My Garden

Idle chat

Last post 22-11-2009 8:58 AM by BB. 4421 replies.

• 24/07/2009 02:36 PM

  Digger Location: Northern UK Joined on: 18 Jul 2005 Posts: 4,743

  Reply | Contact Hi all by gum we've had some rain today, it's sunny inbetween showers, but we've had some really heavy cloudbursts, sue1002, forgot to answer your question before sorry mate, yes i will be making some roll ups once the ready made cigarettes have gone. we've got someone coming to help do some fence maintenance at the stables soon,it's the outside fence made from wooden boards and it's in need of some new posts. At the moment my stepson Andy is playing on a playstation internet war game, each time he gets shot he's having a real thrombo!!! you wouldn't think he was nearly 20 years old! it's funny to watch though. digger

• 24/07/2009 02:52 PM

  sue1002 Location: Ipswich, Suffolk Joined on: 06 Sep 2005 Posts: 5,200

  Reply | Contact  I remember that from last year Susiq, perhaps if I stop looking at the tomatoes they will begin to ripen too It won't be long before you start on the roll-ups then Digger  I can't roll them by hand myself as they come out in different shapes and sizes so I use one of those little machines that you put the tobacco in with the filter and paper and when you close the lid, the ciggie comes out ready rolled. We've had heavy showers on and off too, the first one was about 10 minutes after I hung the washing out this morning and that time it was raining in our garden but not over next doors!!  We've had a few rumbles of thunder mixed in too. sue1002

• 24/07/2009 04:11 PM

  miranda Location: Oxfordshire Joined on: 17 Nov 2004 Posts: 2,976

  Reply | Contact It's pouring with rain here as well. Earlier I thought it was clearing and put some washing out - 'Cue rain!', as we say in this house. That always happens; we'll be on a long car journey and I'll say 'Roads are quiet, aren't they'  and, what do you know, 'Cue traffic jam!'. After those courgette chips I made last night, the kitchen smelled fatty, so I've just made a batch of gingernuts and now it smells nice again

• 24/07/2009 07:04 PM
  sue1002 Location: Ipswich, Suffolk Joined on: 06 Sep 2005 Posts: 5,200	Reply | Contact  I love the smell of freshly made gingernuts too Miranda and must admit I haven't made any of those for a while.  I did make a cake this afternoon using some of the blueberries from the garden. sue1002

• 24/07/2009 07:52 PM

  richardpeeej Location: Leicester Joined on: 22 May 2009 Posts: 807

  Reply | Contact Hello everyone, Ah well - no sweet peas, no cucumbers,  I broke the drivers door handle off my car, (so can only open it by leaning across from the passenger side), and accidentally snapped off the top of my fuchsia I was growing as a standard, finally its been pouring down off and on here all day. Nevermind things can only get better from now on. Looking on the bright side, I had my first two courgettes today, a few more peas and beans and my fuchsia cuttings seem to be doing well, so things are not too bad after all, and your gingernuts sound tasty Miranda !! Richard

• 25/07/2009 11:09 AM
  Digger Location: Northern UK Joined on: 18 Jul 2005 Posts: 4,743	Reply | Contact Hi all , well it hasn't taken long for the new "members" to arrive three pornographic new additions, I don't re call this ever happening before? didn't we predict that this would happen without Geoff at the helm? digger

• 25/07/2009 11:18 AM

  miranda Location: Oxfordshire Joined on: 17 Nov 2004 Posts: 2,976

  Reply | Contact I saw that as well, digger. Looks awful, doesn't it! Yes, the gingernuts turned out well and looked a lot like shop-bought ones, only they were better. That blueberry cake sounds good. A friend of mine makes blueberry muffins and they're delicious. The kitchen still had a slight smell of fat so we played last night at making KFC style chicken. Saw an article in an online paper and after we'd read it and watched the video we couldn't resist a go for ourselves. It turned out really well. Reckon people with children would enjoy trying it out with their kids. It's here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2009/jul/24/kfc-secret-recipe-revealed

• 25/07/2009 11:40 AM

  sue1002 Location: Ipswich, Suffolk Joined on: 06 Sep 2005 Posts: 5,200

  Reply | Contact  That looks good Miranda.  The blueberry cake is going down well, there's not much of it left The Buddlejas here today are smothered with butterflies and different insects.  I've taken a few photos and will keep an eye on them during the day to see if we have any more additions and will post them later.  As it's nice and sunny, we're going to try and finish the laurels off today. sue1002

• 25/07/2009 12:27 PM

  bigsusan55 Location: North-West London Joined on: 14 May 2009 Posts: 144

  Reply | Contact  On the subject of poor seed germination, I have just received the Plant Worldseeds catalogue.  There was an Sunday Telegraph offer - you send them 4 first class stamps and they send their 2009 catalogue with a packet of Helleborus "Oriental Beauties" seed. Anyway, inside the front cover it says "Probably the world's only catalogue selling this year's fresh seeds!" So, those of you who were speculating that you got better germination from saved seed, because it was fresher, are almost certainly correct.  I couldn't find the postings; itmay have been in another thread that this was suggested. Now I am off to drool over the catalogue.  I WANT Aquilegia yabeana!  It is described as "the deepest inky blue".  And they have 17 different dieramas!  I can never get them to stay on my clay for long though. Will have to dig up some more lawn for space - I wonder if OH will notice?

• 25/07/2009 01:21 PM

  Susiq Location: Northumberland Joined on: 16 Feb 2008 Posts: 1,104

  Reply | Contact Hi all - I've obviously missed the posts Digger and Sue1002 were referring do - probably just as well! Good video Miranda, did you try the American or the British version? We've got loads of butterflies too today Sue1002 - some lovely colours as well. I'm making some gooseberry and elderflower preserve and some gooseberry and elderflower ice cream this afternoon. I managed to pick 4lb of gooseberries down the lane this morning I've also found a recipe for mangetout and mint soup - its been blogged onto the net by one of the other Pea trialers, I've got loads of mangetout that must be picked so that will be on the menu tonight too. Go for it Bigsusan - get the lawn dug up!!!

