# Gardening Chat Part 4



## Bels (Aug 21, 2004)

* Happy Chatting! *​
Love ... Bels x


----------



## ♥Saila♥ (Mar 27, 2006)

Yay I am first to post!!

We need to breathe some life back into this thread!

I have been harvesting French Breakfast radishes this week! yummy!! I need some growbags this weekend for my tomatoes. I have red cherry and gardeners delight and they are terribly pot bound. My gartenperles are now in their hanging basket home and doing well in there and last night I repotted the cucumber plants that were pot bound  

I need to pick a location to plant my rhodedendron out and my rhubarb

Also planted some more minipop sweetcorn for a late crop and some garden peas. Put these ones into peat pots and will be planting out when they are young.

I have 2 pumpkin plants on the go and have no idea where I'll put them!

My older pea plants have pods on yay! And I have a couple of strawberries!!


----------



## suedulux (May 27, 2006)

Hey!  like our  new  location!  
A pagoda/gazebo in the  middle  of a perfect  garden, 
nice  soft  garden chairs , with homemade chilled  lemonade on tap.

Perfection for the  summer    

Suv Sue


----------



## Alisha (Jun 5, 2006)

tis alovely day here so must get my   up to the allotment.. oodles of plants to get in the ground 

anyone any tips on getting rid of bindweed.. i heard if you put a cane in next to it then let it train up it, paint with the glyso stuff and then plastic bag over to seal the deal.. anyone know of an easier method? without poisoning ground or othr plants?


----------



## Lorna (Apr 8, 2004)

Hi Alisha

> lorna you are a busy one with your veg patch.. wish we had a garden bigger 
> enough ..like you have planted too many of everything.. 

I am coming to the conclusion I plant to much stuff, so when something gets eaten, by slugs, mice, rabbit, deer, pigeons, whatever;  gets dug up by cats, or it simply rots, in the wet, I have something to replace it with.

All those spaghetti plants, well I planted a whole load out, One didn’t survive transplanting, and another 2 rotted in the rain.  I am glad I have extras.  And the pink banana?  I managed to grow 2, then another 2 sprouted.  I planted them all out.  The slugs got one.  And some of the other squash plants have rotted too.  When are we going to get some hot sunny, dry weather?  Then I’ll be complaining as I have to water…..

> you need to keep spinach well watered to stop bolting but spec you know that..
I suspect I didn’t water the spinach enough.  No I hadn’t got a clue about spinach.  Oh well there is always next year, or maybe I can try over the winter!  I have leaf beet - perpetual Spinach in and also rainbow Swiss Chard, which I am waiting to grow.  And some Red Orach.  Still too small to pick.
The carrots are a bit smaller than my little finger, but I will soon be able to pick some of those.

The first lot of Chinese cabbage has bolted, and the slugs have eaten what is left.  So I will plant the backup Chinese cabbages.

I am eating sugar snap peas, and turnips, and the broad beans are just coming into pod.  
And I had one of those “Uh Oh!”  moments.  I rootled in my new potatoes about 10 days ago, and only got pea sized potatoes.  Today, I rootled, and they are 3” in diameter.  Should new potatoes be so big?  They put last year’s late main crops pots to shame!

I think bindweed is every gardeners nightmare.  OK mare’s tail is worse.  The gardening books say, pick weeds regularly, and they will get weaker.  Well when it comes to bindweed, whose the idiot who wrote that advice.  I bought Glyphosate.  The problem last year, (and probably now) was it rained and rained, and the bindweed stems were swollen with so much water, it wouldn’t take up the Glyphosate, so it took several spraying to get the bindweed to die.  And we had so few sunny days, last year, that it meant the sprayings were over several weeks, by which time the bindweed had recovered.  Of course, if any Glyphosate, drifted onto any veggie plants, they instantly rolled over and died.

Everyone around here says make friends with a farmer.  They have bindweed specific weed killers, that the bindweed can smell a mile away, which kill the bindweed stone dead within 24 hours, and only kill bindweed.  The trouble is it is illegal to sell that stuff to the general public.  Not much help.

Glyphosate, sprayed a few times, in during hot sunny weather does work, but we are a bit short of that right now.  I am just pulling the bindweed at the moment.

Hope today on the allotment went well

Lorna


----------



## ♥Saila♥ (Mar 27, 2006)

Morning Girls!

I popped my tomatoes in grow bags this weekend! Yaaaay! 

Anyone get upto any gardening in the good weather?

xxx


----------



## Lorna (Apr 8, 2004)

Hi Saila,

> Anyone get upto any gardening in the good weather?

