What gardening goodies did you get for Christmas....
3 portable cloches
balsa wood eagle mobile to scare the birds away
herb book
organic gardening with bob flowerdew
allium christophii
portable bbq for the lottie
The best I could do was that little book, '50 ways to kill a slug'. How many more got that?
Geoff.
Ground Force - Practical Garden Projects : By Tommy Walsh
Had a quick scan through it. I can see me doing some of the projects in the book. Others I can see the OH wanting done. Good choice of gift I think.
Also got KHUFU THE MUMMY. Looking forward to playing that as I enjoy the previous : Atmosphere
I got two beautiful frost proof pots plus some garden vouchers. I also got two DVD's, Travis at Alexandra Palace and Shania Twain's "Up". Three boxes of chocs too. ;D ;D
New parafin heater + dynamo torch/radio amongst other stuff
Vouchers, vouchers, vouchers and yet more vouchers. I'm well pleased 8)
JOSEPH BENTLEY S/Steel Digging Fork here
Happy happy happy! :D
The best, Sarah!
A lovely book 'The winter garden'...Val Bourne. Has certainly given me some lovely ideas for winter colour in the garden. Also Il Divo CD & DVD, to listen to when I'm in one of my more serious, quiet moods (not very often I may add ;D), choccies, smellies etc., and a nice wad of cash to go shopping with.....heaven :) ;)
A HAPPY NEW YEAR to all on A4A ....may your gardens and lotties be plentiful in 2007 ;D
FOUR books- The English Garden by Ursula Buchanan ( need to buy a coffee table to keep it on now!), Monty Don's "Growing out of trouble", Alan Romans' "Potato book" and "What will I do with all these courgettes?"- a book of nothing but courgette recipes! Also a trowel and some gardening gloves.
Books and journals, fab pair of work boots, 2 pairs of gardening gloves - different strengths, labels, bodywarmer for work, and I think that was it....
A railway sleeper complete with ribbon .......... part of next gardening project , oh and spring bulbs in my stocking bleeping uncomfortable they were too!
Same present I get every year - a brand new pair of Reebok boots. They have enough room to take all the gubbins I need for my broken foot, they're as light as a feather and they save me from costing the NHS a couple of hundred quid on specially made boots - and, best of all, the offspring (or the strapping sapling as he's known these days) now buys 'em for me AND, in a 'two-presents-for-the-price-of-one' deal, this year's everyday boots become next year's gardening boots - KER-CHING! ;D
Items I've bought for myself while out Christmas shopping for... er... other people (and isn't it funny how many things you see that you want for yourself during this particular activity - let's hope the bank manager is equally amused) include: a 25 litre fermentation bucket (I've run out of this year's elderflower champagne and I'm THIRSTY, okay?) for £7.99 from Wilkinsons.
I also bought a couple of books. One (via A4A's Amazon link, Cheers, Dan!), called Vegetables, Herbs and Fruit, and, from one of those High Street discount bookshops, an amazing tome called Botanica, an A-Z of 10,000 garden plants and how to cultivate them. Oh, and the 2007 edition of Planting by the Moon.
And would you believe it, all the seed companies have sent me some wonderful books - how thoughtful. They teach you how to make lists...
...long, LONG lists...
;)
Got the slug book last year Geoff, and snap Sarah, the Rolls-Royce, or should that be Bentley of Garden Forks....
;D
The Allotment Book by Andi Clevely. Wasn't on my list, came out of the blue :) and I am impressed by both it's style and content.
Vouchers
Leather gloves
Big ball o' twine
and the book 'You Grow Girl' which looks fun :)
Tina.
Quote from: Larkspur on December 27, 2006, 08:42:46
The Allotment Book by Andi Clevely. Wasn't on my list, came out of the blue :) and I am impressed by both it's style and content.
Yep - got that one too!
and Monty Dons new offering and Alan Titchmarshs' latest!
Louise
I must have half a bookcase full of Alans offerings but have only read The Jewel Garden (is that correct?) by Monty. What is his latest book?.
All i got was a load of Sh*t for christmas
about 15 tons of it in fact !!
