This week in your Kitchen Garden.

[Melinda]

My cold frame is still mostly filled with dark trays of compost.

A single, solitary, elderly dwarf bean has shown its face, but my aged furry peas are determined to spite me.

BBC French beans are coming up, as is one courgette.

Nothing from my carrots or potatoes yet, and parsnips and leeks have only been in a week.

My herbaceous seeds haven't done a thing so far.

 

[gentlegreen]

I would be sowing any tricky things indoors.

I used to do that even before I set up my cabinet.

 

[Melinda]

The furry peas had been inside for two weeks, and produced nothing but fur.

They've gone outside now and I'll chuck them in my new compost bin this weekend.

(I tried to turn the compost by shoveling the gunk at the bottom in the top as Existentialist recommended but it was just too full.

Instead, I'm following his example and instituting a second bin. I'll dig out a third of the first heap this weekend after Ive laid my path.

 

[gentlegreen]

I'm off up the garden shop on me bike in a bit for more seed compost, plus the winter squash and sweetcorn seeds I didn't know I wanted until last night- but I have some rough ground they can go in / scramble over... perhaps some sprouting broccoli and tuscan kale. (damn these gardening programmes !).

The corn definitely fits in with my general "giant grasses" thing - so it remains to be seen if I'll be able to steel myself to harvesting it.

I will also be speculating on parsley seed for my herb bucket and a decent thyme plant if they have one.

 

[Melinda]

Ha! Tuscan kale!

You DO watch Alys!

It did look mighty pretty, but personally I find kale and chards too fibrous to eat.

 

[tarannau]

Potted a load of parsley and thyme plugs into two strawberry pots this morning, loaded with soil and perlite in a last ditch hope of stopping them drying out and quickly becoming useless for another year.

Have also worked a little more on the herb planters, preparing for basils (waiting for Thai and Holy Basils in particular) and other imminent purchases. Envious of the big plots here - I'm working on just two balconies and trying to make the most of them.

Still, it's not all bad. Carrots and courgettes planted, over 20 strains of herb already on the go and I've got one of these planters to make the most of the remaining space. They look genuinely likely to keep the herbs growing - decent growing room and water retention (with absorbing pads in a central 'well') - unlike those silly strawberry pots

 

[gentlegreen]

Ha! Tuscan kale!

You DO watch Alys!

We ought to make Ernesto watch that programme - I'm surprised she hasn't had a Feng Shui consultant in yet. ...

Well, after walking the 3/4 mile to the last remaining hardware shop, I find it's being converted to flats - so no fancy salad cage and getting my greenhouse shelves back

I checked on the internet before I went. ....

 

[fogbat]

The soil on my courgette seeds must have been too damp, so mould appeared on some of it. Have moved it to a sunny spot, which should help things dry out a bit.

 

[gentlegreen]

I'll be sowing my courgettes this weekend, but the ground they're destined for will take a couple of weeks to prepare - the banana in the middle of it is sprouting, and I have to literally chisel out the bamboo rhizomes at the back of the greenhouse ... if I can only dig out my extension cable and find the wood chisel for my kango ...

Meanwhile, my seed-starting cabinet is overflowing and I have had to rejig it.
Half a kilowatt of fluorescent light in there costing me about £1.50 a day. But it's entertaining to have it to play with in the evenings.

... and no hope of getting much into the greenhouse because of lack of chicken wire ...

 

[Badgers]

Just downloaded the RHS app for the iPhone. Not played with much but is free and looks good

 

[LilMissHissyFit]

.

Still, it's not all bad. Carrots and courgettes planted, over 20 strains of herb already on the go and I've got one of these planters to make the most of the remaining space. They look genuinely likely to keep the herbs growing - decent growing room and water retention (with absorbing pads in a central 'well') - unlike those silly strawberry pots

They look pretty planted with herbs. Im going to get some more I think, Ive got strawberries in mine
My parsley is going great guns and the lettuce seedlings have started to show through in the window box

 

[gentlegreen]

I'm growing cut and come again salad that's going to be too pretty to eat :-

Top left - "Oriental" salad / stir-fry mix. - 3 weeks

right - "Elegance" salad mix.- 3 weeks

Bottom left - mixed lettuce - 2 weeks

 

[sheothebudworths]

I've got a busy day ahead - going to plant out my strawberries (and hope they do alright covered in a bit of netting till I get some chicken wire ), sow squash, courgettes, melons and sweetcorn...and some more tomato and pak choi seeds too because I think they were a bit damp and cold in the propagator on my bedroom window sill, so they're looking a bit sad - although I'm sticking them outside just incase that perks them up.

Might also do some more salad leaves in a seed tray because the stuff in the beds is not growing all that fast.

I'm sure lots of my seedlings could be moved on too - the dwarf beans are looking pretty good - how big do they need to be before I put them in their big pots?
Sunflowers could probably go out into the beds too.

Not sure I'll manage all this today, tbf.

 

[sheothebudworths]

Oh and aubergine seedlings are an inch+ high. Do I let them be for a bit longer?

ETA - Just looked it up - time to repot!

Argh! Where to start?!?

