winter greens autumn/winter 2014

[Maggi Young]

Crikey Tony - those plants of yours get luxury, b****y luxury! 

Please do share when you get round to making those "improvements" 

[Tony Willis]

Crikey Tony - those plants of yours get luxury, b****y luxury! 

Please do share when you get round to making those "improvements"

Perhaps because they a b---dy expensive to replace!!

[Maggi Young]

Perhaps because they a b---dy expensive to replace!!

That's a perfectly valid reason for a bit of cossetting, I agree!

[SteveC2]

Here's just a few of mine - nice spotty leaves


a lost label - to be truthful one I left lying around after planting the rest

Looks like another italica to me.  The wavy edge on the leaf is a bit of a giveaway.  One or two of your plants look a bit yellow.  Check for greenfly between the lowest leaf and the grit.  It is their favourite hideaway and I am having major issues this autumn.

After lying around during the summer with the pot on its side I'm amazed my Spiranthes spiralis have the energy to flower. Are they late or is this flowering time?

Three of mine have finished flowering with four new growths coming up, but I would not worry about yours as my fourth is just coming through.

. The main problem is condensation and so I have to open the lids carefully to avoid drips going on the plants below.

I have already lost a couple of plants this autumn and am fairly certain that condensation dripping from the glass has been the cause.

[mark smyth]

nooooo!

Steve you're correct I have an invasion of aphids! Can I simply spray fly spray in the greenhouse? I've tried using a wee paint brush to kill them but they just crawl back

[mark smyth]

Thanks Tony. I must get one made asap. What's the height?

[Tony Willis]

Thanks Tony. I must get one made asap. What's the height?

12 inches above the sand at the front and 15 inches at the back.

[mark smyth]

So difficult to get a good photo of this little orchid

Spiranthes spiralis - autumn Lady's-tresses

[Steve Garvie]

Nice detail and nice plant!

[Anthony Darby]

Memories of Zakynthos in October, pushing my daughter Lucy (she's now 15) around the olive groves in her push chair, marvelling at the flowers that grew along the road verges. 

[mark smyth]

Tomorrow is to be sunny and warmish over here. To try and stop aphids I'm thinking of mixing some provado and painting it on the leaves of my orchids. Has anyone tried this?

[Tony Willis]

I spray with Provado on a warm sunny day. The finest possible setting,just a mist and early to give it a chance to dry.

If it is only an odd plant I pick them off with a damp fine paintbrush.

[mark smyth]

Thanks Tony. Some are in the middle of the rosettes.

Why do I hate cats so much!? Just found this in the greenhouse

[Alex]

I get angry when I see this sort of thing - why should we put up with other peoples' sodding animals riding roughshod (and crapping) over our plants and gardens? It's beyond intrusive. I feel like *******, but suspect a motion-activated water jet or similar is more socially acceptable.

[mark smyth]

I agree Alex. My mood changed when I went in this morning. Could smell it and was looking in my sand and grit containers. Never had a cat crap in the plunges before now.

11 live in houses around me and that doesn't include the feral toms that come around at mating time. The toms spray the bins, the car, the house doors .... One house has 4 cats and three dogs. At least the dogs cant get out