How can I find my old pictures?

[soapdragon]

Plum I will grapple with technology and try and post pics once they are blooming! They are old fahioned roses, the Alba has done really well and the Roas Mundi grew so much I had to really hack it back and I think I may have gone to far! Not sure what the others are but I do know they are 'old' ones so maybe the older varieties are more tolerant of the clay? I didn't put anything in with them when planting (extra compost or whatever) so they have managed pretty well. 

[Plum]

Thanks I'm going to read up about them

[Valkyrie]

I have a couple of old roses too - one is Madame Alfred Carriere (climber) she had a bad session with sawfly for a couple of years but has been fine for an awful long time now.  She really is a triffid in disguise but nice smell.  Also in the same bed is Blush Noisette - superb scent in hot weather, but for rainy times the blooms start smelling like cider.  Not a bad thing for me really!  Neither have suffered with blackspot or rust.  Whereas the more modern roses that I loved but got very raggy and black spotty have struggled.  Out the front we have Zepherine Drouhin by the door (no thorns) and it has struggled but new shoots always pop up - a real little fighter - and it's worth it because the scent is gorgeous.  Along the hedge we have 2 old roses, one is pink and the other paler pink.  The paler pink struggles with mildew although both are looking fine at the moment.  I really got them to prevent the dog next door running through to bite us.  Ooh I also have David Austin's Gertrude Jekyll (supposedly a bush but she likes climbing) which is very healthy.  Also have Golden Celebration out the front which is also supposed to be a bush but it seems to want to be a bit more than that.  I love roses, but they must be highly scented for me.  I think it's such a shame to have a rose without any perfume.  However I do not like rose soaps or other rose scented things as they are not anywhere as nice.  

[Ursula123]

Roses are my favourite, but I had to leave so many behind when I left the uk. 

There are some beautiful established roses in the garden, all have come into bloom this week and I will take some photos if the rain stops.

February was a busy month for me pruning the roses, not just mine but customers and friends. 

On another note where is SJP not seen him post on this topic for a while now, not since the forum changed.

[Valkyrie]

Yes - SJP seems to have gone AWOL!  Maybe didn't like the new layout like me - it is still not as good as the old style with too many posts on a page and I don't think navigating it is as easy as it used to be - but it is what it is.  Hope SJP is OK.

 

[Cat tails]

6 hours ago, Valkyrie said:

Keep picking the elder shoots - young leaves make a good spinach substitute.  Every time you harvest it will weaken the plant and give you something tasty - egg, cream and ground elder in a pot - Cat tails' revenge!

You are welcome to come and pick some! Don’t think this plant will ever get to a weak state... it just spreads more every year. Wish the chickens liked it as much as you do, but it’s about the only green they won’t touch.

[Valkyrie]

Looks like a lovely crop you have there!  Looks a little like my mum's patch at the end of her garden - she isn't too keen on eating it however much I tell her to try!  Then again I haven't eaten any either!  We used to have lots here but when we removed the railway sleepers to replace with dry stone "hedgeing" (or half a wall side) the roots were exposed and OH peeled them out.  We were lucky that it never grew back.  The only thing I can suggest is some dark membrane to cut out the light then mulch with something else for a couple of years.  Or remove your plants, take out the elder roots and pop them in containers (not the elder!) and keep mowing/strimming the elder without touching the roots.  Bit like bindweed and couch grass - a little stray root goes a long way!  You could always pop plants in containers and place them over the mulch so you still get pretty flowers while helping to smother any light or determined elder!

We had tons of bindweed but I did keep picking at it before it got a chance to grow too much.  The stems did get rather thin as they tried to find different places to find light.  

[Plum]

There always seems to be a new weed to battle.  I spent all last year fighting brambles in my son's garden.  Now they've gone (almost) there's loads of that sticky bright green weed.  I've got quite a bit in my garden too.  Do you need to get the roots up or will it die if you tug the foliage and some roots out?

Hope roses grow as easily 

[Cat tails]

I have sieved through all of that soil a couple of years ago, but my garden borders on a path and the stuff also grows between my fence and the paving on the other side, through which is peeping through. So will never be really able to get rid of it. Oh well, at least it’s green and hides all the snails! 

[Plum]

Interesting pet 

[soapdragon]

The other variety of rose that has absolutely gone mad is Iceberg. I have two (they were on offer ) and, tho I pruned well, they have put on masses of growth. Hope that's matched by lots of blooms!

[Valkyrie]

Goosegrass or cleavers or a billion and one other names Plum.  Related to Sweet Woodruff.  It's an annual so those lovely little cute sticky but irritating burrs that stick on your gloves and clothes just get brushed off to a new spot.  It's easily pulled.  The chickens eat that - tis very good for them.  Apparently it is also edible for humans and another cure all (not for diabetics though it seems).  High in vitamin C too.

