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Post by Moonlight on Jun 16, 2013 21:37:05 GMT
I think that watching dahlia experts share their years of experience and knowledge on utube should come with a Purple Wellied Health Warning. I can't imagine 900+ dahlias. I don't understand the lingo either. Think it is going to have to be another phone call to Dad to translate. My tiny Dahlia garden is a tiddler from a fun fair compared other peoples oceans full. Not jealous, not wishful just a bit overwhelmed. I'll get over it. Summer show will have been long time over this time next week. Gosh.
My 2 Downham Royals out the front are not going to be dis-budded or mess around with, I just want to see them flower. The Downham Royals planted in the soil will, well I shall try, to attempt to grow them to size. Small Ball. Likewise the other ball dahlias.
The Happy Halloween in pots are just going to do their own thing. Not sure what I want to do with my Franz cutting that I potted up into a big container with his buddy Downham Royal in a matching container.
Bit overwhelmed. Time for a coffee maybe that will pick me up a bit. 
I'll talk about the girlies and HH that'll cheer me up a bit.
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Post by Moonlight on Jun 16, 2013 23:18:13 GMT
Pirate Yellow Wellies was the first to give her potatoes the chop.
Measuring the 10cm very carefully.
I know that it said to cut them at 10cms but I was very worried that they might cut the tape measure.
Our feet look like witches around a cauldron.
Fairy Pink Wellies
Before the snip
They both took the measuring very seriously. Scissors mid snip top centre.
Such a difference. Feel sorry for them both. Girls didn't seem to be they were focused on getting them ready for the show.
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Post by Geranium on Jun 17, 2013 5:39:34 GMT
Not long to go now, then!  |
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Post by Cherry on Jun 17, 2013 7:48:45 GMT
I do admire that the girls do most of the gardening themselves. Well 99% rather than 'most'.
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Post by Rosie on Jun 17, 2013 8:25:46 GMT
I think it's great the girls are learning about gardening so young, it is something that should stay with them forever. I hope they do well with their spuds  |
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Post by Moonlight on Jun 17, 2013 9:16:09 GMT
I do admire that the girls do most of the gardening themselves. Well 99% rather than 'most'.
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Post by Moonlight on Jun 17, 2013 11:07:01 GMT
Summer Show Novice classes:
1 plant in any size container - Sammy bless him is out, my fuchsia Paula Jane the foliage has splashes of yellow on the leaves and (to my mind) not enough flowers.
Roses 1 bloom, when I picked my yellow Fairy rose the petals shattered and the Cardinal doesn't look like a 'real' rose to me. The one that I picked yesterday HH thought was a dahlia (or sweet pea can't remember.)
Fruit 1 variety
Strawberries won't be ripe.
1 hanging basket any size - I have some really lovely fuchsias on baskets but not a whole basket full.
1 vase of mixed flowers - The only thing that I can do is cut all the best fuchsias from my baskets and hope that I have some lobelia, maybe a sweet pea or 2. If I am lucky that is.
Vegetables
I won't know what I have got until I tip them. Left Golden Wonder (Pink Firs Apple only recently planted) and Maris Piper on the right.
So there you go, roll on next year. I'll be back, now that I have some idea of what to do. (Whether that will be enough is another thing entirely)
It is still the single bloom dahlia Novice class in the Autumn show that I really do want to win and if I don't win that same as here, there will be next year......
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Post by Rosie on Jun 18, 2013 12:40:18 GMT
The veg look really good though.
But i bet lots of people are worrying this year as everything is late with the long winter we had.
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Post by Moonlight on Jun 20, 2013 8:52:10 GMT
Yesterday when I got home from work I asked Dad to come and have a look at my Dahlias (no surprises there  ). I wanted to ask him (again ) about stopping them most importantly what to do with the ones with buds. I can't help I am still a dunce re. stopping them.
This is how much I have grasped from here and him.
If you stop a dahlia the shape of the plant bushies up a bit, you can get smaller blooms but more of them which I think makes it easier to choose which to go for if you want to exhibit.
So rightly or wrongly that is about as much as in my head right now.
I know that Dad normally stops his semi cactus' late June. I understand that most pom growers stop theirs a lot earlier.
That if you have a dual category dahlia if you are aiming for a specific size within it's range you would stop at different times. ie you would treat it differently if you want it to be a large / medium.
Right or wrongly that is what I have grasped at this point.
I've yet to understand what the 'up' bit means when people talk about '8 up' etc. but I ran out of time, my Mum was really tired. She really needed to go home. They babysat so that HH and I could go to see a comedian at our local theatre. (Tickets were booked months ago and we asked before we did. Glad we did because it was sold out) At the very end of the show I was torn because I walked away holding our water bottle but left all the others that other people had dropped and left littered along the seat rows. Sweetpea you would have been proud of me. I kept thinking I could use those for the rest of my dahlia canes................
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Post by sweetpea on Jun 20, 2013 9:31:01 GMT
Yesterday when I got home from work I asked Dad to come and have a look at my Dahlias (no surprises there ). I wanted to ask him (again ) about stopping them most importantly what to do with the ones with buds. I can't help I am still a dunce re. stopping them.
This is how much I have grasped from here and him.
If you stop a dahlia the shape of the plant bushies up a bit, you can get smaller blooms but more of them which I think makes it easier to choose which to go for if you want to exhibit.
So rightly or wrongly that is about as much as in my head right now.
I know that Dad normally stops his semi cactus' late June. I understand that most pom growers stop theirs a lot earlier.
