Topic: The RAWK Gardening Thread. (All Questions Answered)

[McrRed]

After years of neglect the bottom of our garden has loads of suckers and a shit load of ivy mingled with spiky blackberry type vines.

Short of salting the whole lot, any advice on taming the jungle?

[Filler.]

Jesus Filler you looking for Brownie points

I'll get round to it soon.



I was just wondering if the secret to being a good gardener lies in that moment where you're more interested in what goes into the compost bin than you do with your own children's gullets.

[Sarge]

After years of neglect the bottom of our garden has loads of suckers and a shit load of ivy mingled with spiky blackberry type vines.

Short of salting the whole lot, any advice on taming the jungle?

Be in a bad state of mind and go fucking ape on it.

[Sarge]

Nick & I would like a photo of all that mate, we've evidence of your previous messy outdoor endeavours

Here you go.

[John C]

Here you go.

If that's Europe's largest Japanese garden down-south it's my 2nd cousins country house. His sister Karen maintains it.
He's sold it now but he also owned Winston Churchill's house.
Rather wealthy.

Nice try anyway mate

[Sarge]

If that's Europe's largest Japanese garden down-south it's my 2nd cousins country house. His sister Karen maintains it.
He's sold it now but he also owned Winston Churchill's house.
Rather wealthy.

Nice try anyway mate

You know Karen

[John C]

You know Karen

I was with the whole family late last year

[Sarge]

I was with the whole family late last year

Not me. Been busy in the Garden.

[Filler.]

We have a flat roof above our garage and my 'studio' (arf). The two rooms measure about about 3.5 x 10m. The drains from the roof on the

(see pic - was frankly easier)

So the drains are in very dark pencil... they run from a concrete gutter, along the roof, down two drains either side, and the water eventually falls over the edge onto another gutter and down the drains. I've got some issues with the roof but that's a DIY thing. I want to build troughs (10"x10" say) all round the roof and grow plants in them, and I want to be able to use the water from the roof to be spread EVENLY through the troughs.

Is this remotely possible? Or do I have to start thinking about a pipe system? I want to do very very little work after it's done, but it has to use the rain water. Could I pump it from a water butt at the use of a button?

[John C]

Could I pump it from a water butt at the use of a button?

I'm sure Sarge    will be along in due course to advise you Rob mate, meanwhile you may wanna check why someone has replaced your chimney for a penis and a knob cloud is forming above your flat roof.

[Filler.]

I'm sure Sarge    will be along in due course to advise you Rob mate, meanwhile you may wanna check why someone has replaced your chimney for a penis and a knob cloud is forming above your flat roof.

I've made a number of complaints about it.

[Sarge]

I'm sure Sarge    will be along in due course to advise you Rob mate, meanwhile you may wanna check why someone has replaced your chimney for a penis and a knob cloud is forming above your flat roof.

Alan X is the man to ask this one Filler.

[Alan_X]

We have a flat roof above our garage and my 'studio' (arf). The two rooms measure about about 3.5 x 10m. The drains from the roof on the

(see pic - was frankly easier)

So the drains are in very dark pencil... they run from a concrete gutter, along the roof, down two drains either side, and the water eventually falls over the edge onto another gutter and down the drains. I've got some issues with the roof but that's a DIY thing. I want to build troughs (10"x10" say) all round the roof and grow plants in them, and I want to be able to use the water from the roof to be spread EVENLY through the troughs.

Is this remotely possible? Or do I have to start thinking about a pipe system? I want to do very very little work after it's done, but it has to use the rain water. Could I pump it from a water butt at the use of a button?

Rob - I'll have a look at this tomorrow.

[Filler.]

Rob - I'll have a look at this tomorrow.

I haven't decided whether it could be a 10"x10" trough or a 18" or 24" square type trough yet. The more mud, the less frequency needed to water etc. If I have to walk round it with a hose on a 2m pole every so often, I'm not interested. I can only do this 'naturally' or with a button. I love buttons and gardening. I relieved a neighbour of his old decking out of a skip last year, so I have some options. And I took alot. Goldmine.

I've been idly wondering about how to do this for some while.

[Sarge]

Sunny May!

