ceris hughes

Plant identity needed

I keep mine in my bathroom under a velux window so they get good overall light while resting after flowering. there's no direct sunlight on them and there's plenty of steam.  I usually repot them at this time, especially when I've bought them in flower and some of the roots are dry and brown.  I feed them weak solution of orchid 'growth' food, - wait  3-4 weeks after repotting though, until they throw out a new stem.  These tend to grow nice and straight due to the over head light,I stake the stem and bring it down when the buds are full and change to 'bloom' food Put it on either an east or west facing window sill away from radiators............... and just enjoy it every day for weeks   

Plant identity needed

Try giving it a bit of orchid growth feed in about 6-8 weeks time and try to give it rainwater at room temp. There's a thread in this forum about orchid care, well worth a look, also have a look on youtube.  You can get hooked on orchids.........

on their way to garden near you!

Fielfares arrived with the snow on Saturday, about 6 of them who seemed a bit disorientated in the garden.  I think they were attracted by the flock of goldfinches usual eating frenzy at the feeders and about a dozen blackbirds eagerly tidying up around them.  Blackbirds were not that friendly towards them and I dont think they were keen on what was on offer even though there was a variety of goodies out there. They were a bit shy too so it wasnt possible to get a good pic.  I also had no berries in the garden this year, but I had put a wreath of berries I had in the house over xmas, on the patio table which they dug through the snow and ate the dehydrated berries off it!

what do you think is the best make of bird food you have bought?

I agree datona, when you add up the waste and the time taken to clean it all up it's not really good value for money, at least all the sunflower seed hearts get eaten between the finches and the blackbirds cleaning up under them. Regarding fat balls, when it gets cold I put what ever is good for them to eat, such as potato, (especially roasted), pasta, rice, fruitcake, mealworms, seeds, etc, and all the dripping thats been saved from the sunday roast, into the food processor with some granary bread and blitz it. adding left over cheese sauce goes down a treat too. i put it in the fridge and roll it into balls for the feeders as i need it and throw some onto the lawn for the ground feeders. through the week i save left overs for the next batch. did anyone see the programe  tonight on food waste, i recon 50 - 70% of that could have been recycled into above such delights for our feathered friends winter fuel 

Don't blackbirds like grapes

They love pomegranates, split the skin around it to pull it in half and then half again and remove most of the pith so they can see the fruit before throwing it on the lawn

Impatiens

Verdun wrote (see)

Hiya lyn. Do you take new guinea cuttings and place in water or pot on? Always did ordinary ones in water?

Hey Verdun, I dug up a new guinea this autum to over winter and took a few cuttings in water on the window sill. They still look healthy after 8-10 weeks but not a sign of a root yet. As I recall, the old busy lizzies rooted in water quite quickly so I dont think this is going to work with this type. will try some in 50/50 compost and perlite and let you know how it goes

what do you think is the best make of bird food you have bought?

I've given up with the ordinary bird seed as most of it was chucked around the garden beds by birds with discerning tastes apparently, which resulted in 'crops' of wheat and barley in my flower beds, pots and baskets as well as a putrid mess under the bird feeders.  i've changed to sunflower seeds as all the birds seem to like this, especially a flock of goldfinches who have been almost resident this year, bringing all their babies to feed too. The blackbirds and chaffinches dispose of what they drop, - which is a lot, - and so does the hedgehogs in the evening. One was around last week, (while the weather was weirdly mild here in SE Wales), having a quick snack. I get it from my local pet shop at £2 a kilo and get through a kilo a day so i might look on line to see if it's any cheaper.

Bramble invasion

Can anyone give me some advice on how to get rid of some huge bramble that are growing in the gap between my fence and my neighbors fence.  Thier ground is a few feet higher than mine so their fence is about 8ft, mine 6ft. they have now flopped over the top of my fence to follow direction of sun.  I will harvest berries this year but then it's war! I hate to use weed killers but i suppose it will come to this as i cant get to it to digg it out. I cant see where the roots are either, I have this horrible vision of myself flinging round up all over it and wondering what havoc I'll cause and I want to avoid 'neighbor disputes' at all costs.

I'd really appreciate some practical advice and methods to use in a safe and dignified manner - please

green beetles on my cauli

This year I grew cauli & cabbage in raised bed this year, put compost from bin, compost from bag, and new top soil, trod it down well and covered it with a fine net to deter the cabbage fly and slugs. for my labours i  got purple tinged cauli heads??? still got loads of caterpillars too? Could the eggs have been on the plants when i got them from the nursery, I bought plants as i'd never had much luck with them before so avoided seed this year.  the ones that aren't purple have cream sprouts, suppose there's no chance that they'll merge together to form a nice even head....... anyone else's cauli turned purple in the rain??

Powdery mildew.

How much baking soda do you use?

Bramble invasion

oxygenating weed