Soldato
IMO Once they start to go bad, there's not much that can be done as a quick fix and would be, for me the perfect time to rip them out, fence and add a nice Red Robin hedge.
ps I really dislike leylandii, or similar...
Post Your Garden!
- Thread starter Jokester
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IMO Once they start to go bad, there's not much that can be done as a quick fix and would be, for me the perfect time to rip them out, fence and add a nice Red Robin hedge.
ps I really dislike leylandii, or similar...
Soldato
Get a pick axe to break them up and then chop them out with a hoe. Had to do the same with bamboo in London.Had a further dig around where the pampas grasses were, omg these root systems are just insane. 2 giant ones, and a smaller one which I spent most of yesterday on. Still nowhere near dug out. The yellow circled area is literally all root when I shove my spade in. The 2 giant leftovers were cut out by a paid gardener. He had no way to cut them up though and fit them through the gate. I don't know what to do with them but they are still growing shoots even though they are out of the ground.
Caporegime
Gave my garden a crew cut a few weeks ago and put some 4-in-1 down. First cut today and it's looking a lot greener but the amount of red ant mound seems to be doubling each week and Nippon ant killer seems to be like cocaine for the little ***** 
Yes, I think you're right. Just got to find the money for 15m of fencing/posts now, lol
Soldato
Jeez people trying to eradicate ants from the garden
I wish I could remember what an ant looked like
Moved into a new property back in December last year so have very much left the garden alone to see what's going to be sprouting up. I knew the previous owners were fairly keen gardeners (to the point they said to us that they 'hope we continue to look after the gardens if we purchase the property).
It looks like they had planted lots of wildflowers/bulbs in the front lawn so gave it a high cut at the beginning of April and now it's all coming to life. Plenty of bluebells coming through and looks like some cornflowers are starting to grow as well, grass is growing relatively quickly so may look at putting some yellow rattle down later in the year to try and give a bit more room for some of the wildflowers next year. All this is much to the annoyance of our opposite neighbour who's out every weekend for hours with his petrol mower shaving his grass to within an inch of it's life
There is some bamboo in the back garden that at the moment is very small but am I naive in thinking it will be manageable after hearing all the stories of how quickly it grows? It's in a separate raised planter/concrete border so if it spreads I don't really mind but could the roots potentially damage things around it?
It looks like they had planted lots of wildflowers/bulbs in the front lawn so gave it a high cut at the beginning of April and now it's all coming to life. Plenty of bluebells coming through and looks like some cornflowers are starting to grow as well, grass is growing relatively quickly so may look at putting some yellow rattle down later in the year to try and give a bit more room for some of the wildflowers next year. All this is much to the annoyance of our opposite neighbour who's out every weekend for hours with his petrol mower shaving his grass to within an inch of it's life
There is some bamboo in the back garden that at the moment is very small but am I naive in thinking it will be manageable after hearing all the stories of how quickly it grows? It's in a separate raised planter/concrete border so if it spreads I don't really mind but could the roots potentially damage things around it?
Soldato
Check out what type it is and if a spreader, then check how it does this.
For example I have a large golden, that throws shallow roots along the ground, taking advantage of old leaf cover to do its business. Due to this, I've dug a trench around it, filled with concrete and finished with a brick wall, 2 high, and that has kept it under control.
As for damage. I guess that could be down to variety ....?
Associate
@Jimbo1010 I can see Ivy in your picture. You could get a few more plants then train them to run up your hedge. Evergreen, cheap and fairly quick growing but it will still take a while.
Don
Reminds me that I need to do mine (jet wash), but I also need to re-grout, presumably jet wash first then grout!
Fed and put the chickens away for the night and then sat down at the patio and opened a beer.
10 minutes later I heard the chooks going absolutely mental, so ran up the garden, and..
I reckon it was either lost or more likely the farmer has shot the parents so it was hungry.
If I had a gun to hand I would have shot it, which may sound cruel, but if you see the carnage a fox can cause to a few chickens (I have) then it's entirely justified.
