June Update: What are you growing in 2006? Tips here for Fruit, Veggies and Flowers!

foreverskint

Hi all,

I bought some 'Roma' tomato plants, and didn't realise at the time that they would probably be best in a greenhouse (odn't have one). Anyway, they are happily growing away in grobags in the garden and are flowering really well.

The only problem i have is that after the flowers die back, the whole part of the flower and the fruit bit behind it dies back and drops off. Is this because they are in the outdoors or because of a diesease?

Other than that problem everything eles i'm growing in pots and tubs is flying away. I have 6 buckets in a circle with bamboo cane wigwam full of strong runner beans, flat and curly parsley buckets of perpetual spinach beet, garlic chives, thyme and lots of other herbs and some lettuce dotted amongst the flowers beds.

vivaladiva

Hi all,
For those trying squarefoot gardening try Dupre Vermiculite. Their website is still under construction and I don't know if they do sell direct to the public but their phone number is there at https://www.dupre-vermiculite.co.uk.
There are a few people selling it on ebay but it doesn't look particularly cheap.
BTW the square foot pictures look really great. I think I'll have to give this a go.

LizD_2

well, mixed fortunes today in the garden.

Discovered my poor diddy round courgette had fallen off its' stem (RIP). Possibly after the attack of blackfly. Leaves are looking a bit curled and mottled. Wonder if that might be the washing up liquid/water solution used to get rid of the blackfly?

However, our strawberries are ripening! :T only problem is, we're on holiday for a week from saturday and I suspect either the pigeons or the squirrel will get them or they'll go mushy in the rain. :eek:

salad is still doing well, and the carrots are starting to fatten and look like teeny weeny versions of the final thing.

the F1 zucchini courgettes are just bushy, I'm sure they should be fruiting by now? think I should have pinched out, but not sure which shoots to take off? (were planted at the beggining of May).

Chell

:eek: :sad: RIP diddy courgette :rotfl:

LizD wrote:

well, mixed fortunes today in the garden.

Discovered my poor diddy round courgette had fallen off its' stem (RIP). Possibly after the attack of blackfly.

annie-c

How does everyone cope with watering etc, whilst away on holiday - does anyone have any tips that don't include asking the neighbours or using expensive irrigation systems?? Would putting all my toms, etc, in the shade help a bit?

Noozan

Joscar wrote:

Brandywine toms ? They sound interesing. Will they grow up here?

Brandywine tomatoes are an old heirloom variety and are delish! I love in Scotland and they grow fine here although about 40% of last years crop needed to be brought indooors to ripen. Sub arctic, Gartenpele and Sungold tomatoes have been consistently good in my garden.

Noozan

annie-c wrote:

How does everyone cope with watering etc, whilst away on holiday - does anyone have any tips that don't include asking the neighbours or using expensive irrigation systems?? Would putting all my toms, etc, in the shade help a bit?

Anything that's in the gorund gets a thorough soaking and mulching before I go away. Anything in pots that can be easily moved is put in an airy shady spot and also well watered. I also take down my hanging baskets and sit them in the shade too, sitting on pots to stabilise them. It helps if you can group lots of pots together rather than randomly as it seems to help conserve moisture. Anything that needs to stay in greenhouse e.g chillis, are stood in plastic troughs lined with a thick old wet towel, with the end of the towel sitting in a bucket of water.

sarahmelita

I've just noticed what I now know to be aphids (hurrah for the internet!) on my basil and chives in my windowbox. :mad:

How do I get rid of them? I don't want to use any pesticides really as I want to eat the herbs.

Any ideas are appreciated!

Chumana

My sisters round tonight and said something's been munching the leaves on her corgettes and spinach!!!

She couldn't find anything on them but there's a bush in the garden, not sure what it is, but some of the stems are covered in these tiny purple/black insects???? She said they've got a round body with legs at the front and completely cover some of the stems there's that many of them!!! Any ideas please?

Debt_Free_Chick

Chumana wrote:

My sisters round tonight and said something's been munching the leaves on her corgettes and spinach!!!

She couldn't find anything on them but there's a bush in the garden, not sure what it is, but some of the stems are covered in these tiny purple/black insects???? She said they've got a round body with legs at the front and completely cover some of the stems there's that many of them!!! Any ideas please?

Could be blackfly?