How about a gardening thread?

[meloncollie]

I rip out the bindweed/Winde daily, and daily more emerges. It's a Sisyphean task.

I'm afraid to use the products formulated against Bindweed because the dogs are grazers - do any of you have any truly pet (and wild animal) safe tricks for getting rid of the evil weed?

[Tom1234]

	Quote:	EastEnders
	I think, blueangel means WINDE/ bindweed (Convolvulus) or a similar plant. At my former home we had them a lot too. I tore them out, on a daily basis at time and also applied a special foam onto the leaves of the bigger plants, it takes alot of patience to get rid of them, but perseverance pays dividends ...e.g. in the end you'll get rid of them DO NOT COMPOST them, bin them.

I had lots where we live now - and didn't use the foam on them as I never had measurably good results before.

As you wrote though, patience is the key and I've found that if you keep pulling it out, every year you will have less and less.

[Blueangel]

	Quote:	meloncollie
	I rip out the bindweed/Winde daily, and daily more emerges. It's a Sisyphean task.

We had winde last year which I ripped out and blasted with weedkiller, but it came from a neighbour's garden and eventually grew down the drain to the sewer and blocked it.

I've just realised that I'm using my childhood name for rose suckers. My dad had a rose garden so I used to earn pocket money by cutting them all off his roses. This plant typically has 5 or 7 leaves and attaches itself to the rose or feeds from the root ball. My dad used to make a concoction to paint on it, but I've no idea what was in it, and it didn't include weed killer because of our dog.

[meloncollie]

Blueangel, is that on a hybrid rose when the rootstock starts to put out 'wild' canes, overtaking the grafted ones?

If so, I have the same problem, and it seems to be getting worse as the rose grows older. (It's at least 20 years old now, likely over 30...)

I wish there were a solution other than pruning... as the rootstock canes are mighty thorny and tough. Ouch!

[curley]

	Quote:	meloncollie
	"Only two things that money can't buy, and that's true love and home-grown tomatoes." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0C4FOL1qIw ......

Very true. Years of desperation (re the tomatoes ) made me plant them this year.

Denver publishing a song about them though .... did that one hit the charts?

[meloncollie]

	Quote:	curley
	Denver publishing a song about them though .... did that one hit the charts?

'Home Grown Tomatoes' is actually by Guy Clark; John Denver did a cover. As have many country singers. Don't know about the charts, but turn on the radio while driving down I65 though Hoosierland in summertime and you are guaranteed to hear somebody singing the song.

Ah, memories...

[Tom1234]

	Quote:	meloncollie
	I wish there were a solution other than pruning... as the rootstock canes are mighty thorny and tough. Ouch!

I've read in a couple of places that breaking of the canes at the base (they come away cleanly) is better than cutting them off because cutting just invites more canes to sprout.

[Belgianmum]

	Quote:	Blueangel
	We had winde last year which I ripped out and blasted with weedkiller, but it came from a neighbour's garden and eventually grew down the drain to the sewer and blocked it. I've just realised that I'm using my childhood name for rose suckers. My dad had a rose garden so I used to earn pocket money by cutting them all off his roses. This plant typically has 5 or 7 leaves and attaches itself to the rose or feeds from the root ball. My dad used to make a concoction to paint on it, but I've no idea what was in it, and it didn't include weed killer because of our dog. Attachment 137679

I have always been told to cut or rip them off as close to the root stock as possible and seal the wound. My dad always said ripping them was better than cutting but I don’t know if that is true.
My dad used some sort of tar like substance but I think you can use glue too.

[Blueangel]

	Quote:	Belgianmum
	My dad used some sort of tar like substance but I think you can use glue too.

I've used bitumen before on a tree stump in my secure UK garden, but our Swiss garden is frequented by cats and foxes so I need to find an alternative. Thanks.

