My god. Your spud plants look awesome. Have you ever had to deal with blight? Last year was a bad one for it.British Red wrote: ↑Fri May 13, 2022 6:13 pm I thought a little demonstration of our potato approach might be interesting. We sack grow our potatoes in feed sacks - its something we've had great interest in on the channel. We do this by cutting holes in old feed sacks and rolling them down. Chitted seed potatoes are planted in 6" of home made compost....
Because we do this early we can start the potatoes in the greenhouses before moving the sacks outside when we need greenhouse space for other crops. Its perfectly possible to start again in Autumn harvesting fresh potatoes in December
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Our " First Early" variety (Sharpes Express) is very large nor - maybe 30" tall and the sacks are fully unrolled
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What is interesting to note is that they are now about to flower - which means that New Potatoes can be harvested (by emptying the sack into a wheelbarrow)
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Later varieties are growing on - but by working greenhouses and varieties, its perfectly feasible to harvest spuds for at least 6 months
Garden activity
Re: The Hungry Gap is over
Graceful Degradation! Prepping's objective summed up in two words. Turning Disaster into Mild Inconvenience by the power of fore-thought
Not Feeling Optimistic. Let me be wrong
Not Feeling Optimistic. Let me be wrong
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Re: Garden activity
Oh God's yes. We are in farming country. Last year they were blight spraying almost weekly. It slaughtered our tomatoes. With early spuds we just pull off the haulms (top growth) which stops it spreading to the tubers
Re: Garden activity
Lots of rhubarb harvested - dehydrator is full, and lots more stewed for freezing, I remembered to put very little water in. Twice as much rhubarb still to harvest, this is the best I've done.
And there are many little seedlings: the first ones up were the kale, but another 5 sets have seen the day since then. If I can just avoid killing them, it's Happy Days.
And there are many little seedlings: the first ones up were the kale, but another 5 sets have seen the day since then. If I can just avoid killing them, it's Happy Days.
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Re: Garden activity
We have carrots and parsnips showing now which is nice
Re: Garden activity
Me too I'll show you mine if you show me y..... Nooooo. It'll only make me jealous.
Probably not as many and tinier than yours, but after all the travails of getting the bu66ers to germinate, I'm well chuffed. A square metre of parsnips nicely spaced out, mostly about 3cm high. Which is odd, because we only eat about a kilo a year of parsnips.
and a row of Paris Market carrots and a bucket of Amsterdam carrots. I can't bring myself to thin them out
Those baby courgettes from just a few weeks ago are now all grown up. Two of them went off on a student exchange program.
But my most spectacular success EVER. Peas!. Some in a bucket, Some in a planter.
This is my most diversified season ever and I can't believe I've got all these on the go and looking good....
In order of success SEVENTEEN potential crops on the go!!!!! Four times as many as last year!
Peas: These lovely young girls are grabbing and clambering up their canes. Almost a foot tall! Their little grabbing tendrails like babies fingers. So Cute!
Beetroot,: Just cannot go wrong
Chard,: Just cannot go wrong
Onions, From sets
Courgette,
Beans (of unknown type)
Carrots, two varieties
Parsnips,
Leeks,
Garlic,
Spring Onions,
Tomatoes, three varieties, Struggling.
Bell Pepper: Struggling from a random supermarket fruit
Okra: Very unknown quantity.
Aubergine: Struggling
Chives,
Rosemary.
They're all rather small and fragile. I wonder which will hit the plate first?
Graceful Degradation! Prepping's objective summed up in two words. Turning Disaster into Mild Inconvenience by the power of fore-thought
Not Feeling Optimistic. Let me be wrong
Not Feeling Optimistic. Let me be wrong
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Re: Garden activity
If you interplant your larger crops with a row of radishes, you can lift the radishes before the onions need the space - two crops in one space. You will eat them in June
Re: Garden activity
Congratulations, Jenny, you've cracked the "getting them to grow" bit, good for you
Re: Garden activity
Thanks. I saw that radishes are a good interplant, but none of us likes radishes.British Red wrote: ↑Sat May 14, 2022 6:42 pm If you interplant your larger crops with a row of radishes, you can lift the radishes before the onions need the space - two crops in one space. You will eat them in June
You have reminded me that I should research intercropping.
I have spaces between my leeks. I don't think I should interplant my beets or chard cos they grow very fast.
Theres a gap where some carrots failed. Could maybe either put some of the carrots thinned from my bucket there, if they survive transplanting. Other than that, i need to look up what will be happy there. Maybe some marigolds?
I think I may have already put some inappropriate crops together in the same planters.
https://theimpatientfarmer.com/vegetabl ... ing-guide/
Graceful Degradation! Prepping's objective summed up in two words. Turning Disaster into Mild Inconvenience by the power of fore-thought
Not Feeling Optimistic. Let me be wrong
Not Feeling Optimistic. Let me be wrong
Re: Garden activity
They're quite an assortment of sizes. Mostly rather small. The peppers , moneymaker and aubergines are still on their baby leaves. One of the courgettes is easily the size of a dinner plate while its two siblings are half the size. I'll have cracked it when i know how to keep them prospering. But having that count up of 17 things did surprise and cheer me up...... And it's 18 now. I forgot that I have a strawberry plant that survived from last year.
Incidentally... Parsnips. I tried everything. I tried a ziploc bag of wet compost, a moist jar, wet tissue, Individual potting pods..... None of those worked at all. What worked was just sowing direct into a raised bed. No Faffing, just patience and letting nature do its stuff. Sometimes we over think it.
Graceful Degradation! Prepping's objective summed up in two words. Turning Disaster into Mild Inconvenience by the power of fore-thought
Not Feeling Optimistic. Let me be wrong
Not Feeling Optimistic. Let me be wrong
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Re: Garden activity
That's how I've always done it. I find the same works for onions - sow in August, leave them to overwinter, harvest the following yearjennyjj01 wrote: ↑Sat May 14, 2022 8:04 pm
Incidentally... Parsnips. I tried everything. I tried a ziploc bag of wet compost, a moist jar, wet tissue, Individual potting pods..... None of those worked at all. What worked was just sowing direct into a raised bed. No Faffing, just patience and letting nature do its stuff. Sometimes we over think it.