 

[gentlegreen]

I have learned relatively recently that repotting isn't just about maximising space, but you're also training the roots - so you shouldn't repot too early.

On the other hand you need to be generous with certain species - like the cucurbits. My gut reaction say beans too. I started my corn off yesterday in my standard 7cm square pots. My rather warm sowing cabinet isn't suited to porous pots, but the greenhouse should be warm enough in a week or two's time so that I can give tall newspaper pots another try when it's time to pot on ...

The courgettes and squashes will get spoiled by going into 11cm pots fairly early - just as I did with the cucumbers.


I've just pricked out some french marigolds which had amazingly long taproots - I suppose if I damaged any, it may at least encourage them to flower.

 

[LilMissHissyFit]

interesting you say that about courgettes hun,I planted my courgette seeds straight into big tubs last year and they grew wonderfully well.

 

[gentlegreen]

interesting you say that about courgettes hun,I planted my courgette seeds straight into big tubs last year and they grew wonderfully well.

Sowing directly would probably be my choice for the garden too, but it's a bit wild out in mine. The traditional method was to plant in the top of a pile of upturned turfs.

I've just spent some time in the garden trying to extract a solid mass of bamboo rhizomes running along the back of the greenhouse where it's still throwing up new shoots and cracking panes. It's also eating into where my courgettes are going to have to go in 2 or 3 weeks' time ...

 

[sheothebudworths]

Right - well I only had one pot big enough for the beans so until I get more, one has gone into the pot and I stuck one into a gap in the flower bed as an experiment.

Transplanted some livingstone daisies into a seed tray and a pot (I put far too many seeds in each capsule thingy so left the ones in the pot in clumps cos I couldn't be fucked to separate any more, so they'll probably all strangle each other) and the aubergines from their cells into 3" pots.

Also planted the strawbs out and netted over...then the rain brought a load of snails out so I went on a killing spree.....((((snails))))

Planted out my sunflowers (all too close together ) and did some more tomatoes and pak choi from seed.

Oh and - CLEARED UP ANOTHER FEW LOADS OF CAT SHIT.

 

[sheothebudworths]

Have realised I'm going to have to buy a shit ton more compost too to plant all the stuff out into the big pots!

Oh - also did some romanesco cauli seeds.

Still have melon/patty pans/winter squash/courgettes and corn seeds to do. The corn says best to start in modules in May though.

With the other stuff - when it says 'keep warm' - what does it mean?!?
I have a cold greenhouse (one of those plastic jobbies) a plastic cloche/polytunnel (set on hard ground) or window sills (with or without unheated propagators).
Or should I just wait a while longer in any case (am assuming your seed cabinet is your heated thing gg?)?

Am a bit confused!

I'll have a look in my books and on the BBC website and see if it becomes any clearer........

 

[sheothebudworths]

One more question!

Pinching out broad bean tips....when do I do it? One of my plants has flowered - although the highest buds haven't opened yet. But there's a good 8 - 10 cm of stalk/leaf on top of those. Do I cut that off now or not until the beans start forming?

 

[mr steev]

Root veg such as parsnips, carrots and radishes shouldn't be on freshly manured ground iirc.

Roots don't particularly like nutrient rich soil. I think the idea is that the plant has to make an effort to get it's nutrients so it will develop a thick long root. If the soil is too rich you'll end up with a small stumpy round vegetable.
I think fresh manure, like stones, can also make the roots fork. Ideally you should just add a little compost to the soil and give it a good raking so that it's quite fine.

My rhubarb is coming on. I put a large bucket over one of the smaller crowns a few weeks ago to force it, and now have a bundle of long pale stalks waiting to be turned into a pudding this evening.

My garlic's looking good and the first spuds are up as are the first peas and four asparagus! (3 more than last year)
I've sown some broad beans, spinach and chard and planted over 300 onions and shallots. I'm a bit concerned that I've only managed to cover around half of them with fleece. Hopefully I'll get the rest covered this afternoon, otherwise there is a very strong chance that they will get destroyed by onioin fly (alium leaf miner)
My tomato plants are about ready to be potted on into big pots and we have loads of seedlings started in my mates greenhouse waiting for the right time to plant.

 

[gentlegreen]

Sadly it's been far too long since I last grew veggies in earnest so I'm a bit vague myself about when to put things outdoors.

It's going to depend on so many factors - I have experimental tomatoes and geraniums in the greenhouse (with extra protection) that have seen temps as low as 5 degrees - thankfully no sign of the promised frosts ...

If you can keep things indoors it makes things much easier.

I remember myself being quite rough with my plants when I had an allotment - certainly out in my DIY coldframe (salvaged polythene over salvaged steel frames on a north wall) in wet and windy April.

I can't remember if that included tomatoes and courgettes ...

---------------

My seed cabinet is now over-heated - I'm up to 4 illuminated trays and 500 watts - so have disconnected the bottom heat and am using the heat from the lights to keep the sowing tray warm. Difficult to keep the temps down to the mid 20s ..... so my plants are going to get a shock when they go outdoors even via the greenhouse.

Dead easy to make and not very expensive - based on a £10 PVC greenhouse, plus a load of 25 watt CFLs I paid 25p each for - the holders cost 43p.

