Garden. What do you think? (No gardening desires required)

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Depleted

Guest
#21
It depends on who is using the term and what context the conversation is in. If I am talking to folks around my local area, the word "garden" makes me think immediately of a vegetable garden. If I am talking to someone else in a different conversation, the term "garden" might make me think about manicured grass, shrubs, bushes trimmed into animal shapes, fountains, and the like.
I think part of my problem is we don't have ground on our property. Neither do our neighbors. We have cement. And the largest yards my neighborhood gets is 16' X 16'. So grass and trees are out of the question. (Well, I did buy a fig tree once. It was a foot tall, and we got three figs off it before the squirrels killed it. lol)
 
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Depleted

Guest
#22
Garden to me means that green stuff outside the window, which very soon will
need mowing, weeding, and hedge cutting!

This was the front bit just as the leaves were dropping off everything.

View attachment 168091

View attachment 168092
Our yards are about the same size! But you're in England! Where is your tree? (Every single episode of The Great Gardens in England had trees. Only one garden didn't, but their yard was about half the size of ours.) And, don't you just hate that you have to clear leaves when you don't even have a tree? Our nearest trees are three houses up from us. (Our houses are attached, so about three yards that size in space.) And yet, I still have to clear off leaves and buttonwood (sycamore) fuzz out of my yard often. Two reasons I chose to move to the city -- don't like to mow or rake leaves.
 
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Depleted

Guest
#24
One thing I have learned....for Americans - if it has 4 legs or wings, you eat it! :p
Unless it looks kind of like a rat (with or without wings.) That's my line in the sand. lol
 
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Depleted

Guest
#25
I have 4 raised bed veggie gardens. Last year I got more produce than you could imagine, all of it so sweet and good!

In Canada, we usually designate what type of garden it is. So I also have flower gardens, and various beds, and a large rose garden.

I would have an orchard, if we only had a bit more room for growing.

The deers destroyed my garden the first year. Despite netting, they picked the ripe tomatoes off the vines. So hubby bought heavy wire, 8 foot stakes, strung it all around all of my gardens, and no more eating my gardens!
Can you grow tomatoes outside? (I just found out most of England can't, and figured you live in roughly the same geography they have -- northwest corner of a large ocean.)

We tried bird netting to keep away the squirrels. The best thing that did was give us a good laugh when we set the hose on the squirrel that got in and was eating our beans. Apparently, squirrels automatically try to run up when feeling threatened. But he got in below it. Nothing but netting above. lol

Because we have so little space in our yard, we mingle our veggies with our flowers and herbs. Nothing but containers, so I admit I squish too much into each container. (Also doesn't help that I feel bad killing plants, so don't like to pull any out as seedlings.)
 
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Guest
#26
Well I live in the Phoenix area. Most folks are transplants. So we have a variety of different ideas of what a garden is . My wife and I have what most would call a semi conventional American garden. We have tomatoes,squash, spinach ,chilies (jalapeño habanero peppers) and cucumbers. We also have several prickly pears cactu plants that can be used to make a cactus salad called nopal . It's pretty good too .
Blessings
Bill

When we were kids, my older brother and I were "allergic to the great outdoors." (Mom's words. Really just grass, trees, and flowers. lol) The doctor suggested we move to Arizona to get away from all that. Over the years, I think many doctors said the same thing and people listened. Unfortunately, everyone is used to having a lawn and trees, so they transplanted their allergy triggers with them.

We have Prickly Pear. (Too much now, since it's growing in a container.) I know you can eat it, but how do you get the "prickly" off without half of them landing in your skin? I use needle-nose pliers plus wire-cutting gloves to weed it, and still get the thorns. I secretly suspect the thorns can dart out up to four feet away, because I get hit with them even when I stay away from that container.
 
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Depleted

Guest
#27
You know why there aren't as many birch trees as there used to be? My husband and I tore all their bark off when we were kids.
We did too. It made great boats to go along creeks.
 
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Miri

Guest
#28
I have 4 raised bed veggie gardens. Last year I got more produce than you could imagine, all of it so sweet and good!

In Canada, we usually designate what type of garden it is. So I also have flower gardens, and various beds, and a large rose garden.

I would have an orchard, if we only had a bit more room for growing.

The deers destroyed my garden the first year. Despite netting, they picked the ripe tomatoes off the vines. So hubby bought heavy wire, 8 foot stakes, strung it all around all of my gardens, and no more eating my gardens!

I think I need new glasses, I just read it as 8 foot snakes! I was thinking yeah that will keep the
deers away!
 
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Miri

Guest
#29
Can you grow tomatoes outside? (I just found out most of England can't, and figured you live in roughly the same geography they have -- northwest corner of a large ocean.)

We tried bird netting to keep away the squirrels. The best thing that did was give us a good laugh when we set the hose on the squirrel that got in and was eating our beans. Apparently, squirrels automatically try to run up when feeling threatened. But he got in below it. Nothing but netting above. lol

Because we have so little space in our yard, we mingle our veggies with our flowers and herbs. Nothing but containers, so I admit I squish too much into each container. (Also doesn't help that I feel bad killing plants, so don't like to pull any out as seedlings.)
We have a kamikaza squirrel who lives up the tall trees at our back garden.
He runs down the trunk, jumps on the hedge (like a flying leap) runs along it.
Leaps onto the neighbour's washing line then up onto the bird feeding table
to get breakfast!

