Thursday, 23 January 2025

More Plant Production.

 I spent a couple of hours yesterday potting on some laurel hedge cuttings I took in the Autumn:


You can see the white roots poking under the plant pot. I used just ordinary sand left over from a DIY project. You can also see my wellingtons!


I potted them on into my second hand plant filled with home-made compost.


I potted on 28 plants in total.

They would easily suffice for a thirty foot long hedge.  I cut back a laurel hedge in Autumn and bagged up some of the cuttings.

Interestingly Laurel contains cyanide and can be toxic to livestock.

I have read of people taking laurel trimmings to their local tip in the back of their cars and complained of nasty headaches.  No doubt from the plants releasing their cyanide fumes.  

Like the old estate gardeners stories I have read in old gardening books.  You can make your plants for free.  

I will either plant my hedging or sell them at a carboot sale. 

I hope Storm Eowyn shows mercy on our polytunnels, greenhouses and sheds tonight and tomorrow.



14 comments:

  1. Laurel hedges are popular here. They need little maintenance or water. None in our garden

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  2. Laurel is not fond of the coast here Linda. They can grow to forty feet high if left unchecked. They are fairly easy to propagate from cuttings. I do the same with Griselina. They originate from your New Zealand and make a good coastal hedge

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  3. We should only feel the tail end of the storm, we have had loads of rain, it's now sunny and cold. Hope your little plot survive the next couple of days.

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  4. Thanks Marlene. The whole of Ireland is on red alert and the schools are closed tomorrow. The storms seem to becoming more frequent and violent every winter. Roll on spring time.

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  5. Thanks JayCee. The pigs will want their breakfast and they hate it if I am late. A few hot whiskeys tonight and a few cans of Guinness before we batten down the hatches. I hope my polytunnel survives.

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  6. My grandmother used to put a laural leaf in custard. Cyanide smells of almonds. 😜 Did you know that there is also a large leafed Griselinia (leaves about 14cm across)? Why did the Romans use laurels for crowning champions?

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  7. I remember you telling us TM. The Victorians would place a Laurel leaf in a jar with a butterfly and the gas killed them. They call Griselina " New Zealand Privet". I didn't know about the large leafed specimen. I suppose: " To rest on ones laurels" means the champions were content with their success?"

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  8. I hope the storm passes quickly. Stay safe, Dave.

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  9. Thanks Jules. I hope you and yours are all safe.

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  10. Hope the storm goes easy on your polytunnel.

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    1. It didn't do Debby. Pictures to follow later. Who would want to live in the countryside next to the sea? At least we have Internet and electricity.

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  11. Hi Dave, hope you and your tunnel survive ok. We are only getting winds up to about 65 mph this time, so hopefully we will be ok. We just found more of our roof iron sheets ripped of by the last storm. Bot our narn is quite old and big.
    Stay safe.
    Kathy

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  12. Hi Kathy. It looks badly damaged but some of it is still intact. I think the storms are too strong for polytunnels like mine. I will have a proper walk round and look in a while.

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