Help MBE grow his dinner 2013.

D&DD

Lolly my gardens is mostly shaded as I'm down a hole lol but everything grows ok here especially the soft fruit.

Jealous of the aubergines LV I've sown 2 lots and the first lot died the second lot are just sat there staring at me with one poxy leaf each..

Everything else is going mad :eek:

Annie ooer my round courgette is starting to flower and its only got about 4 leaves..is that right??

Rhubarb has finally got going properly dreaming of crumbles this weekend *dribbles*

Currants are all showing fruit already and plums and apples are blossoming.

Its forecast to be cold overnight here for a couple of weeks however from Friday so may have to do a midnight shuffle yet a while,don't want to lose anything now!

savingpennies

I've been lurking and reading this thread for a while now and have this urge to contribute something (think I've drunk too much of the old vino!!). I have a tiny patch but huge ambition! In the past few years I have successfully grown tomatoes, cucumbers, strawberries, raspberries, chillis, french beans and a few apples and pears (via cordons). This year my ambitions have grown. I have a small greenhouse (octagonal 6X6) in which I hope to grow toms, cucumbers, aubergines and a small patch of ground in which I have planted a a couple of currants (red and black) a gooseberry and a rhubarb. I have the following on the kitchen windowsill: courgettes, cucumbers, tomatoes, auberinges. In the greenhouse I have just planted french beans and greenbeans. About two weeks ago I planted broad beans which have sprouted successfully.
My aims this year are to grow as much summer veg as possible so that I don't have to buy much. Because of my tiny patch I am really interested in the square garden concept to gain as much produce as possible. I hope you don't mind me tagging along. I'll try to post pics of my tiny patch to as I go along.

Leif

lemonjelly wrote: »

Poundstretcher have some decent value larger sized tubs & pots for those MSE inclined gardeners out there. Went there yesterday - evening well spent (as well as £20!).

A busy weekend ahead - the 2nd round of planting will commence...

I don't think I've mentioned this before in this thread, but our local brewery round the corner gives away spent hops, useful on the compost heap, and 25L plastic containers, which can be made into planters. It might be worth you trying your local brewery. The worst case is that you come away with some nice beer.

mrbadexample

savingpennies wrote: »

I hope you don't mind me tagging along. I'll try to post pics of my tiny patch to as I go along.

Not at all. Look forward to the pictures - you sound like a dab hand at this already.

mrbadexample

Leif wrote: »

I don't think I've mentioned this before in this thread, but our local brewery round the corner gives away spent hops, useful on the compost heap, and 25L plastic containers, which can be made into planters. It might be worth you trying your local brewery. The worst case is that you come away with some nice beer.

That's a good idea. I'm sure there are loads of breweries round here, and the spent hops would be useful if nothing else. One of the things I struggle with is actually generating enough compost. I've done pretty well this year, but last year's bin is almost empty and I've only had a couple of barrowloads. I had to resort to nicking a trailer full from the old fella.

D&DD

Blimey I was in my shorts yesterday and its back to me coat today brrr,wet,windy and cold..

I think these courgettes are similar to a patty pan the way they grow so maybe they are ok I thought they were trailers

My Bloody Butcher tomatoes are weird,very strange leaves on them perfectly healthy but more like a sweet potato shaped leaf than a tomato!

MrB we have two compost bins and we can't generate even half the amount we need either and our garden is probably half the size of yours.It all helps though and keeps the costs down a bit.
I nick my next door neighbours grass as we have none and add cardboard and papers from the shredder to try and make more but its never enough.

annie123

D&#8517 wrote: »

Annie ooer my round courgette is starting to flower and its only got about 4 leaves..is that right??

Currants are all showing fruit already and plums and apples are blossoming.

They didn't do that last year but one of mine has 9 buds on it this year. Last year it grew out around 30" so I'm going to stake and tie in like toms this year, up is better takes less space.

I have 1 red current with flowers just about to open, one with leaves and with as much enthusiasm to even open it's leaves as a teenager has to do the washing up.

annie123

On Wednesday nipped out to get ant powder, then took toms/q's/squashes out. Just putting them in suitable places so I could use fleece to shade them when I got a call from a hospital to say my aunt had a stroke and could I get hospital bag etc as uncle abroad.
So drop everything and concentrate on aunt (she was visiting a friend in the hospital so right place and time and is coming home today and should be back to normal in a few weeks, phew!) and only when I returned home around 9pm to rush and bring plants in was it obvious I hadn't put shading up They'll survive but they all look very sad.

I have 2 compost bins and now DD's left I can't fill them both just don't create enough waste between hubby and I, and as I've got the neighbours composting to GYO I can't get stuff of them any more. I'm going to have to buy some, but I hate doing it.
Might use No2 bin as a slow composter, putting woody prunings and leaf mold in, would that work?

Manure prices seem to have gone up since last year here.........horses charging more for it this year? Going to try a local nursery see if they're cheaper

D&DD shorts!!!!!!!!!!!!! needs to hit 25c for me to wear shorts, was nice to be in jeans and t-shirt for a change. And yes the plant shuffle continues for another week. Have you a free day next week or the week after so I can relieve you of some items Can't do Monday or Saturday but other than that, pick a day.

Little_Vics

annie123 wrote: »

D&DD shorts!!!!!!!!!!!!! needs to hit 25c for me to wear shorts, was nice to be in jeans and t-shirt for a change. .

T-shirt?? T-SHIRT?!!!!!! We're still in 5 layers, scarves and hats up here!

I'll try to post a pic of the aubergine if I can remember how to do it....

lemonjelly

I have sproutage! :j
It seems that both the carrots and beetroot are popping out of the soil.
Lettuce too. Happy to see that. Planted a 2nd batch of lettuce today. Will plant a 3rd in a fortnight so trying to get a proper conveyor belt going there. Got some great tubs for lettuce from poundstretcher.
Still nothing on the tomato front - despite the fact that it has only been 2 weeks, & it'll be another 2 weeks yet. Whilst I am not worrying about them (yet), I'm wanting to check every other day to see!
I planted some flowers for baskets/bee attraction. Only did that last weekend & one lot of flowers is showing already (dunno which ones - I only really pay attention to the labels when it is edible).
Must get the 2nd lot of carrots an beetroot, as well as the onions out this weekend. Last lot of flowers will need planting then too.