The all new good, bad and ugly of growing your own in 2020

Ganga

 Can some of you learned gardeners give me some guidance, we live up in the NE of England and as we will not be going abroad for the foreseeable future I thought this year I will not only try but hopefully  grow tomatoes ,we normally go have 4 to 5 holidays a year and the garden always suffers , either too wet or too dry and for the last 2/3 years tomatoes have been a disaster.

When is the best time to plant them ( we do not have a  greenhouse ) and what is the best blight resistant tomato plant to buy

Suffolk_lass

Ganga said:

 Can some of you learned gardeners give me some guidance, we live up in the NE of England and as we will not be going abroad for the foreseeable future I thought this year I will not only try but hopefully  grow tomatoes ,we normally go have 4 to 5 holidays a year and the garden always suffers , either too wet or too dry and for the last 2/3 years tomatoes have been a disaster.

When is the best time to plant them ( we do not have a  greenhouse ) and what is the best blight resistant tomato plant to buy

I would suggest you use new compost (like the contents of a growbag, transferred to a pot at least 20cm deep) and then blight is less likely to be a problem - it is the lack of rotation of either potatoes or tomatoes (same family) that allows the fungus to dwell. Most F1 varieties have blight resistance of some sort. I like Sungold F1 - an orange cherry type for its sweet flavour in salads, and Cuor di Bue a large (field-grown in Italy) tomato from which I make passata to go through the winter. I always grow Black Russian too - less prolific as a beefsteak than the large purple skinned cherry tomatoes.

carinjo

On Sunday finally managed to get to the allotment with OH. Dismantled and moved the collapsed bean frame to one side. Trimmed the grass around fig tree and berry bushes. Done a raised bed for the fig tree to kill the grass. Done food and compost around the berry bushes. OH done all the heavy lifting since my back ouch again. Done cane and string support for the broadbeans. 8 of the 12plants survived. 
Yesterday at home repotted thyme, oregano and rosemary. Had a go at them to practice growing from seed since i always seem to kill it once i repot. If they survive, i can start on veg in next few weeks.
Done stems of basil (aldis) and sage (gone woody) aparently sage will grow same as basil, so fingers crossed.
Planted sunflower, nastursium, chilli and coriander. Again, if i manage that, can move onto veg seeds.
This week need to start potato beds, will be my one form of excercise! Covered with plastic in autumn, managed to suppress grass growth, but not completely. Will have to bribe the OH to do most of the digging! 

Ganga

Suffolk_lass said:

Ganga said:

 Can some of you learned gardeners give me some guidance, we live up in the NE of England and as we will not be going abroad for the foreseeable future I thought this year I will not only try but hopefully  grow tomatoes ,we normally go have 4 to 5 holidays a year and the garden always suffers , either too wet or too dry and for the last 2/3 years tomatoes have been a disaster.

When is the best time to plant them ( we do not have a  greenhouse ) and what is the best blight resistant tomato plant to buy

I would suggest you use new compost (like the contents of a growbag, transferred to a pot at least 20cm deep) and then blight is less likely to be a problem - it is the lack of rotation of either potatoes or tomatoes (same family) that allows the fungus to dwell. Most F1 varieties have blight resistance of some sort. I like Sungold F1 - an orange cherry type for its sweet flavour in salads, and Cuor di Bue a large (field-grown in Italy) tomato from which I make passata to go through the winter. I always grow Black Russian too - less prolific as a beefsteak than the large purple skinned cherry tomatoes.

Thanks Suffolk lass ,I am changing all the compost/soil in my tubs this year so this might help , when is the best time to plant tomato plants outside as we do not own a greenhouse.

silverwhistle

carinjo said:

 Had a go at them to practice growing from seed since i always seem to kill it once i repot.

Glad I'm not the only one..

This week need to start potato beds, will be my one form of excercise! Covered with plastic in autumn, managed to suppress grass growth, but not completely. Will have to bribe the OH to do most of the digging! 

Time saving on my new allotment meant that today I planted my potatoes on weed free ground after removing cover by using a bulb planter, making a hole, putting a few chicken fertiliser pellets in, then the potato followed by mature compost from my heap. As (if?) they grow I'll do a bit more mulching with compost, and hopefully they'll break up the ground a bit. I'm leaving the new raised beds for more delicate stuff!

Suffolk_lass

Ganga said:

Suffolk_lass said:

Ganga said:

 Can some of you learned gardeners give me some guidance, we live up in the NE of England and as we will not be going abroad for the foreseeable future I thought this year I will not only try but hopefully  grow tomatoes ,we normally go have 4 to 5 holidays a year and the garden always suffers , either too wet or too dry and for the last 2/3 years tomatoes have been a disaster.

When is the best time to plant them ( we do not have a  greenhouse ) and what is the best blight resistant tomato plant to buy

I would suggest you use new compost (like the contents of a growbag, transferred to a pot at least 20cm deep) and then blight is less likely to be a problem - it is the lack of rotation of either potatoes or tomatoes (same family) that allows the fungus to dwell. Most F1 varieties have blight resistance of some sort. I like Sungold F1 - an orange cherry type for its sweet flavour in salads, and Cuor di Bue a large (field-grown in Italy) tomato from which I make passata to go through the winter. I always grow Black Russian too - less prolific as a beefsteak than the large purple skinned cherry tomatoes.

