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Despite the cold dry weather here in the far north of Scotland this year, the garden is coming on ok:

https://picasaweb.google.com/paul.simonite/6295596895711401841?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCIXgqbnss_L2Tg&feat=directlink

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Despite the cold dry weather here in the far north of Scotland this year, the garden is coming on ok: https://picasaweb.google.com/paul.simonite/6295596895711401841?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCIXgq

A couple of years ago we got rid of our leylandi hedge. Last year we planted in its place a flowering hedge - Escallonia (variety apple blossom). They were just little twigs when planted but this year

Standing almost five feet tall, this is my first annual poppy of the season [Perennial Welsh poppies have been in flower for a few weeks now]:  This one is in the polytunnel:    

Worst year for the allotment ever at least a month behind.

Slugs have had all my courgettes & butternut squash :(

Runner beans only about 6" up the sticks.
Not got my Sweet corn,leeks or red cabbage in.
Carrots,beetroot,parsnips & swede hardly showing.

Potatoes are O.K.

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Worst year for the allotment ever at least a month behind.

Slugs have had all my courgettes & butternut squash :(

Runner beans only about 6" up the sticks.

Not got my Sweet corn,leeks or red cabbage in.

Carrots,beetroot,parsnips & swede hardly showing.

Potatoes are O.K.

beans spurting up the sticks since we had this rain, sweet corn started to grow but I'm not expecting much. My beetroot was eaten when sowed in the ground, any idea whats eating them as small shoots ? Ive done some in pots and planted out under a netting so less than normal but at least theyve survived. Rest of stuff pretty slow. Love to know what had my beetroot last year and some this season. Ive put slug pellets down but they still went.

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That's the wood store shed, Paulus. Had a bike stolen out of the big shed last week. Police reckon it was a bloke they know - he is homeless and nicks bikes to get around on - when he's done with them he just dumps them.

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BW: I had to resow my brassicas this year. Lost most of them to cold, dry conditions due to the Arctic air currents that have been prevailing since January. Temp today still only around 10°C. Despite this, we have had some really pleasant days though.

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Something is eating the leaves on my gooseberry bushes but I can't see anything. They are doing it systematically going up one branch at a time. Any idea what it could be?

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Sorry to hear about that Margie. When we used to grow gooseberries we encountered a similar problem. One of our neighbours' sons worked on a smallholding and told us that it was most probably sawfly larvae - as they are the gooseberry's most common pest. He gave us some insecticide that he used at work that was safe with to use with pollinating insects. It was very effective in halting the damage, but sadly, neither my wife nor I can remember what it was called. (Sorry....it's the ageing process...)

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AR 1865 I wonder if a Rabbit could be eating your Beetroot. My Beagle finally sorted him out. Then it did grow but didn't do very well anyway.

Taters doing badly so far. It may have been to hot for them we've been in the 90s for a week or more now. Each plant did well enough on the surface but only found one or two taters to each plant. Time was each plant would feed you for a week.

Garden has not done really well especially over the last two or three years. I have been putting in plenty of compost and composted manure but still poor results.

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Could it be mice eating your beetroot. Years ago I bought some parsnips seeds from uk as we cant find them here. I sowed the seed and waited for the results. Not One came through . We thought it was mice . We've now got little room for veg ( space taken up by pool) but we planted 4 beef tomatoes and 2 chillies.

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SLUGS horible things they can strip new shoots in seconds.You wont see mutch of them in the day time

they come out at night when it's damp and warm. I have lost a few thing this year there is a glut of them

due to the mild winter. You need to be up at the crack of dawn to catch them b----rs.

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Margie I had three gooseberry bushes quite a few years ago and they did suffer from sawfly.

There were a couple of spays on the market then but I'm afraid most have been band now.

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Margie: If you have sawfly you will see the tiny caterpillars if you look closely. They look like twigs and can strip your bushes, quite literally, overnight. I get them on both guzgogs and red currant bushes. It is the only problem I use a spray for - because if you don't get them immediately,.. you lose your entire crop.

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Compo, I've looked for caterpillars under the remaining leaves but can't see any. It did say on one site I looked at that there can be 3 lots in a year, so maybe I missed them? I've given up with the gooseberries this year so I'll sort them out next year. I'll pick them off and put them on the bird table - I don't like actually killing them but that action doesn't count as the birds need to eat!

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Picked me first tomatoes of the season today. I'd have taken a picture but ya'll know what Tomatoes look like. Had one in a cheese sandwich for lunch. Just about the earliest I've ever picked any.

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I've just been in the garden and had another look for the sawfly caterpillars on the only gooseberry bush that still has leaves on it. I found about 6 or 7 of the little wrigglers so I carefully removed each leaf they were on and put them on the bird table. At least they'll have a last meal before the birds come down for breakfast! Unless they decide to go on a long walk back to the bush, of course!

I feel a bit sick as I first started to pick them off with eyebrow tweezers, but one of them got nipped in half in the process. I felt really bad

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I have had a plague of greenfly this year. Never had so many in my 25yrs in Scotland. Another first is Blackfly. First time I've had them up here.

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We have a plague of flies of some sort and they have ruined a lovelly bush......we were told to spray it with soapy water, but it has done no good......the rest of the garden looks great, all the rain has made the grass so green and the flowers are blooming........

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