Grow 2021-24

[Tenbury]

Exmoor gardening report

no sign of anything from this years parsnips anticipate big failure rate again

They are really slow to germinate (some suggest sowing them mixed with radish to 'mark the row', but I'm not a great fan of this). There's plenty of time to re sow, and now the soil's warmed up they should show in 3 to 4 weeks, and these should keep right through till almost next April, so all good. [ traditional plug for growing in gutters etc, etc !!]
I have failures every year.... and not just cues, my peas are ropey, think it's been too dry.

[Up the Junction]

None of my 'snips (planted last week of March) have shown yet either. Last year some took up to two months to show.

Everything outside currently taking a battering from the constant 20mph+ winds we're going to be experiencing all week here. All those salads (toms/lettuces etc) I'd put out a couple of weeks ago thanks to the mild overnight temps are back indoors again.

And the slugs arrived with a vengeance following the rain at the weekend, they've taken a distinct liking to the cabbage plot.

[mushy]

We obviously missed a few 'tatas last year as there's four plants growing where they shouldn't be now...

And two huge rocket plants I left in over winter have bolted and I've been picking rocket seedlings out of the stones next to the bed they're in.

I grew potatoes over 10 years ago and haven't bothered since. Still get them sprouting up every year despite digging them up all the time.
As for tomatoes, my plug plants arrived last year really battered and didn't take when I potted them.
However to my surprise a splendid tomato plant grew in a corner of the garden I had never used before, I can only imagine that the year before a tomato must have transported itself there and sat there all winter before germinating and producing quite a decent crop (for the wet summer we had).
Which makes me wonder why anyone bothers with all the flaff of plug plants or growing from seed, keeping them indoors and constantly potting on.
Surely all I need to do is randomly leave a few old tomatoes around the garden and that's it.

[sendô]

None of my 'snips (planted last week of March) have shown yet either. Last year some took up to two months to show.

We thought we'd pulled all our nips up before Christmas last year, yet come late Feb we had a whole load more that seemed to come from nowhere.

[Up the Junction]

Surely all I need to do is randomly leave a few old tomatoes around the garden and that's it.

In my experience, there's a fair bit of truth in that.

[WHU Independent]

These hot days are really having an effect om the stuff in my greenhouse.

Tomatoes - shot up now need bamboo restraining poles. Flowering as well. Looks like I've got two determinate and 4 inderterminate. I cut off some lower leaves that were touching the dirt and repotted them. Looks like they have died.

Peppers - yeah - got quite a few green shoots, that have doubled in size in two days.Looking hopeful.

Asparagus - just the one shoot, it's doing well.

Rocket - already started growing, looks decent.

Chillis - still growing - will need repotting in a week or so.

Outside the greenouse in allotment 1.

Potatoes: Flowering nicely - continuing to put soil up high next to the flowers as I have been advised. Even got a few random potatoes which the preivious owner planted, flowering nicely.

Onions - growing nicely - 8 inch stems atm.

Spring onions - struggling. Some growth but not a lot.

Carrots and Brussels - no real development to report.

Did a lot of in hosue work today and didn't get in the gardent till late. That said, I set about weeding with a vengance and discovered I have one lonely Rhubard plant that is still alive but seems to be struggeling. I've cleared all the weeds in a 6 inch circumferance from around it, watered it and am going to put some compost round te base tomorrow. I won't let this fooker die I don't even like rhubarb that much.

last action of the night was to wander round the back garden with a pressurized sprayer full of salty water and sprayed it directly onto the weeds centre. It seems to be having an effect - they are turning black and shrivelling up.

[V-M]

last action of the night was to wander round the back garden with a pressurized sprayer full of salty water and sprayed it directly onto the weeds centre. It seems to be having an effect - they are turning black and shrivelling up.

Ive never tried using salted water, wont the salt remain in the soil and have an effect on anything you plant once the weeds have gone?

[sendô]

Ive never tried using salted water, wont the salt remain in the soil and have an effect on anything you plant once the weeds have gone?

Yeah but if you grow spuds they'll come out ready salted.






/coat

[Up the Junction]

With overnight temps not set to dip below 10 deg. for the next five days I've taken the plunge and put everything out today - cucumbers, courgettes, peppers, pak choi, hanging baskets etc - all the non-hardies. Was 1 June last year, so we're a couple of weeks ahead this time around.

