Palaisglide

What's the weather like in your area?

Dmball, "err" did you say boats, well apart from pushing Chesil beach another mile out to sea when Stationed at Wyke Regis, they are not too bad.
A couple of bad periods in the Bay of Biscay, A Med storm best forgotten and a North Sea storm the worst I have ever seen that sent the ferry we were on from Hamburg nearly to Iceland as we rode it out.
Apart from that nothing to write home about.

Still a lovely day here though the sun is now going.

Frank.

What is the solution?

I would say that is a mineral deficiency, could be wrong.
A lack of Potash, Magnesium, Nitrogen. They should have an all round feed in your garden Centre with instructions for feeding, you could use up any tomato feed you have left and water it onto the roots, see what happens.
The normal time for feeding would be January or February but you could give a good mulch of compost and manure though the tree will be resting in the winter months.
Another year will lose you nothing so keep it and see what comes, they do not like thin soil so a mulch each year or twice a years does no harm.

Frank.

Horse Manure in a Vegan Garden

Well Gily, you certainly caused a discussion although you have now gone beyond me, Macro is something on my camera and that is it.
As a lad I lived in a place that had soil toilets so surely the answer for someone worried about manure is use their own, everything out of those earth toilets in the village went onto the land, nothing wasted and the Veg tasted just as good. I went back last year for the first time since I left, those gardens were still as productive and the Veg still as large although I would assume they now have better toilets, therefore different arrangements for fertilisation?
An intuitive process you say "hm" my intuition is eat to live not live to eat and it has got me this far!!!

Frank.

New house, new garden, how to de-weed and de-plant borders please??

First of all I am afraid there is no quick fix, the people talking about bleach diesel and soda are talking about drilling the old stumps pouring the stuff into the holes then covering and leaving for a long time, I have a stump four years old and only now is it breaking up.
Second you do not want to be contaminating the ground where you will plant new plants and all those things will do that.
It depends on how old thick and heavy the old stumps are, there are people who will grind them out for you or you can hire a machine to dig them out, or get some one in to clear the ground for you, none cheap but you only need do it once.
So what is left, cover the ground between the stumps with heavy membrane covered with gravel, cut holes in it where you are putting a plant and let it grow on the membrane taking care of the weeds. You could then plant up pots and containers to put on the gravel until you are either fitter or the cover has been down long enough to kill off most weeds it will not kill all.
There are many other ways all include covering the ground for a while, some use old carpet or heavy mulch both take the ground out of use for a while.
Starting as you are doing is hard work and if there was an easy way there would be many more gardeners, it may come down to getting a local person in to sort it out so you can then progress.
Good luck,

Frank.

What's the weather like in your area?

lovetogarden wrote (see)

Nr Lincoln.

Morning folks.

You have certainly had some interesting times Frank

ChrisX

Depends on what you mean by interesting Chris, one of them in Lincoln was a bit close for comfort. We were doing Artillery spotting in an Auster single engine high wing plane taking off from a grassy field with a swathe cut in it for a runway. I had been up a while when the Pilot said he was tired and we came into a very bumpy landing. His Officer said he had to do one more run but had brought a relief for me so he took off, ten minutes later there was an explosion on the landing strip and both were killed.
The Rapide never made it up and when I saw I was sitting in a canvas seat inside what looked like cardboard sides i was happy about that.
The Dakota ran out of runway but it was dead flat desert so he made a turn and back to the start. Hang about lads we will clean the Carb's!! what? and they did take the covers off mess around and said right.
Off we went again, we had no side doors on as we were dropping supplies and gravel was flying in so we knew we were again off the runway but this time it staggered up. We did the drop got back and the Captain said "same time tomorrow lads" on your Nelly I managed to persuade the MT Sergeant it was my turn on the ration truck.
I managed to find trouble where ever I happened to be, is trouble interesting? depends how hard you have to clench your cheeks.
Been up the A66 and could see out over the Dales sunny and the Vale of York cloudy, coming back it was clear out over the coast.
Bought a big bargain bag of Daf's and one of Tulips at the GC, surprised to see the Christmas section is quite small this year, do they know something?

Frank.

What's the weather like in your area?

That wee boxer tells me Stockton light rain, well we have sunlight and blue sky, "Rain" lives ten miles away under the Hills and a big shiny sun is over her at this moment, once again we buck the trend but then we are never with the trend.
Do our own thing merchants up here, must be the Nordic blood.

