Help MBE grow his dinner 2012

Pre-war_babe_33

Strawberry plants will overwinter quite well outside and if you have any runners growing pot them up, still attached to the parent plant, to have more plants for next year. Strawberry plants will last for about three years before they exhaust themselves.

Pre-war_babe_33

MBE you should be ashamed of yourself - glad you are hurting all over - and yes, I did miss you. Hope you enjoyed yourself.

LilMissEmmylou

Pre-war_babe_33 wrote: »

Strawberry plants will overwinter quite well outside and if you have any runners growing pot them up, still attached to the parent plant, to have more plants for next year. Strawberry plants will last for about three years before they exhaust themselves.

Done :A got 9 that have rooted and been chopped off and moved into bigger pots already (and growing well). Trying to get the last of the runners sorted this week while im off work

Ill try and get a pic of the chilli giant later - its taking up our entier kitchen window and almost touching the roof!

Pre-war_babe_33

MBE where are you? Have you recovered from your weekend yet.

Not much to report on the garden except that the blackberries are ripening faster than I can pick them now.

Lotus-eater

Leif wrote: »

I've had the same. You have to remove the flower otherwise it rots the fruit.

I don't think it is, not the majority of the time anyway. It's usually because the courgette hasn't been pollinated properly.

mrbadexample

Pre-war_babe_33 wrote: »

MBE where are you? Have you recovered from your weekend yet.

Not much to report on the garden except that the blackberries are ripening faster than I can pick them now.

Here I am!

I have just about recovered, but only just. Going to work yesterday and today was difficult. Still, self-inflicted so I shouldn't grumble. :rotfl:

Picked some nice beetroot yesterday, plus a good handful of runner and French beans. Oh, and a kohl-rabi. And a turnip. I'm trying to make a bit of room for some Christmas spuds. Can you freeze beetroot? :undecided

mrbadexample

Lotus-eater wrote: »

I don't think it is, not the majority of the time anyway. It's usually because the courgette hasn't been pollinated properly.

I think Leif may have a point. I've had the same problem and I think it might be because the flower goes soggy and brown in the rain, and it spreads to the fruit. I've taken the flowers off the two I have developing just in case.

RedLass

Lotus-eater wrote: »

I don't think it is, not the majority of the time anyway. It's usually because the courgette hasn't been pollinated properly.

Does similar apply to outdoor cucumbers? I'm trying to work out why my plant produced 3 good sized, good tasting cucumbers, but all the remaining little ones that were coming through later have turned yellow and then shrivelled, not getting any bigger than your average carrot stick.

RedLass

annie123 wrote: »

picked more beans, another courgettes and 2 blushing toms. Looks like I've got 2 more q's that will need picking in a day or so to go with the 2 I have in my fridge already.

Might dig up a courgette and sow some oriental salad for autumn, would be more useful as even I'm fed up with courgettes by now :cool:

Think I might have to plant a courgettes next year, it sounds as though they've done very well. I remember you said you had some round ones in? What's the variety and how big do they get? Do you use them in the same way when you're cooking? A friend recently suggested I grate courgette into my chicken stew and I love it.

annie123

mrbadexample wrote: »

My mate's stag do was at the weekend, so in case anyone missed me I've spent three days getting drunk in a field.

I hurt all over.

Goes AWOL, behaves like a kid and wanders back in expected to be forgiven! I don't know, can't get good quality of 'virtual friends' these days hope your hangovers gone and you didn't get sun burned

RedLass wrote: »

Think I might have to plant a courgettes next year, it sounds as though they've done very well. I remember you said you had some round ones in? What's the variety and how big do they get? Do you use them in the same way when you're cooking? A friend recently suggested I grate courgette into my chicken stew and I love it.

I grew 3 types this year, patio star.....bred for containers and not worth growing, Nero di Milano I think, not near seeds at the mo, a regular shaped one and produces well, but I'm a convert to http://www.thompson-morgan.com/vegetables/vegetable-seeds/pumpkin-squash-and-courgette-seeds/courgette-de-nice-a-fruit-rond/797TM

It really is prolific and boy do they grow quick, heaviest one so far 850g :eek: and small football size but still very tasty.
Any courgette raw is lovely and tastes best when small eaten this way. But courgettes are great to bulk out spag bol, have roasted, grilled bbq, quiche, and cakes! also makes nice chutney.
From now on I'm only going to grow these ones, they taste nicer than others I've tried over the years and due to their growing habit they could, I think, be trained upwards, which I'm going to try next year.

I'm gutted, the guy next door cut back and cleared some overgrown roses in his garden, and cut my 6' long with loads of thorn less blackberries that tasted lovely when we had a few last night that was trained along the fence.
He's a nice guy and wouldn't have realised, he clears his garden twice a year just before his parents visit, so I've bit my lip. I've waited 2 years for those berries and only had 2 canes next year I'm tying them to long canes in the ground. The cane that's left only has a few on it, the other one was loaded and just tuning.
I hope by time I get back he hasn't lopped the apples, even he must know what apples look like.