Does anyone know anything about gardening?

Wow, yeah, so what’s gone in there and when did you start?

And, it looks fox proof? Our main issue.

It's not really running hot enough (about 35 degrees at the top, but down at the bottom here it's basically normal compost temps).
That's about 5 months or so I guess? We just chuck normal compost stuff in and I've sorta given up on adding wood chip but it gets a good mix of paper, garden clippings and kitchen stuff. I avoid meat and bones because we don't throw much of that away and I don't want to attract animals.
No fox trouble that I've seen but there are what I think are cat claw marks on top. I've taken to putting a piece of wire mesh on top to discourage that which seems to be working.
I'm only half interested in the hotbin aspect of it but mostly I just wanted something that didn't take up much space and a regular heap that size would lose too much heat to work I think.

Don't have a lot of winter interest in the garden personally so about now is really the first flurry of flowering, hellebores aside. Looking good at the moment - euphorbia (despite significant snow damage), snakes head fritillaries, some slightly garish tulips and bellis, and the amelanchier just about starting. Crab apple probably only a few days away now

Fritillaries in particular I'm pleased with as I now have more than I planted - so they're naturalising, in a very difficult, unloved shady spot in poor soil. Hard to photograph well but they are so intricate and beautiful up close

Have made a shopping list of daffodils for autumn to try and start the flowering a month earlier - I don't always love the big bold yellow ones so am hunting for slightly more subtle varieties

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I took a couple of bags out of the bottom but next weekend I might try emptying the whole thing because otherwise you can't get to the compost at the back as the stuff on top collapses. I think to really get the most out of it you need to be able to jumble up the contents to keep it nice and airy

Do you have snowdrops?

There are different types too.

👍

Top soil and grass seed now should see you through

Emptied mine out today due to impending house move. I haven't even used it in recent months, last time was to turn it all over because it'd compacted at the bottom and gone anaerobic 🤢 seemed to do the trick, all pretty rotted now, possibly a bit wet though.

Think my plan in the new place will be to empty it more regularly, even before it's fully composted and chuck it a regular open compost heap with some added browns to finish off. Also bought a shredder to keep myself stocked with shredded card 😆 sunk cost fallacy.

snowdrops

I don't, I like them en masse in the woods but I don't have any grass and think they'd be a bit too dainty to really work in a border? I have hellebores, a witch hazel, some sarcococca and a winter flowering viburnum (albeit it never flowers very prolifically).

But what I really want is late Feb / March flowers, in big enough quantities to tie the garden together instead of just one or two pockets of interest. And with plants that don't take up too much space when the rest of it gets going either. So daffs it is.

Currently thinking Thalia (white), actea or geranium (pheasants eye type), then maybe a peach like 'blushing lady' or a lemon yellow like 'Toto'.

Will probably add a load of tulip praetans shogun as well which is meant to naturalise well.
I have tried other wild tulips before and they come back every year for me in pots, but in the border are mostly blind. Hoping this one will be different

I'm mostly using the compost as a mulch so if it's a bit wet it doesn't really matter too much. The rest will go in the greenhouse as a top dressing and it won't stay wet for long in there.

Yeah, that's a tricky brief. If you're in the research zone, do have a look into snowdrops. There are some which will be less dainty and I think they'd still work well in boarders.

Eg Galanthus plicatus have cool leaves and aren't as dainty.

Sorry in case I was a bit vague, I'm sort of half looking for something that provides the function of stepping stones - ie preventing me sinking into mud - but passes the aesthetic requirements of not looking like anything.

Originally I had a plan for a decked path with grasses, but it got scrapped. Tbh I still think it would have been cool and very functional.

The alternative I know very little about but possibly suit my needs is snowflakes - leucojum

In case it's interesting/useful I came across this page on winter scented plants: https://www.rhs.org.uk/garden-inspiration/seasonal/10-agm-plants-winter-scent

Struggling to find the answer to this question - what sort of sand should I mix with soil to dress the top of the lawn?

All the searches bring back people telling the question asker that you need special lawn dressing which contains various special stuff, with the aim of improving the lawn.

I've got about ¼ of a ton bag of spare soil from our raised beds and I just want to level a few bits. Nothing special. So I just want to get a few bags of sand to mix in with some of it. What type do I get?

Sharp sand, but meant for gardening not building so it's not salty or limey

https://www.gardenworld.co.uk/product/sharp-sand

Cheers!

So this thistle is done for right? I was really looking forward to these two.
I never worked out what it was, but there’s quite a few tiny snails having a party under the leaves.
Maybe I could cut it right back?

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Don't thistles grow/flower a bit later in the year? I'm usually pulling them up in summer.

Pretty much done with my woodland area for now. I've moved the exotic ferns so now time to sit back and see how it develops. Probably reorganise the stones a bit and may see if I can get another log.

I think I've fucked the fushas by putting too much soil/mulch around them, so we'll see how they develop.

Also nice to see that my dawrf pear is flowering.

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Also strongly considering turning this section into a bog garden.

I'm wondering if I can create drainage channels from elsewhere to flood that spot in particular. It's just the challenge of finding a plant list that will be cool with shade and not look shit in winter.

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I’ve only got that other one thriving behind it for comparison. Might just leave it to nature to figure out!
I planted one or two of a lot of things in autumn, so this year is seeing what works best and probably planting more of it around to fill it out.

Anyone here have a Stihl battery lawnmower? I had a quick play in our local shop and I'm fairly convinced, especially because it's so light and means I can whizz it up the allotment. We have a fickle Mountfield which needs another service and I'm at the point where I'd rather jump ship...

When should euphorbia start to grow/show signs of life?

The stalks on mine started to brown and so I pruned it all back to the base late autumn but its not showing any sign of life at all, think it might be dead..

What kind? There are 2000 different species