The even bigger and better and hopefully not lower bits of growing your own in 2022!

Suffolk_lass

I love that sort of up/re-cycling @carinjo. 

Here my seeds have arrived. I need to check them off against my order. I know the banana shallot sets are not due until March but I think all the seeds should be in the large envelope. I was pretty ruthless about culling old seeds (as per Monty Don's advice) so out of date = gone and I will make sure I scatter any use by 2022 seeds if they are not in pots.

Ganga

Fosterdog said:

Another productive week last week. I finished tidying the strawberry bed, more general tidying around the garden, did my seed and pot inventory, ordered what I needed and have organised all the seeds by sowing date in my storage box so I don't have to go digging through to find what I need next. I've bought my onion sets, more garlic to companion plant with my strawberries, they are there more as a pest deterrent than to grow so I don't mind if they don't come to much, my potatoes are chatting, and for the first time I'm attempting to cold store some maincrop seed potatoes in my fridge to plant later in the year, if next winter is as mild as this year I should be able to harvest them well into December.

This week I'm going to start my peppers indoors, they were so slow last year I ran out of time to get a decent crop so going for a head start this year of around 3 weeks earlier. This is my first year planting some onions from seed so may start some this week and some in a few weeks because I'm reading a lot of conflicting information on the best time to get them going. I'm still working on putting my garden calendar together, it's going to be something that gets edited as the years go on to suit my growing space and local climate, definitely a long term project. I'll be building the soil and amending a few of my beds, pea and bean area has been freshly dug over and weeded but needs a lot more organic material to improve the clay soil. Finally I'll be weeding and cutting back at least one more area to increase my growing space, I need somewhere to plant my giant sunflowers this year so they can go in the freshly cleared spot. I've got lots of cardboard boxes so once I've cut back the area I'll try it as a no dig bed.

Now it's just waiting for all the offers and bargains on compost and manure to get do more prep.

How long do the rest of you keep liquid fertilisers before replacing them? I've got tomato feed that I use as my main feed through the growing season for all of my fruit and veg and I bought huge bottles last year and the year before and they both have some left but I'm not sure if they really have a use by or if they are good for several years.

Tell them to be shut up and grow 

Fosterdog

@Ganga that will teach me to proof read for auto corrects 

carinjo

Something ate most of the purple sprouting brocolli heads that were growing as well as the first row of leaves surrounding it. Can't tell what it was, large semi circle shapes in the leaves, almost like a catterpillar would make. But it is winter, so probably not. 

Think i am going to pull up the rest of the leeks, chard and cavalo nero got left, before i loose anything else. 

greenbee

I have found live caterpillars recently in the garden, so don't rule it out!

Autumn-sown broad beans aren't doing particularly well. Chard and perpetual spinach are looking slightly reluctant, but the lambs lettuce has happily self-seeded so I need to pick and eat some... 

bluesooz

my purple sprouting brocolli have been almost skeletonised by a flock of pigeons.  They are netted now but I may be too late

Suffolk_lass

Round here it is rabbits, pigeons and the other five plagues of pests so I have elected not to grow proper brassicas this year

carinjo

Saw the latest Countryfile episode last night and Adam had a problem with pigeons, my bite marks look similar. @bluesooz in my inexperience i had my PSB netted, but frame was not high enough, so i removed it beginning december. Lesson learned. Sorry to hear about the pests @Suffolk_lass! 

MovingForwards

@Suffolk_lass mine's slugs, snails and rabbits hence only growing spinach, kale and peas. The birds don't do much that I've noticed.

Suffolk_lass

Hmm Slugs, snails, mice, rabbits, pigeons, blackbirds (the latter pull the seedlings out), occasional deer, and now moles!

We also have an increasing issue with crows and magpies as someone here feeds them - they have started to try and pull our thatch out to use as nesting material. Only when it is out do they realise 120cm long reed is b-all good to them!!