What type of produce do you grow?
Re: What type of produce do you grow?
I've heard of it, Gnole, I've just never got round to delving.
Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, it's about learning to dance in the rain~anon
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Jan Mayen
Re: What type of produce do you grow?
We are a bit stuffed for growing things. We have no shortage of land, but the climate isn't suitable for most things to be grown easily. We can do sheep and other livestock though 
A plantiecrub would probably be the answer for a fair few of the issues if people move north/remote. You have your small field with your sheep in it for the winter (close by the homestead, they can be chucked out onto rougher pastures further away in the summer), and you build a circular walled enclosure about 10-15ft across with a small gate in it. In the winter the sheep shelter in it, "enriching the soil". Come spring/early summer you chuck them out of it, dig up the soil and plant your veggies in there where they are protected from the wind and have good soil Easy!
A plantiecrub would probably be the answer for a fair few of the issues if people move north/remote. You have your small field with your sheep in it for the winter (close by the homestead, they can be chucked out onto rougher pastures further away in the summer), and you build a circular walled enclosure about 10-15ft across with a small gate in it. In the winter the sheep shelter in it, "enriching the soil". Come spring/early summer you chuck them out of it, dig up the soil and plant your veggies in there where they are protected from the wind and have good soil
Easy!-
Big fat bill
Re: What type of produce do you grow?
For potatoes, you need to think of what type you want and when you want to eat them. As I know it there are basically 4 classes 1st earlies, 2nd earlies, main crop and salad potatoes. If you plant all of the seed potatoes at the same time the 1st earlies will mature first, the 2nd earlies second, then the maincrop potatoes will be after them. Salad potatoes can be grown at the same time as the other types.
This link http://www.ochef.com/167.htm says there are 2 types, boiling and baking but there is a lot more info so worth a look.
Try to get organic seed potatoes and always buy certified seed potatoes and not use some that are bought from the shop. Some will say they are ok to do this and yes they will grow but if they are dieseased then you will be spreading this disease all throughout your garden.
This year I bought some seed potatoes in small trial packs of between 6 and 10 tubers. Doing it this way you can choose a good few varieties and then you can see what you like for the year after.
Garlic, It's getting late now as Garlic needs a cold snap to get it to create the cloves and to grow. Buy a pack of two bulbs from a garden centre. Garlic needs a long spell in the ground, around 6 to 7 months to get the best bulbs at harvest time. The old fable is plant on the shortest day of the year which is the 22nd of December and harvest on the longest day which is the 22nd of June.
Personally, I try to plant the garlic as soon as it arrives which for me this year was in October as I was late ordering.
I get the bulb out of the box / pack and break it into the constituent cloves immediately before planting. I plant each clove spaced at 6" apart in rows 6" apart and the smaller cloves that are usually found tight in the middle of the bulb spaced at 4" apart and rows 4" apart. I push my cloves into the ground and cover with about 1" of soil over the top.
A second idea of growing plants such as Garlic and onions are on a diamond pattern. An example of this is a row of garlic then the second row is planted in the middle of the first 6" on the diagonal. A third row is then planted 6" on the diagonal so it looks like a diamond. The idea behind this is to get the most crops per area sown. This idea does work but you need to feed a lot more and also weed by hand as tools are too big on this spacing.
I then water then in well and leave having put labels at both ends of the rows with the variety on each label because one of my chickens keep pulling them out and flicking them all over the deep bed. She will be ending up as garlic chicken if she doesn't behave herself next year !!
When the bulbs are harvested I keep one of every sort to use next year. I say every sort as I buy at least 12 different varieties in both soft neck and hard neck. Some of your types of garlic will be poor and not be worth even pulling as it's so small. The reason, or old gardeners tale is that garlic will only grow in soils it likes. So, you need to find a variety that likes your soil and then grow that year after year. If you do this for at least 3 years then the garlic you end up with is much stronger as it will have acclimatised to your soil and growing conditions. I also buy fresh garlic from my supplier most years just to keep the stock fresh by rotating it. If you use cloves you have grown year after year then after about 6 years it will start to diminish in flavour strength hence why I rotate stock.
Onions are in many different types, red, yellow, white, salad, leeks, shallots, french shallots and so on. Sturon, are a good all rounder as are many of the sets you will buy from a garden centre. try some and see what you like. Plant in firm soil like the garlic above. For ease don't bother with seed as it takes 2 years to get onions from seeds as far as I know. Lwwks can be grown from seed and again many types. look for a yellow type for summer harvesting and a hardy blue type for winter harvesting.
I buy heritage seeds from http://www.realseeds.co.uk/index.html which is a good way once you find a variety you like as you can then save your own seeds where as you can't if you buy F1 varieties from major garden centres and seed catalogues.
Other crops I grow include
4 types of carrots
sweetcorn
3beetroot
red cabage
3 other cabbages
3 peas
4 types of beans
celeriac
fennel
turnip
sweede
parsnips
4 squashes
salad leaves
Tomatoes
then there is apples
2raspberries
blackberries
black currents
blueberries
All in 4 deepbeds measuring 1.2m x 4.8m and other bits stuffed in between flowers
Hope that helps a bit.
BFB
This link http://www.ochef.com/167.htm says there are 2 types, boiling and baking but there is a lot more info so worth a look.
