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

fairynuff27

Hi folks,

I'd like to join in if I may?

Last year's success stories for me were my potatoes, tomatoes and chillies, which I didn't have to buy at all from about May/June until late September. I moved the chili plants into the greenhouse, and am still eating fresh now! I grew inca berries for the first time, which my two year old twins loved collecting and eating, and lots and lots of alpine strawberries, as well as my 2nd year strawberry plants, which I started early in the cold frame. Blueberry plants did well, although I lost my late-season plant, so left with early and mid. Tom Thumb Peas gave me several tupperware boxes full in the freezer, and a gorgeous pea-pod soup, plus lots of pea-pod-flavoured gravy for lamb dishes. Turks' turban, Windsor pumpkins and summer squash all fed us well, with a couple of pumpkins still left in store.

Beets were disappointing compared to previous years, which was a great disappointment to many in my family who look forward to their beetroot relish for Christmas! Sweetcorn/popcorn plants grew well but the corn didn't ripen enough before the wet weather sent them mouldy! Pasrnips and Carrots were a waste of space. Spinach was so plentiful we got sick of it, so I ended up freezing loads then composting the rest!

I also grew cucamelons for the first time, but they were a bit insipid for our family. And my sweet peppers were a disaster - barely any actually fruited.

Still harvesting curly kale and red drumhead cabbages, but lost all the sprouts to cabbage white caterpillars. Just dug out my oca and have a bumper harvest - any suggestions for recipes very welcome! Made a curry last night with some of the smaller tubers - they melted into the coconut milk for a lovely lemony tang!

Will be growing much of the same this year, as have promised myself I'll plant leftover seeds and collected seeds this year, rather than spending any money. Will try beets and carrots again, as previous years they have grown really well! I also got a bargain greenhouse (just a small one, but still...) in autumn, so hoping peppers and toms will fare better in there!

Datchet

Hi Folks - first time poster! We are time-poor veg growers with plenty of space; productive garden and problematic allotment.

Good in 2015
Garden/greenhouse
Rasberrys -tons! Despite lack of sun
Strawberrys -superb, despite lack of management
Peas - limited quantity owing to small shady space at home
Toms - v late , but good
Cucumbers - v good in GH
Chilli! Never have much luck - small & ferocious
Parsley
Apples
Plums
Purple Carrot in containers

Down The Plot still on Good list;
Garlic - bumper crop
Spuds - always good, early and main this year(still eating)
Broad Beans
Rhubarb
Gooseberry
Turnip

Poor Garden
Courgette - mostly failed (unheard of!!)
Runner beans ( sold too many seedlings then ours didn't grow!)
French beans
All Brassicas except Cavalo Nero
Parsnips ( sadly missed..��)
Kohl Rabi - usually sure-fire, but failed
Carrot
Pumpkin - v limited

New planting for 2016
Asparagus - 3 year crowns went in 2015
Carlin Peas !!! (I am From the North East, originally!)
Purple French Beans
Purple Chilli
Purple Peas
Purple Toms
( No 2 Son is obsessed with purple veg...)

Happy growing Folks!

Dizzy_Ditzy

Welcome fairynuff and datchet :hello:

Narc0lepsy

zafiro1984 wrote: »

Thanks Queen of Cheap but is there any chance you could post when these fruits have appeared in your Aldi. I'd be very interested in getting some more raspberries but our nearest Aldi is a round trip of almost 40 miles. Anyone know if Lidl do things like this, that's only 6 miles away.

If you look on the Lidl website, it shows when the offers are. It is showing "plants and flowers" for this Thursday, although it doesn't look like fruit bushes yet.

zafiro1984

Narc0lepsy wrote: »

If you look on the Lidl website, it shows when the offers are. It is showing "plants and flowers" for this Thursday, although it doesn't look like fruit bushes yet.

Thanks Narc0lepsy, I'll keep looking.

