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Fresh shoots in May Hca_button


Fresh shoots in May

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Post by Chilli-head 4th May 2021, 8:37 am

A few things have shown themselves in my garden veg plot. Sugar snap peas, radish, spring onions and salad leaves - some of these still taking shelter under cloches on a rather blustery morning today.

Yesterday I timed it to perfection. Went to the allotment, and as is my usual method, dug a narrow trench and backfilled it with spent greenhouse compost, then sowed carrots into that. Netting them with environmesh right away. I just made it home before the rain began. Right on cue !  I did nanage to repair the damage to my soft fruit netting caused by the manure delivery too.


Last edited by Chilli-head on 3rd June 2021, 3:44 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Post by Ploshkin 4th May 2021, 12:36 pm

Still kicking my heels waiting for the freezing nights to pass before planting out in the polytunnel. I don't think we had more than 2 or 3 nights in April without frost. The peas and beans that are planted out are covered in swathes of fleece every night. I have absolutely nothing outside but I need to prepare a bed for brassicas which have started strongly in the greenhouse.
By this time last year a lot of plants pretty much thought they had finished after the very warm spell and I had a generally lacklustre season so actually I think this slow start, although frustrating, is preferable.
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Post by FloBear 5th May 2021, 8:46 am

The shoots in my garden appear to be a largish number of hostas. Much as I like hostas I am not prepared to poison the creatures that munch on them so, in time, they will probably have to go. I will try deterrents but, from previous experience, I know this will only have a small effect. I also have my axe eye on the single tree in the front garden which can only be a Gingko Biloba and therefore of no known value to British wildlife. A Rowan is favourite to replace it.
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Post by Ploshkin 5th May 2021, 8:58 am

Are hostas poisonous? I have loads and have never been aware of anything being poisoned.
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Post by Chilli-head 5th May 2021, 11:45 am

I was presuming that Flobear was talking about needing to poison the slugs and snails that would otherwise eat them. They do seem to suffer a lot.

Mrs C-H has a growing collection of hostas on the shadier of our patios, grown in terracotta pots, where they seem to escape the attention of the slugs by an large. Terracotta plots may reduce plastic use, and look lovely but it does mean you spend much more on more than the plants in them though !
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Post by Ploshkin 5th May 2021, 12:33 pm

Ah, my brain shot off on the wrong track there. If the hostas are well established you may find that the slugs don't bother them, perhaps they get too tough. We've lived here for 23 years and there were well established hostas already in the garden. I have never had a slug problem with them. I do wonder if the newer, fancy varieties are more susceptible. Mine are pretty ordinary. I have one plain green leaved one that ends up about 6 ' diameter.
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Post by Ploshkin 5th May 2021, 12:44 pm

I spent many years trying in vain to establish some lily of the valley (a throwback to childhood) in the sunless bit of my garden. About 3 years back it suddenly got going and was starting to spread ..... until the scaffolders and builders turned up. The patch where it was ended up compacted and covered in bits of cement so I resigned myself to starting again. I was delighted this morning to see valiant shoots making an appearance. The outside building work is finished and the scaffolding has gone so it shouldnt get trampled on now.
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Post by FloBear 5th May 2021, 7:49 pm

Good to hear that the Lily of the Valley have survived the workmen!

As C-H siad, I was talking about the slugs and snails. I shall be very glad if at least some of the hostas can fend them off.

Today I made a 3 sq. metre fenced off area behind the chicken house so I will have some chance of growing a few veg without them being eaten by chickens or trampled on by dogs. If we can get past hail showers and unseasonably cold weather, I might start sourcing plants for it.
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Post by Chilli-head 15th May 2021, 10:15 pm

Oh my goodness. Had a look at the kitchen garden plot today; it is covered in weeds, which on closer inspection are all volunteer edibles - rocket, coriander, dill, parsley ... i will have to weed by eating it all I reckon !

The butternut squash are at last emerging, what hope getting them ripe before winter ? We will need a cracking summer to make up for the cold start. Nothing to harvest yet, but the lettuce under cloches is looking great - Mortons' secret mix from Real Seeds, it is excellent.
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Post by Dandelion 19th May 2021, 3:17 pm

Chilli-head wrote:Oh my goodness.  Had a look at the kitchen garden plot today; it is covered in weeds, which on closer inspection are all volunteer edibles - rocket, coriander, dill, parsley ... i will have to weed by eating it all I reckon !

crylaugh
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Post by Dandelion 23rd May 2021, 9:07 pm

I've never had much luck with sowing spring onions directly into the soil (in fact I rarely sow anything directly as seeds don't seem to germinate in our cold clay soil, with the exception of runner beans.) I heard a suggestion about planting spring onions in a pot relatively close together, then planting them out, so that they resemble the sort of clump you would buy from the greengrocer. I'm trying this, and so far it's working well. I have two 'clumps' planted out and I've just sown two more pots so I have a bit of a succession going.
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Post by freebird 23rd May 2021, 10:15 pm

Ooh, that's a good idea Dandelion. I have sown some directly in my new raised veg bed. The first lot have germinated rather patchily, though it was just before we had all that very cold April weather. Have recently sown more direct as well, though not germinated yet. May try your way for a third lot, it start them in the green house. Wondering if it might be a good idea for baby carrots too.
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Post by Ploshkin 25th May 2021, 7:36 pm

I do baby carrots in the polytunnel. I use Amsterdam Forcing seed and grow in one of my 18" drainage rings on top of the bed. I sprinkle the seed over the surface then when they are large enough thin to 1" spacing. You can start pulling them as small as you like and, depending on how fast you use them, the others can grow on. I actually finished harvesting my June sowing in March this year.
I would think that if you did them in clumps the roits might twist round each other. I will definitely try the clumps for spring onions. I can poke them between other things instead of finding enough space for a row.
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Post by Dandelion 26th May 2021, 9:25 pm

Ploshkin wrote:
 I will definitely try the clumps for spring onions.  I can poke them between other things instead of finding enough space for a row.
That seems to be one of the benefits of this method, as well as being able to bring the spring onions on early under cover. So far, I can't discover any drawbacks!
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Post by Chilli-head 26th May 2021, 9:39 pm

Spring onion Yoda is doing well for me in the ground, under a cloche.
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Post by Chilli-head 31st May 2021, 9:03 pm

Huge catching up session at the allotment. Loads of digging weeds, and planted out cabbages, onions, shallots, and Greek Gihandes. Worn out now.
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Post by Ploshkin 31st May 2021, 9:17 pm

Likewise Chilli Head. I completed all the main planting in the polytunnel then for the last 2 days I have sorted out the outside beds. It involved a lot of digging out massive dandelions. I've planted out sprouts and cabbages and got a bed ready for beans. I've been looking up things that can be sowed in June as I have a spare bed because I haven't planted any potatoes outside this year.
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