Does anyone keep a gardening diary on MSE?

LavenderBees

NinjaB wrote: »

Last thought ... do you have mains water? If so do they shut it off in winter to avoid cracked pipes? If so, do you have sufficient water butts to catch enough water in to last at the beginning of the spring when you are perhaps doing seedlings? Maybe not a problem in the UK really however.

Forgot to answer this - we do have mains water, and I've asked for a key to the cupboard for the tap. I'll have to pay a share of the water rates...apparently about £3 a year :T

I have 2 water butts, and I will try to keep them topped up but I don't think the water is shut off in winter. In fact, my lottie neighbour said he's caught 2 leaks in the last couple of years... . That could have been during those awful 2 winters we had, but to be honest, we often get heavy frosts.

LavenderBees

NinjaB wrote: »

Oh ... except, I have a problem with swede ... They look like carrots, planted in March but havent swollen, if anyone could ask anyone they know if I should just give up now that would be great, I planted loads as I am in France and they are very expensive to buy. They don't really know them here but all I was told it perhaps too hot for them and to plant in summer so they are growing in autumn instead.

Just on my way to bed, but I had a thought about this for what it's worth...perhaps the French don't eat these because they can't really grow them? I can understand you wanting to produce veges you can't get easily or cheaply but for me, I'm going to be trying to grow what my allotment neighbours are growing successfully, at first anyway until I get more confidence and knowledge.

NinjaB

LavenderBees wrote: »

Just on my way to bed, but I had a thought about this for what it's worth...perhaps the French don't eat these because they can't really grow them? I can understand you wanting to produce veges you can't get easily or cheaply but for me, I'm going to be trying to grow what my allotment neighbours are growing successfully, at first anyway until I get more confidence and knowledge.

Apparently it is poor food ... in the war the old lady downstairs said they ate rat, cats and rutabaga (swede) and noone wants to now they dont have to lol. I guess they then didnt feed it to their kids so their kids didnt really know about it. I get a lot of shrugs from people when I talk about it. I think I figured it out, i have automatic watering on the toms, where it crosses the bed near them there were just a couple that had swollen more than the other end so I reckon i needed to water a lot more than i did. Next year ...

LavenderBees

NinjaB wrote: »

Apparently it is poor food ... in the war the old lady downstairs said they ate rat, cats and rutabaga (swede) and noone wants to now they dont have to lol. I guess they then didnt feed it to their kids so their kids didnt really know about it. I get a lot of shrugs from people when I talk about it. I think I figured it out, i have automatic watering on the toms, where it crosses the bed near them there were just a couple that had swollen more than the other end so I reckon i needed to water a lot more than i did. Next year ...

Ah, I see....poor cats

But yes, if you're right, it sounds like a load more water is needed. Good luck!

Suffolk_lass

Hi LavendarBees :wave:,

I hope you don't mind me following your gardening diary - I have subscribed. I wondered where you were after you stopped actively posting on GC. We have a big garden (too big as we both work full time) and we are in the process of re-designing our fruit and veg garden, having moved it from the far end so it's now in the plot next to the house.

We made the decision to grow soft fruits which are always really expensive. We have summer and autumn-fruiting raspberries - autumn are the bigger, firmer berries that grow particularly well in Scotland and you cut the this-year growth down to the ground after it has fruited, assuming a bright new shoot has already started (in early spring, I think).

The summer berries tend to be much smaller and intensely sweet - great for jam but this year the funny weather meant plenty of gribbly activity. The canes for these go yellow after they have fruited (now) and can be cut right down.

We also have gooseberries and I wanted a dessert variety as well as the smaller cooking berries, and two blackcurrants.

Oh yes, and strawberries. DH bought me 3x12 of three varieties for my birthday last year and they have been prolific this year - especially the late fruiting variety that are still going. When you plant yours you might want to consider top-dressing around them with gravel. We have gravel paths between the raised beds and my laziness means many of the runners rooted in there and have done better than the parent plants with no slug activity because of the sharp surface.

We've also got a Bramley, Russet and several old apple trees, some damson and Mirabelle de Nancy young trees planted to infil our hedge where the ivy has killed everything, and an apricot and Victoria Plum. The apricot is five and we got enough fruit to mix with windfall apples to make nice jam.

I'll stop wittering but if you want to know about successful varieties for us, just say so and I'll check back.

Really looking forward to comparing progress as DH has just cleared some shrubs ready for more raised beds to be set up.

Take care
SL

LavenderBees

Hi, Suffolk Lass,

Lovely to see you over here. I've always been impressed with your cooking advice on the OS threads and know how into your food you are....Yum!Yum! Definitely feel free to post on here any piccies and progress...and we'll keep each other motivated :T

I got a bit over-OS, iykwim. Needed a wee rest, but have watched my grocery bills go sky high again so I'll be back sooner rather than later :rotfl:I need you all watching my spends so I can keep it for spending on my lovely wee lottie.

