The ups and downs of growing your own dinner 2016...

zafiro1984

Purplepardalis:- I sympathise with you, it's tough work with new ground. You have slugs, I have rabbits, one is as bad as the other

Fruittea:- I've started adding up the cost of this years harvest, 11 strawberries and some Japanese onions - using Mr T online to get the prices - great idea of yours.

moneyistooshorttomention

Wah....at anyone having "beautifully looked after soil" - as mine here certainly wasnt. I've been throwing everything possible at it since coming here - lime (it's clay), compost, "Blood Fish and Bone", rockdust, that mycorrhizal stuff, you name it.

I had a wormery at one point - and then lots of the worms seemed to escape. I decided to make a virtue out of necessity and bought (by post) a load more worms and then let them all loose in the garden. Reason being I'd soon discovered just how barren the earth in my garden was when I bought the house and I barely ever spotted a worm. Having noticed that - I thought "Worms are a good idea they say" and hence adding to them. Errrrm....I've recently been reading that earthworms (ie "yer real deal" type worms that are meant to be there) go digging around in the soil at a lower level than "other types of worm" (ie like those I've subsequently added then...ahem...).

I think/hope it's all working out okay and "natives" (if there are any much) and "incomers" are all getting on okay - and digging away for me in my soil....

I've not forgotten my panic at spotting a couple of slowworms in the garden some time back - and then got told that they are A Good Thing and I should be encouraging them. Errrm...I've not seen them since...they probably think there is far too much "disturbance" going on here.

rosie383

How come... moved to a new house where the previous owner has put a lot of love and care into the garden, including a lovely veg patch, and nothing is germinating for me!
Previous owner's strawberry plants look huge and lush and I have already been giving rhubarb away, but my own seeds aren't germinating!
Only one courgette out of eight seeds took, and some tomato seeds, but I put them outside, ready to plant out a couple of days later, and the blo*dy slugs ate the lot!
I planted peas in the lovely veg patch and out of about thirty, I have two which are growing. TWO!! And none of my sweetcorn!
Potatoes seem to be doing okay, so it looks as if I will have strawberries, spuds and rhubarb, with a handful of peas.
I got more courgette seeds, pumpkin and sweetcorn and just shoved those straight into the soil hoping for the best.

laidbackgjr

Just been out - first glimpse of red on the strawberries - looking forward to some fresh strawberries in the next few weeks.

And first courgette starting to grow on the courgette plant.

sazzlebgood?

been to the lottie to day and potted on january king cabbages (about 20) never sure how many to do. I either plant too many or too few and also potted on autumn broccoli. Trying to grow something for each season. Always seem to do really well for summer, autumn and then winter and spring not so good,:mad: does anyone else find this? Potted up the sage plants and put them outside to harden off, looking forward to making homemade sage and onion stuffing just need to track down a recipe. Sown more courgettes as the slugs have demolished one and has left us with only three. Came home with fresh asparagus for lunch and the first strawberries from the greenhouse tasted of summer. Does anyone else associated a particular veg or fruit with the start of a season? Spring is rhubarb and asparagus, summer is strawberries and minted new potatoes, autumn is carrots and blackberries and winter is savoy cabbage.:T Hope my plants weather the heavy rain we're due later today.

Fruittea

Hi Everyone
Still waiting for rain here in Gloucestershire - but none so far.
Sorry to hear about all your slugs Rosie - but keep up the good work.
Hi Sazzlebegood - I enjoyed your comments about the seasons I think you've got it dead right with the food choices. Noticed your growing sage - I can't get enough of the stuff it's my 'go to' herb and it's always in my garden in heeps. I don't have a recipe for stuffing but here's a recipe you might want to try - simple but really good and takes about 15 minutes from start to finish.


Anything with sage and pasta recipe


½ tin of anchovies finely chopped


1 tablespoon of olive oil


Large clove of garlic


1 big handful of sage - finely chopped


Chilli dried or fresh according to taste


Brassica or courgettes of your choice – cut into fine strips


Pasta for 2


Black pepper


Method


Boil a pan of water for the pasta – process as usual - tagliatelle works best


In a frying pan gentle sweat/fry off the olive oil and anchovies and garlic until the anchovy has disappeared (about 4 mins).


When the pasta is nearly ready turn up the heat in the frying pan and stir-fry the greens.


Strain the pasta and pour in the frying pan and stir in. Add lots of black pepper.


Note: You can add anything you want to the basic dish. Like prawns or cherry tomatoes - the very dark greens like the kales work really well. And I use one of those shredder things if I use courgettes. It lovely and fresh and is fairly cheap if need be.

Jazee

Great recipe Fruittea.

Yesterday, I cheated and bought flowers, shrubs and vegetable plants from the garden centre. The greenhouse is full now as the weather was too foul yesterday to actually be outside and plant any of it up.

I will try to get outside today around other commitments.

Fruittea

It's the 1st of June Everyone - at last everything can go out in the garden and with this rain it should all do well. Well let's hope so.
Thanks Jazee - I forgot to say add some wine or stock if you like it. No shame in a trip to the garden centre and it will be a great kick start.
I'm hoping that this rain will get my over wintered onions to swell up a bit more - so I can pull them up. Space is a bit of an issue at the moment - this succession lark is a bit stressful. I'll try to post a plan of the allotment sometime so others can see what I'm up to.
Have a great growing day everyone.

moneyistooshorttomention

Yep...I can sympathise re slug damage.

Blimmin' things have got at my courgettes and sweetcorn.

I'm still rather tied-up with getting the garden organised in the first place - but plans for future years include cutting down "milkbottles" and placing one around each plant whilst they are still young. I think one "sinks" them about an 1" into the soil if I remember aright - and then the slugs dont try climbing up the several inches above earth and having a feast??

I will have a greenhouse by the time next years lot of plants are due to go out anyway - so think it should help keeping them in "protective custody" of said greenhouse until they are just a bit bigger and able to fend off marauders. This year I've still had to do putting the plants in the soil as soon as they are ready to and keeping fingers crossed the slugs dont get them. That has proven a very "hit and miss" strategy...:(

zafiro1984

Just wondering how much space we all have for growing?

I'm lucky in having made some raised beds many many years ago (the bad back wouldn't let me do it now) Also, after an unexpected 'gift' I've two solar tunnels, total area not including paths 133 sq metres.
The fruit cage was made from left over fencing. total 110 sq metres.
There was already a greenhouse when we moved here and a large water tank which is now a 'shed'.

Unfortunately, I find I spend more and more time trying to keep on top of it along with everything else I have to do, but I do really really enjoy it so it's not a burden -just wish I was more of a tidy person.