Heaven ;D
My Christmas gifts: (nothing special but all usefull in one way or another)
Secateurs (wilkinson sword, rather than felco's)
Plant ties
Plant labels
Twine (large ball of it)
Blade sharpener
fixing pegs (ones you push in the ground to secure fleece or netting)
'Tub Trug' - as used on gardeners World and other places
Mini Camera tripod (for keeping the camera steady when taking pics of the garden)
5 year gardeners record book - an RHS one with nice pictures.
£££ Money! (to buy a nice gardening book perhaps?)
let me see
i got £60 plus £80
RHS membership renewal
bath spa thing
a mug
a one cup teapot and mug
a terrys choc orange
a cookbook
:-)
hitting the sales tomorrow
:) :D I Got the vegtable & herb expert by Dr D G Hessayon and the allotment book by Andi clevely and a clipper come knife come saw sort of swiss knife thingy.
My Christmas presents included
- three packets of seeds: aubergine diamond, leaf coriander and cherokee trail of tears beans (I left a long list of internet seed catalogues next to the computer)
- three cranberry bushes (OH had to keep them alive for three weeks without me noticing it)
- an oxfam voucher for a vegetable garden for someone else (someone will be able to feed her family with a present I like as well)
- a battery operated screwdriver for repairing my tool shed (we don't have electricity at the complex)
- spring bulbs
- a voucher for a pallets collecting trip
and the usual smellies, chocolates, books etc.
Seasonal greetings to all of you
we got an allotment in africa, 40 fruit trees planted over there and 100 meals for kids, all clubbed together, ray's mum gives us all £5.00 plus a small gift so we decided to benefit someone else for a change :)
Nice idea,Manics. I was given books including Garden Magic,Dig Free gardening, Knots and Splices. A Soil Tester, big pink bucket, bulb planter/many other uses thingy on long stick, industrial strength gardening gloves, and lots of girlie things. Did really well. ;D
The most GORGEOUS pair of secateurs - with floral handles! Lovely idea from best gardening girlfriend, they won't get lost....CLx
Beth Chattos Damp Garden ( the book only, not the real thing). Which is brilliant as I garden on........... sand! But have been wittering on about needing a pond/bog area for all those plants I have been keeping alive from my previous garden in buckets & well mulched in the 6" of cool shade nearest the North fence. Now have lots of plans. The garden voucher will go towards the required liner to get it all going.
And have a sniff of a potential replacement for the lottie I had to give up when I moved & then found my new council don't have any. Cross those fingers for me :-*
Got it all crossed. ;D
A padded yarn dyed check shirt with quilted cotton lining,stud front,two chest pockets with studded flaps and shirt cuffs thats what the label said honest. ;)And a gel saddle cover for those of us with more well endowed (i feel a new year diet coming on)bum. :-[
I forgot to add; tool hooks. An attempt to keep at least some of my tools stored out in the garage a little tidier ;D ;D ;D
Fat chance!
hairnet ::)
Lots of gardening things including Monty & Sarah's Jewel Garden which I have nearly finished, Victorian Kitchen Garden DVD & an inspired choice for my birthday on Christmas Day, two tickets for the Chelsea Flower Show, I've never been but always watched the telly programmes - nearer the time I shall ask for advice about the best places to see veggie related things.
Mary, did I see correctly before the Christmas break that it was your birthday on Christmas Day? If it was then a belated happy birthday wish to you!
I hope you had a doubly nice day ;D (https://www.dollsandlace.com/images/clip/clip20.jpg)
Quote from: GREENWIZARD on December 28, 2006, 15:01:10
hairnet ::)
would this be for catching things in GW? or maybe storing things, or have you got tumbling tresses? (now you're going to tell me it has sparkly beads sewn all over it aren't you? Dazzling dandruff we used to call it ;D)
For the first time in decades, the family have listened:
Botanica
Joy Larcom
Kitchen Garden subscription
Gardeners World subscription (from my kid, she knows no better but I bought the January edition and there's some good stuff in there, so I'm still well made up)
Nice purple gardening gloves (from same kid, from an ebay link that i sent her)
Cash from the inlaws to buy sh[t (compost)
Vouchers from the OH to buy new g/h vent and louvres
One very happy KP !
