Kitchen Garden Forum

Attended a lecture last night by Ian Limmer of Peter Beale Roses he confirmed that birds do like rose hips when they turn brown & have dropped onto the ground especially when it is cold.

We have lots of rose hips and find every year that the blackbirds will eat the flesh once the flesh is softened by frost, but greenfinches love the pips inside. Unfortunately, since the spread of the greenfinch disease trichomonosis, the number of these birds has been reduced here to just a few individuals.

Going well, have 3 raised beds 4ft x 9ft made and filled with manure & compost covered up for the winter. Cleared edge by fence & planted lots of bulbs.

Compost bin up and running.

Trimmed the bushes/trees around the orchard, plus cleared old weeds/brambles/bark from the ground. Treated wood border and planted loads of bulbs. Ordered some comfrey roots to fill in low gaps along one side as read they are good for the fruit trees. Will have new deliver new tree trimmings/bark early next year.

Next is clean up the strawberry patch then onto the fruit cage, not sure if there are summer or autumn raspberry so need to asked fellow plot holders, which at the moment are thin on the ground, been only me for past week.