applied glyphosate under vines on Feb 18th ( a nice sunny day ) at 200ml per 10l and it has been very successful ... that is the recommended minimum application rate - and worked really well.... couch , creeping buttercup, dandelion, and dock ... all dead !! Took about 6 weeks to take effect... but ...

grrrrr.... a badger dug out a bumble bee nest in our orchard.... no more bumble bees

Hi Diane, other seedless varieties good for for outside ... Himrod - a white seedless (fruits best when using cane replacement rather than spur pruning) ... this is true of a lot of the seedless varieties both inside and out. Suffolk - a pink seedless - with a good flavour. Lakemont is a good choice...

and i have been marvelling at the curlew over the last few days - I even had to stop a talk I was doing to the local WI taking them round the vines to let the curlew have its say !!

Hi , I have two tomato plants ( out of about 35) which have grown 'blind' .. they have two trusses and then no central growing point at all. Normally they seem to grow straight up and with side shoots that you can hardly keep up with picking out ... these have just 'stopped' completely and no signs ...

one other thing you can use in your cordial to keep it longer is camden tablets - again from brewing shops / Wilkinsons etc. - kills off the yeasts and bacteria . You can also use a solution made from them to sterilise your bottles.

Natures Babe ... why not leave that leader you have trained into the greenhouse and spur prune it this winter, leaving this year's leader as the cordon ? That way you don't have to keep training the new growth in and will get lots of new canes from the spurs to bear fruit in the greenhouse ! Just a ...

sorry typo Ampelography ... missed out the 'h' !

Just one comment - do not be afraid to prune once the sap is rising and even the buds are bursting. The weeping does not do the vine any real damage - and some commercial vineyards deliberately prune late to delay bud burst to avoid frost damage. The main problem with late pruning is mechanical dama...

I can only assume that the cow shed wasn't used for a year or so !!! At least I hope so !!! And yes - the advice from the PHSI man was if in doubt with muck to spread it in autumn for the soil microbes to start breaking it down well in time for the plants to be growing in the soil .... as otherwise ...

lovely photo Diane !

not on the subject of removal of contaminated manure - but amazed to hear how long it can remain in the manure. Was talking to our local Defra /Plant Health and Seeds Inspector and he was aware of a case where the muck was left in a cow shed from 2006 , not mucked out until 2008 and it was still con...

Hi Diane, mm.. does it have seeds ? There is a variety called Black Strawberry , which is a labrusca variety ( American , strawberry labrusca flavour ... ) that is a hybrid and is disease resistant. - and according to Brian Edwards (the previous owner of all the vines) several sorts were sold under ...

hi naturesbabe sounds like you have done a good job renovating an overgrown vine ! Generally I wouldn't 'winter' prune until all the leaves are off - that way you get a much better picture of the overall structure of the vine. Good idea to train a cane into the greenhouse - sounds like the old vine ...

I will try and answer questions ... . I have only taken over the vines a year ago ... so still learning !! I have decided from last years pruning experience to cane prune rather than spur prune the vigorous varieties ... particularly the reds, and a white variety called Solaris that is great for ear...