Try to get organic seed potatoes and always buy certified seed potatoes and not use some that are bought from the shop. Some will say they are ok to do this and yes they will grow but if they are dieseased then you will be spreading this disease all throughout your garden.
This year I bought some seed potatoes in small trial packs of between 6 and 10 tubers. Doing it this way you can choose a good few varieties and then you can see what you like for the year after.
Garlic, It's getting late now as Garlic needs a cold snap to get it to create the cloves and to grow. Buy a pack of two bulbs from a garden centre. Garlic needs a long spell in the ground, around 6 to 7 months to get the best bulbs at harvest time. The old fable is plant on the shortest day of the year which is the 22nd of December and harvest on the longest day which is the 22nd of June.
Personally, I try to plant the garlic as soon as it arrives which for me this year was in October as I was late ordering.
I get the bulb out of the box / pack and break it into the constituent cloves immediately before planting. I plant each clove spaced at 6" apart in rows 6" apart and the smaller cloves that are usually found tight in the middle of the bulb spaced at 4" apart and rows 4" apart. I push my cloves into the ground and cover with about 1" of soil over the top.
A second idea of growing plants such as Garlic and onions are on a diamond pattern. An example of this is a row of garlic then the second row is planted in the middle of the first 6" on the diagonal. A third row is then planted 6" on the diagonal so it looks like a diamond. The idea behind this is to get the most crops per area sown. This idea does work but you need to feed a lot more and also weed by hand as tools are too big on this spacing.
I then water then in well and leave having put labels at both ends of the rows with the variety on each label because one of my chickens keep pulling them out and flicking them all over the deep bed. She will be ending up as garlic chicken if she doesn't behave herself next year !!
When the bulbs are harvested I keep one of every sort to use next year. I say every sort as I buy at least 12 different varieties in both soft neck and hard neck. Some of your types of garlic will be poor and not be worth even pulling as it's so small. The reason, or old gardeners tale is that garlic will only grow in soils it likes. So, you need to find a variety that likes your soil and then grow that year after year. If you do this for at least 3 years then the garlic you end up with is much stronger as it will have acclimatised to your soil and growing conditions. I also buy fresh garlic from my supplier most years just to keep the stock fresh by rotating it. If you use cloves you have grown year after year then after about 6 years it will start to diminish in flavour strength hence why I rotate stock.
Onions are in many different types, red, yellow, white, salad, leeks, shallots, french shallots and so on. Sturon, are a good all rounder as are many of the sets you will buy from a garden centre. try some and see what you like. Plant in firm soil like the garlic above. For ease don't bother with seed as it takes 2 years to get onions from seeds as far as I know. Lwwks can be grown from seed and again many types. look for a yellow type for summer harvesting and a hardy blue type for winter harvesting.
I buy heritage seeds from http://www.realseeds.co.uk/index.html which is a good way once you find a variety you like as you can then save your own seeds where as you can't if you buy F1 varieties from major garden centres and seed catalogues.
Other crops I grow include
4 types of carrots
sweetcorn
3beetroot
red cabage
3 other cabbages
3 peas
4 types of beans
celeriac
fennel
turnip
sweede
parsnips
4 squashes
salad leaves
Tomatoes
then there is apples
2raspberries
blackberries
black currents
blueberries
All in 4 deepbeds measuring 1.2m x 4.8m and other bits stuffed in between flowers
Hope that helps a bit.
BFB
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The-Great-Nothing
What type of produce do you grow?
Hi
One piece of advise is to make a note of the variety you plant (of anything you grow) and record how well it grew/survived/tasted. So you don't buy seeds that don't like your soil/climate a second time!
Cheers
Matt
One piece of advise is to make a note of the variety you plant (of anything you grow) and record how well it grew/survived/tasted. So you don't buy seeds that don't like your soil/climate a second time!
Cheers
Matt
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maxilaura
Re: What type of produce do you grow?
wow, thanks Bill for the info - your garden veg sounds amazing with so many different varieties. I have to make some notes now from your post into my notebook. 
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maxilaura
Re: What type of produce do you grow?
Matt, good idea, will ensure I make a note of what grows well and what doesn't and whether I acutally like the taste of it or not.
Thanks for the idea.
Thanks for the idea.
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the-gnole
Re: What type of produce do you grow?
It would be great to see some photo's of your layout BFB, is it raised beds, or small plots or all mixed together, I have put up some photos of my low-raised beds with the covers etc on them, I wondered if yours was similar.
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the-gnole
Re: What type of produce do you grow?
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norteen
Re: What type of produce do you grow?
great photos Gnole...other tips..look up the Ruth Stout no dig method,basically a heavy mulch system. Its good for gardening into creaky old age(now!!) as the is less physical work. also look up the Indore composting method..a good,rat free way of composting...could use human waste if (pardon the pun )TSHTF..
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diamond lil
- Posts: 9960
- Joined: Sat Nov 27, 2010 1:42 pm
- Location: Scotland.
Re: What type of produce do you grow?
Gnole - what advantages are there in using those wooden edges/beds in your pics? Would you not get just the same result from an old fashioned ordinary garden? My next door neighbour has a garden like yours but it just seems to turn into chaos halfway through the season...