Does anyone know anything about gardening?

Network Rail are doing the absolute bare minimum to control the Japanese knotweed on the land at the back of our house.

I want it gone because I know how hard it was for us to get a mortgage with it there.

Hence I am going to buy myself so Tordon and attack it myself. Instructions are saying late winter/early spring.

Anybody ever used it? Do I want for it to start growing and then drench it? I don't want to cause an ecological disaster but I will terminate with extreme prejudice motherfucker.

CheBeef's link suggests that chemical treatment is the way forward if the ground won't be disturbed, which seems likely if it's an embankment (I'm guessing here). If you want to feel a bit more optimistic, watch the video here. There is research into an insect that will reduce Japanese Knotweed to a rate of growth that renders is much less threatening.

If NR aren't doing it right, keep complaining to the Environment Agency

So I'm trying to propagate some basil from cuttings. Our basil had become too thick with just a few leaves at the top of a long stock. I've made some cuttings and put them in water. Do the leaves have to be out of the water? I guess leaves breath... Or something...

ha
i thought they could be propagated but here you go
rooting hormone might help them take but they'll probably do fine au naturel

http://www.17apart.com/2013/07/how-to-grow-propagate-basil-from.html

... "and summer is the perfect time".

I don't know where you are Horatio, but unless you've plenty sunshine and warmth where you are they'll be slow to take. I'll be sowing seeds for Thai Basil "Siam Queen" in the next few weeks.

There inside the flat by a window.

perfect for a day like today

I have an Arabica coffee which I have been growing for some time.

It's got a bit big, but I find it very hard to bring myself to cut it down for fear that it would kill it.

Does anyone know much about them?

I have an Arabica coffee which I have been growing for some time.

It's got a bit big, but I find it very hard to bring myself to cut it down for fear that it would kill it.

Does anyone know much about them?

Talking of cuttings above... If you do trim your coffee can I please nab some of the pieces? I'll try rooting them. My coffee plant died while in the care of Sparky Sr.

^Boo.

^^Cutting won't kill it; in fact it'll make them grow more. Trim it gently, taking out dead leaves and branches and also any leaves were they are overlapping a lot to promote air flow.

My plants at the moment:

Got out in the sun today and planted some broad beans and potatoes (2nd earlies). The season is a coming....

dug over 2/3rds of my lawn today
re seeding to start in a week or so once soil has been finessed
it had gotten a bit messy

luckily it's only 15 foot by 6 foot

I'm in Grantham so probably a few weeks behind most of you lot in terms of season, but as its been so mild I've got:
Chillies first sown in heated propogators on New Years' day doing well and sown successionally since. Aubergines seedling joined them recently and cucumbers will too.
Leeks sown today in modules in unheated greenhouse
Spinach, radish and spring onion sown yesterday in raised, covered bed
Garlic and shallots from winter sown sets doing well
Broad bean and onion from winter sown seeds doing okay

Going to try some little mini polytunnels for the first time this year to bring on a few early carrot, beetroot, lettuce etc.

We've harvested our second lot of rhubarb already and most of the things we've planted (broad beans, onions, garlic) are doing well.

We've still got a lot of structural stuff to do though, so planting may have to take a back seat over the next few weeks.

Are you forcing the rhubarb?

We've forced one plant, which is the one we've been harvesting, but have another four plants that will be ready soon. (We've taken over a half plot next to our existing half plot allotment so have a bit of an abundance of rhubarb).

Rhubarb is the devil's food. Any type of food that you can hear growing can't be good for you.

Good show. If it's the devil's food, then bring on the asbestos underpants because I am in the fanclub. Three crowns in our plot, just showing above ground, will be their second year and we didn't touch a stem last season so hoping for good things.

Inspired by Skully, I made rhubarb and ginger jam a couple of years ago and it was, and is, fucking amazing. I'll be making more soon.

drools on keyboard at the thought

delicious ^

Yowser! My second spring with access to a garden, although I'm limited to veg grown in troughs and pots until I can convince the other residents to let me put in a veg patch.

Last year managed four varieties of tomato grown up a trellis on the patio and single very productive runner bean plant. Courgettes started well but quickly went wrong. Winter rain has revealed the pots thery were in had no drainage so I assume that's what did for them.

Was out in the sun yesterday sorting out herbs in pots: I have three varieties of mint annexed in a pot of their own then a variety of rosemary, parsely, thyme, basil, oregano and fennel in others.

Tomatoes will go up the trellis again and I plan to grow a mixture of runner dwarf french beans up another trellis I cleared of an unloved (and more importantly inedible Jasmine yesterday). I've bought another half dozen big terracota pots ready for garlic, courgettes, raddish and carrots.

Spuds I'm planning on growing in those barrel-shaped sacks with flaps to extract your winnings from. My dad's providing the pre-chitted spuddies so they should be going in soon.

I got caught napping a bit in terms of preparing for planting out so am just now starting to germinate tomatoes, chillies and raddish from seed in a windowsill germinatory thing.

Reallly need that patch to plant out salad, broad beans and peas...

Inspired by Skully, I made rhubarb and ginger jam a couple of years ago and it was, and is, fucking amazing. I'll be making more soon.

drools on keyboard at the thought

Any chance of the recipe? We always have too much rhubarb so this could be handy.

I've been using this one;

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1091639/rhubarb-and-ginger-jam

I've been using crystallised ginger, rather than stem ginger.

Cheers, will give it a try.