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sibelian

(7,804 posts)
Sun Sep 2, 2012, 05:20 AM Sep 2012

Takes a deep breath.... AND...


I have coddled the oxalis with Arran granite, along with the chamomile and sedum, pulled up the monster geranium and potted him in the hope that his evil plot to take over the universe may be at least put off somewhat, inserted various very pure and innocent looking tulip bulbs into pots to avoid whatever blighted those that I planted last year in the beds, forcibly ripped up the hideous shasta daises because they are hateful and I hate them (although I sulkily transplanted them into pots), transplanted the world's most insipid tradescantia in the hope that it will flower better in the company of things that don't want to strangle it to death, set in place a future catastrophic coup in which a montana rubens (rubens?!?!?!?1 what the HELL, sandy) will utterly destroy a rather beautiful but ultimately doomed honeysuckle that can't cope with a single spot of mildew without losing all its leaves (go for it, rubens), planted my lovely posh white fuschia which has finally recovered from the deep frost of the 2010 -14 degrees winter, collected nasturtium seeds, planted my hairy-leafed lace-cap hydrangea which I am certain nothing could possibly be interested in eating as its leaves look VERY indigiestible and horrible, and now have masses of space in which to put my "peppermint stick" and "dwarf praestans" tulips which I am assured are naturalisers and won't need stroking and saying "there, there" to like every other bloody tulip I've ever planted along with an absolute avalanche of recently and over-enthusiastically purchased crocus bulbs and my rapidly expanding and very lovely aquilegia collection, of which I am becoming quite proud (every member of which must have been dug up and replanted at least twice) and I have given up on the yellow day lilies because they are clearly idiots and am now scouting around for a pot suitable for anemonies (why did no-one tell me that it's utterly pointless planting anemonies anywhere but in pots?) and somewhere to hide my tigridia (phwooooar! they are teh sex, readers) from the coming frost, along with the other idiot daylilies (lavender and red) that I stupidly put so much effort into earlier this year (all of them failed dismally). Still to come - mutilating the euphorbia before he becomes carnivorous and eats everything, mutilating the solanum just for being ugly, crippling the buddleia and hornbeam before their roots destroy the tarmac and trying to save the other, non-pathetic honeysuckle because that one really tried this year and probably deserves to live. Oh, and decapitating the aconitum (phwoooar! it is teh sex, readers). Oh, and getting that other clematis off my dad and trying to put it somewhere (where? How?) and destroying every last remnant of the dreaded feverfew that gave out an absolute cloud of gorgeous white daisy-head flowers this year but I am assured that they will be worse than the euphorbia, monster geranium and solanum put together before the end of next year. And I really, really, really should do something about the, cough, "lawn".

I need a bigger garden.
9 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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Takes a deep breath.... AND... (Original Post) sibelian Sep 2012 OP
I haven't done much in my garden for 2 months. Denninmi Sep 2012 #1
Perhaps redesign? sibelian Sep 2012 #2
You need a bigger garden? LWolf Sep 2012 #3
Your yard pipi_k Sep 2012 #4
My rocks LWolf Sep 2012 #5
Mesembryanthemum! sibelian Sep 2012 #6
I know all kinds of great things to grow, LWolf Sep 2012 #7
hmmmmmmmm. This garden is going to be yours for a while, yes? sibelian Sep 2012 #8
I can burn the parts that aren't near buildings or trees. LWolf Sep 2012 #9

Denninmi

(6,581 posts)
1. I haven't done much in my garden for 2 months.
Sun Sep 2, 2012, 05:22 AM
Sep 2012

Contemplating destroying much of it because I just can't deal with it now. It would be a loss to me, but honestly, i don't know if I can face it all right now.

sibelian

(7,804 posts)
2. Perhaps redesign?
Sun Sep 2, 2012, 06:35 AM
Sep 2012

choose one area and leave the rest? Pave over what you know you'll never have time for... difficult to do, I know...

