The garden veg thread.

[taun]

As were looking like to have a summer with limited things to do, I am sure many like myself will be in there gardens growing fruit and veg.

I have just one raised bed atm, but I have potatoes and onions in already. Plan to sow some carrots over the next few weeks. I am going grow the following in pots, lettuce, tomatoes & peppers. I have two apple tree, two plums and a pear tree which are currently in blossom. Seen a few bees on them so hopefully will get a good crop this year of fruit.

Plan is to build more raised beds but I need to move my ducks first to get room for the raised beds.

So show us your plots, what your going to grow, etc. share your stories and success and failures here.

 

[Ned]

This is my second year of having an allotment, I am currently cropping purple sprouting broccoli, parsnips, leeks and of course rhubarb.
I have been digging lots recently and have sown a whole load of stuff. Lettuce is coming through after the recent fine weather.

 

[taun]

This is my second year of having an allotment, I am currently cropping purple sprouting broccoli, parsnips, leeks and of course rhubarb.
I have been digging lots recently and have sown a whole load of stuff. Lettuce is coming through after the recent fine weather.

Nice I would like an allotment but fear I wont have the time to get on it. So back garden is easier to spend the time there.

 

[Crowthorne]

I don't have an allotment anymore, but if you can get them, and they're your kind of veg, there are now UK varieties of Sweet Potato that grow well in warm soil, but don't require the very high heat of their native crop ranges.

 

[taun]

I don't have an allotment anymore, but if you can get them, and they're your kind of veg, there are now UK varieties of Sweet Potato that grow well in warm soil, but don't require the very high heat of their native crop ranges.

When I expand the area in the garden for growing veg I will definitely look at growing sweet potatoes. Really love sweet potatoes roasters, also apparently can make nice chips too.

Been out in the garden this morning to sow some carrots and lettice. I used some of my own compost to fill the bottom of the pots up as I don't have too much shop bought compost and want to make sure I have enough for the tomatoes and peppers that will be ready to pot in a week or twos time.

 

[Ned]

Nice I would like an allotment but fear I wont have the time to get on it. So back garden is easier to spend the time there.

The advantage of a garden is the convenience of being able to pop out and do a few jobs when you have a spare moment. The allotment is good from the point of view that people share seeds and donate plants and excess produce to each other.

 

[Ned]

I don't have an allotment anymore, but if you can get them, and they're your kind of veg, there are now UK varieties of Sweet Potato that grow well in warm soil, but don't require the very high heat of their native crop ranges.

I like the idea of sweet potatoes, I'll have to search the internet for some.

 

[taun]

The advantage of a garden is the convenience of being able to pop out and do a few jobs when you have a spare moment. The allotment is good from the point of view that people share seeds and donate plants and excess produce to each other.

Very true, my ideal home has a walled kitchen garden!

Been a few years since I have grown stuff, loved popping out pulling up some veg to cook that night.

I don't want to take on the allotment atm...if I get growing a lot at home I might just look at finding one.

 

[taun]

Potted on my tomatoes yesterday, still got to do my peppers but want really big strong plants before potting on as they sometimes don't like the move.

Lettice is starting to show and my carrots are starting to sprout. My plum tree has lots of promising signs I should get a bumper crop of plums (just need to hope they all develop, last year a lot failed). Same with the pears, although never get many pears usually.

All is looking good for a good year of growing.

 

[taun]

My early potatoes coming along nicely will be ready to start harvesting next month.

I planted more carrots and onions, onions have taken and started to grow, carrot should start sprouting after this weekend.

My peppers now have the signs of flowers starting to grow on it, I planted a couple out in the garden as they were spare they didn't do anything as expected.

Managed to find another 3 pots suitable to plant on some more tomatoe plants.

Lettice is growing nicely, expect by the end of the month I can start enjoying it. Sown some more seeds to get a later summer crop too.

Nothing more exciting than seeing your crops sprout and grow. Just something about new life, whether it be animals or plant is always a joy to see.

 

[taun]

A little update, been two months but in that time I have had all my early potatoes, got maybe a couple of weeks worth stored, with the rain we have had in the uk the potatoes in the ground (not the raised bed) have not done as well as the garden gets boggy with lots of rain.

Also been pulling up some carrots that are just about decent size, they smell amazing and are very nice to eat.

I have had a few sweet peppers, I expect the next couple of weeks I shall have loads ready, not 100% sure what I will do with them. Some I will roast for having with salad in the week.

My tomatoes are just starting to ripen, looking forward to having them next week.