Love watching old planes, flying in them another thing, had some nasty moments with them starting with a Rapide then a Dakota both wanting to stay on the ground, then a particularly nasty flight from Cyprus in a Brit, only just made it to Brize. Much prefered the ferry into Hamburg as we went in and out of Germany although saying that, had a couple of nasty moments in the Bay of Biscay on troopships. I just worked it out? I cannot win!!!

Frank.

Horse Manure in a Vegan Garden

Gily, I do not know about looking for balance, that also depends on circumstances.
I had two years in the desert where balance was impossible a lot of the time, those in Garrisons got a balanced diet but a lot of us only saw the garrison now and then.
No fridges or cooling gear so from the first day dry rations and water rationed, bully beef could be drunk at noon not that we wanted to eat at noon, it was breakfast before sun up a snack around half ten and the main meal in the evening when the sun went down.If we had become ill it would have been a very long run on a Jeep stretcher to a first aid unit. I was never ill and if you were then it was self service or the tender mercy of the soldier medic with his small pack of Aspro and Bismuth, just do not get ill was the only way.
We saw people who's diet was flat bread and a little vegetable, meat was the odd goat or camel and that was rare indeed, kids were lucky to reach their teens and it was not by choice, they had none.
I suppose we can pontificate on what is good or not we do have that choice as we do about what we eat although that choice was not there for many when I was young.
Flowering Rose horses may be vegetarian but it does not stop them trying to take a bite out of you when you are not watching, my way was a fast hard punch on the muzzle, they did not try it twice.

Frank.

what to do

BW Parsnips are sweeter after a frosting, many roots are left in the ground unless it becomes too wet then lift them put them in Washed sand in a cool place.
If you lift Dahlias put them in boxes with a covering of sandy soil or peat, stems down to drain any moisture and keep an eye on them, they too want to be in a dry cool place, a garage or shed. After a while I turn them upright in the box and cover with more sandy soil damping them very slightly, in spring you divide the tubers and plant up in pots to bring on.
I cut my herbs back in Autumn and the new growth soon shows though this year because they are now old I have taken some out and will replace them with cuttings taken earlier.
New or old gardeners we are always learning so ask if in doubt, someone out there will know.

Frank.

Horse Manure in a Vegan Garden

I do not think we should gang up on Gily Webber, we all make choices to suit our selves it is called freedom.
I lived through a time when kids from poor families were lucky to have one hot meal a week, Fathers out of work Mothers not allowed to work, no school meals but they did get free milk.
My family were small holders and farmers so I never knew hunger or want and yes we clamped Veg bottled Jammed and preserved besides salting down our own Bacon and Hams, the poor families did not have that choice.
Even today I see people who had rickets as kids, lack of vitamins, TB Measles and other diseases rampant and all in my time, at least some of that has gone though not for good it seems.
Having eaten a good breakfast all my life and the first 18 years that would be porridge bacon egg fried bread tomato's mushrooms, not all together but what was in season and even eggs were seasonal so we put them down in Isinglass to preserve them. I must have eaten many salted pigs in my time, blood pressure normal for my age and the odd touch of gout, never touched port wine, smoked, or stuffed sweet stuff down my neck, so what does any of it prove. Nothing apart from we are all different with differing needs, all my relatives went into their 80-90's grandad was 97 and they lived through times of real hardship, is it genes or the way we live or a bit of both.
Not for me to know but I do know Gily can live any way she wishes though I would give this advice, my way of living has come from long experience and that experience also tell me to take what I read with a pinch of salt, a big pinch at that, having seen all the fads and fashions in diet come and go, the yo-yo ups and downs of so called experts some of whom went to an early grave, I smile and do it my way, so should you Gily.

Frank
PS, my Sons horses do not get antibiotics, ever.

What's the weather like in your area?

FloBear, as with everything you have to get your head down and work at it, I did hours of Scales until I knew every note of every scale without thinking, Dad did not help he would bring a piece of music in and say half a crown when you can play that well. practice went out of the window half a crown was two and six, pictures fish supper and sweets and some left over. My music teacher had a very long pencil so I had very sore knuckles for not practicing.

It has been mixed today sunshine light showers and high winds, now the sun is out again and quite warm outside. The Fuschia's should be cut back although still filled with lovely flowers so I will wait for the frost.

Frank.

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