Damp ground

[anthony lamb]

Due to springs in my garden, I have one area of my veg patch that is damp. any advice on the best plants to grow there. I am able to start most things off in my greenhouse before planting out.,

[hilary]

Hi,
Joy Larkcom in her book 'Grow your Own Vegetables' lists plants for 'fairly damp gound', provided not waterlogged as celeriac, celery, chicory (red), chinese cabbage, corn salad, fennel (florence) leeks, lettuce and mizuna greens and sorrel. Hope this helps.
Hilary

[Geoff]

If it is not too wasteful of precious space make it a Comfrey and Rhubarb area.

[Colin Miles]

Geoff - I don't know about Comfrey but not Rhubarb. That needs to be wet in summer and dry in winter as I discovered to my cost a few years ago when I planted my Rhubarb in the wettest part of my allotment where it flooded in the winter. They rotted away.

[Johnboy]

Hi Colin,
Thought that you might like to know that originally Rhubarb was a bog plant. The thing is that it may be a combination of wet and extreme cold that they do not like but not just wet on it's own. Off hand I am struggling to remember where originally was!
Perhaps somebody will remind me.

[peter]

Was it Russia?

[vivie veg]

Hi Colin,

Was it newly planted Rhubarb? Maybe there were cuts and damage on the roots had had not healed and the plant rotted from these area.

I had a rhubarb that received the rain water off the garden shed, so you can imagine how much rain that got in the winter!

[David]

Depending on the type of springs you have you could grow some more Tiggers, like our very own........

[Beccy]

Watercress, it doesn't need flowing water, does well in damp shade.

Are Tiggers vegetable?

[Tigger]

Boing! Boing!

I think there might be a few members who think one Tigger is more than enough.

[colin Lamb]

[quote="hilary"]Hi,
Joy Larkcom in her book 'Grow your Own Vegetables' lists plants for 'fairly damp gound', provided not waterlogged as celeriac, celery, chicory (red), chinese cabbage, corn salad, fennel (florence) leeks, lettuce and mizuna greens and sorrel. Hope this helps.
Hilary[/quote]

Many thanks for the recommendations, I shall try these this year as my damp patch will not go away even with drainage material. Colin.

[arthur e]

you could try mares tails, they love boggy ground.

[Pol]

Yes arthur - you're right. I am struggling with mares tail in a damp area next to my polytunnel. Does anyone have a tasty recipe for mares tales???

[Colin Miles]

Hi Johnboy/Viv,

The Rhubarb was ok to start with but the rather exceptional flooding did it. Maybe that is a rather different situation from being a bog plant? And I did read somewhere about wet in summer, dry in winter, but forget where.

[Beccy]

I don't know about a tasty recipe for mares tail, but they are reputed to make good pan scrubbers