Well that's the suggestion because we are due for a heat wave Summer and if
you rip up your lawn then you will not be tempted to break the hose pipe
ban.

Who said that? Someone on the Radio a few minutes ago.

So, get digging.

Mike


--

....................................
Remember, a statue has never been erected to a critic.

....................................

"'Mike'" wrote in message
...
Well that's the suggestion because we are due for a heat wave Summer and
if you rip up your lawn then you will not be tempted to break the hose
pipe ban.

Who said that? Someone on the Radio a few minutes ago.

So, get digging.




It was Carol Klein who suggested you gave up your obsession with lawns

Mike

--

....................................
Remember, a statue has never been erected to a critic.

....................................

On 02/06/2011 09:05, 'Mike' wrote:
wrote in message
...
Well that's the suggestion because we are due for a heat wave Summer and
if you rip up your lawn then you will not be tempted to break the hose
pipe ban.

Who said that? Someone on the Radio a few minutes ago.

So, get digging.


It was Carol Klein who suggested you gave up your obsession with lawns

The most sensible gardening presenter on TV. But then she's a
plantswoman, so she would say get rid of the lawn - as it takes up space
where other, more interesting (or should I just say "interesting" -
grass is not interesting at all) plants can be grown.

--

Jeff

Grasses are interesting. We have lots of Timothy in flower at the moment, and Sweet Vernal grass just going over. But grasses repeatedly chopped to 1 or 2 inches aren't interesting, I agree.

In article , Jeff Layman
writes

The most sensible gardening presenter on TV.

No she's not; she's a silly old woman, but she is partly right in this
case.

Most people have no idea how to have a decent lawn - not an immaculate
bowling green but something pleasant to sit on, play games in, etc. They
scalp the grass to within an inch of its life with a cylinder mower,
pile the cuttings in a noisome heap or chuck them over a fence onto a
grass verge to rot, then buy expensive fertiliser to make it grow again.
(see the recent thread 'OT? - joke'. Spot on.)

Then as soon as there are a couple of days of dry weather they start
panicking and wasting valuable water by watering it; a process that is
quite unnecessary if the lawn is treated right. In any case, even if the
grass does go brown it will soon green up at the first lot of rain.

I use a hover mower which puts the clippings back on the ground as a
mulch. I have done this for years so the soil contains plenty of humus.
Treated this way the roots go down very deep so that even in the driest
weather the grass stays green. The only watering it ever gets is by
Mother Nature and any drippings from the clothes line. The only
treatment it has had is a light application of sulphate of iron last
year and this year to kill a very bad infestation of moss due to shading
by trees. Never, ever any fertiliser or weed killer.

The result is a pleasant area of green which as well as grass grows
daisies, dandelions and one or two other plants which are not affected
by the cutting. I have a huge vegetable garden and don't need to dig up
the lawn for any reason.

Talking of daises, we recently visited someone hosting an art exhibition
who asked everyone to keep off the grass because it had been sprayed to
kill the daisies.

Now there is a fool!

Roy.

--
Roy Bailey
West Berkshire.

In article , Sacha
writes
On 2011-06-02 18:38:44 +0100, Roy Bailey said:

No she's not; she's a silly old woman, but she is partly right in
this
case.

Hold it right there, matey. She's not silly and neither am I and we're
about the same age.
But I wasn't talking about you; I was talking about her. Age is
irrelevant in this argument.

Carol Klein knows more about gardening than you've learned,
Quite possibly, but that is a proposition difficult to prove. You do not
say on what basis you make that assumption.

so whether you like her style or not, let's have less of the 'silly old
woman' stuff. Because that just might make you an idiotic young fool
with bad manners.
As I am older than both of you, I hardly qualify for the first part of
your assessment. As far as bad manners is concerned, I was expressing an
opinion.

As Carol Klein also lives in Devon, she may well be a friend and
neighbour of yours, but that doesn't alter the fact that I find her one
of the three most intensely irritating presenters on television,
together with Dan Cruickshank and Mark Horton.

Roy.
--
Roy Bailey
West Berkshire.

On Sat, 4 Jun 2011 09:47:37 +0100, Sacha wrote:

On 2011-06-04 09:28:30 +0100, Roy Bailey said:
[...]

As Carol Klein also lives in Devon, she may well be a friend and
neighbour of yours, but that doesn't alter the fact that I find her one
of the three most intensely irritating presenters on television,
together with Dan Cruickshank and Mark Horton.

Roy.

She isn't a neighbour (Devon is a large county) and we've met her a few
times, so neither is she a friend. She is, however, a plantswoman who
really knows her stuff and that's what is important. As far as I can
see every single tv presenter has both detractors and admirers. Only
the other day, I received an email from a customer who thinks Carol
should be leading the GW team while quite recently someone here said
her voice drove him mad. And now this not-silly and not-really-old
woman must drag her achy bones into the town and then the garden!

I think CK is very good: knows and loves her subject, doesn't mind
getting her hands grubby. Perhaps Roy doesn't like her strange habit
of laughing every few seconds for no apparent reason: Geoffrey Smith
used to do that, too, especially in his early days on the screen, and
it was irritating. Something in the water north of Brum, perhaps? But
it's worth putting up with an eccentric mannerism in return for all
that expertise.

--
Mike.

"Jeff Layman" wrote in message
...
On 02/06/2011 09:05, 'Mike' wrote:
wrote in message
...
Well that's the suggestion because we are due for a heat wave Summer and
if you rip up your lawn then you will not be tempted to break the hose
pipe ban.