That if you have a dual category dahlia if you are aiming for a specific size within it's range you would stop at different times. ie you would treat it differently if you want it to be a large / medium.
Right or wrongly that is what I have grasped at this point.
I've yet to understand what the 'up' bit means when people talk about '8 up' etc. but I ran out of time, my Mum was really tired. She really needed to go home. They babysat so that HH and I could go to see a comedian at our local theatre. (Tickets were booked months ago and we asked before we did. Glad we did because it was sold out) At the very end of the show I was torn because I walked away holding our water bottle but left all the others that other people had dropped and left littered along the seat rows. Sweetpea you would have been proud of me. I kept thinking I could use those for the rest of my dahlia canes................ You are now thinking like a recycling gardener ML 4 up, 6 up etc. refers to the actual blooms/stems you retain on the plant. If you allow too many to grow on the blooms will be smaller. Some varieties can make good size blooms with 6 or 7 up while others may need resticting to 3 or 4. With giants for example most will be restricted to 1 or 2. Tel should be able to explain it in more detail for you. ps Who was the comedian? |
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Post by Moonlight on Jun 20, 2013 13:25:17 GMT
Fairy wanted to give Grandad a dahlia and I let her pick. I let her choose which but I brought both up and let her give her chosen one to Grandad. They both stayed here over night and then Dad took them both (I had offered them both in the past) last night. So there was a Happy Father's day Downham Royal from us both. Result, I gave my Dad some cuttings that had grown into little plants. Some cuttings of his Downham Royal.
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Post by Moonlight on Jun 20, 2013 13:44:59 GMT
Took the drastic step of tipping out of their pots and inspecting those Clearview tubers.
Clearview Orcha (freebie) - one for the bin I think.
Clearview Jenny
Clearview Jenny had some roots months ago and nothing in the shoot department.
The roots had come from only side of the end of the tuber. They still looked ok.
So I decided to give it one last chance. I sliced off a little from the edge that hasn't grown any roots and dipped it into some roota. Rather than waste the roota I ran the roots along it as well.
Then I potted it up in a pot and with 4 lobelia plants. If Jenny grows a bit more then great but at least the lobelia will be planted and I like lobelia and so do the bees. No more time and attention on a tuber that doesn't want to grow. Anyway time will tell.
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Post by Moonlight on Jun 20, 2013 14:34:39 GMT
drum roll please...............
Look at Clearview Arlene now:
Wow or what!
Yes roots, you are not seeing things, my Clearview Arlene has grown so much that the roots are coming out the pot holes!
Next to the Clearview Arlene that Dad gave me that got badly eaten by a snail that caught in the act. Planted Arlene is growing well to.
Feeling very happy with my Arlenes. I don't know if giving my Clearview Jenny the chop (and the roota) like I did with Arlene will work but it is worth ago. 
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Post by Moonlight on Jun 21, 2013 23:39:21 GMT
My Yellow Fairy rose plant was evicted from the greenhouse this morning  because it has green fly. Lots of yellow flowers but one accidental tap and the petals shatter. No chance they would survive a car journey to the show. I've left 'Cardinal in the greenhouse as a just in case but as I mentioned before he still does not have rose flowers that look like roses.
I toyed with the idea of mixed flowers including sweet peas and pansys but the reeds sound too complicated and I just don't have the time or the sweetpeas for a show
Going to give in for the night can't stop myself from falling askeep at my laptop. Got a busy day tomorrow.
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Post by Moonlight on Jun 22, 2013 6:45:51 GMT
I gave my sister a Happy Halloween dahlia. It is the last of the cuttings from my 1st ones. Bless it. It got left out because there was not enough room for it in the Happy Halloween row.
Without out going down to the greenhouse, it is pouring out there (so I am staying put here) to the best of my knowledge the only non planted dahlias are 2 more Happy Halloween cuttings and my little runt of the litter Downham Royal (tiny % possible Spanish Dancer) of my final batch of cuttings.
I gave 4 tomato plants away to girls' school garden / teacher.
I don't know exact numbers of plants that I have left but obviously there are way too many tomatoes than I need (too many chillies if I am being honest, I was initially hoping to have a max of 3). I need to sort out my poor little sweet peas because they need a home. I also need to get girls sunflower seeds planted.
The girls' school summer fair is coming up so I am hoping that I can give them some plants but I just feel guilty if I give them some and that they don't get bought. Especially those 2 poor little Happy Halloweens. My little runt will be staying with me.
My Clearview carrot chopped Arlene I am thinking of growing as a pot tuber. I'll talk to Dad another time to see if he thinks it is madness or not but not this weekend.
Girls have dancing this morning until lunch time, a wedding at 2pm and an evening wedding reception to go to. Some how in amongst all of that we need to fit in, 2 rounds of scone baking, 2 kites that need to be built and if we have a minor miracle more animal photos to be taken by girls all for the children's classes in the show TOMORROW!
I also need to do the deed and tip my potatoes at some point. It would be a bit of a shame if after all this effort and attention that my potatoes were rubbish and only fit for a bin and not worth looking at let alone showing them in my Novice vegetable class.
It is still pouring, haven't a clue when the best time to tip will be. (10pm at night or this time tomorrow morning would be madness even by my standards, surely?)
Just about to sign off and then smiled, I don't think even I would dare to tip them in the lounge, hate to think what HH would say / do if I did. HH I categorically say, I won't do that  but as Daddy Pig would say to Peppa Pig, "Well it is just a little bit funny!"..........
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). I wanted to ask him (again 