Woke today to snow - My garden now looks just as good as
my neighbours :rotfl:

Floss

Datchet word of experience - purple French beans are really easy to pick coz you can see them, but go a dirty green when cooked! Yellow ones keep their colour

2015 was great for most things on my lottie:
Greenhouses (2):
Cucumbers
Toms - cherry, moneymaker & a plum variety
Peppers
Aubergines

Outside:
French beans - half a freezer full!
Strawberries - we only just kept up with them, made jam, ate fresh, made wine, made icecream and froze some
Raspberries - as above but no wine
Beetroot
Apples - made into wine & frozen for icecream & pies
Pears - made into pear cheese (scrummy!)
Rhubarb - wine, jam, chutney, jelly, icecream, frozen, gave away, ate fresh...
Potatoes - charlotte, rooster & an early I can't remember all did really well
Courgettes were ok
Currants made jelly
1 gooseberry from 3 plants!
Blackberries made jelly & jam
Salad leaves all summer
PSB is a standard now - best first crop of the year!
Onions - loads but not kept very well this year
Garlic got eaten
Fennel did well
Parsnips were from Dr Who!
Celery didn't blanch but tasted great
Horseradish went bonkers!
Plum tree didn't fruit so well due to pruning

2016 plans:
PSB
Winter broccoli (just ready now)
Fruit already established
French beans
Salad
Aubergines
Peppers
Courgettes
Tomatoes
Cucumber
Fennel
Potatoes
Parsnips
Beetroot

mrsscattercushion

Hello!

I was a very sporadic poster last year, hopefully a bit better this year.

Last year was the first on our half-plot allotment, so spent a lot of time getting the soil dug over and understanding its "quirks".

Successes definitely, runner beans, as still have bags and bags of them in the freezer! Pentland Javelin potatoes were excellent and still have some in storage in the outhouse. Spinach beet still going strong, lettuce, onions, garlic and shallots all a success (although onions didn't keep too well). Currently still harvesting leeks, kale and cabbage, with the purple sprouting broccoli just about ready.

Not as good Peas ~ needed more water, so not a good harvest. Spring onions weren't great. Beet root was ok (got jars pickled), tomatoes just withered away. Sprouts got really affected by all the wet weather. Sweetcorn didn't ripen due to wet weather and just not enough warmth.

Overall, really pleased with the first year and looking forward to challenges of the new one. Minimal frost, even up here near the Peak District so far and the rain has left the heavy clay somewhat squelchy!! Hoping to be able to grow more things myself from seed, rather than rely on shop-bought plants, as have loads. Now the plot is fully cleared, hoping to be able to have a bit more of a plan of where things are growing (rather than wherever there was room). In time, would like to add some fruit bushes

Look forward to reading about everyone's adventures this year :-) And in advance, requests for what to do with the glut of courgettes ;-)

Claire x

Jazee

Morning all.

Sorry if I'm repeating myself but I've done a calendar planner of what to plant where and when and when to move stuff on and when things should be ready for harvest.

So two weeks ago, started by planting tomatoes and onions in mini propagators indoors. These have germinated already and I have little 1-2 inch plants.

I might pop out in the greenhouse later today and see how stuff out there is progressing. I have some rocket which needs moving into bigger pots.
Also the garden really needs a sort and tidy now the fence is fixed.

Have a great day everyone.

fairynuff27

Thanks for the welcome queen of cheap!

Last year I was really organised and had started planting toms by mid-january - this year not so much. On of my jobs for this weekend is to sort through my seeds and put them into month-by-month envelopes as I did last year. Then get started on planting!

zafiro1984

fairynuff27 wrote: »

Thanks for the welcome queen of cheap!

Last year I was really organised and had started planting toms by mid-january - this year not so much. On of my jobs for this weekend is to sort through my seeds and put them into month-by-month envelopes as I did last year. Then get started on planting!

I'm going to do the same hopefully this Saturday. Enthusiasm has waned a bit lately, I'll put it down to the bad weather.