Check-In Post - May 1st 2025

[badly_knitted]

Hello to all members, passers-by, curious onlookers, and shy lurkers, and welcome to our regular daily check-in post. Just leave a comment below to let us know how your current projects are progressing, or even if they're not.

Checking in is NOT compulsory, check in as often or as seldom as you want, this community isn't about pressure it's about encouragement, motivation, and support. Crafting is meant to be fun, and what's more fun than sharing achievements and seeing the wonderful things everyone else is creating?

There may also occasionally be questions, but again you don't have to answer them, they're just a way of getting to know each other a bit better.


This Week's Question: Do you change crafts with the season or stick to the same crafts year round?


If anyone has any questions of their own about the community, or suggestions for tags, questions to be asked on the check-in posts, or if anyone is interested in playing check-in host for a week here on the community, which would entail putting up the daily check-in posts and responding to comments, go to the Questions & Suggestions post and leave a comment.

I now declare this Check-In OPEN!

Comments

[badly_knitted]

It's hot and humid and thundery, but no rain yet. Hoping to get some.


Killed around 130 caterpillars, cut up some ivy, cleared more dead leaves and stuff, started collecting surplus stones because I don't want them ending up on the compost heap. Started sweeping some of the souil ftom the concrete and I think I have a rough idea of where the edge of the concrete should be. The soil is overlapping it by about 20 inches., and there's a piece of flowering currant growing there so I'm hoping I can pot that up and clear the rest. Then the salvaged piece can be planted somewhere more suitable.

[wiseheart]

Wow, you really have elaborate plans about the garden! Good for you!

Also, hurrah for more dead caterpillars!

[badly_knitted]

Not really, just trying to reclaim what's already there and has just got buried the way the path had before I uncovered it last year.

[darkcedars]

Sounds like excellent progress. Good luck transplanting the current.

[badly_knitted]

Thanks! I already tried with one piece, but there wasn't much root so I'm doubtful that one will survive Just got to find or empty a big enough pot for its temporary home. There are plenty of them, but they tend to have large hairy spiders in residence, so emptying them is fraught with terror.

[peaceful_sands]

Ew! Spiders and caterpillars (am I giving away one of the reasons I'm such a bad gardener...)

[badly_knitted]

I generally like caterpillars, most do little harm, but the gooseberry sawfly ones are decimating the gooseberry leaves. As for spiders... I don't mind small ones, especially the garden kind, but the ones that take up residence in plant pots... No thanks. I tipped out one pot yesterday and there was a big, fat black spider in it. They're not so bad, they don't move fast. The other pot had a massive house spider type in it. I managed to move the pot, but didn't empty it. I tipped the contents out this morning, just hoping the spider moved elsewhere overnight, or that a bird got it.

[peaceful_sands]

I'm not good with any sort of creepy crawly in the garden and do my best to avoid them. (To be fair - I just leave most of them be unless they're actually a significant danger to the plants or other wildlife or they're in a particularly problematic spot e.g. the spiders who make webs across the front and back doors for example - why do they do that? *sigh*). The one type that completely freaks me out is an earwig - but I think that was aggravated by either the start of a film or book that I happened across in which one actually went in someone's ear - needless to say I didn't finish the book/film.

In fact combine my urgh with the small wildlife and my allergies that if I come into contact with the sap or get scratched or the pollen I can inhale and they can all reduce me to a nasty mess in a pile of tissues or a big red swollen and sore lump - it's amazing my garden is ever done. I pulled a couple of weeds the other day as I passed the front garden on the way back from a walk - literally pulled them out, in the bin, unlocked the front door and washed my hands and one arm ended up swollen. (On a bad day, I even get it from preparing fresh flowers for a vase!)

[badly_knitted]

Ugh, what awful allergies! I can swell badly from mosquito bites, but your allergies seem like they can come from anything you come inro contact with. So sorry =(

I'm lucky that most creepy crawlies don't bother me. A good thing considering how much I love garden work.

[peaceful_sands]

Wow! Very determined progress!

[badly_knitted]

Thanks! And last night there was a storm with heavy rain so I'm glad I did what I did yesterday. The soil will be too wet today for scrabbling around on the ground.

[nagi_schwarz]

Congratulations, Conqueror of Caterpillars! You've done amazing!

[badly_knitted]

Trying my best to beat my foe!