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

-taff

Finally got round to sowing everything yesterday so cucumber, pumpkins, lovage [ that probably won't germinate, need new seeds], runner beans, italian runner beans, french beans, nasturtiums, fennel, spinach, celtuce [had an accident with these and tipped nearly the whole packet in a pot, cue much swearing and trying to hoik out tiny seeds with fat fingers], cos, punterelle, zucchini. Lets play the germination game! Potted on nearly all tomatoes, have left quite a few black truffle to fend for themselves, this is the first year I have accepted the size of my greenhouse can't be changed no matter how big it is in my imagination so I was very sparing with the sowing. After going through my seeds I found a pack of Roma seeds I know but didn't know I had [if you know what I mean] but wanted to sow but kept in the wrong place, hey ho, next year...

I covered up my potatoes on Saturday with what was left half rotted in the compost bin, mostly wet straw and proper compost. Yesterday, after all the rain, the leaves are already through and two centimeters proud of it. I went crazy and bought myself a hotbin, and so far, it is actually really hot. I filled it with new stuff and some of the half rotted compost and after a few days have a temperature of 40 degrees which is really pleasing. I'm looking forward to no fuss no turn compost.

For blossom end rot prevention, if it isn't uneven watering but a result of lack of calcium, smash up some eggshells finely and add that to your compost to forestall any calcium deficiency. And then keep on top of the watering

Sallyp2 thanks for looking but no, that isn't it. They are small to medium sized, with a very dark green skin with small mottles, and a bright bright orange flesh. They're the most unusual sqaush I've had because the flesh behaves more like potato than squash. I'll just have to get one and save the seeds next time I'm in Italy.

Right, I shall go and cheer on the seeds to grow....happy gardening

-taff

Sallyp2 said:

  I’m totally peat free this year. I notice every gardening programme is also forgoing peat now

I got some New Horizon all plant compost this year for the first time in a long time to try. I found t quite rubbish when compared to what I usually use. The texture is like chopped up wood and rope and it doesn't hold water very well at all. It's a definite step up from when it first came out when it was like a bag of woodchip but it's still not as good, Germination took longer, it dried out quicker which is not that bad when you have it in a big pot but when you have seedlings in it, is not so great.

I've bought some of my usual stuff now and am mixing it half and half to see what happens there.

Like I said, I got myself a hotbin so I'm hoping to be able to use just that compost in the future, depending on what it's finished state is of course.

Caitykinss

Tomatoes look happy in the zippy greenhouse and have survived the past few nights - including the huge storm last night! - so think I'll move the rest out there today. Got OH on ventilation duty while I'm at work, as turns into the Sahara dessert in there when the sun hits it.

Maincrop potatoes are ready for earthing up in their bags I think. First earlies have just just started poking through. Yet more compost to buy. I'm in the process of putting the finishing touches on the landscaping of my garden, and I'm going to get a compost bin when I've figured out where best to put it. Compost is costing me a fortune, and I'm not happy with all the plastic bags it produces when bought. 

I'm going to call this weekend 'The Big Sow'. I've got all my remaining seeds to sow, both direct in the raised beds and in pots in the zippy. Sunflowers, nasturtiums (take two after my fail a few weeks ago), rocket, fennel, runner beans, french beans, broccolli (should have done last week), two types of kale, pak choi. 

Onions, chard, raddish and lettuce looking great now after lots of rain. OH mowed the lawn around the raised beds on Monday and I can't tell if I can see carrots or if it's just grass clippings! 

Mee

-taff said:

Sallyp2 said:

  I’m totally peat free this year. I notice every gardening programme is also forgoing peat now

I got some New Horizon all plant compost this year for the first time in a long time to try. I found t quite rubbish when compared to what I usually use. The texture is like chopped up wood and rope and it doesn't hold water very well at all. It's a definite step up from when it first came out when it was like a bag of woodchip but it's still not as good, Germination took longer, it dried out quicker which is not that bad when you have it in a big pot but when you have seedlings in it, is not so great.

I've bought some of my usual stuff now and am mixing it half and half to see what happens there.

Our Allotment shop bought New Horizon compost last year - there were so many complaints they've decided to offer SylvaGrow peat free compost (much cheaper locally than online) this year.

Fosterdog

I've taken the plunge today and planted out my sweetcorn, marrow, squash, and cucumber in ground, they have only had a couple of days of hardening off but I'm working long hours for the next few weeks so if they didn't go out today they wouldn't get out a5 all. Also direct sown more sweetcorn and French beans to climb the already established sweetcorn. I've taken a big risk with planting my tomatoes out in grow bags, they were just getting far to big to keep indoors anymore. My melons just haven't grown so might start more and my peppers are still so small, only a few true leaves on each plant and just a 2-3" tall, at this rate they won't come to much this year. My broccoli is also doing very poorly so will direct sow some new seeds by the end of the month. Potatoes are doing okay, bit of frost damage but they seem to be recovering. No signs of flowering from my new blueberries, strawberries and raspberries doing really well. Don't think I'm getting anything from my ginger, will try some more in a few weeks.

I need to sow more peas, runner beans, carrots, parsnips, lettuce, and spinach.

-taff

Went to the GC center yesterday and was very restrained. I bought a pot of spiral grass from the about to die section, heavily reduced, and i will tidy that up and plant out, a geum to give a splash of colour in the front garden, and a plastic thing for potting on/sowing with sides. Saves me using the grooved tray which can be put to use holding the seeds I sowed a few days ago.

Also found someone who has lovage seeds or lovage plants for me to swap something with so saved myself some money there. I'll give her some tomatoes and tomato seeds for next year.

Suffolk_lass

Nothing in the ground after all - all still in greenhouse and cold frame. I did get a fair bit of the asparagus bed weeded though and we got some farmyard manure (expensive but good!). Our beekeeping contact came round and the angry bees stopped us working outside. We now need to leave them a fortnight before checking (they have a virgin queen who needs to mate and then start laying) but then we all agree they need to go from our garden to an out apiary (a friend has offered her field) as they are too defensive for a garden. If they don't settle there they will be re-queened to change their genes

MovingForwards

I've only been weeding and tending to indoor seedlings this week. 

Both gooseberry bushes have fruit fattening up, strawberry plants are in flower. I should be organising and tidying the weekend and getting my parsley in the herb garden; grew it from seed outside.

I've also started going through all my gardening mags, pulling out useful pages.

Weather keeps alternating between rain and baking sun.

carinjo

Planted the big tomatoes out this morning, very muddy. Put runnerbean and barlotti bean seeds in ground, hopefully warm enough. Removed the propagating covers off the cabbage, chard, they look double the size than the rest of the rows. Thinned out the cornflower (or is it cosmos?) and stuck them in the raised herb bed. 
Going camping next week and raining this weekend, so everything else including weeding will have to wait till we back.

Sallyp2

Ellie78 said:

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 

Can you ask for another plot and give that one up based in the rubbish and possible contamination? You can buy simple soil tests, but they are for pH levels, they won’t tell you if you have micro plastics etc in soil. If you can, get a couple of spade spits and gently sieve them, as if you are panning for gold. Any plastic or rubber or carpet particles should remain in the sieve and you’ll get an idea if you want to keep that plot. 
I had a rubbish first allotment, never got rid of the damaged old black membrane and buried plastic bags. Got a second plot and gave the first one back as it was too hard to sort out. Saw that the new owner simply covered the plot, built raised beds and filled them with bought in compost!