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Do you plant vegetables out of season?

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  • #1

    Do you plant vegetables out of season?

    My peas were a disaster this year and we're about two months past the latest they "should" be sown but I'm considering throwing some seeds in a pot anyway.

    I've noticed that many of you use some kind of climate control to extend the growing season or to over-winter your plants, but has anyone planted stuff out of season and had it grow successfully without much coddling?
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  • #2
    I don't worry too much about the advice on seed packets - or in books. Nor do I do much "coddling"!
    I sow seeds when I remember and hope for the best.Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. However, if they're not sown, they don't even stand a chance!
    Just do it and see what happens.
    Last edited by veggiechicken; 28-10-2019, 10:08 PM.

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    • #3
      Yeah, VC does that, a lot lol I love it, because it pushes me to do more what I WANT to do, rather than what the packets or the books TELL me to do. VC makes me more rebellious
      https://nodigadventures.blogspot.com/

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      • #4
        Follow your instincts, not an overpaid TV gardener who hasn't got a clue about the idiosyncrasies of your garden.
        If you compare seed packet advice from different companies for the same seed variety, there are big differences in sowing times. Let's face it, their advice is too generic - the seasons are different in the north and south (of the UK) and the range is even greater in Australia.

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        • #5
          It is done. I planted 12 in a 5 gallon pot. The soil is too rich for peas, it's the wrong time of year, half the seeds are 3 years old, and I built the world's dodgiest teepee, but we'll see what happens.

          I have them in the blowaway at the moment. It gets plenty of light while still being shady.

          And yeah, even within the metropolitan area of Sydney you get quite different types of weather.

          If it fails at least I will have 5 gallons of super soil in which to plant something else.
          Last edited by lolie; 29-10-2019, 12:57 AM.

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          • #6
            I've decided to sow my Brussels sprouts and autumn and winter cabbages much later than the usually recommended times in the UK. I bought some sprouts plug plants in the middle of August, without any real expectation they would do anything. They started off then about 10 cm tall, but they're doing quite nicely now, with small sprouts starting to form. We might not have them on the usual festive day, but better late than never.

            When I start off my own seeds at the right time for the UK, they start off quite well and then seem to get exhausted by the summer heat and run out of steam. Same for my own cabbages, but my plug plants are growing really well. So, I'll sow later from here on in.

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            • #7
              Originally posted by veggiechicken View Post
              Follow your instincts, not an overpaid TV gardener who hasn't got a clue about the idiosyncrasies of your garden.
              If you compare seed packet advice from different companies for the same seed variety, there are big differences in sowing times. Let's face it, their advice is too generic - the seasons are different in the north and south (of the UK) and the range is even greater in Australia.
              Seasons in 'straya
              Hot
              Hot
              Hot with spiders
              Hot...

              I think it depends what you want - if you sow at the "approved" time, then you often get the best yields, but spreading out can mean yield at different time.

              I do like the USDA(?) banding arrangement, I think that should be used more. It's interesting that on the Franchi have simplified bandings on the backs of their packets - possibly reflecting the wider sales market?

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              • #8
                Originally posted by bikermike View Post
                Seasons in 'straya



                I do like the USDA(?) banding arrangement, I think that should be used more. It's interesting that on the Franchi have simplified bandings on the backs of their packets - possibly reflecting the wider sales market?
                Our seed packets have a map on the back showing which season seeds should be planted in different regions, but that's not very useful. Different parts of each region can have totally different weather and the weather at the beginning of a season is often totally different than the weather later in a season.

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by lolie View Post
                  It is done. I planted 12 in a 5 gallon pot. The soil is too rich for peas, it's the wrong time of year, half the seeds are 3 years old, and I built the world's dodgiest teepee, but we'll see what happens.
                  haha I like the sound of that! LOL
                  https://nodigadventures.blogspot.com/

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                  • #10
                    Originally posted by lolie View Post
                    Our seed packets have a map on the back showing which season seeds should be planted in different regions, but that's not very useful. Different parts of each region can have totally different weather and the weather at the beginning of a season is often totally different than the weather later in a season.
                    I live on the side of a south facing hill surrounded by trees. I know for a fact that the weather down hill will be different to mine, as will the weather uphill at the top of the hill. We may all be in the same zone but in reality, our climate is quite different.
                    There is no substitute for knowing your own plot, where the frost pockets are, how the sun travels around the plot in winter and summer, which part is always shady. What is the prevailing wind direction and where is the most sheltered spot?

                    When seed sowing, try sowing a few seeds a fortnight earlier and a fortnight later than the seed packet recommendations. If successful, the following year, sow even earlier and later again until you know what you can get away with. This is why I run a 4 week sowing rotation and sometimes sow the same seeds at 4 week intervals for several months. Its Leaves week and I'll be sowing salad leaves and some spring cabbages soon.

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                    • #11
                      Originally posted by veggiechicken View Post
                      I live on the side of a south facing hill surrounded by trees. I know for a fact that the weather down hill will be different to mine, as will the weather uphill at the top of the hill. We may all be in the same zone but in reality, our climate is quite different.
                      There is no substitute for knowing your own plot, where the frost pockets are, how the sun travels around the plot in winter and summer, which part is always shady. What is the prevailing wind direction and where is the most sheltered spot?

                      When seed sowing, try sowing a few seeds a fortnight earlier and a fortnight later than the seed packet recommendations. If successful, the following year, sow even earlier and later again until you know what you can get away with. This is why I run a 4 week sowing rotation and sometimes sow the same seeds at 4 week intervals for several months. Its Leaves week and I'll be sowing salad leaves and some spring cabbages soon.
                      This is really the first year I've kept a journal of when I planted stuff and have kept resowing if the first plants failed. I'm not sure how useful the journal will be as conditions are often vastly different from one year to the next, but at least it will stop me misremembering.

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                      • #12
                        I start a journal every year, lolie. There are always lots of entries for the first couple of months but, by March, I've run out of steam and the pages are blank.

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                        • #13
                          I also have started a journal and I intend to keep filling it in over the following years, so that when I get like VC, older and forgetful, I can look back for dates, temperatures and germination times to see if things are changing
                          it may be a struggle to reach the top, but once your over the hill your problems start.

                          Member of the Nutters Club but I think I am just there to make up the numbers

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                          • #14
                            Originally posted by veggiechicken View Post
                            I start a journal every year, lolie. There are always lots of entries for the first couple of months but, by March, I've run out of steam and the pages are blank.
                            Sounds familiar.

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                            • #15
                              The year before I planted leek plants way beyond their optimal planting time in autumn/winter and had a good harvest, I set my own timetable

                              I like growing experiments, like this tomatoe experiment by VC, its weird but wonderful

                              https://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gr...ent_99354.html

                              A few years ago in a freezing and bitterly cold winter I saw a living tomatoe plant on the sheltered balcony of a flat with ripening fruit, it had been snowing outside, in December!
                              Last edited by chillithyme; 30-10-2019, 08:45 AM.

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