Thanks Suffolk lass ,I am changing all the compost/soil in my tubs this year so this might help , when is the best time to plant tomato plants outside as we do not own a greenhouse.

Later than you think. Mine (here in the East where we have really cold Springs) is towards the end of May. A bit like Monty on Gardeners World last Friday, I am only just planting mine. If you need to put them out before that, you could keep them close to a house wall, on a low something so they are off the ground, and even wrap them overnight in bubble-wrap or fleece so the frosts don't burn the leaves.

In any case you want them to be sturdy little plants not spindly little things (another reason I am waiting, as the relatively poor light on a window sill makes them grow spindly towards the light). If you are short of space you could just bring them in for the night and out again in the mornings once it has warmed a little bit.

crv1963

Ganga said:

 Can some of you learned gardeners give me some guidance, we live up in the NE of England and as we will not be going abroad for the foreseeable future I thought this year I will not only try but hopefully  grow tomatoes ,we normally go have 4 to 5 holidays a year and the garden always suffers , either too wet or too dry and for the last 2/3 years tomatoes have been a disaster.

When is the best time to plant them ( we do not have a  greenhouse ) and what is the best blight resistant tomato plant to buy

Hi Ganga

I'm also in NE, right up in North Durham near the Pennines so lots of cold and wind- it was sleet here on Saturday! I'd suggest now is a decent time to start the tomatoes, but they can't live outside until all danger of frost has passed. For us that is the last week in May/ first week of June, for my mother being only 40 miles away but much more near sea level it is the middle of May. Have a go with them, this is my first year of trying from seed, I have a few through now but am going to sow a few more next week in case I've been too hasty, a friend told me he sews his February, then again end March/ beginning of April.

I always empty old pots which had veg in onto the flower borders and start each season with new but you can rotate using pot soil- this year I have large 45 litre pots- so will have to rotate these as they cost too much to fill. I've got garlic in 6 and am going to try potatoes in a few more and leeks.

It is for me all about experimenting and giving it a go. Good luck.

unrecordings

Noticed yesterday that the lovage is coming back round here

Ganga

crv1963 said:

Ganga said:

 Can some of you learned gardeners give me some guidance, we live up in the NE of England and as we will not be going abroad for the foreseeable future I thought this year I will not only try but hopefully  grow tomatoes ,we normally go have 4 to 5 holidays a year and the garden always suffers , either too wet or too dry and for the last 2/3 years tomatoes have been a disaster.

When is the best time to plant them ( we do not have a  greenhouse ) and what is the best blight resistant tomato plant to buy

Hi Ganga

I'm also in NE, right up in North Durham near the Pennines so lots of cold and wind- it was sleet here on Saturday! I'd suggest now is a decent time to start the tomatoes, but they can't live outside until all danger of frost has passed. For us that is the last week in May/ first week of June, for my mother being only 40 miles away but much more near sea level it is the middle of May. Have a go with them, this is my first year of trying from seed, I have a few through now but am going to sow a few more next week in case I've been too hasty, a friend told me he sews his February, then again end March/ beginning of April.

I always empty old pots which had veg in onto the flower borders and start each season with new but you can rotate using pot soil- this year I have large 45 litre pots- so will have to rotate these as they cost too much to fill. I've got garlic in 6 and am going to try potatoes in a few more and leeks.

It is for me all about experimenting and giving it a go. Good luck.

crv 1963 , thanks for the info, I will be growing tomato plants as we have no facilities to grow from seed, we live near the coast ( close to Sunderland ) so think that about mid May sounds about right , are you up near the A66 road, I know when we go across there it can be 4 seasons in one day but a stunningly beautiful area .

crv1963

Ganga said:

crv1963 said:

Ganga said:

 Can some of you learned gardeners give me some guidance, we live up in the NE of England and as we will not be going abroad for the foreseeable future I thought this year I will not only try but hopefully  grow tomatoes ,we normally go have 4 to 5 holidays a year and the garden always suffers , either too wet or too dry and for the last 2/3 years tomatoes have been a disaster.

When is the best time to plant them ( we do not have a  greenhouse ) and what is the best blight resistant tomato plant to buy

Hi Ganga

I'm also in NE, right up in North Durham near the Pennines so lots of cold and wind- it was sleet here on Saturday! I'd suggest now is a decent time to start the tomatoes, but they can't live outside until all danger of frost has passed. For us that is the last week in May/ first week of June, for my mother being only 40 miles away but much more near sea level it is the middle of May. Have a go with them, this is my first year of trying from seed, I have a few through now but am going to sow a few more next week in case I've been too hasty, a friend told me he sews his February, then again end March/ beginning of April.

I always empty old pots which had veg in onto the flower borders and start each season with new but you can rotate using pot soil- this year I have large 45 litre pots- so will have to rotate these as they cost too much to fill. I've got garlic in 6 and am going to try potatoes in a few more and leeks.

It is for me all about experimenting and giving it a go. Good luck.

crv 1963 , thanks for the info, I will be growing tomato plants as we have no facilities to grow from seed, we live near the coast ( close to Sunderland ) so think that about mid May sounds about right , are you up near the A66 road, I know when we go across there it can be 4 seasons in one day but a stunningly beautiful area .

Plants sound a good idea but it may be worth a punt on getting some seeds, sow them and keep on a sunny window sill- 99p in Aldi I believe or maybe tesco? I'm on the Durham/ Northumberland border, just off the A68.