The all new 2019 growing your own thread!

Stuck indoors here again - which is sort of good, I was hoping to get my peas cleared away (there's only something like 4-6 of them) and replace with malabar spinach, but that's maybe not quite as hardy as I thought it was, so needs further research

Spent an afternoon digging out endless clumps of oxalis weed from one of my long borders . Trying to get everything prepped for winter before weather really turns and this is an almost endless task. I would perhaps make life easier for myself if I sprayed weed killer on it but I grow organic climbing beans tomatoes and other crops in it there so alas, it,s the slow manual option. Still at least recent rain made the task a little easier.

Does anybody else have a specific weed which really haunts their garden? Our hiuse was a new build when we moved in years ago and we never had this weed here. I think it must have been introduced either via a garden centre potted plant or in cuttings in soil donated by friends. It just shows how successful nature is at taking over, given half a chance!

Damp weather here, I thought the plot was slowing down and I hadn't been on it for a few days as hubby has torn some muscles in his shoulder and can't lift his arm so I've been doing his jobs around the place which has taken up most of the day. However, I needed some veg for tea and was pleasantly surprised at picking beetroot, carrots, dwarf beans, peppers, celery, courgettes, one cucumber, fennel, kohlrabi and potatoes. I didn't need any tomatoes but I know there are loads in the greenhouse. The fridge is now quite full and I have enough veg for several days.

Made some ginger and marrow jam yesterday with a couple of escapee courgettes. I must make some rosehip and orange marmalade before the rosehips get too soft as it's one of our favourite jams. Then there is crabapple and clove jam........I have all these good intentions at this time of the year but then life gets in the way and I only do a fraction of what I intended.

I think I must take a leaf out of Primrose's book and start closing things down for the winter and getting prepared for next year as I have an op booked for Jan 2020 and I shall be out of action for several weeks afterwards. I had an op in Jan this year and also in Jan 2018, on both occasions it was several weeks before I was back on the plot and things had started to get away from me, so I never really catch up - this time it's going to be different.......

Primrose wrote: »

Console yourself that if you miss the boat with all the jam and preserve making, you might save yourself the problem of storing it in cupboards for ages and not being able to eat it all quickly enough!

Thanks Primrose for your thoughts. Good luck with your bean trench, it's something I never do the traditional way. All my green stuff for a trench goes into a small trailer and then onto the muck heap or in gardeners terms 'Extra Large Compost Heap' as that's where the muck goes from all the animals.

Thinking of jam - you are right I still have a couple of blackcurrant jars from last year, plus something that tastes quite nice but has no label. However, the damson port and sloe gin must be about three years old by now and seem to get better and better with age.

Mercifully we don't have Mares Tail but we do have three different varieties of bindweed, ground Elder, nettles, brambles and oh so much oxalis corniculata (creeping woodsorrel)

- oh yes and invasive Vinca (periwinkle), hypericum (4 sorts), Leucanthemum × superbum (shasta daisies), vetch and Persicaria amplexicaulis, but not in the veg beds!