When to pick my first mange tout... etc?

twiglet98

On long term sick leave, hard up and bored, I had a brainwave, late in May that I could grow some salad. We have heavy boulder clay almost entirely laid to meadow grass, which I am not up to digging, and it's in an exposed and windy bit of East Anglia, so I just used various old contaners lying around the place, and bought some growbags.

Expensive Lesson #1, next year I'll think about it a lot earlier and buy seeds! After a few trips to the garden centre I had:

An old oak barrel with a cane wigwam, 3 patio beans and 3 'Oregon' mange tout plants;
Growbags with 2 Gardeners Delight toms, 1 Shirley and 2 Beefeater toms;
A basket with tumbler toms (and little lettuces to fill the gaps, lettuce now eaten);
A set of yellow cylindrical bags called 'Vegetable Planters' with: 3 Lollo Rosso lettuces and 3 spinach plants in the shallow, 2 courgettes in the medium, a Beefeater tom and 2 aubergines in the deep one. This now has radishes sprouting around the sides;
Big tubs with red onions, purple sprouting, cabbages, garlic, summer and autumn raspberries, beetroot, also with rocket and salad leaves filling the gaps;
Potatoes started on the windowsill, now growing in a compost bag;
Lots of herbs in pots and troughs, all going mad.

Cucumber plants died and rhubarb, in a newly dug border, hit by slugs.

I haven't picked anything except lettuce and don't know what to do or when to do it! The mange tout are at the top of their 5 foot canes, they have white flowers and 6 or 7 pods that look ready but that isn't enough to feed a big family! Same with the beans, they have 5 pods. Should I just pick them now and hope some more grow?? Do I use the ones I've picked straight away or freeze them, one portion's worth at most, until some more are ready? How many should I have planted to feed a family of five greedy adults? Clearly my experimental 3 plants is far from enough, why on earth did I get so few of these but end up planting over 40 onions...? Seeds next year, definitely, and a diary, and some labelling system...

The spinach has tiny leaves compared to the bags sold in supermarkets, but should I pick them now as they're getting tall and I think they might be about to flower? Do I just pull off the leaves or take the whole plant out in one go?

Next year will be different, even planning raised beds - this is so much fun, but what a learning curve!

All advice appreciated, thanks.

louise_1981

I started picking my mange tout this week, but then there is only me, and I had to add it to a meal. I have around 5 plants in an average pot. I would pick them and either put them in the fridge or blanch then freeze. picking the ready ones will encourage others to develop.

I would leave the beans, I picked mine at about 4 inches, which I thought was huge, only to find tiny things in this huge winter duvet of an case! Again I have 5 plants in a pot.

if your spinach is tall, I would guess it was about to bolt (flower), I would take them out strip the leaves and eat, clear the area, add some food to the soil and plant some more, as you still have time.

You mentioned buying seeds next year, buy them this year in the sales, have you ever seen seeds in January!?!? Woolies have reduced theirs to 60p per pack, some like pak choi and lambs lettuce, can still be sown in July for a later crop.

Similarly, with pots I picked up 3 terracotta pots in the wilks 75% off sale, you know the ones in graduated sized that fit in each other. Paid 2.50 for them!

I started my tomatoes and chillis in January this year, after an abismal last year, but we have just moved into out house and there was no room to start seeds off.

next year is going to be fantastic, as I have just got an allotment,m if you have a house of five adult, maybe this is something you should consider.

Louise

queen_of_string

Take heart twiglet, it is a huge learning curve, but no matter how long you have been gardening you keep learning. Sounds like you're off to a flying start!! I would just pick your mangetout and give everyone one each, they will probaly crop more ehavily as they get into their stride, but there is enormous pride and much amusement to be had form having one pea each at tea time which you grew and picked yourself. You cna plant lettuce, radish, spring onions etc every 2 weeks so you will never be without for the summer. Cut and come again lettuce has been particulalry good for me this year, it's like the leaves you buy in a bag, mine have paid for themselves already.

Keep experimenting , it's half the fun and waching things grow then getting to pick and eat them is so rewarding, even if it is only 1 pea each to begin with!!

~Chameleon~

I planted my mange tout last autumn so my crop has been and gone now, in fact I pulled out the last of it just this morning. I had around 20 plants (grown from seed) and to be honest I think that was too much as we just couldn't eat it fast enough

It's best picked whilst the pods are still small and flat but at least the peas are very sweet to eat if you allow them to swell a little. (I sat and ate a full colander full raw whilst watching tv one night )

I've also allowed some to fully pod which I'll save for seed next year.

twiglet98

Many thanks for the tips, I hit the garden centre today and found Unwins seeds all half price so stocked up on next year's peas and beans, lettuce to sow tomorrow as I must get in the habit of successive sowings, and lots of wild flower seeds to make a butterfly strip for next year. Also got 6 lettuce seedlings to tide us over.

My eldest daughter's partner, who lives with us, is a chef and I try to get good quality ingredients for great, simple meals - they've been so excited to have fresh herbs just outside the door! Now, they've just gone on holiday for 2 weeks and of course these peas aren't going to last until they come back, unless I freeze them. Can I freeze the spinach too?

I also got some log roll today to make a first raised bed, only 9" deep so it might be a bit limited - will be back for advice but I'm finding the photos in the "Show us..." thread really inspiring.

Will head back to the photos thread for more brilliant ideas!

Twig

darcyvuqua

this is my first year to i have toms radishes carrots and spring onions it so good to watch and taste something that you grow next year i will be growing alot more i get the kids involved and my son 5 loves it its very educational to

Zazen999

Twiglet, well done for growing your own; it's great once the garden gets going.

On the subject of picking peas/beans; the more regularly you pick the more the others will ripen up. So, even if you start picking one or two, it spurs the others on.

For the first few, you can just chop them up, and add to rice for a couple of minutes before it's done, it means alot goes a long way, they get used and you have a sense of pride that you are eating your own produce.

Then, once things are kicking in, you can pick enough for a proper serving for everyone.

I do this with peas, and beans - the first few are always the sweetest so pick them as soon as you can.

Spinach can be added to lettuce in salads, pick the leaves off, wash and toss them in. I made a salad in the spring which was cut and come again lettuce leaves, lollo rossa lettuce leaves [picked like cut and come again] and one single beetroot leaf.

What I find with growing your own, is you get a few dishes such as rice and salad, where just every little thing that you can pick and eat/cook fresh gets thrown in - and you eat that around the more staple proteins. Then, every meal is completely different each time, even through it is the same basic idea. I picked broad beans last week, and out of the 5 I picked, there was only one measly bean in there - but it still went in the rice mix. Looked lonely, but what the heck?