A blog about new gardeners figuring out how things work.
We built a raised bed a while ago, which we filled with veg. We were very excited until we realised it was used by every cat as a litter tray. Something about the soft soil, I suppose.
We first added a net over the top of it, only to realise that the cocooning butterflies couldn’t get out!
My dad suggested a vertical net! We shall see how this goes.
There’s a big potato plant growing in there, which must be off spring from two years ago!
The bees love the globe thistle
A few weeks ago we were lucky enough to spot a beautiful fox in the garden. We’ve heard them a few times in the night since but not seen them again.
Websites say just keep it in doors in a jar of water. Last time I did that a bunch of sneaky bugs had hidden their eggs in a way my casual run under the tap did not remove. So now I’m freezing it. Mostly I use it for tea, and presumably the hot water will defrost it immediately.
Whilst I’ll be the first to admit that I let this grass get out of hand, it’s not looking like I’ll get this done today.
The ground is still too wet. The grass too long. It all gets chewed up in the blades. I stopped when I noticed smoke..!
Unsure if that means it’s broken, but it’s going back into the shed for now!
We’ve taken to calling this area of the garden the “focus area” as it’s the only area of the garden I’m actively trying to keep clear. Daily I’m out here plucking grass or other weeds I don’t recognise. And still they come.
But we’re not talking about weeds today, I want to show off how great these globe thistles are! Theres three in this picture. The two left most are standing tall. The right most one is a bit squashed due to a fallen bird (a sad story for another time, maybe). They’re shooting right up and I couldn’t be more pleased.
The lavender you see there is neither dying nor growing. I’d really love to dig it up again and see if it’s bothered taking root or if it’s still kept itself pot bound.
Also in focus are some marigolds that have managed to stand themselves up. These haven’t grown anywhere near the speed that the greenhouse one have. They’ve mostly filled out, rather than growing upwards, which is fine by me.
Shane & Tim's Garden 