Well Sunday, wasn't particularly nice, here in the East of England.  Yesterday, Monday was fantatsic,  but I couldn't get out.  I need to spray the bindweed, and yesterday would have been perfect.  Today it is a bit windy, but I may have a go.

I do still have some cucumbers to go, but I am waiting for a hot sunny spell to come along.  Where is the wonderful weather? Other than that, I am watering, and waiting for things to grow.

Patience is not my strong point.  I planted it yesterday. I should be able to harvest it today, shouldn't I?

Lorna


----------



## Lorna (Apr 8, 2004)

Just had lunch.  OK the tomatoes, and cucumber came from the supermarket, but the salad leaves, and new potatoes came from the garden.

Oh I cooked too many new potatoes, and put some on the side for later, for hubby.  Well I guess, he will have to go and unearth some more, if he wants some.  Boy were the new potatoes good.

Lorna

PS the sugar snap peas, never made it onto the plate in the kitchen!


----------



## mojitomummy (Jun 17, 2008)

Just had my first strawberry from my garden!

This is the first year I've grown food - I've got herbs, salad leaves, tomatoes and strawberries.

I still love going out everyevening to get salad for tea - see I can grow something from an ickle seed!!

I've done loads of gardening over the last two years - I find it really destressing and a great way to take my mind off other stuff.  It tends to be weekend gardening.  I landscaped it over the winter and put in two huge new flower beds which I have been busily planting up.  Its finally beginning to get a bit of height and colour in it over the last two weeks - and I've been at home to enjoy it. Lovely.

Best wishes for all the amazing things you are growing.  

Alan Titchmarsh's advice for bindweed is....
.........
.........
Move house!

It's the slugs that REALLY annoy me.

Happy gardening
xx


----------



## janinec (Nov 19, 2006)

hi gardeners - any ideas what I do with me red hor pokers ? they are very tall, majestic ! never had them before - cant remember planting them either - strange ! now they are looking like they are going over do i chop them off ?

thanks xx


----------



## mojitomummy (Jun 17, 2008)

One of my red hot pokers got runied in teh rain a couple of weeks ago and all the coloured bits fell out. i cut it off to make it look neat and really don't think that was the right thing to do.

Can you stake it?  I had to stake my foxgloves as its been so windy and I've never read in any book about anyone doing that.


----------



## Alisha (Jun 5, 2006)

becky100 said:


> Alan Titchmarsh's advice for bindweed is....
> .........
> .........
> Move house!


does he really say that ?  
 that's for alan

the stuff is popping up everywhere.. 

still got oodles to plant up .. everytime I get down there LO starts crying.. so its a bit tricky

becky yeah stake it if it flopping about.. i love foxgoves & so do the bumbles 

lorna don't know any farmers  but am jealous of your veggy patch (estate) 
hop its a sunny one this w'end happy gardening


----------



## janinec (Nov 19, 2006)

thanks folks - red hot poker not floppy just bare cos the red hotness bit gone - do i just leave it ?


----------



## KerryO (Apr 25, 2006)

Hello lovely ladies, hope you don't mind me hopping on this thread I've only just noticed it and I'm mad about gardening, esp my veggie patch that I've managed to squeeze in at the bottom of our garden. Its not a big patch but I do like to pack it all in! you watch I'll have little tiny onions the size of peas as I can never seem to give anything the right amount of room to grow!

Can I just ask a quick q ... my shallots. They were planetd last autumn/winter (this was ok? I think thye're overwintering ones) and have been doing nicely, but the last couple of weeks they've developed not flowers but buds. All of them have done this but there's hardly anything on the bulbs so I dont want to pull them yet. does this mean they've gone to seed? Is it all over, can I still grow them / eat them or do I have to say goodbye??

Thanks! looking forward to chatting xxx


----------



## beachgirl (Jun 7, 2007)

Can  i just ask a quick question please..keep getting the odd weed in the flower beds which grows tall and is sticky when you pull it out, any ideas?


