Gardening, wildlife and the environment

[antonio66]

Any keen gardeners here? I don't mean those of you who see it as a chore and something that just has to be done to keep the wife in her box. I love gardening, being outside, helping and connecting with nature. You can help not only the wildlife but your mental health and that of others around you.

I have always had a deep connection with the natural world but the last few years I lost my way and forgot how good it made me feel. Now that I am seeing the world in a rational way again, I have reconnected and it feels amazing. I've not smiled so much in a long time. It certainly seems a much more worthwhile pass time than being sat in doors worrying if my bass drivers are big enough.

Please add any garden, wildlife, conservation or other related stuff you can be bothered to post .

[antonio66]

Started to make my organic fertiliser for the year. It entails the use of several different plants and naturally occurring things. It's never going to satisfy those who like the convenience of buying a bag of chemical destruction and throwing the granules around willy-nilly.

Some plants are relatively high in nutrient value. Nettles and comfrey are the two major ones I use. Right about now the nettles have put on a useful amount of growth and are not too big for a lawnmower to be used for harvesting. Nettles have a useful amount of nitrogen in them as well as other nutrients. Their existence is a sign of fertile soil and are often found where lawn clippings and other organic matter is dumped ax well as the sites of old bonfires.

Nettles are a wonderful plant. Full of nutrients and a host for many insects . You may have noticed that Nettles never occur in regularly mown turf. That's because they cannot tolerate the constant mowing . For that reason (and others) we only want to harvest a nettle patch once a year when the nutrient level is high, growth is young, before they have flowered and before any butterflies have laid their eggs on them. Also, we don't want to exhaust the reserve of nutrient in the roots so restricting to one harvest a year is the way forward.

PTO

[antonio66]

First of all you need some nettle patches. I have quite a few and this is one of them that i harvested with the Honda Pro mower.



The nettle harvest is nicely chopped up by the mower and fits better in the receptacles chosen to house it. I filled half a dozen builders bags. Beautiful stuff.



Later on in the process the ingredients will need to be in a water tight container so any goodness doesn't escape and we may decide to steep it all in water (or not). I use some unused wheelie bins and large water butts.



More mind numbing bollox to follow.

[antonio66]

Nettle and potato soup. Yum yum.
Best to eat the young leaves. IE nettle eating season is now.
The older summertime leaves have too much oxalate. Bad for being gritty and kidney stones.

I planted some nasturtiums in March. If these flowers grow I'll be eating them in salads. I may have planted them too early as they don't like frost.

[Daniel Quinn]

We have got a large backgarden , 75 ft X 25 ft . It's very much a post stroke work in progress.

We had 3 large bedding boxes ( 4feet high, 9 ft long and 5 ft wide ) built, this was to stop the free roaming rabbits eating the contents , then they both kicked the bucket not long after they were built .

Last year grew onions ,potatoes and cabbage . All were quite successful . This year going to give it more thought .
.
I know one thing , now the rabbits are no more I will have to get a lawnmower that can be used by a 1 handed person .

First time I've cut the grass in 9 year

[karatestu]

We have got a large backgarden , 75 ft X 25 ft . It's very much a post stroke work in progress.

We had 3 large bedding boxes ( 4feet high, 9 ft long and 5 ft wide ) built, this was to stop the free roaming rabbits eating the contents , then they both kicked the bucket not long after they were built .

Last year grew onions ,potatoes and cabbage . All were quite successful . This year going to give it more thought .
.
I know one thing , now the rabbits are no more I will have to get a lawnmower that can be used by a 1 handed person .

First time I've cut the grass in 9 year

Why not get some more rabbits? Better for the environment than using a mower. I've had a succession of pet rabbits and let them eat the grass as much as I can. Their droppings would be good tor the vegetables once composted a bit.

As for mowers I will have a think to see if i can come up with any suitable models. I think you would need something light and maybe with castor like wheels for easy turning. One of the new breed of battery powered ones would probably be the way to go.

Grow more veggies. It's hugely satisfying, you know exactly what gas been applied to them and the just picked taste can't be beaten. Helps keep the family food bill down as well.

[Daniel Quinn]

I don't think we're on a bills cutting scale yet, but it's great for Luther to see food growing , last year it got several school projects out of it .

The rabbitts were pets of our daughter aged 8 , she's now at uni . We also got 2 cats who didn't like the rabbitt and a dog . Need to give some thought to it .

The rabbitts were loose in the garden as it was large and secure ( they couldn't get out ) but it meant I was forever filling in boroughs , so new ones are not without Thier problems

[CycleCoach]

Mowing grass at this time of year can be a bit of a challenge. I like to leave the flowering weeds tk do their thing and some are really very pretty. Cowslips are one example. I know round them as well as any dead nettles i find as they are a very useful early nectar source for pollinators.



Also need to mow around bulbs like snow drops, daffodils, crocus, cyclamen, blue bells. Their leaves need to be yellowing and withering before they can be mown.

One of my favourite wild plants is the teasel. Great for pollinators and the finches love thd seeds. It's also a rather unusual looking plant that was used to comb wool back in the olden days. This is one of last years.



This is one of this years young plants that will grow up to about 6ft tall later in the year.

[CycleCoach]

Spotted an Orchid in an unimproved hay meadow. On getting closer for a better view I realised there were loads of them. Wild Orchids need certain specific conditions to grow and they are certainly doing well here. Spotted a few Meadow brown butterflies, one even stayed still long enough for a pic.

[Lindsayt]

Did you pick some to eat?