Gardening, the simple metaller's simple pleasure

[Eoin McLove]

Fair play Stout and Ale. Sounds like a heavy duty operation.

Planting in trees and plants is a hugely satisfying past time. Back in rental accommodation since coming to Oz and I miss gardening. Hopefully we'll buy our own place in the not too distant future and I can get the green fingers back in action.

[91/30]

Zombie thread RESURRECTION!  

My wife spent time on a weekly basis between the end of last year and the start of this year calling dozens of landscapers to do a job in our garden only to be told that the job is "too small", "not worth their while" etc. - only one fella actually turned up to see the job in person!

I decided to do it myself. On my fucking own.

Two solid 10-hours days at it, I'm sore by the end of the evening but I'm enjoying myself... after a fashion. It's not even remotely finished but it's coming along. I have the sleepers cut, levelled and installed. The whole area is dug out 50mm and I made myself a heavy duty soil sieve/ridler.

Next up is membrane to block the weeds and then lay gravel over it.

I have a load of bricks left from when the old drive was taken up. I was going to use them to edge the path (between the path and the gravel).

Can anyone tell me if I can just lay them on sand or should I cement them in?

Throw a sand/cement mix under them, I used this website  https://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/diy/how-to-edge-a-lawn-with-bricks/
They'll be like a knackers teeth if you don't do something like that.
Onions, basil, chives, rosemary (fry it on the pan with a cut of steak)  macadamia nut tree, few citrus trees, a mango tree and 2 passionfruit vines growing here.  I'm always rescuing them from near death as I go away for work for a few weeks and the wife and boys wouldn't hardly throw a drop of water on them.

[StoutAndAle]

Cheers, lads. I've never put cement down in my life - not a skill I ever learned.

Can you weld or bolt bricks together? That'd be more in my wheelhouse. 

I'll give it a go. I might even post the results - but only if it's excellent... or absolutely terrible.

[Eoin McLove]

Cheers, lads. I've never put cement down in my life - not a skill I ever learned.

Can you weld or bolt bricks together? That'd be more in my wheelhouse. 

I'll give it a go. I might even post the results - but only if it's excellent... or absolutely terrible.

Have a heap of pints before you start. Worst comes to worst you'll have a good yarn to tell.

[StoutAndAle]

Have a heap of pints before you start. Worst comes to worst you'll have a good yarn to tell.

Interesting idea...

I'm taking it handy on the booze currently. I've challenged myself not to have a pint until I have all this work finished.

The 4 cold bottles of Spaten in the fridge (bought prior to the challenge being set) were taunting me on Sunday night after two solid days of throwing a shovel around the place. Resisted though.

Coincidentally - Spaten is the German word for shovel/spade.

[Eoin McLove]

All you need is a handgranate and it's off to work you go.

[StoutAndAle]

All you need is a handgranate and it's off to work you go.

Might make things fuckin' easier...

[son of the Morrigan]

Howya stout.
That magazine article posted above there is total bollox, disregard everything in it, especially if the edging you'r doing is alongside a driveway as opposed to a footpath or a flower bed or the like.
If ya do what they suggest there alongside a driveway it will be broke in bits in no time.
Is the job you'r doing edging an existing lawn like in the photos there or are ya laying a line of bricks and then filling a lawn in against them?

[StoutAndAle]

Howya stout.
That magazine article posted above there is total bollox, disregard everything in it, especially if the edging you'r doing is alongside a driveway as opposed to a footpath or a flower bed or the like.
If ya do what they suggest there alongside a driveway it will be broke in bits in no time.
Is the job you'r doing edging an existing lawn like in the photos there or are ya laying a line of bricks and then filling a lawn in against them?

It's along an existing concrete slab path in the the garden. I'm using the bricks as border between the path and a seating area when I'm laying gravel. I'm hoping to lay them flat and level with the existing path so there won't be a trip hazard.

Like this... sort of.

[son of the Morrigan]

Ah grand.
Ya want to dig a trench along the length of your path first. If you'r putting the brick long ways like in the pic there it should be 8-9 inches wide and as you'll be laying the brick on its side it needs to be 7 inches below path level.(I'm assuming its 4 inch wide brick)
That done ya want to go along and break off any snots of concrete that impede the brick butting flush against the edge of the path.
Then go along and compact the bottom of your wee trench, a foot long length of 2 by 4 and a sledge does that grand, move your timber along and tamp it hard with the butt of the sledge.
You'll find the trench bottom has sank in places, scatter a bit of gravel along it, tamp again until ya get your whole trench bottom back to 7 inches below path level.
Your ready for concrete now.
What ya want to mix is called lean mix- 3 shovels of sand, one shovel of gravel, one shovel of cement to make a 4:1 mix. Don't wet it much at all man, just add a splash of water when ya have it well mixed up to make it slightly damp.
Put this along the bottom of your trench to about 3 inches below path level so when ya lay your brick on top the brick is about an inch above path level. just do two foot at a time, don't get ahead of yourself.
Use your bit of 2 by 4 and your sledge again and tap down the brick to path level.
When ya have the whole length of the path done make a sand cement mix, 3:1, and wet well. put a haunch of this along the outside edge of your bricks at a 30 degree angle leaving it 2 inches below the top of the brick so your gravel will go over it and against the brick.
leave for 3 days and Bobs your transexual aunt.
Hope this helps man.

[son of the Morrigan]

The measurements I gave there was assuming it was reclaimed building brick ya had man.
Just realized its actually paving brick ya have so adjust accordingly, i.e. you prob. only need your trench to be 5 inches deep.
hope ya get the general idea anyway.

[Anvil]

Snails have munched some of my lettuce but the Rudbeckia I sown a couple of weeks ago is starting to germinate - so I will call that a draw! 

Biggest disappointment so far this year has been the lack of germination in a packet of seeds I bought called Ace of Spades.   They are meant to be a very dark coloured scabious.  Fingers cross they are just being very slow. 

[Thorn]

You probably know this but get a bit of salt around those lettuce, the slimey buggers will soon think twice

[astfgyl]

I've 9 seeds of weed in for the summer

[StoutAndAle]

The measurements I gave there was assuming it was reclaimed building brick ya had man.
Just realized its actually paving brick ya have so adjust accordingly, i.e. you prob. only need your trench to be 5 inches deep.
hope ya get the general idea anyway.

Sound out, man. I meant to get back to you after I finished the job but between levelling the area by hand, laying the patio slabs, the gravel and then the bricks I ended being at it til much later than I expected and I was fairly broken.

Got it done though - it's not perfect but I'm happy enough with it (for a first time go at it). Your advice on not getting too over-ambitious with it stuck in my head the whole time. 

A beer hasn't tasted that good in a long time.