There's a few houses up my lane and everyone keeps chickens, so the farmer has been informed, as have the neighbours.
I wouldn't bet on it lasting past the weekend.
10 minutes later I heard the chooks going absolutely mental, so ran up the garden, and..
I reckon it was either lost or more likely the farmer has shot the parents so it was hungry.
If I had a gun to hand I would have shot it, which may sound cruel, but if you see the carnage a fox can cause to a few chickens (I have) then it's entirely justified.
There's a few houses up my lane and everyone keeps chickens, so the farmer has been informed, as have the neighbours.
I wouldn't bet on it lasting past the weekend.
I'd like to agree that there must be a better way to deter them or protect your chooks. One thing I'll say is that fox poo stinks like nothing else, especially when your dog like to rub themselves in it.
Then comes the random thought of why did the manufacturers of Lynx chose that name, cause they stink too! Then I realise the genius of it - much how like my dog rubs in fox poo to disguise their own scent from other foxes, men use Lynx to smell like a teenager again
.
Soldato
Still a bit of a work in progress and not especially large, but a nice enough space to chill 
Neighbours fence is the crappy one by the way
Neighbours fence is the crappy one by the way
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This is one of mine (Euphorbia characias 'Black Pearl').
It was pretty small when I planted it last year, and it's certainly shot up a bit.
Local nursery had none. They are awaiting some more stock this weekend so will try again. Looked online also and seems a delay in deliveries. Would prefer to get it local as know what you are getting.
Permabanned
Shoot the damn thing, as you rightly say they will wreak havoc for the hell of it, kill for killing's sake and just sod off into the night.
Now, hunting on horseback with a pack of hounds. NO. That's not efficient, humane nor anything other than poncing around in glorified dressage for a day out. A good man with a rifle or a smallholding owner with a shotgun, different matter. A fox is not a domesticated dog or cat, it's a feral killer.
At first, out here in the sticks i admit to being "Oh, lovely red fox, how beautiful". Couple of years later, a few dozen dead birds, just mauled and left dead and i was there with the Remington and a pocket full of BB cartridges, with no worries about humanely despatching the damned things. They're taking over the cities now, and people are feeding the bloody things .
Associate
have you actually dug the fence underground or is it just nailed into the wood across the floor ?Fed and put the chickens away for the night and then sat down at the patio and opened a beer.
10 minutes later I heard the chooks going absolutely mental, so ran up the garden, and..
I reckon it was either lost or more likely the farmer has shot the parents so it was hungry.
If I had a gun to hand I would have shot it, which may sound cruel, but if you see the carnage a fox can cause to a few chickens (I have) then it's entirely justified.
There's a few houses up my lane and everyone keeps chickens, so the farmer has been informed, as have the neighbours.
I wouldn't bet on it lasting past the weekend.
It's actually not that hard to keep foxes out if you can be bothered to do it.
No fox could dig as deep as the chicken wire is buried around the coop, so yeah i've "bothered" to do it.
The rest of the wire/fence outside of the coop is just nailed on.
I live in a rural area surrounded by fields, and there's no way i'm making that part of the garden a fortress of wire netting.
Permabanned
A bit of colour is appearing now. The Rhododendrons are starting to flower, albeit they don't last that long, and the Copper Beech trees are now maturing and nicely visible against the big oaks behind. The first signs that summer is coming!
Excuse the weeds at the base of the wall, I didn't get chance to sort those at the weekend, but they're on the never ending "To Do" list
The back garden is going to get a mini make over soon, it's been badly neglected, the dogs have done it some serious mischiefs and it's gone from quite a presentable place to something pretty rank. `Er indoors has forbidden a before photo... <LOL>
Excuse the weeds at the base of the wall, I didn't get chance to sort those at the weekend, but they're on the never ending "To Do" list
The back garden is going to get a mini make over soon, it's been badly neglected, the dogs have done it some serious mischiefs and it's gone from quite a presentable place to something pretty rank. `Er indoors has forbidden a before photo... <LOL>