Kitchen Garden Forum

I wasn't trying to persuade you to mix your own JB, just some of the others complaining about coarse compost and poor germination. I'm still convinced sharp sand is a magic ingredient, I buy it by the tonne from the builders' merchant and use it for pointing my paving (50:50 with soft sand) as well as compost making. I hope I am still discussing mixing potting compost in 17 years time! (mind my sister is who is about 6 months younger than you)

Hi Geoff,
I have thoroughly enjoyed making concentrates of various leaves and roots throughout the years.
I found that a mixture of concentrates of Comfrey, Borage, Nettle, Tansy and Pot Marigold mixed into a peat based multi-pupose compost at a weak concentration for seedlings and a 1 part concentrate to 9 parts of water once a week for mature plants was probably the very best I ever produced. Then my source of Tansy perished and all attempts to grow it in my own soil have repeatedly failed so until I find another source in the wild I'm scuppered. Another plant that is good for concentrating is Valarian which makes a very good starter on a new compost heap/bin. Mix this with a little amount of human amber liquid and it works wonders and also as a starter to making concentrates. Without Valarian just use the human amber liquid!
Today I have managed to get at my Peat and grandson number two will restack it in a more convenient place then I can get rid of the brambles. I shall then plough the whole area with my new toy. A local engineer has made for me a two shear reversible plough which lives down with grandson number one which is 40 miles away but will be with me this comong weekend.
I understand that we have made some wonderful hay this year and I will view it over the weekend.
JB.

I'm now on my third attempt to get some parsnips to germinate from two different packets, one a year old and one a current packet. I fear I may be buying them this winter

For the first time ever, I've had trouble with Runner Beans not germinating...they were last years seed but that hasn't been a problem other years. I bought a new packet, sowed them five days ago and these ones are already popping up through the compost.

Speaking of compost, I'm fed up with all the hard bits, fibrous masses, bits of twig and something which is pale and feels squishy.

I've gone back to Jack's magic, which is lovely stuff.

I've decided to go through all my seed packets and throw away everything that is more than two years old. I'll give some a chance to germinate if they're suitable for baby salads and will sow a mix of old flower seeds , but really need a fresh start.

Some heirloom tomatoes may get a reprieve if they are rare varieties, but I try to grow them for new seed on a rotation so I don't lose them. (I've too many varieties to grow them all every year and there are some very good ones).


My beans of all kinds have germinated well indoors, but have really struggled since planting out. This warmer wet weather has woken them up, but I need to sow a few more to replace lost ones. Just hoping they get going without going rotten.

Talking of poor germination, did anybody sow any of the free sunflower seeds which were a recent magazine giveaway?
Not a single one of mine has germinated.
I need to follow Plum Pudding's example and have a thorough cleanout of my seed boxes. I am reluctant to throw stuff out if I think there's a hope of it germinating and it saves me having to go out and buy a fresh packet but I've come to the conclusion that I suffer enough frustration from poor compost and poor weather with seeds not germinating without battling with old seed as well.

I'm on my third sowing of parsnip seed and despite a "sow by 2017" date, not a single seed has germinated.

I sowed 10 of the Sunflower Evening Star and planted out 8 of them, must remember to put another tie on them as one seems to have suffered in yesterday's rain (17mm).
I don't understand all these troubles with Parsnips. Are you all sure it is germination and not slugs? As I have said before, I sow in April (10th this year) under a cloche, that has been there to warm the soil, and treat with slug pellets, the cloche keeps the pellets dry. I use an F1, Duchess this year, sow thinly in a drill and fill it in with potting compost.
While we are on free seeds, what do you do with Chervil? Got a nice square tubful in the polytunnel but we haven't thought of a use for it.

I have had a lot of failed terminations this spring but the problem I'm having with the Pease and beans is down to slugs ,the battle has started today

The free sunflower seed i got was, evening sun....and everyone one of them germinated...i'm certainly not trying to sound smug, Primrose. I do sow them on their edge, water well and then just keep the top of the compost slightly moist.

Stand corrected mine were Evening Sun. Sowed those and Garden Statement and the old standby Bird Seed!

I smiled at the Bird Seed option. Usually the best option of all for germination. I once made the mistake of hanging a Niger Seed bird tube up from a pole stuck in a flower border. It generated a positive forest of growth on an almost daily basis.
The bird feeders are now hung up in the lawn where birds can easily forage underneath and anything which grows too unruly gets lopped off whenever the lawn is mowed.

Hi Everyone - long time no see as they say for various reasons one of which was not doing much gardening. Re germination, Parsnips and Carrots fine, but my pre-germinated Peas died on me and the new packet of Hurst Greenshaft sown in roottrainers have failed completely.

Daft question alert - the sweetpeas I started off earlier this year (late Feb) are looking healthy - and very very green - as in no flowers green. Surely I should have seen a few by now. Do you think this is because it's been cold? Is there something I should be doing?

I'm sure I had flowers on my plants this time last year.

Pawty

Pawty I only have one bloom on about 30 sweet peas and they are not very tall either, only about 2 - 3 ft. Lack of sunshine I think but they have certainly had enough water! Mine were in later though, probably early April.

I think I have a combination of too cool weather, mice & slimy and feathered things interfering with my germination, as well as just bad luck! Very frustrating, but I just keep sowing again, yes I've got a glut of things like my Pak Choi, but sowed some more beetroot & salad bits 2 weeks ago & only the cut & come showing. I haven't had a single spring onion up, about 10 carrots germinated on a 8 ft row, dwarf French beans only about 6 inches high & climbing ones have been stressed into flower at about a foot high, despite protection. Everything goes in with a sprinkle of pellets & covered with nets or fleece. My peas have done pretty well - pigeons nipped the tops off but harvested 1/2 a plastic shopping bag full on Sunday, need I say next 2 pea sowings disappeared! I won't go on about my pumpkins - you've heard about it before.

This is one season I'm glad I'm not a newbie, would probably have given up!

Westi

Pawty, our sweet peas are not flowering yet when in some previous years they certainly did by this time, but as they are healthy (and as yours are, too), they'll just carry on flowering a bit longer into late summer!