• 25/07/2009 02:42 PM

  richardpeeej Location: Leicester Joined on: 22 May 2009 Posts: 807

  Reply | Contact Hi all -you are lucky Susiq to be able to go down the lane and pick 4lb of gooseberries I wish we had a lane like that one nearby -it sounds really great. I just had a look at the kfc video also Miranda, I thought the presenter did a good job. The kfc looks very tasty although we only try to eat fried chicken occasionally as we are trying to diet a bit at the moment! The sun is shining briefly (it  must have found a hole in the clouds!) .I have been in the garden moving one of the troughs around. The bottom dropped out of our straw washing basket this morning so I repaired it with a few lengths of hemp- like string that I had lying around- the basket has now taken on a 'rustic' look ( and it saved me a few shillings!!) Richard

• 25/07/2009 06:04 PM

  sue1002 Location: Ipswich, Suffolk Joined on: 06 Sep 2005 Posts: 5,200

  Reply | Contact  Well done Susiq for picking all those goosegogs.  It's good to hear you've got lots of butterflies too, I've just posted the pics on a new thread. It was the 'chilli seeds' thread that I mentioned about the fresh seed Big Susan, from what you've said, it seems like my guess is right  Go for it girl - start digging up the lawn and get OH to finish it off for you.  That's what I did a couple of years ago or so - I marked out and started digging the edges where the beds were to be extended to (deliberately leaving the bits in the middle) then asked OH to finish removing the turf as it was too hard a job for me Well done for fixing the washing basket Richard, we quite often find something to repair things with to make things last longer. Well, we tried getting the laurel roots out but in the end it was 'no go', there just isn't enough room to work round them to get them out completely so one has had the roots that run outwards severed and just can't get to the big tap roots underneath.  The others have been chopped down to ground level and will have to be cut back down again when new growth comes through.  Perhaps if I keep chopping it back, with hope they might give up trying to grow back... sue1002

• 25/07/2009 07:42 PM

  miranda Location: Oxfordshire Joined on: 17 Nov 2004 Posts: 2,976

  Reply | Contact Yes, bigsusan, dig up that lawn! You know, deep down, that it's right thing to do  We all come to it, sooner or later. Friends of mine have no lawn left at all and, if we hadn't moved, I'd have all of ours out as well. Luckily for us, we now have a bigger garden and more grass than ever that we (well...he) can dig up. Goosegogs, fresh and free - that sounds wonderful, Susiq! We also have a lot of butterflies here, all of a sudden. It's lovely to see them. Haven't seen this many since about '03.  My partner is good at mending things that way, Richard. In many ways, something that has been well mended is much nicer than something new. One time, he mended the rope seat of the little stool I keep in the greenhouse and he did such a nice job of it. A new one would have been a step backwards. I bet your laundry basket is much nicer now. Shame about the laurel roots, Sue. Maybe if you keep hacking at it, it will give up, but it probably won't. Plants are like that. We've had a good day at the garden today. I had intended to sow more seed, but ended up doing masses of weeding. Can't believe how much they're growing, it's scary. Got lots of nettle stings but they aren't much of a bother these days. There are some special nettles at the garden that are really evil, though, and if you get stung by those it hurts a lot! I think they must be related to the extra-strong nettles that the Romans are supposed to have brought over, because ours weren't painful enough. Before we moved to Oxfordshire, I'd never come across nettles this vicious.  Fingers crossed for another fine day tomorrow.

• 25/07/2009 08:24 PM

  richardpeeej Location: Leicester Joined on: 22 May 2009 Posts: 807

  Reply | Contact Hi all - well the weather is great here now and I have had a good day in the back garden. We have just had a family meal together in the garden under the gazebo with a glass (or 2) of red wine, some home made beef burgers, potato wedges (not our own pots) and a mixed salad (own lettuce) even a candle in an old wine bottle and a bowl of fruit. I am on the laptop now under the same gazebo! I have noticed that this 'idle chat' post has been going for years (first post Digger Jan 2005?) and that quite a few of you have been on here for a long time, and must know each other well by now. I hope you all don't mind me just 'joining in with the chats' as a bit of an outsider! Sue, I dug out an old tree root once many years ago, it was a task and a half, I had to use a crowbar in the end to lever up the roots! I have had quite good pickings off my runner beans and they are still flowering well in a raised trough that I made. As space is quite limited, the trough also contains:- half a row of peas, half a row of dwarf french beans and 2 courgette plants I have also dotted a few marigolds in there to discourage black and greenfly! I wondered if I would get mildew but I am OK so far and have not seen any black or greenfly so I'm hopeful. I have crammed a lot of plants in my two shed window boxes and they are flowering well   Richard

• 25/07/2009 08:59 PM

  miranda Location: Oxfordshire Joined on: 17 Nov 2004 Posts: 2,976

  Reply | Contact That dinner sounds really good, Richard. I love homemade burgers.  You're right, this thread has been running since the start of '05 - but it me who started it - it's mine I tell you, mine! . When they re-did the forum, the posts got mixed up. It vexes me slightly that that naughty digger is thought to be the thread starter   but not enough to do anything about it. I think it might have been longer at one point and suspect it's been culled somewhere along the line. Anyway, we have got to know each other a bit, but anyone who wants to join in is always welcome, and that includes you, Richard Got any pics of your garden, by the way?  When I once had to take out a tree, I ended up using an axe to chop the roots up. It was a nasty old conifer and taking an axe to it was the best thing for it.