Good Weather AND a Bank Holiday..? May 22, 2009

Surely not!? Especially when the weather has been so pap for the last 2 weeks!

So, this weekend, what to do…?

1. Plant out sweat peas – mine are now quite long and a little bit unruly, so I have now thought that I just need to get them in the ground. They should have gone in ages ago, as they are hardy, but…its me! I am going to grow them up some trellis fencing next to the veg patch and also on bamboo canes in the borders. You can NEVER have enough sweat peas! I just pick them and put them all round the house, and next door get them, and my mum and dad, and visitors….anyone really! You’ll have loads!

2. plant more sweetcorn, as I only have 8 out of 15 that have germinated – I thought they were a bit pap last year, but have now realised it must…be…the seed! Not me {cough}, of course. I don’t think that 8 will be enough for decent germination…? Any advice please…?

3. Do my bedding plant boxes – I did some the other week – I’ve got some hay planters as window boxes that I planted up for under the kitchen windows but I want loads of colour this year, as last year, was a bit of a poor show, and I missed having loads of colour. You can never have too many bedding plants!

4. I MAY plant some winter ornamental cabbage – its just run to seed, so this may be the time to pant some for the winter. if i can be bothered…?

So, enjoy the weekend, get outside in the SUN (I know – whats that!?) and happy digging!

Gardeners World Live May 20, 2009

Tickets are booked for GWL- whhhhho-ho!

Don’t fancy Chelsea which is on at the moment, bit to London based for my liking, and Soilman had a bit of a rant on it last week, so I’m defo not going – may suffer the wrath of Soilman – to be prevented at ALL costs! {guffaw}

So, me and my friend Rachel from Milton Keynes (sorry, Amptill – just a bit posher) are off on the Sunday I think. Cannot wait – may even catch a sight of Toby – the best thing to hit gardeners world for ages – he’s put a breath of fresh air into it! even joe looks like his chains have been unclipped. I think Monty used to hide them in a cupboard for the week and then bring them out on a Friday…..Mmmmmmm.

Looking forward to the Taste of Greenacre – think its exciting seeing a plot of land turned into a productive garden. Always intrigued how you design it, build it, and not go, damn, that would have been good, I wish I’d put that into it, once its been finished. Suppose thats experience and research for you…?

Have seen that James Wong is there on the Wednesday – the Grow Your own Drugs man (NOT that kind!) – he was really interesting on the TV.

Mr Veg will not be going…..both he and I are pleased at that!

Me cos I can be the gardening lady for the weekend.

Him cos he won’t have to be dragged round like a moody 2 year old with his bottom lip sticking out. “Veg is boooooooring.”

Soft Fruits – Yummy May 18, 2009

Lots of fruit in our garden – especially from the apple tree that is heavily leaden, but here goes;

Raspberries – mainly Glen Ample

Not holding my breath for a good crop, as only planted in Feb, but I can hope…. they produce fruit from July to August so hopefully will crop heavily next year instead! I have about 10 canes and they are all getting their leaves. Seems you cut them back as soon as they have finished flowering…something I didn’t do last year!

 

Plums – Victoria

Again, failure last year without about 4 plums! This year there was a lot of blossom so I kept knocking the tree so it would spread the lurve….or rather the pollen. Hopefully it will do better this year, as I’ve got about 20 little plums that are growing now, and all this rain…..well they should be as big as apples!

 

Apples – Dunno what type!

But there are bloomin’ LOADS!!!! i looked yesterday and I’m going to have to pick loads off as the branches are quite week – its only 3-4 years old the tree and if they all develop, it will snap the branches. last year I had about 6 apples, but literally, there must be about 60 little buds that have formed. Must be me knocking the tree like the plum one…I am THE POLLINATOR. {cue Terminator 2 music…oh, on this note – anyone seen Star Trek…no? Its REALLY GOOD!}

 

Gooseberrys

I am useless with these – just becasue they have thorns on them. Last year I think I got one crumble out of 1 bush. This year I have 2, so it may be 2 crumbles! oh the excitement! Not. They taste a bit cack in anycase.