I have planted out brocoli and cauliflowers, the brocoli are ahead of the caulifowers and just starting to see heads form.

I have also got a cucumber plant, trying it outdoors as I don't have a green house already got the first signs of cucumbers on the plant.

The garden has kept me sane over these last few months and now is a great time for it reap the rewards, I have been eating 3/4 things from the garden every week. In the next couple of months that will double. Happy gardening everyone.

 

[Ned]

I'm off to my allotment after two weeks neglect (I've been away) before leaving I had carrots, pak choi, courgettes, lettuce, gooseberries all cropping. I'm hopping that my beans haven't gone over while I've been away.
I've grown outdoor cucumbers in the past and they are so much better than greenhouse ones. I may even have some ready when I get there tonight.

 

[taun]

I've grown outdoor cucumbers in the past and they are so much better than greenhouse ones. I may even have some ready when I get there tonight.

Interesting, I have never grown them before. Asda had a single plant for 75p so thought I would have ago. If I just get two cucumbers off it it will have been worth it.

Have fun, I checked my carrots and one had one ready but its enough for a meal.

 

[Ned]

I discovered recently that courgettes are naturally very toxic. Having left a self-seeded courgette plant to grow I harvested one of it's fruits (I guess they're a fruit); and it was incredibly bitter. I remembered hearing somewhere that pumpkins are naturally toxic and wondered if this was true of courgettes. Turns out that not only pumpkins and courgettes but also cucumbers and melons are poisonous. People have even died from eating them! Most of the toxins have been bred out of these plants but they can revert to their natural level of toxicity when self-seeding or being exposed to stress.
Makes me think, are there any other vegetables that might kill me?

 

[taun]

Seem to have forgetton about this at the back end of the year.

I have lots of cauliflowers from the graden over the last six months, the cucumber was amazing I managed to get at least 3 off it. I also only just finished harvesting carrots. It was a good year considering I wasn't really ready.

This year I am now set up for it, I bought and put my green house up, my raised beds are made and filled with topsoil (not fun shifting nearly four tonnes of topsoil from my front graden to my back garden.

I have majority of the seeds I want try this year, all I need to source is my seed potatoes.

So this year I already have Chilli peppers germinating and onions, next up will be my sweet peppers and tomatoes.

 

[Ned]

I've never grown cauliflowers, I imagine they need some expertise to grow well. I still have some parsnips and some purple sprouting broccoli which should be ready in early spring. I planted onions and garlic in October but it's been really wet so I'm interested to see if this effects them. I also have young leeks growing.

Success this year include cucumber, courgette, squash, leeks, carrots, runner beans, chard, onions, parsnips, lettuce, rhubarb and raspberries, cabbages were small but okay.

Failures included swede, peas, broad beans (didn't even germinate) tomatoes (destroyed by wind).

 

[taun]

Nah, first year I have grown cauliflowers, you need to cover them as you will get butterflies laying eggs on them and also pigeons will eat them but they grow fine. Only had small heads from them but perfectly fine for myself. And seen some tips that may help increase yield.

I planted some garlic in October but in a pot as the garden was not set up, something I hope to do this year with onions too.

Spent about £100 on more propagators and heaters to try and get a lot started early this year. Really looking forward to March when I can ramp up sowing seeds and get seed potatoes in the ground.

 

[Pootle]

good to read the green fingered Zoo chatters!!

I'm lucky enough to have a 3M green house and several veg beds in the back garden. You live in the sticks like us, you reap the rewards! .... then you get more caterpillars!!

a very good gardener told me 3 years ago his secret was stuff your soil with rotten manure, as much as you can turn over and wow, so true, we have our best year last and its just down to muck.

Going spudless this year. Trying more brassicas, but have netting and those windmill things you stick n the soil to help, they keep the birds off.

Last year our best crop and to be repeated this year was and is Kale. Ready from Sept to March, our Kale still ..... living.! Its fed us so much and pretty healthy too. Fed our hens too.

In the greenhouse the Carolina Death Reaper chilli seeds I obtained are going in the compost. Its me verses your fruits later............

 

[taun]

Jealous of that greenhouse! I could have had a much larger one but wanted the room for beds.

I have bought kale seeds to try this year, been inspired by a few people on social media to try it.

Not sure I could give up the spuds, although not got seed potatoes yet. I also plan to grow a few plants this year, lost of flowers for the insects.

 

[Ned]

I also grew kale this year, does anyone know how to keep white fly off kale without spraying it with chemicals?