What I did today - 2015

[Snadger]

Potted on an Aldi Gojiberry and Grapevine into bigger pots.Potted up a freebie plant from local GC into a hanging basket.Weeded my greenhouse tomato beds and gave them a tickle over with a handfork before watering.

[SusieG]

My large grow bags for use in the GH were delivered this morning. So set to filling with compost, sowed two double rows of dwarf broad beans. Placed them outside of GH ready to be moved when weather gets cold. Did a bit more weeding on future veg 'patch'. Loads of runner beans getting a decent size. STILL no red toms .... However loads of chillies, some a respectable size, must try some out tomorrow!

[marcofez]

Watered and fed all in the polytunnel and then the sweetcorn outside. Went to Aldi and bought some of their fruit bushes.1 each of Blueberry, gojiberry, dessert gooseberry and a tayberry. I wanted another blueberry bush but could'nt find one so will have to go to another shop the other side of town, when I get round to it!

[Snadger]

Dug some tatties to go with my steak,beans,peas and turnips for my tea/supper. Nice evening so caught up with a bit of hand weeding of beds. Summer pruned all my cordon apples and pears. Closed the polytunnel door as it was a bit windy. Watered recent plantings of kale.

[vixylix]

Lots of harvesting and eating this weekend! Yesterday we had tea with lots of home grown basil and a few of my now dried shallots and lunch made with home grown carrots, beetroot, more shallot, lettuce, radish and the first of the spring onions which are finally getting to edible size! Also made a courgette and onion pickle from a recipe on the BBC good food website - I had a taste of the pickling liquid - I could have just drunk that on its own!!

Other than that, lots of tidying, more cutting down of my tomato plants (I swear the more I cut off the more they grow) and restaking courgettes which were tippling over. Also spent lots of time (as usual) staring at my chilli plants hoping to find something resembling a chilli. No such luck... lots of flowers now, just hope there is enough time / warm to get some chillies forming!

Ate lots of pea pods straight off the vine - addictive! Also was investigating my baby corns which suddenly have lots of cobs and silks when I discovered a large bumble bee sized wasp doing the same thing. I didnt fancy irritating him so left him to it!!

Lots of sunshine / rain this week - hoping that means some good progress, although need to pull up my potatoes before the risk of blight gets too high.

[kris1960]

Away Friday afternoon and Saturday, didn't start until late yesterday and only made a start on area behind greenhouses.Dreadful hay fever - the tablets work but make me feel rubbish - can't decide whether to take or not.
Got some blackberries from aldi and someone gave me a woodchipper. New toy to play with ....... when I get a generator to go with it!
Hoping for some much needed rain today.
Highlight yesterday was tennisball sized melon! It just might happen!

[CaroleL]

Had to rescue a rather heavy tomato truss that was causing the stem to bend over. It's well supported now and I'm hoping that the stem wasn't damaged too much.

Picked an enormous cucumber. (enormous considering it's a mini, that is). I swear it wasn't big enough to pick yesterday and today it was bigger than some of the courgettes! It was very nice marinated in balsamic vinegar, a touch of brown sugar, and olive oil, along with some onion and tomato

[veggiechicken]

Devised a new system for regular repeat sowings in the GH to keep me in leaves for salads and stir-fries through the winter.
The plan was to sow 5 types of leaves this week and a different lot of 5 next week. Week 3 to sow the first lot again.
However, having sorted out 10 packets of seed, I couldn't choose which 5 to sow today and which to leave until next week - so I sowed all of them

Next week, do I have a week off or sow another 10 packets

[Jay-ell]

Been working on my front entrance planting aromatic low growing herbs in between the cracks.



They may not look like much at the moment



But after a little while they'll spread and fill out create mounds like this path.



The more you walk on them the lower they grow (within reason) and you get a gorgeous smell of the herbs as you walk down it.

Unfortunately my decision to extend the crazy paving means that I might not have enough plants.

It's all about Thyme management.
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I also watered everything and noticed that as well as the runners being covered in pods, rhe frenchies (Corbra, Borlotta and Purple Teepee) are all forming pods.

My onions have started to lie down - hope the onions and shallots on the shelves dry soon. Ill leave it a little while to lift them.

My mooli are up and so are my radicchio.

Picked a bunch of Kale - these were left in the nursery bed after I had planted out the brassica beds. Who says kale needs to be 2 foot appart these were only a few inches

Grabbed a couple of cucumbers (again), my forst patypan and 8 courgettes (you turn your back for a minute. ..)

Well I'm off to make courgette and kale crisps

[Greenleaves]

Picked a carry bag of both french and runner beans, been preparing them for the freezer most of the evening.

I also moved my winter brassica's to their permanent bed and decided I have had enough courgettes this year so now 3 plants on the compost heap. Strung up the shallots and will do the same with the onions later in the week.

[Sheneval]

A couple of hours weeding 2 onion beds on my daughter's plot today. :-)

[Snadger]

I had a light Sussex hen die on me yesterday. I think it was old age, but just in case it was something nasty I gave the coop a good clean and disinfect today with a Permethrin based product.
The poop and shavings i put direct onto the bed my oinions have just come out of and hoed and raked it in. I have found that it makes no difference whether chicken poo is composted or not, and it doesn't 'burn' the plants.
I then planted 15 Seaweed kale I had grown on in modules along with 5 Rossignol to fill the bed. Covered the hole lot with netting and threw on a bit of slow release balanced fertiliser for good measure. Watered in each plant then added a few slug pellets around each plant.
Picked a carrier bag full of tall Telephone peas and had these along with neeps / tatties and steak for my Sunday dinner!

[skeggijon]

Sowed radishes, spring onions, pak choi, winter density lettuce, iceburg lettuce and mixed leaves.

Gave the pumpkin a good feed and water and trimmed back the toms.

Transplanted my herbs from their hanging basket as they weren't very happy, built another raised bed and then tied up some more tomato trusses that were threatening to snap off because of the weight on them, then sat back with a cold drink and surveyed the plot with satisfaction

[Sheneval]

Three days ago discovered a very stagnant pond! Complete with a very small toad. So, quandary - do I tidy up said pond and lose the area for growing or do I dismantle it?? Hmmm, don't know a thing about pond

Susie - Toads and frogs are excellent ways of dealing with slugs if you can afford the space plus water is peaceful if you can afford the space

[SusieG]

Just having 5 ...
Back's killing me, half a cider beckons .....
Just as an aside - as a treat me and DH went to Newmarket races Friday- never been to the races before and never put on a bet. So. This horse called out to me, with a name like DigI how could I possibly lose???? Hmmm, it came last ....
Never mind, the main event was Tom Jones who more than made up for my litte 'flutter' ... Especially "Green, Green Grass"