What have you done today in the Garden?

My replacement water heater arrived this morning, so I was able to install it when I got home from golf this afternoon.




Nothing's easy.
The support bracket was of a different type and needed fitting in a different place. But I expected that.
What I didn't expect, was that the cold water supply to the tap has a connection behind it, whereas, with the previous one, the supply entered from underneath the tap.
Luckily, I was able to find a 15mm. compression elbow amongst my spare plumbing stuff in the garage and some copper pipe.
But I think the cold water connection supplied for the tap was designed for "speed-fit" pipe, as it wouldn't grip on the two inches of copper, pipe. Fortunately, I had some.

Another complication, was that a couple of bolts that connect the garage panels were in the way, (there's one above the heater, that's not), so I had to hacksaw off the ends of the bolts and then mount the heater support bracket a "nut's width," off the wall to clear the garage bolt's nuts. I need to get some more pipe insulation.
The heater has to go to the left of the basin as I need to be able to swing the spout to the left for when I want to fill a bucket, placed on the floor.
I like the temperature control on the front. It heats up very quickly. I was able to give everything a wash down with hot soapy water once it was up and running.

I must remember to turn the water supply off if it looks like it might freeze later in the week.

 

Nothing today it's been raining and cold.

 

I got fed up waiting for our local garden centre to dig out the pots I wanted, so I phoned the one in a "posh" area of Wilmslow.
For our American readers, it's pronounced "Wimslow."
They phoned me back to say they had some, so I went over there this afternoon. It's only a 20 minute journey.
Wilmslow isn't all posh. On the high street, amongst many shops, there's a couple of charity shops, a Salvation Army shop, a few "designer brand" fashion shops and an Aston Martin showroom.

On the way back on the M60, they'd been spreading salt in the bright sunshine, so we can expect a freeze tonight.

Two pots in position at each end of the patio steps, we'll be able to ring the changes with other stuff in plastic pots.



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I dunno if this counts as a garden job, but I had to sneak the ladders out later, without my wife noticing, as she doesn't like me using them at my age. I needed to get at the box a couple of feet above the kitchen door.

This collects rainwater and moss down a pipe from the gutter, where it joins another pipe from the basin and shower cubicle in the bathroom, which collects water, soap products, shampoo and conditioner and whatever else and sends it down another pipe to the outside drain.
The problem is the pipe from the bathroom to this box runs for about eight feet in a horizontal direction under the floorboards, where this gunge can accumulate. So about every year, I have to stick a hosepipe up it and flush it out, when I notice, the shower water starts to get a bit slow, going away.
All done and she's none the wiser.

 

Nothing today it's snowing, but it's melting on the paths to freeze later.

 

Working on moving some old half-barrel size containers to my vegetable garden where they will be useful.

 

Funny day today.
It was very cold at 9.00am at the start of our golf round, then it warmed up a bit, then it got a lot colder with a biting wind towards the end. I got home just before it started snowing. Went in the garden to feed the birds, but not before putting on my coat, never usually need to do that.

 

Went to the lottie to survey the ongoing sadness of my disappearing croci. A rat is decimating them. Every night more and more. I have placed traps up against the little plants, to no avail. I will tell you it really is heartbreaking, and there seems there is nothing I can do.
These rats know what traps are and simply do not fall for the bait. I fear thay I must give up on them and plant more bluebells and daffs.
I used to have loads of Tulipa turkestanica but they cleaned those out years ago. I apologise for this somber note today.

On a brighter note, the sugar snaps are mostly up in the greenhouse.


The Allium ursinum, or wild garlic is up and ready for the leaf harvest now.


It was awfully cold out there— 1 deg C with a stiff north-eastern wind.

 

Sjoerd that's terrible news about your croci, it's heartbreaking when that happens.

 

They look beautiful DHR. I really love the colour.

And re: the ladders....I'm open to bribes to not tell on you. Perhaps some movie suggestions, or a trip to Canada to help install an On Demand water heater?? It's been busy - so I didn't get to say thank you for all of the information you shared about that. You had Hubby contemplating electric instead of propane.

 

I planted my Tomatoes today. Beef Steak ( should have started earlier - 100 days to maturity), Big Beef Hybrid ( 70 days to maturity so okay), Early Girl Bush, Bush Beef Steak and Red Robin dwarf Cherry. The Amazing cauliflower was planted, and sweet marjoram, oregano and thyme were potted up.

Everyone was shuffled about, and I managed to finally fix the grow light that keeps going out.

 

Thanks Loggie—yes, it is terrible, but those wild garlics make up for it a bit. Their colour really fill me with the feeling of impending spring.

 

That is sad news Sjoerd. Rats are not something I have to deal with, just woodrats - but they don't bother the garden. I'm so sorry to hear this. What would happen if they had another food source until things green up? Would they leave the Croci alone? A bait and switch? Or would it make a bigger problem?

 

Sorry about your disappearing bulbs, Sjoerd. Wildlife can be very destructive at times. We have roe deer visiting now and then. They didn't snack on our early C. tommasinianus for some reason. I was looking to find whatever they did snack on, but then we got this big dump of snow and neither of us will be able to enjoy the early crocus blooms this spring. We've given up on tulips. There are still a few survivors from a big bag of bulbs we got as a present from my cousin back in 1997. They're from the Netherlands of course. My cousin lives there. I have wild-garlic-envy. They haven't showed any sign of life here yet, but our time will come.

 

We have seen roe dear but they don't come close to the houses, even though they're open plan front gardens. But we do get foxes and i have seen a badger once. I was at the back of the house with one of our dogs, it was running to me but when it saw me it ran the other way.

Haven't done anything for a few days.
Yesterday morning it started snowing, it went on all day.

Back garden

Then it was raining and it had cleared.
Now it's snowing again like yesterday, so nothing today.

 

Mel, I just don’t know. Yesterday there was less damage. I do not want to offer them (or it) anything for fear of making it worse. They do ignore any traps that Inset from time to time. The brown bahstahdz also would love to get at my apples, but I protect them with an elaborate netting scheme.

Droopy— I can see that those deer could give you a headache as well. Pity about those tulips.

Loggie— your snow looks good my Bride says. We had snow yesterday but it is all gone now. It is just rain, rain, rain t the moment.