----------



## Alisha (Jun 5, 2006)

hello 


janinec said:


> thanks folks - red hot poker not floppy just bare cos the red hotness bit gone - do i just leave it ?


spose so.. let it die back naturally.. I had one but it just dissappeared 



KerryO said:


> Can I just ask a quick q ... my shallots. they've developed not flowers but buds. All of them have done this but there's hardly anything on the bulbs so I dont want to pull them yet. does this mean they've gone to seed? Is it all over, can I still grow them / eat them or do I have to say goodbye??


this has happened on our red onions (first time i've grown them) Don't quote me but a bloke on our allotment site said they've had it as thy'll taste bitter if you leave them.. so pull them up and enjoy what there is  that's what we're doing.. must have bolted.. don't know why



beachgirl said:


> Can i just ask a quick question please..keep getting the odd weed in the flower beds which grows tall and is sticky when you pull it out, any ideas?


   maybe post a picture  

we're currently enjoying masses of strawberries  planted them about 1-2 years ago and at last getting a decent crop and red currants have started...
fruit cage is in a terrible state got scratched all over trying to get some raspberries loads of brambles... anyone got a technique for brambles & how to get rid? can't dig up cause of raspberries 
planted toms in tunnel and found a frog  great as there's loads of slugs.. need to do loads still

anyway need to go and water the polytunnel


----------



## KerryO (Apr 25, 2006)

Good old froggie may he get very fat this summer eating all those nasty slugs, I tell you I have waged war on them in my garden but without resorting to chemicals I'm afraid I might be losing the battle. Do they sell forgs anywhere?!

Thanks for the tip re bolted shallots/onions. Looks like we'll be eating a lot of them in a very short space of time. I think its the funny weather patterns we're having it doesnt take much for things to bolt.

And brambles? apart from seriously strong weedkiller I think you're stuck with chopping them back as much as you can they're renowned for being virtually unkillable.


----------



## janinec (Nov 19, 2006)

thanks for redhot poker tip alisha !

froggie moved into our garden about a month after i put a little half barrel pond in - bargain !


----------



## Lorna (Apr 8, 2004)

Hi Alisha
> lorna don't know any farmers but am jealous of your veggy patch (estate) 

Yes, I do think my veg patch is bigger than most people's, but my plot is only 3.5 metres wide, by about 7 metres long around 25 sq metres 

According to my research, an allotment size is will be around 250 sq metres or 300 sq yards.  Although due to the popularity of allotments, councils are now offering 1/4 size plots, at 63.5sq metres.  So my plot is smaller than a 1/4 size allotment.

I use every sq inch of my plot.  Under the tomatoes and cucumbers are the winter brassicas.  Under the peas and beans are garlic (doing OK), and onions (which haven't done very well).  I planted turnips, between swedes.  Unfortunately, when I pulled the turnips, I uprooted some of the swedes. Won’t do that next year!

The Jerusalem artichokes are jammed in, with no space between them.  The stuff I have read on Jerusalem artichokes, say they grow like weeds.  I am obviously doing something wrong, as mine aren’t growing like weeds, so I have interplanted the Jerusalem artichokes with winter squash.

I also am at the stage of experimenting with things.  Last year, I planted small areas of spinach, leaf beet, and Swiss chard.  The leaf beet, and Swiss chard were a success, so I have planted more of those this year.  In the same bed, I also have a 6 inch wide, by 18 inch long run of Red Orach.  If I had known, it was going to have such a fantastic taste, I think I would have planted the whole garden with Red Orach.  Only disadvantage the colour came out when I cooked it, and I ended up with pink broad beans!

The other thing I do is go to Tescos and buy their small black boxes.  Used to be a pound, now £1.30.  The boxes are about 12” by about 18”.  I knock the bottoms out of the boxes, put them on the soil, and fill with a grow bag.  They are mostly used to grow potatoes. Got masses of those this year.  How on earth we are ever going to eat them all I don’t know!

But 3 of those black boxes are experimental veg.  One has salsify in, one of those 100 packets of seeds for 15 pounds.  One has Parsley Rooted Turnips, a turnip that think it’s a parsnip.  And one has Scorenza in.  The last was because I read a magazine article, that said the fashionable crops to grow this year, were Jerusalem artichokes, salsify, and Parsley Rooted Turnips, all of which I had already planted, *and* Scorneza.  So I bought some seeds, and bunged them in.

The article also mentioned some tropical vegetable as well.  We live on top of a hill, and it can be very windy.  OK around here any bump over 50ft is called a hill!  I have real trouble growing Mediterranean plants, like toms, never mind something from the tropics.  That is probably why this year, I have an impressive array of roots / tubers planted, and winter greens.  I think, (hope with all my fingers crossed) they will do better, than beds of toms or cucumbers.  Ok the eternal optimist in me, is still trying to grow cucumbers, and toms.

What I am short of this year is summer green veg.  Maybe I’ll get the balance right next year.

