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

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  • Sallyp2
    Sallyp2 Posts: 359 Forumite
    Fourth Anniversary 100 Posts Name Dropper
    edited 10 May 2021 at 1:48PM
    I grow Black Russian Beefsteak tomatoes - as good as the cherries - prolific and excellent for cooking with - if you get bottom end rot it means one of two things - it is caused by insufficient calcium in the soil - this can result from the soil drying out too much between watering - better to water 2-3 times little and often than one good soak a day, especially in hot weather. The other thing is to use a bit of liquid tomato feed in your watering can every week at least but preferably every 4-5 days. My Dad used to say also spread your plants out a bit more and top up the compost. If you are using grow bags and the soil dries out it is notoriously difficult to get moist again - best thing is to submerge the pot in a bucket (I always decant from grow-bag into 8"/20cm pots)
    Hi you can still eat a tomato with bottom end rot, only the end is not edible. The rest of the red tomato is fine to eat.
    re grow bags, was horrified to see the amount of peat in them ... I’m totally peat free this year. I notice every gardening programme is also forgoing peat now
    • Grocery Challenge: April £263.60 / £250
  • Sallyp2
    Sallyp2 Posts: 359 Forumite
    Fourth Anniversary 100 Posts Name Dropper
    edited 10 May 2021 at 4:01PM
    -taff
    The squashI like crown prince, it's a lovely colour but I can never find this one I had in Italy once. They are dark green and mottled with a very intense orange flesh that stays firm when cooked, and is lovely in soups, so if anyone knows what that is, I'll be happy to know.
    https://marshallsgarden.com/products/squash-seeds-muscat-de-provence-30310519
    The squash you are looking for is ‘Muscat de Provence’, it has that mottled flesh look and is popular in Europe. MontyD grows them
    • Grocery Challenge: April £263.60 / £250
  • Sallyp2
    Sallyp2 Posts: 359 Forumite
    Fourth Anniversary 100 Posts Name Dropper
    edited 10 May 2021 at 4:07PM
    carinjo said:
    Was counting the garlic heads this afternoon for getting the soil ready and saw some of the bulbs (and some of the onions i have) have gone soft! They were still ok couple of weeks ago. Does it mean they no good anymore? 
    The wisdom I got from my old dad was plant garlic on the shortest day and lift on the longest day. Worked for him for many years
    Oh and hoe, hoe, hoe and hoe some more as garlic hates weeds
    • Grocery Challenge: April £263.60 / £250
  • Suffolk_lass
    Suffolk_lass Posts: 10,269 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Our old greenhouse went for a walk in the wind and there was glass everywhere. Two large cardboard boxes with broken glass to take to the recycling centre. The aluminium frame has been disassembled (by DH) and he will use some of that to make parts for our bee hives (brackets for landing boards to reduce congestion at the entrance and give the younger bees a more certain landing place, especially when windy. The rest will no doubt join the old cedar scrap from a FB marketplace collection - no good as a greenhouse but some glass and cedar have been redeployed.

    Everything growing...
    Save £12k in 2025 #2 I am at £4863.32 out of £6000 after May (81.05%)
    OS Grocery Challenge in 2025 I am at £1286.68/£3000 or 42.89% of my annual spend so far
    I also Reverse Meal Plan on that thread and grow much of our own premium price fruit and veg, joining in on the Grow your own thread
    My new diary is here
  • Kantankrus_Mare
    Kantankrus_Mare Posts: 6,140 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    edited 11 May 2021 at 6:03PM
    Oh suffolklass.....what a nightmare! A few years ago, we lost a few panes in high winds and that was bad enough! At least the bees will benefit from your recycling.
    Have just been shopping at Lidl and picked up a couple of bunches of Alstromerias which are lovely. Im always looking at long lasting flowers to grow on the plot and after a bit of googling, found they are easy to grow. Why did I not know this?? Think I have maybe missed the boat as far as seeds are concerned but will keep an eye out for some established plants.

