The ups, the downs and the insides out of growing your own in 2024!

alicef

@strawb_shortcake - I'm most impressed with the range of herbs you are growing.  Any tips would be very much appreciated.  @droopsnoot I've never been very successful with growing spring onions and silverskin though I would like to grow the latter for pickling.

I haven't done a huge amount on GYO this week.  Harvested things; watered polytunnel; picked sweetpeas; some deadheading; some weeding; didn't cut the box hedging, (I need a run of dry weather); didn't stake the sunflowers.  My OH bought me a small bay!  That was potted up.  The cucumber glut have been passed on to the village honesty box for library fundraising.  The little gem lettuces have bolted - I'm wondering whether I can save seed from them. I have planted lobjoits cos lettuce so there is still lettuce for picking. The melons are setting fruit.  I did place an order for garlic!

strawb_shortcake

@alicef the seeds only arrived this week, to be honest after reading the cards I'm a little daunted, I need to go and buy some clingfilm to create humidity. The cumin I think will be harvested sometime next spring. 

strawb_shortcake

@alicef the seeds only arrived this week, to be honest after reading the cards I'm a little daunted, I need to go and buy some clingfilm to create humidity. The cumin I think will be harvested sometime next spring. 

Suffolk_lass

Good nudge re garlic @alicef. I've just ordered 2 bulbs for October, together with some bulbs and seeds. All from the local seed merchant.

I do have masses of potatoes in my larder now (hanging in a hessian sack) and I picked 6 or 8 courgettes yesterday, along with raspberries. We need to get some plums picked or there will be a wasp fest.

And sweet peas, lots of lovely sweet peas

KajiKita

I need to deadhead my sweet peas …

Harvested a baby cucumber and 300g of tomatoes yesterday 😊 An actual harvest! 🥳

KK

Sweetbriarrose

Hi just caught up with everyone posts.
 I was late putting everything in but I’m happy to be picking something everyday and still plenty of time, and next year I hope to be as organised as you guys, everyone has grown and eaten something despite the late start to summer, 

I have seen lots of tractors laden with trailers of harvest, I am hoping it’s a good sign that the farmers have had a better crop this year than expected.
alicef thanks for the reminder for the garlic I have tried to grow it several times with disappointing results.

KajiKita

Sweet peas dead headed and two small bunches on the mantelpiece 😊

KK

FlorayG

droopsnoot said:

On all my tomato plants, I've got four fruits, and some more flowers. I've got one pepper plant with peppers on it on a plant I bought, none of the ones I grew from seed have any flowers. There are some signs that flowers might be coming on some of them, but by the time they get here I think it'll be too late for them to turn into peppers. I planted spring onions and silverskin onions in a couple of pots so I could keep the garden pests away, they've come up but they seem to have stalled growth now. Bit of a waste of time this year, I think.

Peppers and chillis need to be started really early with bottom heat if growing from seed...like, February 

FlorayG

How do I know when my sweetcorn is ready to harvest?

alicef

@strawb_shortcake do update us with how you get on with growing your unusual herbs.  @FlorayG sweetcorn ripeness - received wisdom is - the tassels should have gone dark brown and then check the fluid from a kernal, (stick in a fingernail); if it's clear then not ripe; milky then ripe.  Our way, it is then a race between us and the squirrels as to who gets the harvest.

Sweetpeas, in my opinion are the best cut flower - I cut every flower about once, maybe twice a week and have them in the house; then more appear!