 

Blackberrys

Again, a poor show last year, but was its first year. Lets hope for better this year – maybe a year for cassis….? Or a year where I’ll eat the 4 berrys that come off the pittiful harvest?

 

Rhubarb

Obviously a monster like the earlier post. I’ve just googled for when is rhubarb ready…and it seems that its ready when you can pull it off the crown without yanking. I may be pulling the whole thing up being such a strong young wipper snapper that I am…..! May test that tonight. Mr Veg is away so something rhubarb based may be cooked…?

 

No pics for a while, as Mr Veg is off round the country with work and has, shock, horror, taken the (my!!) camera to take photos of horrid old buildings with squatters and druggies in them! I’d rather take pics of veg…..

Mangetouts,SugarSnaps,Poles,Runners,dwarf green May 15, 2009

…or to you and me……peas & beans!

Loads of ‘em at ours. Dwarf French, I think – them long thin ones…..

I planted these straight into the ground a few weeks ago, as everything was getting a bit big in the greenhouse, so thought I could have mid crop of these. And by ‘eck have they gone slowly!

These have sprouted, and others haven’t, so I’ll dig these doubles up and just have 1 plant per pole. The soil is quite claggy in this bed, so I put some compost in the area that I planted the bean, so it wouldn’t get too waterlogged. Unsure if its worked or not, but had about 80% success, so not too bad!

These are the mangetouts below:

Closest to you on the ’suport’ cane (which is flippin’ useless) are the sweat peas that I have planted at the end of each run. Hopefully add a bit of colour to the veg patch!

Here are the Pole beans and the Jerusalem artichokes that I ‘dug up’ last year! Obviously didn’t do a good job!

Hoping that the 2 can grow together. If not, ah well.

Now, if you went away for the night and thought b*gger, theres going to be a mild frost….my BEANS – they’ll DIE….and you got home to find this……

….my dad had ripped the fleece into pieces and wrapped it individually round every bean and pea! How good is he…!!!?? Thanks Dad- LOVE YA!

Too Many Tomato’s May 13, 2009

Well, Freecycle may be getting a few tomato’s, so if you live in the Castleford area – beware! I have about 50 ’spare’ plants….oops! Me and my dad have gone a bit ‘crazy’ in our planting!

Glad to see that my sweetcorn has got about 6 heads poking through – pleased at least some have germinated. Only about another 9 to go…..then I’ll have a decent block to plant out, and grow the corgettes/pumpkins at the bottom….part of the 3 ladies growing plan. But with only 2. So we’ll call it the 2 ladies growing plan.

All my beans – mangetouts and sugar snaps are now planted out up canes, along with pole beans and also runners. The sugar snaps look a bit yellow and a bit washy already, so need to feed them and keep an eye out on them. The mangetouts are looking damn fine and green and healthy and have about 5 flowers on about 8 plants already…yum! They’ve both been planted the same and treated the same. Bad workmen blame thier tools, so I shall blame the seed!

I have planted sweet peas at the end of each run of peas, as last year I didn’t think I had enough flowers to draw the bees into the veg plot, so hoping that crops may be higher this year with some bees!

Also rhubarb – not only is it 6 ft tall and taking over a half of a bed, its started to flower. I’ve just Googled it, and Pippa Greenwood (her of the BBC, hence in my book, an expert) says that it can weaken the rhubarb, and even KILL it!!! Sugar -  after I go home, I shall be cutting off said flower.

See we learn things every day….mostly from Google, I’ll be honest….what DID we do without t’internet?

Planting Nasturcian Seeds May 11, 2009

I am getting a lot of hits (well, a few) on how to plant nasturcians.

Here’s how:

1. get a pot with soil in

2. put the seed on top of the soil.

3. push the seed about a cm into the soil

4. put on a window cill

Hey presto – they are gutsy little buggers, and eventually turn up like weeds, so there is no way you can do it wrong unless the seeds are duff!

Happy nasturcian planting.