Newbie veg gardener! MERGED

Wee_Bargain_Hunter

I'd like to start growing some veg. Planning on keeping it easy on the back and brain and using bags and pots etc. Will possibly buy one of those small plastic greenhouses. Anyway that's the basic plan. Is it too late to start this year? Any tips? I really haven't got a clue about gardening! Thanks

Farway

Watching Gardeners World last night on BBC TV they had an expert who reckoned now is time to sow Chinese greens, like pak choi etc, seems it is their natural time this time of year

Useful for cut & come again salads, or stir fies of course

A small green house should provide winter lettuce

And of course new pots for Christmas from spuds in a pot / bucket

Bit of a blow as I thought I had a packet of mixed chines greens, but on checking found I was wrong

competitionscafe

There is a guide to salad leaves you can sow now (August) here:
http://www.sarahraven.com/srechannel/static/articles/index.cfm?fuseaction=displayArticle&article=salad5

I am still sowing (in containers): rocket, mizuna, red mustard, green and red oak leaf lettuces, saisai leaf radish, rainbow chard, raab (rapini) mustard red frills, green in snow and greek cress.

These should be ready for baby salad leaves (cut and come again) in between 2 weeks and 6 weeks time. The saisai leaf radish is a good one to start with as it grows so fast - I did my first cutting just 2 weeks after sowing!! It is nicer mixed with other leaves for variety so you might want to start off with some of the others too. The lettuces are slower than the oriental leaves, rocket grows quite fast too.

squiggles

Woolworths has reduced all their packets of veg seeds to 60p if anyone would like to stock up:)

they also had flower seeds 60p too

this was in gateshead high street store but maybe nationwide aswell

Wee_Bargain_Hunter

Thank you for your replies everyone. I suppose I was a bit disappointed at first as I was hoping to grow things like peppers and tomatoes. Suppose I can hope for a late summer and have my own salad leaves on warm days. Hadn't thought of potatoes. Will have to investigate that. At least I've got loads of time to prepare for next year!

Wee_Bargain_Hunter

Just a thought - what about growing herbs? Is it too late to start these?

olly300

Wee_Bargain_Hunter wrote: »

Just a thought - what about growing herbs? Is it too late to start these?

Depends what herbs you are planning on growing, how you are going to grow them and where you are going to keep them over winter.

It's probably not worth it growing herbs from seed at this time of year. However if you go to a cheap supermarket like Aldi or Lidl you can get some potted herbs for about 60p which if you replant in a bigger pot you should be able to harvest and use now.

You can also split the pot up so you can bring some of it indoors over winter.

nodwah

I've seen tom and pepper plants with fruit on them for sale in M&S and B&Q, though they're something like £6.99:eek:

They'd have to give a lot of fruit to make that worthwhile!

But anyway, go an a monday or tuesday and see if they're reduced

lincsdan86

I'm sure loads of people have asked these questions before, but anyway I couldnt find any of them.

Obviously I am new to growing veg as the title suggests so I was just wanting some advice about some easy fruit/veg that I can grow in my back garden.

Any advice and tips would be great.

Thanks

Lincsdan86:money:

evie451

hi lincsdan i am sure some more experience of the grow your own crowd will be along soon but just to say its a really worthwhile thing and i have saved a lot of money on food this summer by growing tomatoes, mixed lettuce, courgettes, some carrots and Potatoes....:D
the really productive part of the year is over but i am trying some winter hardy lettuce and cabbage. Some will say don't grow anything you don't use but i found that i will make use of something if its ripe and am trying to be a bit adventurous so i planted some Kohl Rabi a few weeks ago....