomorrow.
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Post by derekbrooks on May 13, 2020 20:46:00 GMT
I finished planting the spray chrysanths on the allotment this morning. The next job there is to get the other beds ready for planting.I put growmore on the root crop and brassica beds. They need raking and hoeing but that will have to wait till next time I go. As you know, we go for a walk most afternoons. Today for a change from our usual walks and Blackleach we went to another country park a few miles away. When we got home I removed the boxes of hardier annuals from the frames then filled up the frames with all the dahlias and more annuals and basket plants. Rosemary started tying the chrysanth labels on the top of the canes and did half of them.
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Post by derekbrooks on May 14, 2020 21:19:09 GMT
This morning on the allotment I raked and hoed part of the root crop bed and got the soil as fine as I could and sowed a row of swedes and two rows of turnips (2 varieties ).I had put growmore on the bed yesterday. I also put growmore on the brassica bed yesterday and I raked this in this morning and then hoed a three feet strip at the back where the sprouts will be planted. After our walk this afternoon I went back and planted the sprouts. There are 15 altogether in 2 rows and they are about 2 feet apart. This evening I removed the sweet peas and leeks from the frames and put in the onions and more basket plants. i also took about 40 cuttings from the surfinias I got from Garden News.
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Post by derekbrooks on May 15, 2020 21:14:53 GMT
This morning on the allotment I planted 2 varieties of cabbage (Brigadier and Kilasol)and cauliflower( Clapton) in the same bed as the sprouts. I cover the bed with nets to keep off the cabbage white butterflies which is supported on a framework of canes.I didn't have time to finish the framework of canes but I went back this evening and did so and put the nets on. I got 10 more surfinias from a friend on the allotment and this afternoon I took cuttings from them. They were purple and I hadn't got any of that colour. This afternoon I also went to the hut for a few things that I needed.
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Post by derekbrooks on May 16, 2020 20:52:55 GMT
Something I forgot to mention yesterday. Our local garden centre, like all the others ,has been closed for a while but it re-opened last Wednesday. We have a bowl in which we plant alpines but it needed re-planting so we called at the garden centre on the way home from our walk yesterday and got six new alpines which I planted when we got home. This morning I went to school and sowed some swedes, carrots, beetroot and radish in the root crop bed and planted some cauliflowers , chard and calabrese which childen had sown in the brassica bed. I went back this evening and watered them and did some weeding. The small beds that the children used to grow veg in have not been used for a long time and had got overgrown with weeds. Gina and me have decided to grow things in them . When I went this morning Gina had weeded three of them and planted onions in the. She must have been there this afternoon because she had weeded another two beds and planted sweet corn in one of them.This evening I weeded another of these beds and started another one. This afternoon I pricked out some ageratum and some more stocks.These were late sowings and this is the last pricking out. I also did some tidying up in the garden.
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Post by derekbrooks on May 17, 2020 20:49:02 GMT
Because I now have more room in my greenhouses,I have done a lot of potting on of plants today. I potted about 50 fuchsias which were still in small yoghurt pots into 4 inch pots and about 30 geraniums from three and a half inch pots into 5 inch.
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Post by derekbrooks on May 18, 2020 21:08:48 GMT
On the allotment this morning I planted 23 leeks on the onion bed. When I gave up half of my allotment I lost my main gladioli bed. I have a small bed which only holds 28 so I planted 30 along the back of the onion bed. Went back this evening and planted the bed of 28 and gave the beds I planted a good watering.
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Post by derekbrooks on May 19, 2020 21:11:18 GMT
Went to my son Martyns this morning and cut his hedges for the first time this year .Should have gone before because it had grown more than I expected. We have seen a robin going into our shed a few times this last week or so .There is a gap above the door where it goes in. Couldn't understand why it was going in because I have looked several times for a nest and couldn't find one and it is only a 8 by 6 shed. This shed needs some new strips of wood which hold the roofing felt in place. I went to the builders merchants yesterday for the wood and gave it two coats of wood preservative under the car port (one yesterday and one this morning). I intended fixing it on the shed after our walk this afternoon. We sat having a drink first and we saw the robin go in the shed again. I went in and looked for a nest again but couldn't find one. I started looking for some nails to fix the wood and the robin came with insects in its beak and perched on top of the door. I stood still for at least 5 minutes and it stayed there on top of the door and wouldn't come in. Then another robin flew past me and went out so I looked where it had come from and there was the nest with newly hatched chicks. It was on a shelf right in the corner but hidden from view behind some pots and other things. So, the woodwork job will have to wait ,won't it. This evening I had about an hour on the allotment. Rosemary came with me and tied the chrysanth labels on top of the canes. I put growmore on what I call the "others" bed which is for anything except potatoes, other root crops and brassicas. I raked and hoed a three foot strip at the back of the bed , getting the soil as fine as I could and sowed three rows of broad beans,10 inches apart, about 50 beans altogether. There were 4 beans left in the packet and when we got home I sowed these in post in case any of the others don't grow.
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Post by derekbrooks on May 20, 2020 21:22:09 GMT
Almost a full day on the allotment, except for going a walk this afternoon. I raked and hoed a 3 feet strip at the front of the "others" bed like I did for broad beans yesterday and sowed three rows of dwarf French beans 9nches apart. I them made a structure of 30 tall canes for my "Show perfection " peas . The plants were growing in drinking cups and I planted them and tied them to the canes.
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