Phaedra's Garden 2022

[Phaedra]

There is a big bucket here in the small garden - whatever inside went to the bio trash. I bought a lotus basket and a tiny solar fountain device. Now, we have a water feature in the small garden.

The solar disk can be placed separately, not necessarily in the water, so that it can have a better display on sunny days. With the lotus leaves on the surface, it offers safer access to water for bees and other insects.

Plants are growing well in the containers. I will start giving them bio tomato fertilizer as it can provide necessary nutrients for container plants.

Eggplants are also residents here, as they also have a much better chance to thrive in this garden. Their location has at least 10 hours of strong sunlight on good weather days.

The veggie patch

Meanwhile, the wildflower patch also has some progress; the germination starts.

What I would do this week include:
- put these Dahlia tubers in the containers and then station them in the Dahlia patch. I can't believe it, each of them (premium varieties) costs just one Euro. So I picked those slightly sprouted ones, happy!
- keep cleaning up the rest of the jungle
- buy two or three planters for strawberries

The lawn here also looks terrible. I will sow the grass seeds before it rains.

 

[ducks4you]

I fell down a phone rabbit hole last week. "Why Disneyworld doesn't have mosquitoes."
Took 20 slides but the point was, "Moving water."
They also use comets and mosquito fish in their bodies of water AND keep chickens and check their blood for any mosquito borne diseases.
Thought you'd like to know how smart you are!

 

[ducks4you]

Here is a gardening program episode with a year long experiment in hydroponics. Brie Arthur tried growing in a fishtank of sorts with mosquito fish. The plants did ok, the fish survived the winter, then a bullfrog moved in and ate the fish!

Episode 813 - New Ways of Growing Our Favorite Vegetables - Growing A Greener World®

Not every gardener can or wants to dig in the dirt to grow their favorite vegetables. See how Brie Arthur is experimenting with new ways to grow edibles

www.growingagreenerworld.com

 

[meadow]

Phaedra, What is the brand name of your long-handled grass cutter tool? Thank you in advance! 😄

 

[Phaedra]

Phaedra, What is the brand name of your long-handled grass cutter tool? Thank you in advance! 😄

Hi meadow, it's Fiskar, I am somehow their fan. Not sure if they are available in US, but I am sure you can find something similar.

For me, it's a must-have tool for cutting weeds on the edges of raised beds and borders.

 

[Phaedra]

Garden in Cologne: Put the jungle down

What a view from a lonely hero's back
Let's go!

The edges are drawn under all kinds of weeds and grasses. It's already something beyond what my small mower can achieve.

All things I don't need are gone, but even so, the single-battery-powered mower still can't handle those waste.

The monster bush also got a harsh haircut. There are so many dead or weak branches.

Another two team members reported on duty. The grass shear took the lead; the rake and the waste sack took those long stems and dead plants; then, the mower cleaned things up.

My lovely team members!

Two raised beds are already on the way. Before setting them up, I will use cartons as temporary weed blockers.

 

[Phaedra]

Garden in Cologne: The evolving water feature

One week ago, it was still an emptied old bucket, without knowing what would be its destiny. It was once used to plant potatoes when I was a newbie gardener who didn't even drill the holes for drainage.

Yesterday, this bucket got a new assignment and became a small water feature. It looked pretty happy about the new role.

Before I left here, some old stone plates in the corner got my attention. Maybe....

And then, I moved the bottomless planting stones from the front door (They were not used after we bought them earlier due to the difficulty of accessing water and insufficient sunlight.) Kraft paper recycled from the paper bags are used as a temporary bottom.

I have a lot of strawberry plants, so this morning, this water feature evolved.

So far, I am happy about the re-purposed items here, from the bucket to the strawberry plants. I still have some fine-tune ideas, so let me update you next week.

 

[Phaedra]

Garden in Schleiden: Joyful

Gorgeous salad green: Saragossa

A funny Dahlia tuber, sprouting from four directions

Lupine on the way; I will have tons of colorful flowers this year.

Tree Rhodrodendons are also on the way.

Lilies on the way

Daily fresh eggs (and the second fairy egg!)

Quail eggs are adorable in the egg cartons.

Fava beans, the flowers of this variety, have a touch of pink.

A lot of blueberries for this year

 

[baymule]

Fabulous!

 

[meadow]

Fiskars-fan fistbump!

Sadly the long-handled Fiskars grass shears available here are not the same design. 😭 Guess I'll stick to the sheep shears. They cut so easily, without hand fatigue, but do require kneeling.