Officers Mess

Our Jungle our Garden

Posted by Beano Boy on 26 May 2017, 22:07

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It was two years ago that the Council Sprayed weedkiller just beyond our Hedgerow, and within 12 hours we had lost all our Kio Carp in our 17 year old pond. They ranged from 12 to 15 inches in length and we lost 5 of them along with about 60 Goldfish. I was so angry and sad.
Now we have one lone Goldfish that some how survived. So it has the entire four and half foot deep pond all to itself,along with hundreds of frogs. Above is one of last years frogs to have come from our jungle pond that is 14 foot by 10 foot at its widest point.
Mrs B.has been busy in the garden planting new plants and I took this photograph today.

Where I stood to take the shot lots of this years tiny frogs were hopping about,and I had to be very careful of every clumsy step I took to avoid them. This truly is a wildlife garden designed by us,and dug out ,and built up by us. Being very short on cash at that time all the plants were very tiny cheap things. The pond is covered over in Duck Weed and Hornwort and other stuff grows undearneath it quite ok,along with lots of shrimp like things. The waterfall stream is not on because of the tiny frogs that have prolificialy taken over this rather on the wild side garden.



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The far side of the pond is a jungle now the Shuttle Cock Fern`s and Flag Iris, are up and fanning out. The birds are racing about this garden in their great efforts of feeding their ever hungry young. The tiny Wrens having nested under our raised deck again this year and have along with their young ,flown upon the wing scattering every which way. The Black Birds have nested under one of the gothic wooden arches in the bush that winds its way upward 7 or 8 foot high through it.
As the traffic noise eases one can hear all the chicks. All the wooden nest boxes fixed onto the house walls are filled with the young of Great Tits,and Blue Tits, and the Robin and several Black Birds have nested in our Hedgerow. A jungle yes,but a beautiful place for all our wildlife friends that live in and around our 5 tiny Fiddle Wood Gardens all year long. Beyond this garden of peaceful delight the wood stretches out and casts its giant shadows along the tiny winding pathway that passes through it.

A Magic time was had in this garden jungle today. Mrs B,a working,and me a helping by not helping. Such is life. :-D BB
Beano Boy  England
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Posted by Bluefalchion on 26 May 2017, 22:43

Great backgrounds for some photos of toy soldiers and scratch-built cottages (or jungle huts?) Get to modeling please BB!
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Bluefalchion  United States of America
 
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Posted by sberry on 27 May 2017, 10:35

Bluefalchion wrote:Great backgrounds for some photos of toy soldiers and scratch-built cottages (or jungle huts?) Get to modeling please BB!

I had about the same idea, looking at this wonderful green garden pics: What a great backgroud for jungle scenes!
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sberry  Germany
 
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Posted by Beano Boy on 27 May 2017, 12:17

We watch Chelsea Garden Show, every year which is always beautifully done down to the last pebble laid upon anyones pathway. It is really a show,showing the bones of their garden in their allotted space. Dressed up with pots of expensive and inexpensive planting to set into place the illusion it is growing there.It is a brilliant piece of British established theatre.

In reality there is no such thing as a quick fix garden, it takes time until one can go into that living space one has, and call it an established garden. In this comment there is no snobbery attached on my part,as we were very hard up for cash at the time of constructing the bones of the tiny gardens around us. While others around us went on vacation we remained with one garden holiday adventure each summer as the dial of time turned,and it took seven summers to build it all.

The artisan gardens, that were worth every blister and further prolonged ach we both had. We lived on jam butties,and lettuce sandwidges in order to afford each little raised up piece. Nothing comes for free.We did not starve. We just got fat upon the fun of it all ,as we got wet muddy dirty in grinning smiles every day of gardening construction. It was when we were working in the gardens that the tiny birds about the place became our little friends.

That window of opportunity was just correct and right,a year after I was laid low upon the fabric of disability and housebound. It is a darn good job we love our surroundings including our little white ivy clad home and my dusty spreading out in - adventures within it.

As I typed this Mrs B,is kindly taking cuttings of shrubs in the garden just beyond my window,to eventually pass onto our friends, astablished plants for next year. It all helps others out,who view our jungle about the place,and admire the weird and wonderful plants.

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"Watch your eyes," I always say, "As we have some pretty dangerous spiked plants fit and pointed sharp enough to blind an eye out." I cut those spikes off,but Mrs B,does not like me for the doing of it. " Well one only gets one set of eyes you know?" I always say.
A couple of years from now those spikes of the two we have will be way above head height,and so will harm nobody. The plants are Yucca`s, over thirty two years old, and I brought them from my tiny garden in the City when they were a foot high.

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They have never flowered,as seen above,and I hope to see them do it before I pop my clogs! :-D BB
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Posted by FredG on 27 May 2017, 15:00

I'm into the weird and wonderful too BB. My favourites are the plants that eat things, I have three greenhouses of those. :yeah: :-D
I also have a Fernery to hide in.

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https://youtu.be/8vtL1moVOTQ

https://youtu.be/PtTJj93iFvw

https://youtu.be/EbIwl4CZqIc

https://youtu.be/zPjgGsRiH9A

http://youtu.be/6Tj_hcYepj8

I'd offer some photos but I don't seem to have taken any :oops:
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FredG  United Kingdom
 
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Posted by Kekso on 27 May 2017, 15:29

Great photos from both. Thanks Paul and Fred! Green is very calming (although I'm relaxed anyway ... it is weekend :xd: )
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Kekso  Croatia

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Posted by Beano Boy on 27 May 2017, 18:17

Thanks guys,it all makes the typing effort well worth it. Dalibor,you enjoy your weekend. :thumbup: Shades of green is good to my colour spectrum most certainly. FredG,thanks for your photographs ,and yes we too have many ferns that are also in your pictures. :thumbup: We have no room for green houses,but we have four really tiny gardens with evergreen planting and we bought evergreen ferns for one of them ages ago. I always sugest to people who want ferns to buy the Shuttle Cock Fern it sends out runners instead of having spores. So plant one and next year you`ll have two or three extra ones coming up.
Mrs B,is the Plants person here,guys. I have no head to keep such huge facts in.

The Great Tits,Fledged today from the box just above the doorway where I`m working at present. I will certainly miss them flying just above my head as I stand there. :-D BB
Beano Boy  England
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Posted by Wiking on 27 May 2017, 19:33

FredG wrote:
My favourites are the plants that eat things ...

I only have rabbits and rats.
(Wilga post)



An so the circle is complete.
:mrgreen:
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Wiking  Germany
 
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Posted by FredG on 27 May 2017, 20:02

Wiking wrote:An so the circle is complete.
:mrgreen:


The rabbits and rats are metal. The plants took care of the real ones. :shock:
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FredG  United Kingdom
 
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