I agree that you need to be careful what you spend or the list of bits you buy can be extensive. I now keep a list of things that I have bought in the year to establish what I am paying out. This includes seeds, pots, compost, fleece and all. That helps me keep a check on spending. I have, what I co...

Last year I planted some Summer and Autumn raspberries in my garden in a netted area. The Summer ones are the sort that fruit on last years canes so I let them grow and rigged up some wires for them to grow along this Spring (better late than never). They now look nicely set and I await my first cro...

I find GW very contrived and condescending nowadays. All a bit stage managed for my liking. The relaxed, laid back attitude of Monty made it a pleasure to watch. Whereas the new guy just seems smug. Shame really because being fairly new I am always eager to learn and get pointers from the experts bu...

I posted the results of my peas and guttering experiment in the best practices channel (hope this works) http://www.kitchengarden.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=6858 Mine grew exceptionally well (about 65 from 70) so maybe it is down to overwatering. Getting them from the guttering to in the gr...

Thanks for pointing that out. Am happy to be corrected. That is probably why heat treated sets are better i.e. less prone to going to flower. I have since read more and found that onions are biannual so growing from seed is probably the best choice to avoid flowering. However this can still occur if...

I have never grown onions from seed but I do hear they can be much better although more prone to going to seed. [Correct me if I am wrong please] I have heard of people growing indoors sets then planting out but I don't quite understand why as last season I planted onion sets in the winter and sprin...

I read a fair bit about starting peas off early so I did an experiment on 27th Feb. I planted a set of 35 peas and 35 mangetout directly outside under fleece. I planted another 35 of each in John Innes No1 in guttering in an unheated greenhouse. I put some tape over the ends to keep it all in and I ...

On the subject of chitting, I have heard conflicting reports about WHERE you should chit them. Some say in an unheated greenhouse and some say in a shed like environment, as long as they are frost free. I have put mine in the conservatory but I read yesterday they shouldn't have direct light. If tha...

Grapes.....now that I like The ground is already raised about a foot in that area so raised beds are probably out for now. A have already planted a batch of garlic and onions but maybe I'll give a spring batch a go there too. I'll have to put some potatoes in the less chalky bit as I don't have enou...

I have turned another 20ftx30ft part of my garden into a veg plot to go with the raised beds area I build last year. However, when I turned the soil over I found that a about half of the area has lots of small chalk lumps in it and I am not sure what to grow there. I had planned on using it for pota...

Can anyone tell me what is eating my rocket and how to control it. It is planted in a mixed salad bed and is the only thing that has been eaten. Each leaf has a series of little holes and now it's attacked my mizzuni and it looks like a sieve.

I know this is an old topic but it is still a useful one. I planted some italian cucumbers and had heard about removing the male flowers but didn't want to do it in case I got it wrong. Now I have paid the penalty. The 12" cucumbers are so bitter that it took about an hour plus 2 cups of coffee...

This is my 1st season in veg gardening and was very pleased with myself for getting 8 varieties grown from seed. I have kept 30 of the 60 plants I grew and gave the rest away to friends. I thought I picked some great varieties until I saw the 'Hundreds and Thousands' on Gardeners World. I MUST HAVE ...