[Pistolero]

any green fingered rawkites offer any advice on what sort of tree/bush/shrub I should be looking at for privacy?....ie, to go in front of a downstairs window that i could do with shading/screening off.......need something hardy annual/perennial fast growing and fairly well established ...any tips would be greatly appreciated...ta

[Sarge]

any green fingered rawkites offer any advice on what sort of tree/bush/shrub I should be looking at for privacy?....ie, to go in front of a downstairs window that i could do with shading/screening off.......need something hardy annual/perennial fast growing and fairly well established ...any tips would be greatly appreciated...ta

Lots and lots and lots mate. Do you want colour and how big an area and how high do you want them?

[Pistolero]

Lots and lots and lots mate. Do you want colour and how big an area and how high do you want them?

colour would be nice but fast growth / density more important  ....min 5ft height ...approx 6ft width... sunny, south facing spot

[Sarge]

colour would be nice but fast growth / density more important  ....min 5ft height ...approx 6ft width... sunny, south facing spot

The Laurel, fast growing and its like a wall. (Prunus laurocerasus 'Rotundifolia')This is the one you want, it has a few in its family.



Spotted Laurel (Aucuba japonica) Slower but its varigated leave and red berries give a nice look.



Photinia 'Red Robin' Hedge.



Also view -

Escallonia
Griselinia
Ligustrum

These are old school hedging and prett quick growers, Spotted Laurel and Red Robin are slower.

[Pistolero]

Great that Sarge!  ...thank's very much mate

[Sarge]

Great that Sarge!  ...thank's very much mate

Not a bother thats what the thread is for. There are plenty of other Hedging to go for but those wont steer ya wrong.

[Sarge]

Always that one patch of shaded garden that nothing grows in, pain in the arse to be honest.

[Sarge]

So we gardening this weather?

[Pistolero]

These are old school hedging and prett quick growers, Spotted Laurel and Red Robin are slower.

went for a Red Robin ....well established, already about 6ft....got it in the ground yesterday, looks great.. cheers

[.adam]

So we gardening this weather?

Yes, mate! You might remember that I posed ]this question about a window box that I saw last year. I've now finally bought, painted and mounted some boxes to the front of my house. Planted two trailing ivys and three trailing lobelias in each of them - will probably add some geraniums tonight.


Here they are affixed but not yet established.




Also spent about five hours weeding the other week getting things ready for summer bedding plants. Once things have started to take I'll upload some photos.

[Sarge]

went for a Red Robin ....well established, already about 6ft....got it in the ground yesterday, looks great.. cheers

Nice plant that.

[Sarge]

Good stuff adam.

[Filler.]

More general garden question, if anyone's got some thoughts on it:

at the avatar. Nearly hyperventilated when I saw where David Squires got it from. Haha.

Unless you're building something (?) on top of the concrete with bricks (i.e, a building) you won't need a dampcourse. If it's 3" below the level of the grass, you could also perhaps get away with covering it with topsoil and sowing some creeping thyme or something too - although if it's solid concrete, maybe not. Or artificial grass?



Really enjoying watching the mason bees emerging from a little house of bamboo sticks these last few days. Hopefully next year they'll be helping to pollinate something other than weeds. Would be fun to keep some honey bees I think.

[stockdam]

Any tips on how to stop cats shitting in my garden?

I've got a gravel path, and the local cats see it as one big litter tray.  I get at least one 'buried present' every day!

I've tried a few things already, but none have worked.

Do you have an enclosed garden? If so put some string around the fence and cats will "trip" when they try to climb back over the fence. They'll soon learn not to come in.

If they pee in one place (patch of grass) then put chilli down and eggshells to move them on somewhere else.

[stockdam]

After years of neglect the bottom of our garden has loads of suckers and a shit load of ivy mingled with spiky blackberry type vines.

Short of salting the whole lot, any advice on taming the jungle?

Machete.

You could use a strong weed-killer but the best way is to roll up your sleeves and start by cutting down the thick growth so you can see the ground.

Next dig out the big weeds making sure you get the roots out. Brambles are a pain as they have deep, thick roots. You may need to do this several times.

Break up the soil with a fork to make it more manageable.