;D
Quote from: Emagggie on December 28, 2006, 19:20:51
Quote from: GREENWIZARD on December 28, 2006, 15:01:10
hairnet ::)
would this be for catching things in GW? or maybe storing things, or have you got tumbling tresses? (now you're going to tell me it has sparkly beads sewn all over it aren't you? Dazzling dandruff we used to call it ;D)
mr gw says i've turned into an old fart because i spend so much time garden ::) ;D......he also gave me money towards a greenhouse :-*
;D ;D ;D ;D.
he really wanted to to buy me a blue rinse but couldn't find any ::)...phew ;D
Pity it wasn't wrinkly stockings, you could've kept your onions in them. ;D
just love the avatar, by the way GW ;D ;D
it's the spit of me ;D
I love the avatar too! Check out your local freecycle and dontdumpthat for a free greenhouse and spend the money on something else!
thanks for the advice t :-*
Nothing for the lottie 'cos I've got virtually everything I need.
However, it's my birthday shortly and I have asked the family for some dwarf fruit trees for the front garden.
CC
I got an incinerator !!! a sunshine blueberry bush, a bay tree, cloche, fleece tunnel, vango backpack (for me san'wiches) and a vango flask for me tea ... very pleased.
(http://img485.imageshack.us/img485/8617/greeseone003qs0.th.jpg) (http://img485.imageshack.us/my.php?image=greeseone003qs0.jpg)
having all these wonderful people in one place at one time, both sons, daughter, son in law and grandson, this is the only photo I've got of them all together, best Christmas present ever.. ;D
Quote from: mc55 on December 31, 2006, 18:05:52
I got an incinerator
Lucky so and so. i want one of those to get rid of all those bits of woody rubbish i cant compost.
incinerator is an old galvanised dustbin, ray punctured it all around the bottom with a crowbar, stand on three bricks and set fire to wood, brilliant !!
Lottie related xmas pressies included:
2 pairs of pink gardening gloves (exactly the same, one from santa & one from hubby)
The Allotment Book by Andy Cleverly
The new complete book of self sufficiency
Covent Garden soup for all seasons
Veg & Herb Expert - Hessayon
Lucky old me eh?! x
Quote from: manicscousers on December 31, 2006, 18:56:16
incinerator is an old galvanised dustbin, ray punctured it all around the bottom with a crowbar, stand on three bricks and set fire to wood, brilliant !!
I have similar, 200 litre oil drum, half of bottom chopped out, stood on a grille on bricks. This creates a hearth and ash pan. Burn the stuff, then shovel the ash out from underneath onto the garden - works brilliantly. :)
Derek
No, but you can get 'deluxe' incinerators, purpose made with the lid modified to form a chimney. My next door neighbour has one for all his burning.
Às does my neighbour - still prefer mine though - bigger bin, can get more stuff in ... :)
Derek
mines got a chim'ney :D ;D ;D
Derek - can I just sprinkle the ash on all beds, or should I be selective ?
we use the wood ash on the fruit beds, sprinkled on, and around the onions in spring, gives them a boost, according to Eric, anyway :)
Yes, I use my ash on alliums ...
Quote from: manicscousers on December 31, 2006, 20:23:55
we use the wood ash on the fruit beds, sprinkled on, and around the onions in spring, gives them a boost, according to Eric, anyway :)
Speaking of ash, I had a couple of bonfires last january. I carefully saved the ash, planning to use it on my fruit bushes. Its still sitting in a an old rubbish bin in the garage! Never mind its kept dry so should be OK to use
this year!
If I had a proper incinerator it would encourage me to do more of that sort of thing.
I've got solid fuel heating and am using my ashes on my plot to lighten the soil as it's clay/loam. I'm lucky in that I get a steady stream of ash all through the year & when I have an excess I have a work mate who takes it off my hands for his garden!!
CC
Manic meant to comment on your photo. Lovely family group. I never had a group photo but at out 50th I insisted and I am so glad I did.
thanks, lorna, I think so too
we hadn't had a family photo for years, probably before paul, eldest, went to uni, all together in this one for his wedding in greece, september this year, the bride's not there, she was with her family, preparing, but, as you say, it's lovely when we're all together, :)