What to do in January for newbie gardners

takoo

Hi Pinkteddy bear

Save your £25.

Save some of you timber for poles and stakes etc to support you runner beans etc

Make a log pile in a corner for the biodiversity policy.

Use the timber to make your compost bin - it will look in keeping.

Develop a garden waste management plan (GWMP) - this is the sustainable way of making lots of dosh (!!!!) with which to buy plants and seeds.

I could rabbit on ....

Happy 2008 in the garden or allotment for all

Takoo

pinkteddybear

Thanks fellas.

I must admit I had never heard of Freecycle until you mentioned it. You've just cost BnQ about $40 between you.

And made my holiday fund £40 better off!!

:j

I have a mate with a lof fire too. I might as well just pile it all up and tell him to bring his trailer down, unless I can install some sort of heating system for my house and use it myself. We have no central heating, so this might be a good idea.

Nutty_Tart

Yesterday I forked over my new veggie patch to break up the soil a bit, then i managed to get to the bottom of the compost heap (which I have been 'growing' all year) and moved the ready compost and mixed it into the veggie patch. It was quite invigorating! I have been looking at those little plastic greenhouses - I wish I had got one when they were £10 last summer, but I was waiting to get one in the sales and they wern't included . I have noticed they are £15 now - doh!:mad: . Anyway, I have looked at my selection of seeds (which I did get in last years end of season sale :j ) and apparently I can do the tomato seeds and some lettuce seeds in the next couple of weeks - indoor then transfer to my new (expensive!) plastic greenhouse :rotfl: . Next on the to buy list is an apple tree & v large pot to put it in.

Happy New Year to all :beer:

Lemon_Tree

i turned a 6ft by 3ft bit of my front lawn into a veggie patch last year and it wasn't too bad but i'm aiming to learn from my mistakes this year
I've got loads of seeds and my greenhouse is finally all sorted, including a lovely heater which i received as a chrissy pressy. I'm hoping to get some seeds in pots this weekend coming to try and get ahead of the game. Need to plant some mustard seeds soon in the plot itself for green manure i'm just not sure when is too early or too late.
i'd love to get a plum tree this year, maybe i could add that to my wedding gifts list, it may be late in the year by the time i get it but it should be ok for next year.

Lemon_Tree

ps Nutty Tart i'm sure the plastic greenhouses will be back in the sale again this year, you just need to wait until about easter time, that's when i got mine last year and now i've given it to my neighbour as i was bought my shed as a joint christmas/ birthday pressy last year. Yay for mum and dad!

~Chameleon~

I'm still waiting to build my greenhouse that I bought months ago

miecherox

Hello,
I am new to this board and am very keen to grow veg for myself and family this year. I have previously grown some bits in pots a couple of years ago but it was more a case of throw it in and hope for the best!
This year I have a greenhouse so will be using that and my husband is dusting off his spade to dig a trench and build me a bed down one side of the garden (this will be approx 2' by 30').

What I would like to know is what jobs can be done in January to prepare everything? Can I start planting anything now? Any tips would be gratefully received!!

takoo

Hi Nuttytart

I bought an apple tree from Brogdale Trust in Kent years ago.

It is in a pot and stands about four feet high if that.

The tree is one developeed as a single trunk with very short branches (East Malling Reasearch Station, Kent).

Lots of apples this last year - yummy too. I wish I had ten of them!

Have a great year growing.

Takoo

hev_2

Last year I was determined to get going in the garden and completely failed.

Might have had something to do with new baby, sad death in difficult circs of MIL and husband's redundancy. And that I don't know what I'm doing.

I have a tiny yard, but I used grow bags last year. The tomatoes were not very successful.

What fruit/veggies grow well in shade?

Hope to grow courgettes this year. When should I start?

Also, I have no windowsills in my house (honest) plus two cats who regard seedlings as a challenge and an almost toddler. Don't want to start stuff from seeds. What is the best way to get hold of plants?

I got loads of plants from ebay last year and was really pleased and despite problems with watering, next door's interference etc managed a couple of peppers and at least four black currants. Any other suggestions?

Please be gentle with me - I haven't even got bulbs in (is it too late to plant them?)

Thank you for any helpful suggestions.

moneysavinmonkey

hev wrote: »

Please be gentle with me - I haven't even got bulbs in (is it too late to plant them?)

Thank you for any helpful suggestions.

Just got my own garden for the first time so i'm really excited about getting going - got myself loads of bulbs cheap from garden centre but then what with exams + moving + family visiting + xmas ( so many excuses!) I never planted them! Help!!

What should I do - I think the lillies can still go in but what about tulips, daffs + alliums?? Will they keep till next year or shall I just plonk em in and cross my fingers?