    Make £10 a Day Feb .....£75.... March... £65......April...£90.....May £20.....June £35.......July £60
  • Ellie78
    Ellie78 Posts: 195 Forumite
    Third Anniversary 100 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    Discovered more horrors at my allotment the other day.   Rotten disintegrating carpet about a foot below the surface, with burnt carpet (melted and crispy and breaking apart) underneath that.   It's a big patch right in the middle of my plot and I haven't even finished digging yet so I wouldn't be surprised if I find more.   
    I'm worried about planting into this soil.   Has anyone here paid for a soil test for heavy metals, chemicals?     

    Another plot holder said mine was apparently "a rubbish plot" which at first I thought they meant not very good but now realise they meant "dumping ground" so who knows what else has been buried/burnt here  :cry:
    Mortgage - £23,500 remaining
    MFW2021 #8 - £2,519.77/£3,000
    Overpayments: 2020 - £4,722.83 / 2019 - £16,042.00
  • greenbee
    greenbee Posts: 17,779 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    @Ellie78 - if you're really worried, then it might be a year to spend clearing the plot and planting things that will breakup/clean/replenish the soil and be disposed of rather than planting crops for eating. A few sacrifices this year will be worthwhile. I wouldn't worry too much - it's very likely that the other plots have been treated by other gardeners in the past in ways that would horrify their current owners. And there are still plenty of chemicals being used on food crops anyway. Unless you find barrels of nuclear waste or toxic chemicals, I wouldn't worry too much. Just keep digging stuff out. 
  • Ellie78
    Ellie78 Posts: 195 Forumite
    Third Anniversary 100 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    greenbee said:
    @Ellie78 - if you're really worried, then it might be a year to spend clearing the plot and planting things that will breakup/clean/replenish the soil and be disposed of rather than planting crops for eating. A few sacrifices this year will be worthwhile. I wouldn't worry too much - it's very likely that the other plots have been treated by other gardeners in the past in ways that would horrify their current owners. And there are still plenty of chemicals being used on food crops anyway. Unless you find barrels of nuclear waste or toxic chemicals, I wouldn't worry too much. Just keep digging stuff out. 
    I've been reading up on Phytoremediation.  Using specific plants to clean the soil (sunflowers, alfalfa, mushrooms).  Fascinating stuff.
    Mortgage - £23,500 remaining
    MFW2021 #8 - £2,519.77/£3,000
    Overpayments: 2020 - £4,722.83 / 2019 - £16,042.00
  • Suffolk_lass
    Suffolk_lass Posts: 10,269 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Ellie78 said:
    greenbee said:
    @Ellie78 - if you're really worried, then it might be a year to spend clearing the plot and planting things that will breakup/clean/replenish the soil and be disposed of rather than planting crops for eating. A few sacrifices this year will be worthwhile. I wouldn't worry too much - it's very likely that the other plots have been treated by other gardeners in the past in ways that would horrify their current owners. And there are still plenty of chemicals being used on food crops anyway. Unless you find barrels of nuclear waste or toxic chemicals, I wouldn't worry too much. Just keep digging stuff out. 
    I've been reading up on Phytoremediation.  Using specific plants to clean the soil (sunflowers, alfalfa, mushrooms).  Fascinating stuff.
    Phacelia and potatoes too
    Save £12k in 2025 #2 I am at £4863.32 out of £6000 after May (81.05%)
    OS Grocery Challenge in 2025 I am at £1286.68/£3000 or 42.89% of my annual spend so far
    I also Reverse Meal Plan on that thread and grow much of our own premium price fruit and veg, joining in on the Grow your own thread
    My new diary is here
  • Suffolk_lass
    Suffolk_lass Posts: 10,269 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Looking at the weather forecast I am going to get my plants out of the greenhouse and into the ground now. Here in East Anglia things are finally staying a bit above freezing overnight!
    Save £12k in 2025 #2 I am at £4863.32 out of £6000 after May (81.05%)
    OS Grocery Challenge in 2025 I am at £1286.68/£3000 or 42.89% of my annual spend so far
    I also Reverse Meal Plan on that thread and grow much of our own premium price fruit and veg, joining in on the Grow your own thread
    My new diary is here
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