I do want a bigger plot, so I can plant Asparagus, put in some fruit bushes, have a proper herb garden, and so on.  

I am all for less lawn more vegetables!  Just need to convince my husband!

Lorna


----------



## Alisha (Jun 5, 2006)

KerryO said:


> nasty slugs, I tell you I have waged war on them in my garden but without resorting to chemicals I'm afraid I might be losing the battle. Do they sell forgs anywhere?!


Noooo don't resort to chemicals it puts off all the goodies  
Hhhmmmm selling froggies could be the next big thing...  
just make sure you've got some pretty wet damp areas with some standing water ..pot saucers/trays and they'll find you  got lots of toadies or froggies don't know how to tell the diff in our garden too but no pond but lots of saucers/trays and overgrown areas ..



KerryO said:


> Thanks for the tip re bolted shallots/onions. Looks like we'll be eating a lot of them in a very short space of time. I think its the funny weather patterns we're having it doesnt take much for things to bolt.


my dp pulled up the whole lot of onions yesterday and came home with them in one of those wicker basket things and said he'd always wanted to do that  great! now we have a whole lot of load of onions to get through 



KerryO said:


> And brambles? apart from seriously strong weedkiller I think you're stuck with chopping them back as much as you can they're renowned for being virtually *unkillable*.


ohh 



janinec said:


> froggie moved into our garden about a month after i put a little half barrel pond in - bargain !


 Yay for froggies (or toadies)  have you got any hedgehogs? they're brill for munching on the slimey ones .. they're pretty resourceful and will squeeze through the tiniest of gaps to get in your garaden  we had a problem with a rat (hopefully just the one) and put down a trap and it caught a hedgehog  - fortunately its one that doesn't harm the creature so you can release it 

hey lorna that's a resourceful piece of ground you got there then. 
i'm noting down your tips for squeezing stuff in..our J artichokes are like weeds and are spreading.. you mustn't pamper them in any way! we grew some salsify previously but didn't over rate the taste really..
i've always grown an outside cucumber and that's always pretty successfl apart from last year. 
it s so worthwhile geting a few currant bushes in we've still got currants in the freezer from last year 2 red currants and 3 black currants and about 4 rows of raspberries- only thing this year cause i never tackled the brambles I can't get in to pick the raspberries and they're rotting on the stem - criminal really.. but am determined to tackle a bit at a time to reap some in. we're had bumper crops of strawberries too this year -amazing big bowls for pud everyday  our asparagus should be ready next year to start harvesting ..can't wait.. we would of waited patiently for 2 years .. so get some sooner rather than later and you don't need a huge amount of area.. ours are probably in an area of 24" by 8'

right all this food talk has made me hungry ..lunch time!


----------



## Lorna (Apr 8, 2004)

Well Alisha, I don't know what I am doing wrong, my Jerusalem artichokes, aren't growing like weeds.  When I went to plant them, I realised I had enough tubers to do a 5 metre row, and I only had a 2m length in which to plant them, so jammed them all in.  There are big gaps between plants, and some have only just put up their first shoots.  The only thing I do is water them.  

Well at least I should get enough to find out what they taste like.  My door neighbour says they taste wonderful, so I have yet to find out.  Yes I do know about the side effect of eating them!

I pulled my first carrots over the weekend.  They are so sweet.  Kind of shame to bung them in a stew.  Not all them made it!  

Now I want the wind to drop.  The fleece over the remaining carrots is getting rippied to shreds, and I want to protect the rest from carrot root fly!  Maybe I should get that crop protection netting out, and cut to length!

So how are things going in your garden?

Lorna


----------



## Ceri. (Sep 6, 2004)

Hi everyone gonna gatecrash and ask if anyone knows much about cordilines (sp?) have one in my back garden, thriving and its about 3 yrs old and huge! over a metre high and its started to get flower buds on the top (will post a pic if i can find memory card) Can i do anything to produce new cordilines? 
Thanks x


----------



## suedulux (May 27, 2006)

_Ceri_  sory hon  I  cant help ya there.  


Can anyone advise me on potatos?  I have my first batch  ready, ( grown in a big  tub) . Should  I leave them in the  soil , even if the  greenery has died off?  With the wet weather , I'm worred  they'll go slimy?  Whats the best  way to store them? we  dont  eat alot of  potatos each week ?


Luv  Sue


----------



## suedulux (May 27, 2006)

looks like there's another thread http://www.fertilityfriends.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=146373.15

Most people seem to be over there 

Luv Sue


----------

