Grow Your Own Magazine

This is my first year growing veg and owning a greenhouse. Everything seems to be going reasonably well, though pretty slow (we've not seen much of the sun ).

I have a few sweet pepper and aubergine plants that are healthy but still small (about 5-6 inches) do they stand any chance of a crop? My chillis are healthy, but again very small and not yet producing flowers. Toms have lots of flowers but still waiting for the fruit to form. I'm really worried that I'm on a hike to nowhere.

well my aubergines were a bit of a lost cause, and died after getting to an inch lol ..... my tomatoes and peppers are currently about 3 inches and i haven't given up hope yet, they are all in the garden, i haven't got a greenhouse, i'm gonna leave them and see what happens, ..... though i have got a couple of growlights, so might be able to bring a few indoors at a later date, dunno if that will work or not?

lynda xx

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sometimes i do talk complete and utter rubbish ...... just ignore me if i do ........i'll go away eventually

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There's plenty of time for tomatoes yet, most of mine are only just starting to flower.

lynda- If they're only three inches tall surely you can stick an empty drinks bottle over the top creating a greenhouse effect that should speed them up a bit.

I think your toms will be fine Amanda. There's still planty of time for them.
As for your aubergines and peppers - well the peppers might still make it with a bit of decent weather and a good autumn. The aubergines - well what can I say. Mine are fine big plants, covered in flowers and looking great - but not an aubergine in sight. If they don't make it this year I'm never growing them again. I'll just concede it's impossible for me.
Good luck with yours.

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From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.

This has been a crazy year for weather and has affected growing conditions. Some weather forecasters are promising a hot September, so your plants might get a chance to catch up.

they have been under a cloche, i've just opened it up a couple of days ago, in the hope that they might do something lol, they have actually grown more in the last few days than in the last month lol ..... can't win can you?

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sometimes i do talk complete and utter rubbish ...... just ignore me if i do ........i'll go away eventually

http://teachy.myminicity.com/

I'll cross my fingers then. I also have some Cape Gooseberry plants grown from seed that are romping away with plenty of flowers, hopefully they will yield some fruit eventually.

For all we have had rain and hardly any sun, I have some courgettes and pumpkins outside that seem to be doing quite well. I'm hoping that my onions fatten up a bit more though. Could I put pak choi in the bed that the onions were in? I grew some too early and it bolted.

I gave up on my aubergines... they were about 6 inches tall, no flowers, then stopped growing and started to keel over. My sweet peppers have fruit on them but they have been the same size for weeks, so I'm still hoping that if / when the weather picks up they will spring into action.

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pjh75

We sow the seed, nature grows the seed, we eat the seed.

what i find weird is that all my flowers are going mad and sprouting all over the place, and i just chucked the seeds in,no effort at all ........ the veg that i've lovingly nurtured are all hibernating lol

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sometimes i do talk complete and utter rubbish ...... just ignore me if i do ........i'll go away eventually

http://teachy.myminicity.com/

"The aubergines - well what can I say. Mine are fine big plants, covered in flowers and looking great - but not an aubergine in sight."

Snap!

"If they don't make it this year I'm never growing them again"

I'm not sure I'll give them a chance even if they do! After growing them lovingly I've remembered that none of my lot like them very much!

My aubergine plants in the conservatory are fairly large and have some little green buds, but the two I planted outside haven't really grown much even though they're getting more sun, so I guess they do like the warmth.

I was led to believe that Cape Goosberries grew into huge bushy plants? Mine have got fruit on and look happy enough but only have grown about 1 foot high, maybe I've got a dwarf version

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Why keep a dog when you can bark yourself !

Cape gooseberry usually seem to grow according to the pot they are in. I have loads in all sizes of pots they are all producing fruit but the size of the plant is in relation to the size of the pot. Same with the pepino.

Ian

Just when you think the aubergines will never grow, they take right off. Mine were tiny a week ago, but they just went through a growth spurt, branched, and now they're flowering. Don't give up!

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The highest reward for a person's toil is not what they get for it, but what they become by it. -John Ruskin

http://wormsflowers.blogspot.com/

Went to water them this afternoon and noticed one of the aubergines was looking a little droopy. On closer inspection it would seem that something has chomped right through the bottom of the stem. Snail??? We have millions of them, I collected over 200in the garden today.

What a problem you have with snails Amanda. I've seen none and about 6 slugs this year. I must be truly blessed. Long may it last.

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From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.

So I bought an aubergine black beauty plant from B and Q a while ago. It's been in the greenhouse ever since and is now about 20 cm high but hasn't flowered or beared any fruit.

what is does have is (hopefully) a flower beginning to show. What worries me though are the presence of lots of little spikes on this 'flower' which are now growing on some of the spines of the leaves.

I never knew they grew spikes.

I know that black beauty are a 'medium early' type plant - am I flogging a dead horse or shall I continue and see what ahppens?

Thanks

Lol! Some aub plants look positively 'evil' with leaves with spikes and spikes on the flower bit that holds the fruit (calycx?)! Watch out for the last when you harvest your aubs. Its still relatively early in their growing season, so good luck russell, but pray for a long hot summer for them (and us!).

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Manda.

"Wouldn't it be nice
For maybe an hour
To not have a care."

I have two types of aubergine growing in an unheated greenhouse. Both types are about 2ft high and have quite a few flowers on them but as yet no aubergines. I have not grown them before so dont know what to expect. Hope i get some nice fruits soon. Any one know how long I will have to wait?

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johntheeng

Amanda - when did you sow your stuff?

j r hilton - you just have to wait, I'm afraid. Aubergines are not fast.

I am about to harvest my first aub of the year - there won't be many, but the ones I have look ok. They are "Bonica" and were sown mid-February.

Have any of the flowers set? We've had a few aubs of different varieties off ours already - calliope, rosa bianco, early long purple 2 (but we do eat them smallish - tennis ball size-ish). They're in the border of the unheated greenhouse. They enjoyed most of the June weather, but its not been hot or sunny enough for them recently!

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Manda.

"Wouldn't it be nice
For maybe an hour
To not have a care."