The even newer good, bad and ugly of growing your own in 2021!

-taff

went through the compost bin yesterday and extrciated three wheelbarrows of compost which I spread on the front garden. I think I'm going to get a few more thyme plants, I want them to go round the central bed in the front garden and I use quite a lot of it. Levelled off the big bed and dug over and levelled the small square one, I'd been dumping compost bin stuff there because I knew I'd be turning the bin before long. When my shoulder gets better I'll turn it every week. Also experimenting with bean trenches this year.

I might go to the garden center and fetch some compost ready for next week or this weekends sowing frenzy. I got some celtuce through the door from ebay so looking forward to trying that.

I also found quite a few golden beetroot I'd forgotten about so I'll cook those after and oil and vinegar them up.

carinjo

Yesterday had success removing the last 2 blackcurrents. A neighbour ended up giving me a hand with his special spade (a grafter i think?) Cut through those roots like nobody's business. Unfortunately a huge section of the potato bed is covered with cheap weedsuppressing fabric with couch grass growing through. So this might take a bit longer than planned.
Got gifted parsnip seeds and some fresh veg from 2 neighbours, so a good morning all in all.
At home another tomato variety sown and finished potting up the lavender.
The rain and wind woke me up this morning, so glad to see the weather app accurate at least 

silverwhistle

Fosterdog said:

 I still need to buy in a fair amount for all of my new plots but I'm struggling to get hold of good value and good quality compost anywhere, I need around 500 litres for this years planting but it's everywhere I look it's either poor quality or incredibly expensive. It's reminded why I don't like buying it in and prefer to make my own.

Have you ever tried asking your neighbours for grass cuttings? I'm also lucky in having a neighbour who provides plenty of sawdust for the browns plus I raid for cardboard on bin day!

Pennysmakepounds

the_cross_rabbit said:

my chillies are starting to put out their second lot of leaves.
CRX

Sounds like you're well on your way.  Mine are happily growing indoors at the moment be a bit behind yours . 
I fear i may have gotten carried away this year. 
I seem to have had too many germinate, i was obviously over eager after last years failed germination and planted a farmers worth.
May sell some on to recoup seed money  

Fosterdog

@silverwhistle I do get plenty of stuff to make the compost, I just haven't got a big enough area to actually compost and store it all yet, if I'd properly planned ahead I would have started making a lot more over the last few years in preparation. We've only been in this house 4 years and the garden needs a total renovation that we are doing a bit at a time so each year we pick one or two big jobs and a list of small jobs to work through. Eventually I'll have a 3+ bay pallet setup for my compost but that's not possible until other big jobs are done so I'm stuck with 2 daleks and an old tonne sack for leaf mould.


I wasn't expecting the winds as bad as they are right now, my blueberries have been blown over, they've lost all their mulch and some of their compost. They've been moved to a safer spot for tonight and I'll have to assess the damage when I get chance, which might not be until Sunday as I'm working long days and it will be dark when I go to work and dark when I get home. Fingers crossed there's not too much damage.

-taff

@fosterdog, are you filling beds with compost or something? Might be worth your while looking at hugelkultur if you are depth filling to any degree.

Have you tried any organic farms for rotted manure? Mushroom compost leftovers? Grass clippings will also fill and rot in a bed.

Fosterdog

@-taff right now I'm mostly container gardening while the garden gets sorted but we've build a largish and deep raised bed that is taking a lot of filling. I have done a hugel base, topped with grass clippings (to stop the wood depleting too much nitrogen from the soil in the first year) then added as much of our own soil as we could, but it's clay heavy so not the best, then bought in a tonne of topsoil and still need around 6" of compost to get it to planting level for my root veg, my non root veg can get away with just a thin layer for this year and get topped up next year. I still then need enough good stuff to dig into my pea and bean in ground bed as the clay soil is not good for them. I've filled my new strawberry bed and have enough here to fill most of my containers.

I will get there, being in lockdown is just not helping with me getting hold of what I need, as soon as restrictions are lifted I'll be getting what I can from farms, might just be too late in the season for this year with Wales having no end date to work towards yet. Worst case my plans get delayed by a year and I just make do again this year.

silverwhistle

Fosterdog said:

@silverwhistle I do get plenty of stuff to make the compost, I just haven't got a big enough area to actually compost and store it all yet, if I'd properly planned ahead I would have started making a lot more over the last few years in preparation.

Yep, compost doesn't happen overnight! I'm on my second growing season on the allotment and putting in a two bay compost heap made from pallets was the first thing I did. Also scrounged a dalek which I'll move from year to year and just lift and spread. My allotment site gets deliveries of horse manure which the stables are glad to get rid of. Of varying maturity and although I've put some down direct I also add it to the compost heap to continue maturing.  

carinjo

My lovely new walk-in plastic greenhouse tried to go flying in the middle of the night. The cover is draped over some chairs inside and the frame in pieces again. Luckily only casualty was the newly potted lavender. 
Regarding the raised beds and compost, i read that for my hardy herbs i should add sandy soil for improved drainage, so that will bring the cost down a bit i hope. @silverwhistle i like the idea of adding manure to compost bin, didn't think of that!

madlyn

Hi everyone.
I do grow my own but compared to most it is not a lot.
This year I am going to give Blueberries ago, Radish and Spring Onion (which I always grow) and a couple of different salad leaves.