January garden plans

So, not being too deterred by the challenging year we've just put behind us, any new plans for 2022 ?

I have acquired some frames which are made of wooden boards and surrounded things on a pallet. Two stacking frames abouut 1.2m square, 20cm high per layer, hinged at the corners. It looks a lot like a raised bed to me ... so, I plan to dig out the Hugel bed, which I have concluded is not a success, but to use the soil from there to fill a new raised bed, along with the spent compost from the greenhouse. This will give a bed high enough to grow carrots with reduced risk of root fly, and more suitable soil than my heavy clay. I may be able to top with some scrap copper to deter slugs, and cover with mesh if needed. Some of the volunteer oregano plants can go in there too.

I'm also thinking to get a cutting of Dad's redcurrant, to make a more eco alternative to cranberry sauce.

Mrs C-H has given me samphire seeds as my gardening challenge this year !

Ive actually just put my garden plans in the tearoom.
To summarise - try greenback resistant varieties of tomato in the tunnel and put up a walk in mesh tunnel for outside growing.
CH. I've put 2 lingonberry plants in my fruit cage. It's probably too dry where you are. They are supposed to be a good alternative to cranberries. They are only small but had quite a few berries on though I didn't pick them. It looked like a job requiring patience if there was any quantity. I got them for ground cover mostly.

I'm going to concentrate on the area around my wildlife pond. It became incredibly overgrown with water mint (all from a little innocent plug plant, planted in the pond's margin about five years or so ago. The bees love it, but I hadn't realised what a thug it is.) I spent time in the autumn digging it out - I don't for a moment think that I've got all of it out, so I'll carry on digging it up when it appears, and meanwhile put in some ferns and grasses to give the frogs somewhere to hid from neighbours cats. (Don't get me started...)

It's really encouraging to read other people's ideas. I quite like January, because Christmas is over and you can spend time planning ahead, but it's so wet, muddy and cold at the moment that I'm doing indoor jobs.

Don't talk to me about cats. Our neighbour has a derelict fence (which is her responsibility) between us and them. At this moment she is busy and tight for cash, but although she can't afford to replace the fence despite she knows I dislike the existing cat making a mess in our garden, she's gone and got a second cat I now have the broad beans inside a fence, and netting pinned over the exposed earth to stop the b*****y think using it as a toilet.

On the subject of fences, the one I am responsible for is also a bit tatty. I ordered a new set of panels and posts from a local sawmill. 5-10 days delivery they said. We'll contact you to arrange delivery they said. This morning, 2 days after I ordered and unannounced - Mrs C-H is disturbed by crashing noises out front. The fence parts are in a heap on the lawn, and the lorry is on our drive with the driver sitting fiddling on his phone. Oh well, maybe that's the weekend sorted. I don't suppose you can complain about delivery being too quick !

Chilli-head wrote:

On the subject of fences, the one I am responsible for is also a bit tatty. I ordered a new set of panels and posts from a local sawmill.  5-10 days delivery they said. We'll contact you to arrange delivery they said.  This morning, 2 days after I ordered and unannounced - Mrs C-H is disturbed by crashing noises out front.  The fence parts are in a heap on the lawn, and the lorry is on our drive with the driver sitting fiddling on his phone.  Oh well, maybe that's the weekend sorted. I don't suppose you can complain about delivery being too quick !

At least you can sit peacefully indoors next time we have a storm, knowing that your fence will be firm and sturdy!

OK, I feel emboldened to say a bit more about local cats. Apologies to anyone reading this who is a cat owner - I love animals and bear them no grudge (I know some forums and facebook groups get split by people who want to exterminate all cats, but I'm not one of them.) But I do find it strange that I can decide how to use my bit of land (have free range hens and a pond for frogs and newts) but I can do nothing to counter the effects of my neighbours' decision to have cats, and allow them to roam in other people's gardens. One cat in particular has a strong hunting instinct - it stalks the hens, and kills the frogs. I try not to get too het up about amount of cat poo on the garden - I use netting over the veg in the growing season, and only clear up the winter's pile of poo in the spring. I know that owning a cat would be one solution, but one of my daughters has an allergy to cats, so that is no use. I do have a washing up liquid bottle of water to squirt if I see the offending animal, but it usually gets away bone dry. My poor son-in-law has become quite depressed about the cats in his neighbourhood, who have pooed all over his newly sown grass, making it not a healthy place for his little girl to play in.