I'm up to 500 watts of light now so it's costing me about £1.50 per day - though depending where it's placed, you could at least benefit from the waste heat.

 

[sheothebudworths]

Ah ok - thanks for that gg.

I can keep them indoors, but still not sure whether to use the unheated propagators, or not!

I think I've possibly had enough for today anyway so down to B&Q tomorrow for more pots/compost and maybe I'll think about it further then....

 

[gentlegreen]

The general rule for tender plants is no less than maybe 20 degrees C at the roots - especially for seed sowing - so I find an indoor /outdoor thermometer very useful - the probe goes in one of the pots.

Seedlings shouldn't be in propagators at all - it's a sure fire way to encourage mould.

They sort of are in my case by virtue of being in this indoor greenhouse - albeit with plenty of ventilation - it's a very good idea to have a small fan or two rustling the leaves.

 

[free spirit]

With the other stuff - when it says 'keep warm' - what does it mean?!?
I have a cold greenhouse (one of those plastic jobbies) a plastic cloche/polytunnel (set on hard ground) or window sills (with or without unheated propagators).
Or should I just wait a while longer in any case (am assuming your seed cabinet is your heated thing gg?)?

Am a bit confused!

I'll have a look in my books and on the BBC website and see if it becomes any clearer........

I planted half my runner beans and half my corgettes out 4 days ago as an experiment, and they seem to be doing fine so far.

I'd had them in a cold semi open glass house type porch for a week before that to get them used to being a bit colder.

I had planted them ridiculously early though, and they were getting way too big to be keeping indoors much longer though.

 

[free spirit]

Sadly it's been far too long since I last grew veggies in earnest so I'm a bit vague myself about when to put things outdoors.

It's going to depend on so many factors - I have experimental tomatoes and geraniums in the greenhouse (with extra protection) that have seen temps as low as 5 degrees - thankfully no sign of the promised frosts ...

If you can keep things indoors it makes things much easier.

I remember myself being quite rough with my plants when I had an allotment - certainly out in my DIY coldframe (salvaged polythene over salvaged steel frames on a north wall) in wet and windy April.

I can't remember if that included tomatoes and courgettes ...

---------------

My seed cabinet is now over-heated - I'm up to 4 illuminated trays and 500 watts - so have disconnected the bottom heat and am using the heat from the lights to keep the sowing tray warm. Difficult to keep the temps down to the mid 20s ..... so my plants are going to get a shock when they go outdoors even via the greenhouse.

Dead easy to make and not very expensive - based on a £10 PVC greenhouse, plus a load of 25 watt CFLs I paid 25p each for - the holders cost 43p.

I'm up to 500 watts of light now so it's costing me about £1.50 per day - though depending where it's placed, you could at least benefit from the waste heat.

isn't using all that elastictrickery a lot counterproductive?

I'm not sure what your aims are for growing your own veg, but whether it's environmental or cost based, spending £1.50 a day on electricity doesn't seem like a good idea to me.

 

[gentlegreen]

isn't using all that elastictrickery a lot counterproductive?

I'm not sure what your aims are for growing your own veg, but whether it's environmental or cost based, spending £1.50 a day on electricity doesn't seem like a good idea to me.

On the scale I'm doing it at the moment it's more of a hobby than to save money .. and I'm feeling my way at the moment... and I'm not very well organised after several years since I last raised so many plants.
Using it so intensively is giving me time to get my garden and greenhouse ready.

You need to bear in mind that in week 1 there was one tray under 100 watts - costing 1.8 units x 15p = 27p per day, then gradually increasing.
The seed-raising operation will hopefully transfer to the greenhouse once it's ready and the temperature has increased .. and I am bound to explore the option of using heat in the greenhouse, rather than light indoors to raise seeds.

It's still less than a cup of coffee.

I'm already pretty certain I wouldn't recoup the electricity cost raising posh salad indoors - but I'm bound to try.

 

[prunus]

Dead easy to make and not very expensive - based on a £10 PVC greenhouse, plus a load of 25 watt CFLs I paid 25p each for - the holders cost 43p.

I'm up to 500 watts of light now so it's costing me about £1.50 per day - though depending where it's placed, you could at least benefit from the waste heat.

I want one of these - which one have you got, and where did you get it from?

 

[gentlegreen]

I want one of these - which one have you got, and where did you get it from?

My local pound shop - sometimes you have to pay as much as £20. I don't know if Wilkinsons sell them ..

I grabbed an extra one the other year and didn't realise until I got home that it was a bird table.

 

[gentlegreen]

I've been doing some sums to see how raising tomato plants under lights compares with paying 75p at the local garden centre.

150 watts over a tray of 15 seedlings - 2.7 units per day = 30p.
= 2p per seedling per day.
worst case 30 days under lights = 60p.

... plus seed, plus compost, plus no free pot - but I only end up giving those away anyway.

To this, you need to add the benefits of choosing obscure varieties, plus slight risk of importing pests and disease.

This would be my ideal sort of arrangement - with some natural light.

http://doorgarden.com/02/starting-seeds-indoors-under-lights/the-plant-room