What I did today 2025

[Mark Rand]

(Too) many more cucumbers. The first of the gherkins that I'm going to try picking this year. enough tomatoes for tomorrow's salad.

[ameno]

Finally got around to thinning the big Victoria plum tree. It only took until a huge branch fell off under the weight of all the plums. I kept putting the job off because it was so laborious and time-consuming, but it looks like I delayed a bit too long... The fruit set this year is ridiculous. Fruit are hanging from every branch like bunches of grapes. I've removed over 95% of them, and I'm pretty certain there are still too many left...

Also planted out some beetroot modules, and started pruning one of the apricot trees.

[Andraste]

A job well done there ameno & lovely to have an abundance of plums

I've noticed both you and Penellype mentioning beetroot plantings - had you sown them very long ago?

It's my first year trying to grow beetroot. I sowed Boltardy in modules back at the beginning of April & they took an absolute age to sprout - they made it into the plot mid-May (about 6 weeks after sowing) & still aren't ready to harvest. I was thinking about sowing another row direct at the plot now but figured they wouldn't have time to get big enough to eat now? Perhaps I've got a slower growing variety or as you're both in warmer places than me that makes all the difference? What do you think?

[Jungle Jane]

Planted the fifth & sixth broccoli where the garlic was previously planted,covered with netting. Watered in with nettle fertiliser. Harvested another potato bag,used the compost for another marigold & Cyril’s choice tomato plant that has two tomatoes on it,eager to be planted. One of my tomato plants fell in the wind yesterday,I’d put a second support stake in aswell,they both snapped,my sticks are getting old,I pushed them back in the soil,the broken bits are in there somewhere,plants fine could happen again tho,that pot could be moved next to the wall🤔🧐

[ameno]

A job well done there ameno & lovely to have an abundance of plums

I've noticed both you and Penellype mentioning beetroot plantings - had you sown them very long ago?

It's my first year trying to grow beetroot. I sowed Boltardy in modules back at the beginning of April & they took an absolute age to sprout - they made it into the plot mid-May (about 6 weeks after sowing) & still aren't ready to harvest. I was thinking about sowing another row direct at the plot now but figured they wouldn't have time to get big enough to eat now? Perhaps I've got a slower growing variety or as you're both in warmer places than me that makes all the difference? What do you think?

I sowed mine about a month ago, and they were probably overdue planting out, to be honest.

My beetroot from my late April sowing have been ready to pick for a while now - some of the biggest are 400g each.
If yours still aren't ready yet then either they are not getting enough water or nutrients (beetroots are quite hungry and need plenty of nitrogen), or quite possibly the variety is to blame. I have stopped growing open-pollinated varieties of beetroot as I find them too unreliable. They're often slow to swell, and as many as half of them never seem to swell at all unless you thin heavily. I now only grow F1 varieties. My go-to is Pablo. Always very reliable, even when growing relatively densely (they just push each other apart).

[Penellype]

A job well done there ameno & lovely to have an abundance of plums

I've noticed both you and Penellype mentioning beetroot plantings - had you sown them very long ago?

It's my first year trying to grow beetroot. I sowed Boltardy in modules back at the beginning of April & they took an absolute age to sprout - they made it into the plot mid-May (about 6 weeks after sowing) & still aren't ready to harvest. I was thinking about sowing another row direct at the plot now but figured they wouldn't have time to get big enough to eat now? Perhaps I've got a slower growing variety or as you're both in warmer places than me that makes all the difference? What do you think?

The beetroot I am looking to plant today (if I can find somewhere to put it!) is Lutz Green Leaf, which is supposed to keep well over winter. It was sown in mid June and I expect it to reach edible size before winter. I also sowed a tray of Boldor (a yellow variety) a week or so ago - these are currently at the seed leaf stage. I have not sown them this late before so this is something of an experiment.

Interesting that you mention open pollinated varieties not swelling ameno - I often grow Boltardy and find it very disappointing from that point of view. I see videos of people with nice round beets and mine are often long and thin or a weird shape. I will try Pablo next year, thanks for the recommendation.

[Andraste]

Thanks both for the advice (posted my ty earlier on the chatter thread by mistake - having a stupid day today ).

[Peanut]

Yesterday I replaced the broken glass in the greenhouse and moved my mite infested aubergines out of the greenhouse and into the garden. I also misted them, wiped the leaves down and then removed the worst affected leaves.

[Jungle Jane]

Friday I planted a pot of yellow marigold with pink geranium & unknown colour geranium & I put the last blowaway in the shed,there’s still some plants to plant out on the patio table. I moved two big tomato plants to where the blowaway was,giving all the pots extra space so the plants aren’t touching each other,then we had lots of rain saturaday & today.

[Containergardener]

Pruned off a load of leaves, shoots etc off my tomatoes I've neglected . Then watered them.

[Containergardener]

Pruned off more leaves from the toms. Watered.

[Bren In Pots]

Yesterday I planted lettuce into buckets and tidied the area in front of my GH.
Today took out my sweet peas that have finished very early. More weeding.

[Peanut]

Yesterday I watered most of the veg beds, then today I have watered the brassica beds and squished more caterpillars. Fed both greenhouses. Hope to have some time later to do something a bit more exciting than watering!

[Nicos]

Mostly domestics today, but I did manage to do a bit more weeding of the driveway, and hand pick 1/4 bucket of fallen black cherries- so they are finally coming to an end..yippee.
Picked windfall mirabelle and apples.

[Containergardener]

Felt I needed to be outside so:
Deadheading
Watering pots
Sowing seeds