Nice Iceberg!  Sounds very fertile as it seems to be related to my Gertrude Jekyll triffidness!  

[mullethunter]

My mum, who is normally a very scientific sensible type, bought a bag of powdered cleavers (I call it goosegrass) because someone has decided it’s the latest cureall for horses. I told her I’d have happily supplied her with twice the amount for half the money 

[soapdragon]

Apparently cleavers/goosegrass has been eaten by humans fairly extensively throughout history. It's just about the first edible 'hedgerow' plant to appear in spring and is also high in vitamin c so perfect for all those hard working peasants out there

[Plum]

Doesn't look very appetizing but if there's a market, perhaps we should stop destroying it.  I'm so wasteful dug up the dandelions as well.  Mind you if anyone wants some my neighbour has a garden full.

French beans are germinating but no signs of life from my 8 year old salad leaves.

[GrannyTrish]

Goosegrass is called Sticky Willy up here! I knew that rabbits eat it as my BFF gives it to her bunnies but didn't know that hens like it, too. A foraging we will go!

[soapdragon]

Hugo the hamster adores fresh dandelion leaves. Not too good for humans though as they are a diuretic and their country name is *****thebed!  Maybe I should put an extra layer of newspaper and sawdust in the cage 

[Valkyrie]

  It also makes their urine go pink - I used to worry that "oh no - something wrong with the rabbit's bladder - need to call the vet!" and then I realised it was dandelions that she'd been scoffing.  There are lots of little dandelion clock seeds floating around here recently from the grass verges.  I like it that they don't cut the grass too much because there are lots of wild flowers popping up - my egg and bacon plants, bird's foot trefoil - is making a big comeback as a result.  That means more food for the burnet moths - which we had the other year (and I make sure OH doesn't mow the egg and bacon in our garden - drives me nuts when he cuts it back).  Although it would be nice for the council to come and mow before the dandelions change into pompom clocks!

[GrannyTrish]

23 hours ago, soapdragon said:

Hugo the hamster adores fresh dandelion leaves. Not too good for humans though as they are a diuretic and their country name is *****thebed!  Maybe I should put an extra layer of newspaper and sawdust in the cage 

When we were kids we used to say if you picked dandelions you'd wet the bed, and that was in the city. Guinea pigs also love them. Speaking of guinea pigs - watch this space. . . !

[soapdragon]

Thanks for the tip about the pink wee; now we won't panic if that's what we find next time we clean the little critter out!  

[Valkyrie]

Years ago I used to be told not to let the dandelion sap get on my hands - true enough it made brown blotches where I'd gripped onto my clock to tell the time. Frequently.  Ah well I was always the little rebel with regard to safe things that didn't require big tellings off!  But nowadays that doesn't happen.  Either the dandys have altered or my skin has - and come to think of it, I don't remember either of my two little devils angels getting blotched either.

[GrannyTrish]

I don't remember discoloured skin and don't get it now, either, when picking them for our piggies.

[Cat tails]

Watched the great Monty Don last Friday and he was planting some seedlings of soy beans. I love edame beans and thought I needed to give them a try growing my own. Ordered seeds and planted them today together with some peas. Come on beans! Grow! 

[GrannyTrish]

Now that we have a polytunnel DH has planted some sweetcorn. Can't wait to eat our own, fresh, corn-on-the-cob!

[mullethunter]

I’ve never had to water the veggies so much in my life - it makes me feel a little uneasy now since the water butts have been empty for so long now and no more than a few small sprinkles of rain in the ten day forecast...

But here’s how things are going...

Potatoes - second earlies - Jazzy - I haven’t watered them and their tops have been dying off for a few weeks now without ever flowering. I’m harvesting good numbers of very small potatoes.

Kavolo (sp?) nero- I flung some left over potted ones at the garden last winter and they grew brilliantly in late spring so have been harvesting them.

Peas - early onward - have been eating these raw for the last 2 weeks - they’ve done really well.

Dwarf French Beans - Amethyst- have been eating these for a week and have just sown another lot.

Runner Beans - looking really good but the sparrows keep eating all the flowers - might try white flowered ones next year.

Brassica’s - all growing really well but the cabbage white butterfly army have arrived now so we’ll see.

Cucmbers - mini munch - eating these from the greenhouse now 

Cucamelon - eating these from the greenhouse and they are quite cool and the plant is pretty with brilliant tendrils but I don’t really see the point in them.

Tomatoes - Primabella and Tigerella - bits producing a reasonable amount of smallish fruit considering how crammed in they are.

Plums - Victoria - a few on the tree but not ripening yet.

Apples - not great this year by the looks of it.

In summary the warm, dry weather (here in Cornwall I’d say day time max temps over the last 2 months have averaged about 21 and night time mins probably 15) has been a massive help in keeping the slugs and snails away and promoting good growth as long as I keep watering.