Dandelion, a high powered water pistol could be useful. You could aim from a distance without alerting the cat. It needs to associate the unwanted dowsing with the place, not a person then it should avoid the place even when it can't see you.

Thank you Ploshkin, I do believe we have a Super Soaker lurking somewhere belonging to our son (who is now in his mid 30s, so hopefully it will still work, having been left in a corner for all that time!!)

A dog is a great cat deterrent! I hate cats in the garden. As an aside, whilst dogs are pack animals, cats are largely solitary and territorial. So why do people who purport to love cats insist on keeping more than one?

No additional plans for this year's garden, other than have an extra raised bed inside my fruit cage (only place I can think of to put it). This year it will grow peas and beans, and hopefully be well protected from marauding sparrows. Lots of experimenting this coming season as I will no longer have the allotment.

freebird wrote:A dog is a great cat deterrent! I hate cats in the garden. As an aside, whilst dogs are pack animals, cats are largely solitary and territorial. So why do people who purport to love cats insist on keeping more than one?

Is it so they have a few spares, in case their neighbours aren't quite annoyed enough??

I watched an interesting programme on cat behaviour, with night vision cameras etc, following certain domestic cats. It wa s fascinating to see how some bullied others, and just how stressful it was for some animals in households were several cats lived.

Maybe lion poo would do the job, Dandelion.

I hve pondered whether an ex-racing greyhound is what is needed. Fast enough tou outrun a cat, and trained to chase things about that size.

freebird wrote:
Maybe lion poo would do the job, Dandelion.

I would imagine a lump of lion poo could raise a nasty bruise if aimed correctly...

If I was happy with lion poo in my garden, the cat poo would probably not bother me either !

I have another solution. I need to remove some self-seeded holly bushes from the front garden. I am going to pile the trimmings in strategic places, not least by the holes in the fence and on unused ground in the veg plot.

Chilli-head wrote:
I have another solution.  I need to remove some self-seeded holly bushes from the front garden.  I am going to pile the trimmings in strategic places, not least by the holes in the fence and on unused ground in the veg plot.

Holly and rose trimmings are something I've used around special plants too, and it works really well, but our garden doesn't produce enough. I usually net my raised beds over the winter, but didn't get round to it before Christmas, hence the piles of unmentionables. The problem is in coming up with a method of deterring cats which doesn't leave the garden looking really untidy (more of an issue in a small ornamental garden). I really feel for my son-in-law, whose garden is his pride and joy. He has sown a lawn (which was dug up by the local cats), grown a low Box hedge (which was festooned with poo), and his hard work in planting hollyhocks, dahlias and other traditional country garden flowers in a garden which was neglected when they bought the house, has been frustrated by local cats. I've taken holly cuttings over, but this only protected certain areas. He wants a lawn our granddaughter can play on, but at the moment it's a health hazard, and stretching netting over it will keep it clean but prevent it from being played on. I've suggested that they could buy a cat themselves, but neither of them wants to, and another family member has an allergy to cats. Difficult and a bit depressing for him.

Shotgun Should be legal.

Has anyone else been on forums or Facebook gardening groups, where someone only has to mention to damage being done to their garden by cats, for the group to swiftly divide into two opposite sides? And then Admin have to ban the topic!! It wasn't me, honest...)

I am normally cautious and don't express my true feelings, i know there are strong opinions.

I am not a pet keeper type. I struggle to understand why, on some of the "green" forums I've read over time, often there are a high density of pet owners and people wanting large families (self styled "Earth mothers" in days gone by). Neither are remotely eco friendly !

My current cat problem is my neighbour, who has an older cat and has introduced a new cat causing the forseeable problem. I fume about the cats, but she is a nice person really and has more than enough to worry about so I can't bring myself to be harsh to her. I just wish she could fix up her fence, and dig a small area of her own garden so it has a more convenient convenience than my veg plot.

I lost my gardening mojo a while ago but I think it's coming back with the promise of Spring. Snowdrops in a sheltered spot are fully out and buds are appearing on the blueberries.
Today I took delivery of a Rowan tree for the front garden but she has to live in a pot for a while until I can hoick out the pointless Gingko Biloba which comes into leaf late, has no flowers or fruit though fairly attractive leaves but no wildlife value at all.
I need to construct a couple of raised beds by the GH to start growing some produce and I would like to get my pond made this year. Hard to believe it will be our first anniversary of moving here in a couple of weeks!