Veg to plant in May and things to do.

themaverick1953

Sally_A wrote: »

May is the month when most last frost dates occur - mine is after about 19th May.

Runner beans - first get your poles up, before you do that give the ground a dig over and put any more spare compost, manure etc into the patch. I prefer to grow my runner beans up a crossover style bean frame rather than a wigwam, as runners grow so thick and fast the congestion at the top of a wigwam is a bit muddled.

End of May - get your sweetcorn in that were sown in April in pots or a sheltered spot; if you have mad dogs fence off the area to stop them running through the plants and snapping them off and rendering them useless - I managed to nab some of that orange builders plastic fencing stuff - looks ugly, and I'm sure Mrs Up-the-Top-to-the Right gets twitchy about it.

Tomatoes can also be planted out now if you are sure of no frosts, for outdoor crops, afix them to sturdily inserted canes now to avoid them being snapped off in a breeze.

Parsnips - last chance to sow, and I'd say by mid May at the latest.

Outdoor cuces, can now be planted outdoors - rather than have them trailing and being susceptibel to slugs, grow them up a 3 pronged wigwam, with twine twirled around the sticks, this gives the tendril something to grab on to. Sticks need to be at least 4 or 5 ft tall.

Keep growing successional herbs on the kitchen window sill, such as basil and coriander leaf.

Loads more - Splodger Seedwapper will surely be along soon to help out.

Please ask me about any specific questions - I don't grow every veg, but will probably know someone that does

Ooh ooh - forgot Tomatoes in an unheated greenhouse can probably go into their final place on the first Bank Holiday in May (2nd May this year)

Anyhow - must go and sow some globe artichokes, every year I try something out of my comfort zone, and these are my 2011/2012 guinea pigs.

Loads more that I will think of, as i do it. will try to keep you all up to date

The basic message is prepare well for planting out.

I prefer climbing French Beans as I think they are more tender. I dig my trenches in late winter and chuck kitchen waste in for a couple of months then cap them with decent home made compst and soil in April. Beans are 2 ins high, so another couple of weeks.

LilacPixie

skintbint wrote: »

thanks - just got an allotment two weeks ago and dont have any idea when to plant what! so will get the parsnips ready for sowing. Have managed to get radishes, rocket, potatoes, beetroot, broccoli, carrots, green beans, onions, spring onions all in, some lettuce, tomoaotes, basil, corriander, cucmbers in the green house. Is there anything else i should be sowing now to plant out in june/july? or is there anything else i can help fill the allotment with as i still have over a third to fill, preferably from seed as trying to do this a cheaply as possible.

leeks??? Morrisons doing seeds and plants for mega cheapness. You considered strawbs or rasps??

[Deleted User]

I spent a little time yesterday reviewing my planting and harvesting plans. I am just about to get sowing to complete my winter veg. I think I will set up a rootrainer especially for them, for my kales and winter cabbages and so on. All my parsnips are up and thinned and beetroot are doing well, I just need to remember to succession sow several things like beetroot, carrots lettuce etc to keep the produce going late summer to autumn. Swedes and spring cabbages around june.

I am keeping on top of my weeding and have planted out (in containers and growbags) 14 tomatoes, all under cover or with a facility for cover ie a large poly bag with holes in it and fleeces. I am waiting for more double planters to arrive and will then put out another 6 tomatoes for dehydrating. I planted celery in tall planters and they are doing well so I will transplant another 6 this week. So far so good and it looks as though tonight will be the last of the cold scares for a while.

edit: 3 onions started budding yesterday so they are up and will be eaten shortlY. We have mega too many onions so have been digging up green onions for eating for a while now, they are lovely, raw or cooked. I`ll probably start on green garlic this week too as it all helps the hungry gap. I`ll probably make soup with the onions and garlic this time.

scotsaver

Going to the Allotment this morning then when I get back I'm going to sow some more Sweetcorn indoors and keep my fingers crossed that these will germinate this time.;)

Just saw Alys Fowler on BBC1 breakfast talking about this cold weather, she's going to be on later again with Gardening tips - I really miss her on Gardener's world, find her really down to earth.:D

Sambucus_Nigra

skintbint wrote: »

thanks - just got an allotment two weeks ago and dont have any idea when to plant what! so will get the parsnips ready for sowing. Have managed to get radishes, rocket, potatoes, beetroot, broccoli, carrots, green beans, onions, spring onions all in, some lettuce, tomoaotes, basil, corriander, cucmbers in the green house. Is there anything else i should be sowing now to plant out in june/july? or is there anything else i can help fill the allotment with as i still have over a third to fill, preferably from seed as trying to do this a cheaply as possible.

Squashes - they take up a huge amount of space and cover the ground and you can get alot of space covered for little effort. If you aren't growing on an area, sow a green manure such as Crimson Clover or Phaecelia - the bees will go wild for the flowers and you chop it down before it sets seed and dig it in and it improved the soil no end.

[Deleted User]

I have sown red clover amongst my new bocking 14 as there is some bare soil and also several patches of phacelia here and there over the allotment. Phacelia germinates really quickly and is robust with distinctive leaves and seed leaves so is easy for a beginner.

prophecy_grrl

I've sown some parsnip seeds in a huge pot. There are green shoots through now but they're very close together - to 'thin' them out should I just pull out some shoots? How many should I leave in there? Sorry to be so dull but I would love to grow a few parsnips as they're DH's fave veg!

Also, when should I plant my lettuce out and when do I harvest it?

All our other plants are coming along swimmingly, I'm gonna put a few more beans and peas in the green house this weekend too, they look lush!

alixandrea

prophecy_grrl wrote: »

I've sown some parsnip seeds in a huge pot. There are green shoots through now but they're very close together - to 'thin' them out should I just pull out some shoots? How many should I leave in there? Sorry to be so dull but I would love to grow a few parsnips as they're DH's fave veg!

Best thing is apparently to cut the leaves off the ones you want to remove to thin out. This means that you don't accidentally damage the roots systems of any nearby plants you want to keep. :-)

Alixandrea

scotsaver

Got some more Sweetcorn sown yesterday along with some Borlotti Beans. Have to take some Cabbages, cauli's and sprouts up to the Allotment today as I'm running out of space in the Greenhouse. Also going to pick some Radishes that are ready up there and sow some more.

[Deleted User]

I was reading about commercial production of sweetcorn and they give the seeds a very good watering just once and then leave it as it has very strong roots. Must admit that is what our local farmer actually did ie he sowed seed in rows and the rain came just once and they are up and growing. I think we mollycoddle our seeds sometimes. I am an allotment sweetcorn down, well almost, I have 8 plants plus and an apology of a plant.I`m going to leave it and see what happens. No more watering nor for my squashes

I sowed kales and tundra today, ready for winter. I am thinking I may not bother with psb but never say never. Apparantly red russian kale has nice edible sprouts and the leaves on the ones in my raised bed are lovely even when raw. It is incredibly hardy and I read that people are sowing it instead of psb

My toms are doing very well and all have buds and some are on their second lot of buds. I have been taking side shoots off the tall ones and will have to put another tie on this afternoon. One flower is just opening. They are in pop ups over growbags or in planters and buckets wherever I can safely keep them. I am starting with organic feed this afternoon

Blackfly has appeared on my neighbours plants, I don`t see any yet. Maybe it is because she has used loads of manure in the past and I haven`t yet. Oh perhaps her plants have softer shoots