Kitchen Garden Forum

Last year my Moonlight Runner Beans were decidedly reluctant to germinate. This year the rest of them, one year older, gave 100% germination. And my carefully stationed sowed Parsnips (Archer) at about 4 per station have given me near enough 100% germination despite the weather, but Greenshaft peas sown 4 days earlier must have completely rotted.

As for pollination, I just hope that something other than Bumblebees will pollinate my Broad Beans. Going by my hedges, which are always buzzing with bees, Bumblebees are notable by their absence. Last year was a good Bumblebee year, this year it is all honey bees - so not all bad.

Struggling,my end of South Wales,to germinate carrots,parsnips and beetroot even though they were sown under cloches or fleece tunnels.Patchy germination of the peas and with the sun and drying wind the top of the soil has caked.I'm not the only one on the site with problems and general consensus is that the cold nights are to blame,so,dig over the bed and re-sow but keep covered.

Dear Colin,
beans (and peas)are commonly dried too much by the seed companies when they are packaged. This can result in a reluctance to germinate especially if they come in sealed packets. The bean seed needs to regain it's natural dormant water level before it can even think about trying to grow. This can then result in the delay of germination and also the opportunity for rotting to occur before germination can take place. If you can it is good practice to open sealed packets of beans and other large seeds about a week before you plan to sow to overcome this problem. The squash, cucumber and marrow famnily are also notorious for this problem.
Dear Snooky,
I find that if you water the seed drill before sowing with about 2 gallons/20ft and then just draw dry soil over the top this helps to aleiviate the problems of panning. If this does not work (due to excessive rain etc)then cover the seeds with compost rather than soil and use the finest rose on your can that you can get hold of.
Regards Sally Wright.

Hi Sally,
Your tip of sowing seeds by covering with compost is very valid. Here we get a fair amount of rain and panning has occurred here but not on my plots.
A cut and come Lettuce selection has been hit by panning and those that have struggled to germinate hit by Flea Beetle. I have now built a container similar to the one Geoff displays in Growing Places for the person and his immediate problem is over but I'm afraid it's a fresh start.
On fine seed like Lettuce I always germinate in modules and plant out when they have produced a good root structure. then under a fleece covering. I also sow many lettuces as sacrificial offerings between the path and hedge and trap and dispose of a great many slugs and snails and flea beetles before they get to my crops.
JB.

I had a good gerrmination from my first sowings of carrots but then the slugs got them all. Have resown, persuaded OH to buy some beer (he isn't keen prefers vino) and have set a beer trap as suggested, so with any luck this sowing will prove more successful.

I reckon 50% of my direct sown parsnips are through. I tend to sow parsnips seed individually rather than enmass and have sown fresh seed in any obvious gaps. I'll probably end up with both sowings through and have to thin out.

All my carrots and parsnips are in raised beds (1 for each) under netting and alongside onions which have all started growing nicely from sets. I've also sown a thrid raised bed with two rows each of carrots and parsnips but these aren't expected through as yet. I also have my tray sown leeks sitting between the rows in this bed, performing the same job as the onions

As well as having the tray sown leeks which were started off on the bathroom windowsill before being moved out to the unheated small greenhouse, this year I've also direct sown 2 raised beds of leeks and have had an impressive amount germinate in the beds - better average than those sown in trays if truth be told. Need to thin these beds out.

As for lettuces, due to space constraints, I grow all my salads in pots in the greenhouses. This works well as, in general, it keeps them safe from most of the pests and especially the cabbage whites.

Oddly enought, this year, 80% of my squashes (I love growing squash) and pumpkins have germinated which has left me with a few too many. Based on a the last couple of years where germination has tended to be poor, I did a second sowing of each variety a week after the first (had to make sure my little ones had pumpkins for Halloween ). Now I have 6 pumpkins; 5 Honeybear; 5 Cobnuts; 3 Winterfestival (all the seeds I had left in the packet from last year ); and 4 Avalons. Finding space will be interesting and before you suggest it, I have pumpkins and Honeybear growing at the school as well .

The worst for germination this year has been my sweetcorn with less than 40% success but I have more sown and I'll probably try for another sowing again today, runner beans 30%, Climbing French Beans 40% and Dwarf Amethyst beans 40% and a couple of these aren't looking too good in their pots. I'm going to be sowing a second lot of each today which I would have done anyway.

My mangetout, on the other hand have done really well but as I haven't yet found a way to freeze them successfully, I probably wont be sowing anymore, as have: 3 varieties of cherry tomatoes; 4 types of Chillis; and 1 variety each of Cucumbers; Courgettes; and sweet peppers.

Phew - that was a long post. Time for a cuppa me thinks

VPM
x

beans (and peas)are commonly dried too much by the seed companies when they are packaged. This can result in a reluctance to germinate especially if they come in sealed packets. The bean seed needs to regain it's natural dormant water level before it can even think about trying to grow. This can then result in the delay of germination and also the opportunity for rotting to occur before germination can take place. If you can it is good practice to open sealed packets of beans and other large seeds about a week before you plan to sow to overcome this problem. The squash, cucumber and marrow famnily are also notorious for this problem.

Hi Sally - interesting comment. Have been germinating all my Bean, squash and courgettes indoors on damp tissues. Had 11 Squashkin seeds and all germinated very quickly (3 days!) and uniformly - Invincible 5 out of 7 some of them a bit reluctantly - Courgettes 1 quickly, 1 slowly, 1 very slowly, the other 7 still thinking about it.

The Celebration Runners, fresh this year must have been overdried as they have been very reluctant germinators.