Once you have the big stuff out then use a dutch hoe to skim under the weeds and remove the roots. Rake the disturbed weeds out with the back of the hoe or a rake. Remove them and put them into the bin.

If you've got this far then it's going to be a regular job as the weeds will come back. Some of the larger weeds will not like being topped each week so just strim them back until they give up. However many weeds will keep coming back and you'll have to go through this process over and over again.

One tool that I find good is this one.

[Filler.]

Brilliant isn't it

Had my hands on my knees when I saw those two


If there's no mud underneath the slate (i.e just concrete), then you'll be fine without a weed matting, but if not... matting will help, but eventually, 3" of slate chippings will win I think.

[JonnyDubb]

More general garden question, if anyone's got some thoughts on it:

We've got a concreted section at the back of our garden between the end of our lawn and the shed - approx. 4m x 3m, recessed about 3 inches below the level of the lawn. It's sectioned off from the garden by a row of bricks where a decorative wall used to be.

I'm thinking about covering it with grey slate fragments to make it a little easier on the eye (the concrete is feet deep, and would be near enough impossible to remove), but am I right in thinking this would *not* need a dampcourse putting between the concrete and the slates?

If you're going to put stuff directly on top of concrete make sure you have sufficient drainage. If the area is enclosed and lower than the grass level you could end up with a bog down there if the water has nowhere to go.

[Sarge]

Rainy week ahead is no harm for the plants in the garden to grow with the sunshine of ythe last week.

[Cohiba]

A bit of help please. I have a leylandi hedge all round the rear garden which is great for privacy and a haven for nesting birds but a real pain in the rear end to keep trim an dtidy. Its about 10 foot high and around 80 foot long. A few questions -
Could I dig any individual trees up and move them (as some parts are a bit 'patchy')
Could I replace it with laurel, and if so, does this stay evergreen, and could I keep it narrow. I guess the leylandii is around 3 foot wide and I dont want anything wider.
Would hornbeam be better than laurel or leylandi.
Is sheer muscle the best way to remove the leylandi, or could I hire a mini digger or something.
The garden is South facing and I was thinking of changing to something prettier, but I do enjoy the privacy and am a little intimidated at the potential hard work involved for something that I dont really get much benefit from at the end of.
Over to you Sarge...

[Sarge]

A bit of help please. I have a leylandi hedge all round the rear garden which is great for privacy and a haven for nesting birds but a real pain in the rear end to keep trim an dtidy. Its about 10 foot high and around 80 foot long. A few questions -
Could I dig any individual trees up and move them (as some parts are a bit 'patchy')
Could I replace it with laurel, and if so, does this stay evergreen, and could I keep it narrow. I guess the leylandii is around 3 foot wide and I dont want anything wider.
Would hornbeam be better than laurel or leylandi.
Is sheer muscle the best way to remove the leylandi, or could I hire a mini digger or something.
The garden is South facing and I was thinking of changing to something prettier, but I do enjoy the privacy and am a little intimidated at the potential hard work involved for something that I dont really get much benefit from at the end of.
Over to you Sarge...

Thats a lot of work mate, a lot. The Laurels are tough as old boots and yes they are Everygreen, plus they are like a wall when fully grown but easy enough to keep controlled and trimmed. To be honest you have tons of options in the replanting of the garden but ya know.

[Cohiba]

Thanks sarge - sounds like best to leave for another year 

[Sarge]

Thanks sarge - sounds like best to leave for another year 

Sleeves up and a lot of bad language

[Sarge]

Cracking weather this weekend. Get into the Garden.

[Filler.]

Cracking weather this weekend. Get into the Garden.

Had a decent session out there today. Planted out the beans and potted on a few plants. Aubergines and a cucumber potted. Cleared some crap, and did a bit of dreaming.

I think I'm going to build a very large pergola, to 'house' an outdoor kitchen/sitting area. About 6m x 6m. Hmmn. With lanterns dangling, aswell as dangly squashes, and climbing roses and hops and other things. Built out of 6x6" wood uprights with 4x2" type beams for the roof or something.


Sort of like this:




May have to sow them up high tho, in hollowed out, 18" wide corners or something.

[Sarge]

That is prety cool Filler