This week in your Kitchen Garden.

[vipper]

Broad Beans, carrots, onions, salad leaf, radish and beetroot are up on the plot.

Beans, leeks, sweetcorn, peppers and green beans are doing nicely under glass.

 

[vipper]

Double post... oops

 

[madamv]

hooray indeed May!!!! It feels great doesnt it. Then they conk out on you

My fault, and yes Mrs M I would prefer straight in the ground, but grow bags it is until later in the year....

Planting out my mange tout and sweet peas tomorrow. MIL coming to help, so I expect these to last a little longer than the toms and cucs

 

[May Kasahara]

Don't say that madamv! This is the most exciting thing to happen in my life for ages.

Am happy to report that now have 4 count 'em 4 little green tomato shoots poking up out of the dirt, and growth has been reported in the chilli pot (along with mould, that's what you get for using empty yoghurt containers).

 

[madamv]

Don't say that madamv! This is the most exciting thing to happen in my life for ages.

Am happy to report that now have 4 count 'em 4 little green tomato shoots poking up out of the dirt, and growth has been reported in the chilli pot (along with mould, that's what you get for using empty yoghurt containers).

I planted out my mange tout and sweet pea into the garden yesterday. I succumbed and found a spot on the plant bed. They were alright last night when I went to bed, will be checking them in a minute to see if they had a good night .

Put courgette, more pumpkin, rocket and french bean into the plastic greenhouse yesterday. Fingers crossed. I shall be buying my organic tomato and cucumber plants in a couple of weeks. I have admitted defeat.

 

[Gavin Bl]

runner beans, courgettes and squash seedlings going nicely on the kitchen window sill.

broad beans over wintered in the placcy greenhouse, now out in ground - looking pretty tatty frankly.

Some perpetual spinach in, and row of beetroot and some radishes.

My purple sprouting brocolli is finally giving it up - i.e. brocolli, and still loads of life in my american land cress and red mustard from last year.

Some wild strawberries I jammed in a couple of pots seem to have survived the winter - will they fruit this year, anyone?

Need to get some tomatoes though...

cheers
Gav

 

[Mrs Magpie]

As long as your wild stawberries get pollinated, they'll fruit. Mine just keep going year after year. I use them as ground cover in the herbaceous beds too.

 

[hiccup]

Planted out potatoes, sweetcorn, strawberries and tomatoes at the weekend. Chilli seedlings are doing well, and the borage I planted is growing like mad.

 

[zenie]

I can move my radishes now but how big do the containers need to be (depth) and how far apart should I plant the seedlings?

I bought these funky wire frames that go over grow-bags @ the weekend.

I'm a sucker for a gimmick

 

[northernhord]

^ Radishes about three inches apart.
Them wire frames are ok for your climbing peas and beans innit.

 

[northernhord]

Kitchen garden ere - sweetcorn is up, rosemary thriving, pumpkins up, chamomile up, all goes well in hoard towerz

 

[zenie]

^ Radishes about three inches apart.
Them wire frames are ok for your climbing peas and beans innit.

OK

Yeh they sort of go over the bag to hold the cane upright - are they the ones you mean? Dunno if they do anything useful mind

 

[northernhord]

OK

Yeh they sort of go over the bag to hold the cane upright - are they the ones you mean? Dunno if they do anything useful mind

Yeah that the fuckers, useful for small areas innit.

 

[Spion]

at the allotment garlic and onions out of the ground, as are broccoli and sprouts.

In the cold frame toms, chillis, cucumbers, pumpkins (those are some mental seedlings, monstrous things!) and thyme are heading skywards at a rate of knots. Too quick in fact

 

[vipper]

Ate the first radishes and salad leaf this evening.

 

[gaijingirl]

My seedlings did not get the love they needed whilst I was away - I think a combination of my housemates forgetting to water them and the cats sitting on them didn't help! But I've salvaged what I could. Cucumbers, radishes, carrots and tomatoes - they all look a bit pathetic at the moment but nature never ceases to amaze me so perhaps they'll turn around?