Who said that? Someone on the Radio a few minutes ago.

So, get digging.


It was Carol Klein who suggested you gave up your obsession with lawns

The most sensible gardening presenter on TV. But then she's a
plantswoman, so she would say get rid of the lawn - as it takes up space
where other, more interesting (or should I just say "interesting" - grass
is not interesting at all) plants can be grown.

--

Jeff

Not everyone enjoys a lawn, especially some old folk who have difficulty in
mowing and caring for a lawn. I got rid of one smallish lawn and replaced it
with 2 tons of slate chippings.d now I have pots It looks great anof
various sizes planted.

Bill

On 02/06/2011 14:32, Janet wrote:
In , lid
says...

On 02/06/2011 09:05, 'Mike' wrote:

It was Carol Klein who suggested you gave up your obsession with lawns

The most sensible gardening presenter on TV. But then she's a
plantswoman, so she would say get rid of the lawn - as it takes up space
where other, more interesting (or should I just say "interesting" -
grass is not interesting at all) plants can be grown.

That's a very narrow view of the purpose of a garden. People use lawn
areas for childrens' play, dog games and excercise, badminton and croquet
etc. I prefer a washing line strung above lawn rather than paving
(cleaner if you drop the washing).

You wont find me disagreeing with what you say, as that is what a
"garden" has become. Basically you could concrete it all over and it
would still be the "garden" which is effectively and extra room for the
house. However, most definitions of a garden do not mention those
(recreational) activities. A "garden" was defined in the Oxford English
Dictionary as an "enclosed piece of ground devoted to the cultivation of
flowers, fruit or vegetables". That has been somewhat modified of late
to include such things as wild gardens.

But you don't need a lawn for the activities you describe - all could be
done on any flat surface. Of course, the strange thing is that those
who strive for perfect lawns would never allow any of those things on them!

--

Jeff

"Jeff Layman" wrote in message
...
On 02/06/2011 14:32, Janet wrote:
In , lid
says...

On 02/06/2011 09:05, 'Mike' wrote:

It was Carol Klein who suggested you gave up your obsession with lawns

The most sensible gardening presenter on TV. But then she's a
plantswoman, so she would say get rid of the lawn - as it takes up space
where other, more interesting (or should I just say "interesting" -
grass is not interesting at all) plants can be grown.

That's a very narrow view of the purpose of a garden. People use lawn
areas for childrens' play, dog games and excercise, badminton and croquet
etc. I prefer a washing line strung above lawn rather than paving
(cleaner if you drop the washing).

You wont find me disagreeing with what you say, as that is what a "garden"
has become. Basically you could concrete it all over and it would still
be the "garden" which is effectively and extra room for the house.
However, most definitions of a garden do not mention those (recreational)
activities. A "garden" was defined in the Oxford English Dictionary as an
"enclosed piece of ground devoted to the cultivation of flowers, fruit or
vegetables". That has been somewhat modified of late to include such
things as wild gardens.

But you don't need a lawn for the activities you describe - all could be
done on any flat surface. Of course, the strange thing is that those who
strive for perfect lawns would never allow any of those things on them!

--

Jeff

'Of course, the strange thing is that those who strive for perfect lawns
would never allow any of those things on them!'

""KEEP OFF THE GRASS""

;-))

Mike
Concrete it and paint it green

--

....................................
Remember, a statue has never been erected to a critic.

....................................

On Thu, 2 Jun 2011 16:26:30 +0100, Mike wrote:

Concrete it and paint it green

Or lay astro turf.

--
Cheers
Dave.

"Janet" wrote in message
...
In article , lid
says...

On 02/06/2011 09:05, 'Mike' wrote:

It was Carol Klein who suggested you gave up your obsession with lawns

The most sensible gardening presenter on TV. But then she's a
plantswoman, so she would say get rid of the lawn - as it takes up space
where other, more interesting (or should I just say "interesting" -
grass is not interesting at all) plants can be grown.

That's a very narrow view of the purpose of a garden. People use lawn
areas for childrens' play, dog games and excercise, badminton and croquet
etc. I prefer a washing line strung above lawn rather than paving
(cleaner if you drop the washing).

Janet

My lawn became a "playground" for my two Labs - they virtually destroyed it.
Now I only have one, aged Lab who is too tired to do any damage. He's 12
and failing fast :-(

Bill

I'm never tempted to water my lawn. I find it rather convenient when it doesn't grow very much, as I don't have to mow it as often. But if you think I am not going to let vegetables or costly shrubs die for lack of water... I'm metered and pay for every drop.

"'Mike'" wrote in message
...
Well that's the suggestion because we are due for a heat wave Summer and
if you rip up your lawn then you will not be tempted to break the hose
pipe ban.

Bring it on, I have my well pump nicely set up ready to irrigate.

Mike

"MuddyMike" wrote in message
om...

"'Mike'" wrote in message
...
Well that's the suggestion because we are due for a heat wave Summer and
if you rip up your lawn then you will not be tempted to break the hose
pipe ban.

Bring it on, I have my well pump nicely set up ready to irrigate.

Mike


We have a well which we have not bothered to use as with half a dozen butts
off various roofs, we will manage.

And we are on the cursed water meter too :-((

Mike

--

....................................
Remember, a statue has never been erected to a critic.

....................................