Courgettes - any success on a muck pile?

[VirginVegGrower]

Hi - I hear that courgettes can grow well on a compost heap. Anyone tried growing them hot bed style or on a rotted muck heap? I have very little room left in my lottie plans but wondered if I could grow a couple of plants atop something composting/rotting.

[Two_Sheds]

One thing, the compost will sink as it rots, taking your plant down with it

Secondly, I've never seen a good harvest grown on a heap - I've done it myself with pumpkins, and the ones in the ground did much better. The ones in the heap had loads of leaf (indicating lots of nitrogen) but not many fruits

[ginger ninger]

I tried it last year with mi marrow...the slugs had a field day . And as T.S say's lot's of nice lush green leaves for them to eat.

[Aberdeenplotter]

Hi - I hear that courgettes can grow well on a compost heap. Anyone tried growing them hot bed style or on a rotted muck heap? I have very little room left in my lottie plans but wondered if I could grow a couple of plants atop something composting/rotting.

There is a danger of burning the roots if planted directly into a muck heap. take out a hole and fill with soil to plant into to overcome the problem.

[VirginVegGrower]

All sounds like a big fat "no" then in reality. How did the Victorians overcome this on hotbeds then as I don't understand the differences really. I am blonde and I haven't had a coffee yet, so....

Thanks all!

[Storming Norman]

I tried this as well a few years back, but I found the heap was too well drained to contribute much.

My courgettes seem to better in heavy and wetter clay soil, as long as its got plenty of food in it. Once it dries out though - same problem.

[Potstubsdustbins]

If I remember correctly the Victorian hot bed was something more than just a muck heap. A deep trench was dug and partially filled with fresh full of straw horse muck. This was then covered with earth and finally a cold frame was placed on top.

Once on a TV program they demonstrated how to dig out and refill a purposed brick built hot bed. The gardener could just about see over the top when the pit was empty, they did however manage to grow pineapple.

Colin

[Aberdeenplotter]

The hotbed was also used to heat glasshouses with the straw and muck removed from the stables piled against the walls. Good stuff that fresh horse muck.

[taff]

I've been putting mine in half rotted compost for a couple of years. The courgettes do well, the squash, not so much.

[VirginVegGrower]

The hotbed was also used to heat glasshouses with the straw and muck removed from the stables piled against the walls. Good stuff that fresh horse muck.

Oh I thought you grew stuff on a hotbed pile not as a heating system. Don't think I'll be putting it in my greenhouse.

[VirginVegGrower]

I've been putting mine in half rotted compost for a couple of years. The courgettes do well, the squash, not so much.

That's the kind of thing I was hoping to do - so it does work in principal then - do you have to add muck or anything else?
We have chickens (bought yesterday) and so we are hoping to get lots of chicken manure for our compost heap, which will take some time to rot.

[Two_Sheds]

That's the kind of thing I was hoping to do -

Have a go then - courgette seeds are cheap

[taff]

I just added water
Nah, really, it's just more of a pain because of the extra watering. I grew them in tyres with compost because I didn't have any room left anywhere else, so I gave it a go.
I added some waterey horse muck occasionally [ had a load offf someone, so put it in a barrel and added water to the top, then used that as a boost now and then, or when I remembered, which amounts to the same thing ]

[Florence Fennel]

I put a pumpkin in the compost bin and like the others, there was loads of very lush foliage, but a very small pumpkin. The other pumpkins (in tyres) were huge.

[VirginVegGrower]

Have a go then - courgette seeds are cheap

I could just give it a whirl as you say - although am intrigued by the tyre method. Do they just stack or grow in one tyre - not sure I understand?