veg growing Newbies- Feb 2010! lets learn together!

antonia1

Does anybody know if cucumbers need to be staked?

Also, my courgettes seem to be taking over the world! I'm pretty sure I can actually see them growing! Got first set of flowers and can just about see some tiny courgettes growing behind them

Everything else is going okay, apart from the French beans. They seem to be going well until I plant them out and then they just stop. Have tried three sets so far, so I might just have to give up and concentrate on the things that are growing well.

Got very annoyed at the new neighbours yesterday. They have a huge dog and he's gorgeous, except that when he goes to the toilet in the back garden, they have been just moving the poo so that its next to our shared fence, and it smells! I complained and they said they won't do it again. Fingers crossed they stick to their word.

spendaholic

jacand wrote: »

Also our neighbourhood is full of cats and despite us having a dog they still use our garden as a toilet. I don't want to use any chemicals etc to stop them, as I want my veg to be organic. What can I use to deter them?
Thanks

Someone has probably already answered this, but I have cats and found that chilli powder keeps them off where I want to keep them off. There are lots of products to place on the soil surface, but the chili powder was already in the kitchen.

lolly5648

lolly5648 wrote: »

How often should you feed vegetables? I have been giving everything a feed once a week with tomato feed - is this OK, should it be more often and are there any veg that don't like tomato food?

No one know??

soullessfire

Just spent a couple of hours in the garden.

Bolught some 8 foot poles for my beans (they're in pots so I can tilt them to reach the top) so I had to gingerly unwind the beanstalks from the original 4 foot poles and rewind them around the new one. Easier than it sounds thankfully.

I also had a couple of spare courgettes and pumpkins struggling in little 4 inch pots so I've moved them up into the big pots instead of chucking them. Will have a bit of a glut but I don't mind so much. Starting to see what looks like mini courgettes on those and my first pumpkin is about the size of a tennis ball (have removed all other fruit from this plant as it's in a pot).

Strawberries coming along great too, we keep nicking a couple a day as we walk past.

Not much else to do these days so I just water them and feed them and wait in the hopes of lovely food

bizliz27

lolly5648 wrote: »

No one know??

Hi! I feed my toms, strawberries and cougettes every week with tomato feed. I havent been feeding my other stuff, such as sweet corn, carrots and potatoes as I'm not sure if they can have tomato feed too. I dont think they can, so I've stuck to what it says on the bottle, courgettes and tomatoes.

Elizabeth (bizliz27)

janibrown

Just been down to Aldi and had to buy another Aubergine plant
I now have 4 Aubergines, 8 tomatos, 4 Peppers, 2 chillis, 2 butternut squash, 3 Pumpkins, 3 Courgette, 1 baby cucumber all in greenhouse if I carry on like this I wont be able to fit in it to water them :eek::eek:
I also have 3 raised beds with, potatoes, garlic, onions, lettuce, peas beetrooot, carrots, turnips, red cabbage, celeriac, purple sprouting broccoli, spring onions, raddish, french beans, broad beans and finally blackcurrent bush in pot and strawberries in a window box, also have herbs, rosemary, lavander, chives, curry plant, 2 different mints, thyme, corriander, lemon balm, basil and parsley
Wow you dont realise how much you have until you write it down :eek:
That's a lot of watering hope the hosepipe ban does not come in next week it takes long enough as it is
Please no hosepipe ban :eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:

bizliz27

I remember reading that cougettes and pumpkins are good veggies to grown in between sweetcorn. As I've already got my courgette in a tub on the patio, I was wondering if I could put my aubergine plant there? Or will they "fight" for space etc.

thanks!
Elizabeth (bizliz27)

izzwizz_2

littleme96 wrote: »

My citrus and apple trees came today (does anyone know the variety of the lemon one?) and I bought a gorgeous patio rose, but am feeling a little disheartened about the whole veg growing thing at the moment...

My potatoes have come up lovely with lots of green foiliage and flowers on my maincrop, but when I rummaged the other day in my 2nd earlies, I pulled up the tiniest marble of a potato and I'm worried they are not going to get bigger!

And today I thought I'd investigate what my garlic is doing as the greenery is starting to flop... and the one that I had a look at hasn't done anything. It's just a clove with greenery coming out of it. Am scared to look at the rest, but am a bit gutted as I'm guessing they'll be the same...

Also no flowers on strawberries or tomatoes.

We only aquired our garden in Feb and I know I am a beginner, but it seems like I haven't got the veg growing gift.

Don't worry, it'll get there in the end. Garlic is not an easy plant to start with. To get the bulbs to form properly you need to plant it in October and leave it right through the Winter. You'll probably find much bigger pots when you dig them (not yet! wait until the tops start to die back). Is it possible that you've been feeding the toms & strawberries with a high nitrogen feed? If so, they'll still be producing leaves and that could be why there aren't any flowers yet. Still plenty of time so don't lose heart dear heart

GarnetLady

janibrown wrote: »

Just been down to Aldi and had to buy another Aubergine plant
I now have 4 Aubergines, 8 tomatos, 4 Peppers, 2 chillis, 2 butternut squash, 3 Pumpkins, 3 Courgette, 1 baby cucumber all in greenhouse if I carry on like this I wont be able to fit in it to water them :eek::eek:

Heavens woman, how big is your greenhouse?? Wow, you've got it well filled.

heynonnynonny

That's a lot of watering hope the hosepipe ban does not come in next week it takes long enough as it is
Please no hosepipe ban :eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:[/QUOTE]

Yeah I second the no hosepipe ban, my outside tap is quite literally my life!!