Does anyone know anything about gardening?

Recently I cut back my long grass section at the back because of all the animal shit.

I'm amazed at how much its grown back in a week this time of year.

I put some down about 2 weeks ago and it has come through nicely, I got one for shaded areas as the majority was under a tree and where some overgrown shrubs were, I did zero prep, just sprinkled it on and it rained heavily for 2 whole days after I did it, but seems to be working!

YMMV

Cheers. I may throw some down if I get time.

Day 1 of pond digging - only removed the turf so far. Might be the effort of digging but feels big right now - roughly 3m x 2m. Having said that, this size will include the border/ bog garden bit too. We’ll level off the ground from here, and then dig down.
We’re defo following the wildlife trust guides so there will be a beach/ramp with easy access/escape for critters. Not quite sure how deep it will end up - that might depend on what the ground is like and how many friends we can tempt over to help dig!
Thanks for the tips. Will post pics as I remember.

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Day 2 - very strangely warm for mid November - digging in a t-shirt. Bit more refining and sculpting needed before we get a liner.

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Lovely job that.

When is the best time to prune the roses? They’re still flowering so I’d like to hold on to that as long as possible but I’d also like to see them next year! Also, how much do I take off? Complete novice, but keen. Thanks.

I always prune mine in early spring, just leave them to do their own thing over winter. No idea if that's correct but seems to work. You can go pretty hard on roses. Look for the nodes where new growth will start. If you can see some and they look healthy, it's probably alright to cut down to 2" above them.

Assume too late now but only just reading this - I have one you're welcome to borrow, in SE23.

Cheers

The advice can be pretty specific and not always agreeing, depending on whether they are climbers, ramblers or shrubs. For me I'd just say as long as they are dormant it'll be fine - December to March probably, assuming this bizarre mild weather comes to an end soon

Collected leaves near us as we have no trees and those are a free brown compost material. Most kitchen waste is green.

I read caffeine in compost isn't good for wormeries and some plants. It seems it's best to go easy in the coffee grounds.

The avocado that came up in the bin didn't read that article ;)

No.

I only put coffee grounds in flower beds. I think I’m right in saying most flowers prefer more acidic soil.

However I’ve been wrong before. Please see all my other posts to confirm.

Any pear tree wisdom on here?

We have thick clay but I can dig a big hole and fill it with compost. Spot would be morning sun and a bit of afternoon, until it peeps over the fence then it would get sun a lot.

Space to grow tall and wide. The local tree shop has conference pears (the supermarket favourite!) and Russel pears.

Looks to me either do as long as I dig it a nice hole but I've never had a pear tree.

Don't dig a big hole or fill with compost, makes the tree lazy and not search out nutrition and grow strong roots. Some varieties need cross pollination so you'll need more than one.

Tx! Ok I need one that can handle clay then.

There are apple trees & a beehive nearby but no pears, I'll check for no need for cross pollination.

Any junipers near to where you plan to plant the pear, we've got both in our garden..... And rust

Don't dig a big hole or fill with compost

Tbh, I'm not sure that this is a proven thing.

Otoh, we had pear trees on heavy clay soil and they did fine.

No junipers nearby I guess I can get an apple if I want to play it safe,many nearby.

But where is the fun in that ;)
Rust is a fungal disease I guess?

Conference is self-fertile so you don't need to worry about that. Lots of pear info here

https://www.gardenfocused.co.uk/fruitarticles/pears/grow.php

Thanks everyone, looks I can only get a Conference / Russell and only Conference is self-fertile so that is what it is going to be.

Not clear what rootstock it is on but there is plenty of space at the back of the garden anyway.

Anything I can do before spring to make this less of a mud patch or should I just accept it?

Does the grass get any Sun in the 6 worst months of the year?
Is it in a raised bed?
You could try using a fork to make drainage holes and sweep sand into the holes.

The back (top of the picture) doesn't get much sun, the front gets a bit. It's just a lawn, topsoil and then who knows what underneath.

Some drainage holes could be an idea, although I don't think drainage is terrible, but I think the main issue is just the lack of anything growing on it at the moment.

Any pear tree wisdom on here?

Plant pears for your heirs.