[Metal Hammer]

I'm rubbish at this, about to re-pot my tomato seedlings

[mushy]

I'm rubbish at this, about to re-pot my tomato seedlings

Use very small pots for seedlings otherwise the soil tends to hold the water and rots the roots.
It's root growth you are after in the early stages so water very sparingly.
Potting on several times seems to be the key for growing tomatoes in my experience.

[sendô]

Had Friday off and planted out some spinach, onions and sweetcorn. Also got some runner beans that I didnt get time for but will do next weekend.

Still have two rows to fill, but I've seeded a lot more things from various seeds I found in the shed including lettuce, toms, radishes, broccoli plus basil and parsley.

[Up the Junction]

What variety corn, sends?

[WHU Independent]

Grow update:

Allotment:

Non chitted spuds growing well.

20 well chitted spuds put in the ground yesterday.

Onions and spring onions doing well.

Carrots and Brussels not doing to well. I think i buried them too deep. Got a few shoots comng through but not many.

Greenhouse:

had a bit of a moment with the tomes. I didn't water them till late on a hot day and they started wilting. A good watering plus a good pruning of leaves that were touching the ground fixed it now. The indeterminates are now tied to bamboo poles and are growing well. Indeterminates small but bushy - lots of flowers on both.

Peppers - about 12 have started growing up - about 2 inches high looking fern like. When they get more established I'll re pot them.

Asparagus - one solitary plant is battling on through - it's looking strong though.

Rocket - still small but growing well.

Chilli's - getting bigger every day - a few weeks away fron repotting.

Flowers - one row is dead, over watering is my guess. The rest are florishing and will need repotting in a couple of weeks.

The tomato cuttings - all died except one that is hanging on in there.

Garden:

Front:

All good. Flowers and trees are blooming. Anything that is dying/dead is being removed,

Back:

I've used the edging tool to cu into the next area of garden that is going to have a border. my Cherry, plum and apple trees have flowered, my one Rhubarb plant is getting bigger and stronger, Pionies are flowering lovely, roses need to be drastically pruned in the autum, - all in all it's pretty good.

Actually took the time to actually sit in the garden with a glass of wine in the sun and enjoy it. Very relaxing it was too.

[mushy]

Grow update:

Allotment:

Non chitted spuds growing well.

20 well chitted spuds put in the ground yesterday.

Onions and spring onions doing well.

Carrots and Brussels not doing to well. I think i buried them too deep. Got a few shoots comng through but not many.

Greenhouse:

had a bit of a moment with the tomes. I didn't water them till late on a hot day and they started wilting.

The tomato cuttings - all died except one that is hanging on in there.

Garden:

Wilting is common in hot weather and not a problem.
A drop of water works wonders.
As for your cuttings, what are you doing with them?
Plop them in a cup of water (stems only) and put them on the window ledge and give it 7-10 days, you will see the roots grow out and then you can pot them.
In hot growing weather you don't need to grow the roots first you can put them straight into pots but you need to give them lots of water.
Always pick the hairiest shoots for cuttings, it's these hairs that become roots.
This is for indeterminates by the way, these are the only Toms I grow.
I reckon you could start the season with just one plant and have dozens by the end of the summer, a lot depends on the weather of course.

[sendô]

What variety corn, sends?

Good question. I'll have to look.

I only bought it as Sendo Jr #3 insists he loves it and is going to eat it all. The rate he went through our strawberries last year I believe him.

[prophet:marginal]

Home grown stuff like strawbs and raspberries are so much better tasting than shop bought stuff

[WHU Independent]

Cheers Mushy me old mate. Will do that with the tom stems in future.

Today was not so much about gardening as labouring. I dug an 18 inch wide, 4 inch deep 4 meter long trench to pour in my gblue/gray slate to finish of the border beween the garden and the flowers.

I'm completely shattered!

[jevs]

What variety corn, sends?

I usually grow Swift.

[Up the Junction]

I usually grow Swift.

I've bought some of those this year, Jevs - and they certainly live up to their name.

Of the three varieties I've got, they've been first to germinate - twice!