LWolf

(46,179 posts)
3. You need a bigger garden?
Sun Sep 2, 2012, 08:35 PM
Sep 2012

I've got plenty to offer.

Please. Take it over.

First you'll need to eradicate the noxious weeds, the worst of which is perrenial pepper weed. I quit planting things, because as soon as I do, the ppw shows up and chokes the life out of everything else. It spreads underground as well as through seed, and if I water something, it races to hog all the space and water.

Next you'll need to do something about the rocks; my region grows rocks better than anything. I've got rocks on the sandy soil, rocks in the sandy soil, and at about 18 inches deep you'll hit rock solid enough that it won't be moved without blasting it.

If your back is strong enough to deal with the rocks, they could be arranged into beds, or rock gardens, or....

How many acres would you like?

pipi_k

(21,020 posts)
4. Your yard
Sun Sep 2, 2012, 08:46 PM
Sep 2012

sounds like mine.

What isn't clay is rocky crap soil.

My garden out front is being taken over by Jewelweed. While useful as an antidote for poison ivy, it's very invasive here.

Not to mention the rampant blackberries that pop up feet away from the main bushes because they like to move around underground.

Anyway, the rocks. We dig them up, they reappear at, or just below the surface a few months later.

I had roses out in the raised boxes in front, and they did well, but so did the weeds growing right next to them. It was near impossible to get the weeds out what with all the thorns, so I dug up the roses and gave them to my son who can bend over better than I can (and has two kids who can do it if he can't).

Then I threw a bunch of wildflower seeds in the boxes. Not as pretty as a planned out garden, but nice and rural cottage looking, which fits the surroundings anyway.

Sometimes you just get tired of trying to fight Mother Nature.

LWolf

(46,179 posts)
5. My rocks
Mon Sep 3, 2012, 09:39 AM
Sep 2012

are volcanic in nature; we have a relatively thin soil layer over old lava flows. Where do you get yours?

sibelian

(7,804 posts)
6. Mesembryanthemum!
Mon Sep 3, 2012, 02:02 PM
Sep 2012

THAT'S what you need. They love that rocky shit.

Also flax. Also alchemilla.

You know these things, however, I'm sure...

LWolf

(46,179 posts)
7. I know all kinds of great things to grow,
Mon Sep 3, 2012, 03:06 PM
Sep 2012

if I can keep the ppw from choking it out. The rest of the weeds, noxious or just annoying, can be pulled by hand. Or the sheep will eat them, or, in the case of cheat grass, the horses will keep it cropped low. The ppw, though, shows up and crowds out anything I plant. If it's not dry dust, the ppw will take over. I can pull it, but I can never get ALL the roots, so it just grows back.

sibelian

(7,804 posts)
8. hmmmmmmmm. This garden is going to be yours for a while, yes?
Mon Sep 3, 2012, 03:46 PM
Sep 2012

I think there is a possible solution, but it requires investment of time and the willingness to dig up and preserve everything that you love beforehand.

Put black tarpaulin over the planting area, section by section, leaving it there for two/three years at a time. No sunlight will reach the plants and they will run out of energy and die...

Desperate measures... and probably not much fun to look at, but it'll work. Also, no nasty chemicals... I had to kill an incredibly persistent ivy this way once. It was ugly as hell but it worked.

Of course, this is up there with "burn it with fire" which is another obvious solution but somethings that doesn't work either!!

LWolf

(46,179 posts)
9. I can burn the parts that aren't near buildings or trees.
Tue Sep 4, 2012, 12:09 PM
Sep 2012

I do that every spring and fall. It does slow it down, but doesn't keep it from coming back from the root system.

The black plastic? I may play around with that next spring, around the house, anyway. I've got plenty of rock to weigh it down with! I can't imagine blanketing all 6 acres, and of course I couldn't do that where the horses roam. If they would just eat the damned things, there wouldn't be a problem. Apparently, though, horses, sheep (I have one) and even goats (this used to be a goat ranch) won't touch them.

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