[curley]

I have a Lycianthes rantonnetii. (We just call it potatoe-tree and add the Swiss "li" at the end )

I've let it all go wild (remember I'm the one who's all for freedom) and it got very high. I was gonna cover it in a potatoe-sack (that's not plant specific but just a way to protect any plant ) but it will be a bit difficult at this hight.

Now that I googled, it says they should be cut during the summer and in spring, not in fall. NOW they tell me

I will have to cut it though. So do I do this asap now or do I wait until it is really cold, I'm not sure it will loose it's leaves though?

edit: I just read they bloom through November too (it sure does). So I guess, I'll wait a little longer.

Just brought in my hibiscus - for some strange reason, it has decided to start flowering like crazy right now. It has huge bright red flowers and have had it for many years- brought over from UK 10+ years ago.

[curley]

	Quote:
	Just brought in my hibiscus - for some strange reason, it has decided to start flowering like crazy right now.

You should see my geranium. They didn't budge all summer - and it's decided their kind will not be planted again - and now they bloom like mad.
I will let them - all winter if they want to.

[DantesDame]

I've pretty much given up on the garden for the year (still some Brussel sprouts to harvest, but I'll have to wait for the weekend when there is daylight


Now I just need to wait for a hard frost to kill of some stuff and I can start to make my plans for next year. I love the fact that I get a "do over" every year

	Quote:	curley
	You should see my geranium. They didn't budge all summer - and it's decided their kind will not be planted again - and now they bloom like mad. I will let them - all winter if they want to.

I really wanted to laugh but there's no laugh button. My little bougainvillea stayed out in the sun all season but refused to bloom. The moment I brought it in when nighttime temps dropped, it pushed out a little bunch of blooms, which has since faded, and now another tip is blooming.

What is it with cathedral bells, anyone? Mine is crawling all over the place and hanging onto whichever plant or structure it could - but has yet to bloom.

In the meantime, the self seeded Calibrachoa (four colours) and dark pink petunia are still blooming like mad.

my abutilon flowered in June and is going mad again now too.

[omtatsat]

	Quote:	curley
	You should see my geranium. They didn't budge all summer - and it's decided their kind will not be planted again - and now they bloom like mad. I will let them - all winter if they want to.

Yes not normal. Global warning hits again.

Heres ours. Taken one day ago.

Allotment is ready for the winter crop, I am really chuffed to bits with how my first (not yet complete)full garden year at thew home went so far.

I could harvest an abundance of produce, planted and sowed anew when some space got empty...and there are still a lot of hardy vegetables and salads out there, to last us through winter hopefully. freezer is full of prepped veges and the shelves in the cellar are stacked high with other preserves.

I even could successfully sow out (way too late, due to the wedding-ery) winter spinach and lambs salad, which are showing up already

We can look forward to more Swiss chard, beetroot, leek, spinach, lambs salad, sugar loaf salad, celeriac and frisée endives.

Sadly, no Brussel sprouts, somehow they don't like it here, tried to grow them in two different spots.


If we'd have some chickens for eggs, and sheep for milk and wool (and mowing the lawn :P) we'd be almost self sufficient.

I think I'll change my name soon to Barbara Good

[Medea Fleecestealer]

Very nice EastEnders. May I ask, what's sugar loaf salad? Never heard of that before.

	Quote:	Medea Fleecestealer
	Very nice EastEnders. May I ask, what's sugar loaf salad? Never heard of that before.

Zuckerhut in German or salade pain de sucre in French

The German word certainly comes from the triangual sugarloaves of olden days,below a link to one of them from the Aarberg sugar factory.
Those cone shaped sugarloaves where common in olden days, and every household had a small hammer/pickaxe shaped tool to smash small bits off this cone to use.

http://foomici.com/2014/09/aarberger-zuckerstoecke/



Hence the German name for the salad, because the likeness is uncanny to a 'Zuckerstock'

Here's a link to the salad

https://www.gemuese.ch/Gemuse/Gemusearten/Zuckerhut

[Medea Fleecestealer]

Ah, it's a type of chicory. Thanks, never seen that before.