Update fellow gardeners

@Captain yes that's right. Things i have grown in the past and not done so well, like pumpkins and peppers, are thriving. My beans. tomatoes, lettuce and cucumbers are amazing too.

@meggie In the wild, the blackberries are already ripening - up to two months early!

@ArishMell yes I've noticed that too. We've been eating tomatoes, lettuce and cucumber in June. Our victoria plum tree suffered a snapped branch as it's so heavily laden with fruit.

@ArishMell I think lawns are the hardest things of all to perfect. Any weed, any variation oin flatness - just shouts at me - so the current burnt patches send me mad. A colleague of mine came form farming stock. He siad scarify in the autumn and he meant almost like ploughing it. . Ive never done that. I do try and flatten it out in the spring - its still very clay - I just chuck sharp sand mixed with grass seed at it and hope. I do use the spray versions of selective weed killer to get rid of moss and weeds (doh oc course) but the granualr versions of weed and feed just seem to fail to clear weeds and cause dead patches in the grass (i know you’re all going to say I just dont get it even enough but as I say - the spray versions seem to work well and yu can just use then where the weeds are so it the long run it becomes cheaper. Raking is a good idea. Keeping it flat as possible is good. Forking it is something I must try in the spring- fork, scatter sharp sand and maybe seed, and roll, but rollers and grass seed are expensive. Any thoughts anyone ??

@Captain I must admit my "lawn" is a just a very modest patch of rather rough grass on quite uneven ground! The soil is rich in clay, which does not help, but once it holds enough water the grass grows quite well.

It does not hold many "weeds" though a couple of plants I can't identify have appeared from somewhere in it. It has two or three small clumps of bluebells too. I don't know if the previous owners had planted them or if they are wild ones that wandered in and like it here - probably brought in as seeds by birds.

I don't try to make it look a bowling-green, just a moderately domesticated miniature meadow kept in order with a manual mower now and then, with long-handled shears to trim the edges.

@ArishMell Yes I’ve had thayt debate with my daughter - but then she doesn’t like golf and have Augusta National envy !

@JamesBugman A good year as it cool ?? We’ve been fired but I think its over now… BC is lovely.

@Captain Highs have been 20 to 30c, mostly around 25 which is perfect. Almost always an ocean breeze blowing.

@lpthehermit No ites just bog standard but I got a great deal on a lawn mover from Lidl which actually cuts to about half inch height and thats what I want because it kep getitng invaded by wild grasses and (being a round lawn) I want it to have that 12th at Augusta national look one day (the golden bell - greatest par 3 of them all) - well we all need ambitions don’t we ?