Planted up some kale seeds yesterday for the urban allotment.

 

[aqua]

I've put out all the pots in my yard and it seems I've run out of space again

I still have chillis, tomatoes and cucumbers to plant out

I really do need to learn that a small yard isn't a garden

 

[May Kasahara]

Hoping to plant out my toms this weekend (all advice on how far apart/size of pot welcome!).

I've now got 3 chilli seedlings sprouting under their plastic bag, although when I freed them from the bag for a bit one of them keeled over so I'm not sure that they're ready for the big bad world just now; two little green buds poking out of my basil pot; and two spindly chives that look a bit sickly and doom laden. The only thing that hasn't germinated is my mint and I thought that would be the easiest!

 

[aqua]

what size are they now?

I repot my tomatoes 3 times, from the seedling pots to 3/4" ones, then onto 6" ones and then onto final pots

 

[May Kasahara]

They're about 2" tall (I'm shit at estimating, btw) and have two leaves each. I understand you're supposed to repot them at the two-leaf stage - mine are just about to develop more leaves, so I want to get it sorted before that happens or else the world will IMPLODE!!!

 

[toggle]

ok, what is going to work if I start it off now?

I've only just started getting to the bed clearing stage on my plot. So far, I have a net of shallots to go in, a couple of rhubarb plants and some rocket seed to go in with the rhubarb, so while it's growing, the space about it isn't wasted.

 

[aqua]

They're about 2" tall (I'm shit at estimating, btw) and have two leaves each. I understand you're supposed to repot them at the two-leaf stage - mine are just about to develop more leaves, so I want to get it sorted before that happens or else the world will IMPLODE!!!

are they in one big pot al together? are they outside/inside/in a greenhouse etc?

I use the 3 stage repotting thing cos I'm short on space, so I keep them inside longer but this is entirely up to you

when you repot you repot the seedling so that the soil comes up to their first leaves

 

[May Kasahara]

Ahhhh...they're indoors on my kitchen windowsill atm, in one big pot together. I have got a backyard so they'll probably go outside in pots or growbags. There's nothing else out there at present, so plenty of room for them to soak up some rays/rain.

 

[eme]

I've got two peas (purple!), one broad bean, two toms, two peppers and some lettuce and rocket all in *one big pot*.... I'm guessing this may be gardening blasphemy, but they were getting too small for their little jiffy things and had to get planted quick!

 

[Spark]

My broad beans and perpetual spinach are coming on a treat, though i think i spotted the tell tale signs of slugs yesterday so need to take action before they get devoured.

I have loads of seedlings for big red tomatoes and smaller yellow ones, also sugar snap peas doing well (and hoping to have more luck this year as they started well last year and then were eaten by birds and slugs).

The salads are doing well too - lots of sorrel, rocket and some random mix of oriental leaves seem to be very happy in the new bed I've got for them.

I'm a bit concerned about my runner beans though. I've tried a different variety, which should be smaller so my garden doesn't become quite as much of a jungle as last year, but they don't seem to be germinating that well, only a couple have popped their heads up so far.

Not planted my courgettes yet, may do it when i get home this evening.

 

[Ozric]

Today little Ozric and I planted carrots and cut and come again lettuce.
Little Oz is only 3 and enjoyed all the digging, planting and watering but it took several attempts and finally some string to stop him walking on them.

(The string was used over the plants and not to tie the him up.........but it was tempting)

 

[zenie]

Planted out in gro-bags and containers

• tomatoes
• runner beans or peas I didn't label the pot
• spinach
• little gem lettuces
• a melon
• radishes (two types)

 

[vipper]

runner beans or peas I didn't label the pot

I am currently having trouble telling the difference between courgette and butternut squash for exactly that reason.

 

[playghirl]

MY peas and beans are having difficulty germinating. Snails and slugs have munched my cucucumbers.....

 

[Ozric]

Try these:
www.urban75.net/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=204110&highlight=nematodes

I'm gonna try and get some tomorrow.