To grow tomatoes outside we need we need a greenhouse plus grow them from
spring onwards. Or a sunny window sill.
 
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Miri

Guest
#30
Our yards are about the same size! But you're in England! Where is your tree? (Every single episode of The Great Gardens in England had trees. Only one garden didn't, but their yard was about half the size of ours.) And, don't you just hate that you have to clear leaves when you don't even have a tree? Our nearest trees are three houses up from us. (Our houses are attached, so about three yards that size in space.) And yet, I still have to clear off leaves and buttonwood (sycamore) fuzz out of my yard often. Two reasons I chose to move to the city -- don't like to mow or rake leaves.

Here are the trees at the bottom of the back garden zoomed in view, I
was taking a picture of the sun set.

IMG_0093.jpg

I live in the city as well. But if you want more trees there is a place two minutes
walk from my house with loads of trees. I found this picture off the net.
Years ago we had a dog, I took him for walkies up here


 

notmyown

Senior Member
May 26, 2016
4,586
1,047
113
#31
yeah... about the venison...

we have that no shooting (gun or arrow) within 500 ft of a dwelling law.
i've no clue how far 500 ft is! but i suspect our nearest neighbor (though we can't see their house) is within that range.
nor do we have guns or bows. :rolleyes:

we get venison the old fashioned way. buy it from the son of our old friends Joe and Cheryl. :p
 
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Amazing-Grace

Guest
#32
We have a kamikaza squirrel who lives up the tall trees at our back garden.
He runs down the trunk, jumps on the hedge (like a flying leap) runs along it.
Leaps onto the neighbour's washing line then up onto the bird feeding table
to get breakfast!

To grow tomatoes outside we need we need a greenhouse plus grow them from
spring onwards. Or a sunny window sill.
Yes we generally grow them in greenhouses but there are outdoor varieties - I have grown them outside!
 

mar09

Senior Member
Sep 17, 2014
4,927
1,259
113
#35
Well you can either have a vegetable, fruit garden or flower garden or a rock garden or a Zen garden or a secret garden that only you know about it and it has beautiful flowers and good food and your Husband and kid's can't find you when you're in there.

I can dream right?
Yes, we can.
 
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Miri

Guest
#36
We did grow veg at my last house, which had a large back garden.
Things like potatoes, cabbage, lettuce, peas,
 

notmyown

Senior Member
May 26, 2016
4,586
1,047
113
#37
We did grow veg at my last house, which had a large back garden.
Things like potatoes, cabbage, lettuce, peas,
you can grow potatoes??

our "soil" is rock. :/
i know, a raised bed, etc., but i think you know me well enough not to expect that of me. ;)
 
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Depleted

Guest
#38
We have a kamikaza squirrel who lives up the tall trees at our back garden.
He runs down the trunk, jumps on the hedge (like a flying leap) runs along it.
Leaps onto the neighbour's washing line then up onto the bird feeding table
to get breakfast!

To grow tomatoes outside we need we need a greenhouse plus grow them from
spring onwards. Or a sunny window sill.
We gave up stopping the squirrels from eating our veggies. Now we either grow twice as much and assume the squirrels will eat half, or don't grow that veggie.

We did find a bird feeder that's short and has a round lid. The round lid makes the squirrels fall off, and the short makes it too small to get in. Double points because it's too short for pigeons to get in too. The only ones who can get in are the wrens. Kind of dumb, since the purpose of feeding birds is to convince them to hang around the garden enough to eat bugs too. Wrens don't eat bugs. They eat flower petals or whatever we put into the bird feeder. (Usually stale bread.) They serve no purpose in our garden other than to look at us sharply as if to say, "Where's our bread?" I can't help it, I fell in love with those little birds before I found out they're destructive to our petunias. Now? No petunias. lol

Here is what to do about squirrels getting into bird feeders though.


[video=youtube;1EnDwkclDcA]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1EnDwkclDcA[/video]

It's the only way humans win! Go with them. lol
 
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Miri

Guest
#39
you can grow potatoes??

our "soil" is rock. :/
i know, a raised bed, etc., but i think you know me well enough not to expect that of me. ;)

Yeah, all the rain makes our soil soft, it's good for bog gardens too!
 
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Depleted

Guest
#40
Here are the trees at the bottom of the back garden zoomed in view, I
was taking a picture of the sun set.

View attachment 168128

I live in the city as well. But if you want more trees there is a place two minutes
walk from my house with loads of trees. I found this picture off the net.
Years ago we had a dog, I took him for walkies up here



You have a BACKyard too?
LOL


Our in-the-country park is across the main street from our stadiums. That's where we go for that country feeling you have for a dog walk. (Where we take the teddy bears. lol)

IMG_0751.jpg

We have a park about a block from us, but it's so citified there is no doubt you're still in the city anywhere in it. That's our destination now for John's exercise-walks.

DSCN0028.jpg
(I'm thinking he's taking a picture of what we're looking at, not a picture of me looking at what we're looking at. lol)