Gubu.ie

Hi, new forum because AOB getting a few gardening threads. Chat here or post new thread for specific discussions. Enjoy!

Just come in from the garden for a coffee break. Lovely weather out there, for the 1st October.









Hang on, today is what?

As we enter August the garden is in excellent kilter, flower beds are thriving and hedges leveled until next summer. Time of the season to be sitting out until dusk and gazing contently at the results of handiwork weeks ago. A light weed here and a lawn trim there, easy street until October.

Back in again. Rain has stopped play. Meteofrance are obviously recycling yesterday's unused forecast for today ...

BUT this consistently warm-n-wet unsummery weather is working wonders on germination rates. Was adding some natural nitrogen to a recently transplanted Jerusalem artichoke and saw that the melon seeds I planted only a few days ago have already started to appear! Ditto for the lamb's leaf lettuce.

Decided to spend the day in the polytunnel today. Got rid of all the weeds and tied up more tomatos that are now heading for the polytunnel roof. Quick play on Gubu and out for a walk about. Done a veg box for a friend of mine, she gave me in return a banofi desert and a curry for tomorrow. I get great satisfaction out of the battering system. Have a few regulars coming in that take surplus. Problem with me is I hate to throw out a plant... so instead of 5 courgettes that would do I put down 30... never learn ha

Plover1958 wrote: ↑Sun Aug 01, 2021 7:10 pm The trouble with growing fruit and veg is that we always have too much at any one time for our own use. You can only freeze or preserve so much.

One of my projects for the year before last (with one part still to be done, probably next year) was creating a lot more storage space for preserved fruit and veg so that the gluts can even themselves out and to always have a good quantity of just about everything in stock. I find that most of my visitors come just before peak harvest - or even well before - so I end up feeding them from the reserves anyway.

I had this plan of getting a walk behind flail mower for doing high grass / tall vegetation to take some of the physical work out of my annual autumn clean up. From looking at some of them it would have set me back 2 to 3k. I've just chickened out of that idea and ended up buying two Austrian scythes and a sharpening stone from Fruithill farm in Cork. I've a 20 year old Robin brushcutter that touch wood is still going so think I made the right choice.

Now what to spend the walk behind flail mower money on that I saved up

Actually speaking of brush cutters, the Robin brush cutter I have is no longer been made. Found a company over the UK, JAPG mowers and machinery, who have parts for it. Probably spurious but I've ordered a full carburetor repair kit, the sponge filter, new blade, reverse nut for blade, spark plug, fuel primer bulb and Strimmer head so hopefully that will keep it going for another 10 years

Never ordered from that company before so will see who it goes.

Ncdjd2 wrote: ↑Sun Aug 22, 2021 12:37 pmI've just chickened out of that idea and ended up buying two Austrian scythes ...

Two??? Are you going to try and cobble them together to be able to cut twice as fast?

CelticRambler wrote: ↑Sun Aug 22, 2021 2:19 pm Two??? Are you going to try and cobble them together to be able to cut twice as fast?

Ha nooo. Instead of having to switch from a mowing blade to a cutting blade I'll just have them on their own snaths for convenience:)

There is a briar growing in the hedge for a couple of years, getting cut back when the hedge gets cut. Intended getting to grips with it for once and for all yesterday evening; twas loaded with blackberries! Lovely and clean and organic ....I know what's on tomorrows baking menu

Osciiboscii wrote: ↑Fri Aug 27, 2021 9:32 pmI know what's on tomorrows baking menu

Something like this?



Picked a kilo of them the day before yesterday.

Was planning to pick another kilo or two this weekend in the hedge across the lane ... only my OCD farmer neighbour decided yesterday to "tidy up" his side of the hedge, and shredded almost the whole lot. The fruiting briars on my side had their roots on his side.

I've took a week off my from my official job to spend a week cleaning up and cutting back everything around the house.

I'm more prepared this year in that I bought myself telescopic loppers and a new hedge clippers. No more ladders or having to tie and tape brush handles onto my normal lopper

My 31 year old German parker will be protecting me from the thorns.

Just in from mopping up the latest batch of leaves in the back garden. I usually run an electric mower on them and then bag them for recycling. As its been such a dry week the job was a lot easier than expected - with almost all the leaves bone dry.

I have a raspberry patch and all my hedge and fruit tree cuttings get squished in my Lidl "shedder" and placed around the canes for the winter. Any leaves that blow in get raked up and dumped in there. Saves me money and the raspberries seem to like it!

CelticRambler wrote: ↑Fri Aug 27, 2021 9:37 pm Something like this?



Picked a kilo of them the day before yesterday.

Was planning to pick another kilo or two this weekend in the hedge across the lane ... only my OCD farmer neighbour decided yesterday to "tidy up" his side of the hedge, and shredded almost the whole lot. The fruiting briars on my side had their roots on his side.

Damn Phillistine.

Thats reason enough for me to go to war with my neighbour.............but I aint like that no more as Clint says in Unforgiven

kadman wrote: ↑Thu Nov 18, 2021 8:09 pm Damn Phillistine.

Thats reason enough for me to go to war with my neighbour.............

That's relatively mild, compared to what he did a couple of months after we moved in (an ecological massacre that was partly responsible for the formerMrsCR becoming the formerMrsCR ) ... but I have to keep him sweet for now - I want to persuade him to sell me a bit of field behind my own land.

CelticRambler wrote: ↑Thu Nov 18, 2021 8:43 pm That's relatively mild, compared to what he did a couple of months after we moved in (an ecological massacre that was partly responsible for the formerMrsCR becoming the formerMrsCR ) ... but I have to keep him sweet for now - I want to persuade him to sell me a bit of field behind my own land.

Sounds like MrCR putting his diplomatic hat on then. I have to say for myself in such a situation............that exterminate with extreme prejudice would spring to mind................But I aint like that anymore, my wife cured me of my drinking and ill gotten ways....GGGrrrr.

I should have clarified that "my side" of the blackberry hedge isn't, in fact, on my land! It's a 250m2 strip on the far side of the lane and belongs to the municipality; I just treat it as my own! One of those conveniently flexible French rules - every one knows that I have no right to park my vehicles, or dump my tree trunks, there, but nobody cares or objects (as long as the combines can get past).

Interesting article about the benefits of using straw as a mulch.

https://www.almanac.com/using-straw-mul ... n%20better.

I'm planning on getting a couple of bales to build up the organic matter content in areas I'm hopefully going to grow veg in next year.