Does anyone know anything about gardening?

Don't do armandii, looks awful and is mega rampant! holboelia or akebia quinata would be nice, as would trachelospermum jasminoides or hydrangea petiolaris. All will need more support than a bamboo fence though, could you attach wires to the corrugated iron? that sounds nice in itself too.

Ivy is a weed and you'll never get rid of you change your preference. I'm fighting an eternal battle to stop it destroying my fence and lawn as it grows in from an adjacent plot of land.

Amen to that brother.

Avoid ivy at all costs

We have some winter flowering Jasmine that climbs up a bit of fencing. Not sure if it covers well as it seems to have a lot of stems

I have a weed then growing on a rockery.
I don't know what variety it is though but it has large leaves all year round in a shady area.
Yeah, it grows fast but it's very easy to cut back and control as its shoots are quite soft to cut.

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two weeds actually as many people also view montbretia/crocosmia as a weed

Ha! I actually planted that one :)

Kinda a gardening question, kinda furniture, so I'm asking in both threads.

Anyone have recommendations for some good quality outdoor furniture for eating meals on our deck in summer, for 6-8 people? Ideally I'd like wood because I think it looks nicer in a garden than anything artificial, but I could be swayed for the right product.

We bought a set a few years back that looked really nice. Table, 2 benches and 2 stools for £1,500. Wooden tops, and powder coated metal legs. However, the quality was atrocious, and the coating protecting the wood that we'd been assured was really rugged and wouldn't need any maintenance any time soon started peeling extremely quickly. We've had 3 replacement sets under warranty now and they've all done the same thing. During my latest attempt to get another warranty replacement we've learned the manufacturer has discontinued the model due to the issues I've faced, and so I'll be given a refund. Hence me now looking for something completely different.

I don't have a set budget, and realise I'll probably have to spend a lot to get something that will last well. I'd rather that than replacing every couple of years, though.

Repairing cracked birdbath?

This has got a clear crack all the way across it, with a very loose broken out bit at one side. It doesn’t hold water. I put some silicon sealant along the crack and it held ok for a year or so. After that it weathered and pealed off. Is there anything else that might hold it better?

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Wood of any quality will need regular treatment. Cast iron will be best for longevity. Good coat of paint lasts forever.

Do you have photos? How complicated is the design?

I assume the wood is screwed to the top. If the metal is powered coated and decent, then you could buy teak and replace the wood.

You will, ultimately need to treat it some how or some way. Teak can go a long time if you're OK with it going grey, but ultimately it's a natural product.

Cement.

I got some Toupret outdoor stuff to repair my stone sills which worked well. Downside is that it's bright white

Of course it’s that simple

@wildwest true ... I just don't like the look of metal, and it needs cushions to make it comfortable, which means we're less likely to just ad hoc have lunch or dinner out there when the weather is good. I want to be able to just leave something out there year round (with a cover over winter of course).

@hugo7 it's fairly complicated to be honest. It's this one: https://olivias.com/products/ivyline-borough-acacia-wood-5-piece-furniture-set?variant=42147288383541&cid=18953707647&agid=&netw=x&adtype=pla&pid=42147288383541&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiA8NKtBhBtEiwAq5aX2Dtb9AV7h2EzZsQq21oi9kFAFNsHPSPFv3km8mEOhbzJjaDj9oQUnhoCQZYQAvD_BwE

Reading up on acacia it's meant to be fairly good for outdoor furniture. Not as good as teak, but way less expensive. Maybe I should spend the money saved on not getting a new set to pay someone to come sand it and treat it with something protective, and see how it goes. As much as I like to think I'd be able to give it the maintenance it needs probably annually to stay nice, with another baby on the way and already no real time for my actual hobbies, realistically I can see that won't be the case. Maybe it's actually time to go full circle and buy some horrible white plastic chairs and table 😂

i'd avoid wood, personally.

anything that isn't tropical hardwood is not going to wear well in UK climate, and need regular maintenance. and the ethics of using the rain forest to kit out your garden is kind of dubious imo.

we got a set from these people - it's proving fairly robust. they don't seem to have the exact set that we have which is grey, has an oval table and 6 chairs, aluminium with glass table top - it's similar to this one:

https://www.whitestores.co.uk/nova-milano-8-seat-aluminium-dining-set-rectangular-table-in-chalk-white

Adding some pics of our actual set. It's a sort of lacquer that's just peeling off from basically the day I assembled it.

Maybe I am gonna have to get over my dreams of wood and just go metal or plastic ... I just have memories of all the nicest gardens from my childhood being full of lovely old wooden furniture that's aged really nicely. Perhaps that's rose tinted specs, perhaps they were regularly treated, or perhaps they were just wealthy enough to replace every couple of years.

On reflection, I could do worse than just sanding all the lacquer off (it's just the current state of bits peeled and chipped off that I think looks bad) and see what happens.

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May be a combination of wood and metal. Teak/oak slates on a cast base. And they can be replaced very easily if required. Bench ends and table bases from Victorian era still in uses in public parks, so should be more then sufficient for domestic use. I bought bench ends from ebay years ago, wire brush and black hammerite followed by new slats it's basically brand new, but probably casted over 100 years ago.

Mmm yeah, I like that idea a lot! Will investigate ...

Cheers all. I think sausage vine could be in the lead at the moment.

I see what you mean.

If it was me I'd strip, oil, and and learn to live with the patina.

Sure ideally you'd might be suppose to give it a clean, possibly a light sand and oil every year. Bit it'll be fine, it'll just be a natural silver colour like this:

My folks have never oiled their current teak bench and it's got to be >5yo now. It's silver, but it's structurally fine.

I'm sure you could do it every 4yrs or something.

for metal, fermob do nice stuff...then could get an outdoor storage cupboard for cushions? https://www.fermob-london.co.uk/shop-by-category/dining/tables/c11

I'd sand that and apply a finish of your choice tbh. I used some ronseal stuff to re-treat our wooden ikea garden furniture and it's... fine?

The furniture has been pretty good too, although one slat in the table has bowed it's not really an issue.

I think it's acacia which seems can be reasonably ok from a sustainability perspective

Just spent £90 on dahlias… so fucking excited

Thanks for the reminder! Gardening brain has been dormant since November