Spring 2016

Hmmm, I didn't post much last year did I? We did alot of DIY in the house last Spring so the garden was a bit neglected. Having said that, the potatoes and parsnips did well. In fact I'm still digging up the parsnips - here's today's crop:

Don't think I'll win any prizes, except maybe for rude unusual shapes

I'm not sure parsnips are worth growing again? We all love eating them, but they take up so much space and for such a long time. They also don't seem to taste that different to shop bought ones (unlike home-grown carrots). Maybe I just need to be better at inter-planting?

Last Spring, in the end of season sale, I bought 4 tomato plants and a yellow courgette plant from a local nursery. The tomatoes grew really well, but then succumbed to blight before they had a chance ripen - it was a cold, wet summer. However, the courgettes were great and I'd grow them again.

I planted onions, shallots and garlic last Autumn which are doing well. I had too many sets to fit in the raised beds, so put the spares in individual cells. My plan is to use these to fill the gaps in the next couple of weeks.

Today I have dug over 3 of the beds, and sown lots of seeds which are now sitting on the kitchen windowsill:

I made a batch of newspaper pots for the sweetcorn (they have long roots) and the rest have gone in cells in my (new) windowsill propagator. I've not grown tomatoes from seed before, so fingers crossed for them. The 2 types of squash came free with Kitchen Garden magazine, so they're new too. The chillies I have tried before, with mixed success due to weather conditions (I think).

Here's hoping for a more productive year than 2015!

New Year

It finally feels as if Spring is on it's way and my thoughts have turned to sewing and planting. Last year I grew Maris Bard Potatoes (First Early) but was quite disappointed with them. The haulms flopped and died very early on and they didn't produce that many tubers. This year I've chosen Nicola, a second early from Taylors, which will hopefully do better. For now they are chitting in the kitchen:

I was given some seeds for Christmas, so I sowed the first of these at the week-end. I've done 3 rows of parsnips, with a row of lettuce in between. My parsnips haven't done so well the last couple of years, so I'm hoping that fresh seeds will do the trick. My the time the parsnips need the space, the lettuce will be coming to end (well that's the theory any-way)

Ready to get sowing

I spotted a half price, double size growhouse in the garden centre the other day, so it would have been rude not to buy it really! I've been waiting for the weather to warm up a bit but there's no sign of that yet, so I figured it was time to construct it anyway. I've taken the bottom section out of my old, smaller one and it now fits neatly under the kitchen window. Plenty of room for lots of seed trays, no need for all the shuffling around and balancing I did last year - all I need now is some sun!

Sally Sweetcorn

The other jobs I did in Monday's sunshine (that didn't last long did it?!) were planting another 8 seed potatoes (Sante - main crop) and potting on the more tender crops.

I pricked out the chilli, pepper and aubergines that finally germinated inside (see here and here). The courgettes never did show themselves, so I've ditched them and started again - a new packet of seed, covered in vermiculite, in a propagator on the kitchen windowsill. The other disaster we had was Amy's first sowing of sweetcorn. I think both of these were too cold outside, and by the time I'd realised and brought them inside, the seeds were no longer viable. We did manage to get 1 to germinate - nicknamed "Sally"!

Sally sweetcorn