I've been very remiss with this little diary the last week, but I intend to catch up properly at the weekend. I have photos of last weekend's progress, I spent all weekend digging and planting, but of course, we've had the most horrendous rain (as have so many), so I've no idea what will have survived.

Please, please little plug plants and onion sets, please please don't drown or rot :eek:. I've never been so horrified to see so much rain in so short a space of time...if I'd realised, I'd have held off planting until this weekend...live and learn, eh?

I'll go up on Saturday and give them all a gentle talking to, sweep up leaves, and potter a bit. There's not much I can do now until I see whether anything has survived, or needs replacing. I also can't do any more digging until the fence is in place as we'll be tramping across the other main bed.

I managed to speak to my handyman on Monday, and he has acquired a few fence posts and the fence material itself, free of charge...:T. He was still looking out for a couple more fence posts...

I also have bought weed suppressant material for the new paths - reduced in the garden centre. My neighbour has a couple of flagstones doing nothing, so I've nabbed those, too. Don't worry! I did ask him :rotfl:

I was so tempted last weekend to get some fruit bushes from the garden centre - they had loganberry and raspberry and black currant, and something called Honeyberry. I wanted them all....but I'm not ready for planting any this year. I didn't make a note of the varieties. I've realised I should have so I could have looked them up and found out more about them.

I'm very much a buy it and plonk it in gardener, but I'm trying to learn more about soil preparation, and what each plant needs to try to maximise my yield (do I sound like I know what I'm talking about? :rotfl:). The other forum I've joined is very friendly, and lots of knowledgeable people so I feel like I'm learning lots but at a good, manageable pace.

Someone has a saying in their signature along the lines of "Spend a penny on the plant and a pound on the soil", and, having seem pictures of his lottie, I'm following this advice!!

Shame, then, that I still don't have my grubby little mitts on any farm manure...must get onto that. I think my handyman is more comfortable with fencing and paths than manure or plants

Well, enough rambling for tonight. I have to be up at 4.30am for a meeting across the other side of the country. I'll post some update piccies this weekend.

LB xx

LavenderBees

Suffolk_lass wrote: »

We made the decision to grow soft fruits which are always really expensive. We have summer and autumn-fruiting raspberries - autumn are the bigger, firmer berries that grow particularly well in Scotland and you cut the this-year growth down to the ground after it has fruited, assuming a bright new shoot has already started (in early spring, I think).

The summer berries tend to be much smaller and intensely sweet - great for jam but this year the funny weather meant plenty of gribbly activity. The canes for these go yellow after they have fruited (now) and can be cut right down.

We also have gooseberries and I wanted a dessert variety as well as the smaller cooking berries, and two blackcurrants.

Oh yes, and strawberries. DH bought me 3x12 of three varieties for my birthday last year and they have been prolific this year - especially the late fruiting variety that are still going. When you plant yours you might want to consider top-dressing around them with gravel. We have gravel paths between the raised beds and my laziness means many of the runners rooted in there and have done better than the parent plants with no slug activity because of the sharp surface.

We've also got a Bramley, Russet and several old apple trees, some damson and Mirabelle de Nancy young trees planted to infil our hedge where the ivy has killed everything, and an apricot and Victoria Plum. The apricot is five and we got enough fruit to mix with windfall apples to make nice jam.

SL

You see, I didn't realise there was summer and autumn fruiting bushes, so that's great, thank you. I now have a wee dilemma though as I have quite a small plot. Summer or Autumn...Autumn or Summer...or a mixture?

I need to do a lot more investigation before deciding, but yes, if you could tell me what varieties you have or recommend, that would be fab!

I don't have room for trees, so lucky you, BUT you've given me the spark of an idea that I wouldn't probably have had....I could maybe grow espalier trees along my new fence...I think they are called espalier trees...you know where you train the branches along wire/fence....

Ooh, lots of ideas for planning and researching this winter for next year.

Many thanks!!

P.S. I don't like the idea of "gribbly activity". Ugh!

SailorSam

This is quite a good allotment website for starters.
http://www.allotment.org.uk/

LavenderBees

SailorSam wrote: »

This is quite a good allotment website for starters.
http://www.allotment.org.uk/

Thanks, SailorSam, that's bookmarked for reading. I think it's one of the ones I took a look at a couple of weeks ago. Trouble is, I think I can spend so many hours reading on the internet, and I forget what I've read. I must make notes of what useful info catches my eye.

Right, definitely off to bed now...I bet I can't wake up when the alarm goes off

LavenderBees

First ever Cabbage planted...ever seen a more fab cabbage plug??