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Jack Straw

I look nothing like him!
Jul 7, 2003
7,115
Brighton. NOT KEMPTOWN!
Some ******* insect is eating the leaves on my plum tree [emoji2959].

And as for the blackbirds who ate every single cherry on my cherry tree [emoji523][emoji36]

As long as they leave your plums alone!
 


Lady Whistledown

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Jul 7, 2003
47,639
Who's got a bee hotel in their garden? I fancy one of those!

I have.

Must have a shit rating on TripAdvisor though, as I've never seen any bees staying in it unfortunately.

Maybe I need to put some signs up.
 




Jul 20, 2003
20,686
i wouldn't have a problem with snails if they just stuck to their ****ing niche.
 




Lady Whistledown

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Jul 7, 2003
47,639
OK Jack, as you asked.

I have a corner of my garden that's slightly damper than the rest. It's a slightly raised bed with sleepers around it. It's about 7ft by 3ft and is generally a bit of a pain in the arse to grow stuff in.

Do you reckon wildflowers would grow there easily enough if I sowed it properly? I have plenty of "standard" cultivated plants and flowers, and regular bee visitors, but I like the idea of having a wildflower corner. Is there some sort of knack to it?
 


Murray 17

Well-known member
Jul 6, 2003
2,163
I have.

Must have a shit rating on TripAdvisor though, as I've never seen any bees staying in it unfortunately.

Maybe I need to put some signs up.
I've just looked it up on Expedia, and you can search for the 'flight and hotel' option!
 


Jul 20, 2003
20,686
OK Jack, as you asked.

I have a corner of my garden that's slightly damper than the rest. It's a slightly raised bed with sleepers around it. It's about 7ft by 3ft and is generally a bit of a pain in the arse to grow stuff in.

Do you reckon wildflowers would grow there easily enough if I sowed it properly? I have plenty of "standard" cultivated plants and flowers, and regular bee visitors, but I like the idea of having a wildflower corner. Is there some sort of knack to it?

if damper and other plants aren't happy it may be a more acidic soil

https://britishwildflowermeadowseeds.co.uk/weald-meadow-seed-mix
 




Lady Whistledown

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Jul 7, 2003
47,639


Jul 20, 2003
20,686
OK Jack, as you asked.

I have a corner of my garden that's slightly damper than the rest. It's a slightly raised bed with sleepers around it. It's about 7ft by 3ft and is generally a bit of a pain in the arse to grow stuff in.

Do you reckon wildflowers would grow there easily enough if I sowed it properly? I have plenty of "standard" cultivated plants and flowers, and regular bee visitors, but I like the idea of having a wildflower corner. Is there some sort of knack to it?

are there any grasses growing in the area ?
 


Lady Whistledown

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Jul 7, 2003
47,639
are there any grasses growing in the area ?

Yep, I planted a few different grasses (not THAT type...) in there as they were low maintenance! They're doing fine.
 








Sorrel

Well-known member
Jul 5, 2003
2,942
Back in East Sussex
I do love meadows this time of year and walk in them fairly often; there are quite a few out in Sussex where I live. We've been having discussions in my house about meadows versus wildflower sown area (which isn't quite the same) but at least people are looking positively at ecosystems rather than individual plants - which is definitely positive for the future.

Also love the campaigns by plantlife, like: https://plantlife.love-wildflowers.org.uk/roadvergecampaign and https://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/our-work/campaigning-change/meadows
 




D

Deleted member 2719

Guest
Any old school gardener will know all about the birds and the bees, the latest breed of gardner have to get to grips with sowing their wild seeds thick and in a fertile patch. (Actually a low fertility patch)

It's nature.
 
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Jack Straw

I look nothing like him!
Jul 7, 2003
7,115
Brighton. NOT KEMPTOWN!
OK Jack, as you asked.

I have a corner of my garden that's slightly damper than the rest. It's a slightly raised bed with sleepers around it. It's about 7ft by 3ft and is generally a bit of a pain in the arse to grow stuff in.

Do you reckon wildflowers would grow there easily enough if I sowed it properly? I have plenty of "standard" cultivated plants and flowers, and regular bee visitors, but I like the idea of having a wildflower corner. Is there some sort of knack to it?

In an area that size, I would go for hardy annual seeds and sow them each year. The cost is very little. They will be more colourful and there's very little work involved. It's getting a bit late in the season to sow now, (April is the best time) but I'd still give it a go.
You could buy three different little packets of wild annual seeds and sow them in three sections and see which packet performs best. Then in future, you know which ones to buy.
Get rid of anything growing there at the moment and dig over the soil to a depth of about 150mm. Tread the area and rake it level. If your soil is bone-dry, give it a good watering.
Annual seed should be sown at 2 gm/m2, so very thin. Any heavier and you'll have the plants competing for space and it will become a mess. To give you an idea, grass seed for lawns is sown at 35 gm/m2 which is as much as you can hold in one hand.
After you've thinly sown the seed, gently firm it in with the back of a rake, or gently pat with the back of a spade to get the seed in contact with the soil. Water GENTLY! If you blast it with a hose pipe, the seed will all be washed to the edges.
 


Creaky

Well-known member
Mar 26, 2013
3,862
Hookwood - Nr Horley
Who's got a bee hotel in their garden? I fancy one of those!

Not a bee hotel but we do have a sweat bee nest in a rotting log next to our pond.

Not a particularly good picture I’m afraid but difficult to get the exact moment a bee is entering the nest.

EAC6D510-A94C-4557-B074-1898637A78F9.jpeg
 


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