Kitchen Garden Forum

Hay Ho people . . . I'm back, up for a bit of gardening . . . We've not been so well over the winter, but more especially my Hazel So the garden . . . well, flower boarders come veggie patches as you have seen, all a bit of a mess really. But a little tidy up while I start the seeds off, all should be ready???

Not so mobile this year? but looking forward to some fun with my toms, and salads. Greyhound cabbage was good last year, and carrots in a container (good advise, thanks) really worked well.

Looking forward to refining what I did wrong, mainly trying to cram to much in to a small space . . . see if I can get a few extra feet of lawn dug up this month? bit of extra space . . . ?

My plan was to use the seeds I have left from last year? I dont suppose they will all germinate, but then I dont need many Buy a few new ones that I fancy . . . climbing beans and a few courgettes maybe? And try the seeds I kept from some red peppers we bought? At £2/£3 per packet seeds are pricey these days

Trying some different climbing beans this year, Golden Gate, Moonlight and Kelvedon Stringless . . . never new beans could be as exciting . . .

Here is to a good season . . .
CJS

CJS, Hoping your health issues improve. Good luck with the garden, and the new bed, to save on digging and weeding try the lasagne method and mulch,
then plant through the mulch. it works and weeds pull out real easy, as long as they are not seeding dry on the path and add to the mulch. you need to keep topping up the mulch because the worms take it into the soil and do the digging for you

Nature's Babe wrote:CJS, Hoping your health issues improve. Good luck with the garden, and the new bed, to save on digging and weeding try the lasagne method and mulch,
then plant through the mulch. it works and weeds pull out real easy, as long as they are not seeding dry on the path and add to the mulch. you need to keep topping up the mulch because the worms take it into the soil and do the digging for you

Thanks Nature's Babe, looked on Google and found Patricia Lanza's web site on Lasagne Method . . . interesting but getting hold of all that organic mulch?

I'll do a 3ft by 6ft patch, dig it rough, overlay with some half rotted grass cuttings and a bag of horse manure that has sat behind my greenhouse for 12 months. With a bit of luck that will need only a little tickle up by the end of May. Probably put one of the climbing beans there this year? Might even take a few feet extra, depends on how I stand up to the effort???

Winter has been bad for Hazel and me . . . but even this bit of thought, "how to get going in the garden again" . . . makes me feel much better Fortunately my soil is fairly light . . . dig with a spade type light but needs lots of feeding. On second thoughts, my old dad used to dig a row then put organic in the trench, then dig the next row over on to that and so on. . . Mmmm Sounds like a plan?

CJS

I don't think you have any trouble with old seeds. I did an experiment last year and found seeds even 4 years old germinated. The exception being parsnips I always use fresh.

Good luck with the garden and I hope the health inmproves.

Beryl.

Well, there we go, garden now tidied, totally knackered, afraid my health problems restrict me but, even so, I enjoyed it. Digging the new bed was hard work but a pleasure, I doubled what I had originally intended from 6'x3' to 12'x3', mistake! I paid last night I find digging difficult these days, especially as I fell over a couple of weeks ago and cracked a couple of ribs!

But the learning curve continuous, instead of digging the established beds, I got the 'cultivator rake' (3 rounded hook type tinges thingy), with my light soil it works a treat.

I have a couple of compost heaps, just that, heaps, not much in the way of boards etc. They looked very matted and compressed, however, I took the top few inches off, reveling lovely compost. Ended up with a little over 1 cubic meter? of the good stuff . . . plus a heap of 18 month old upside down turfs from my last digging session, 3 of last years grow-bags and a 2 year old sack of, what was originally, horse manure, if I did not know better, I would have said it was seed compost! All went on the beds as a top dressing to hopefully be taken down ready for the new veggie plants? I have no idea if the above is right, just seems logical to me?

I will use what is left of last years seed . . . but scanning through Dobbies catalogue, I could not resist a few extras . . .

My biggest headache this year, I will not bother with tomatoes in the green house, the ones outside did much better. I'm going to do red sweet peppers, long and round, last year I did not realise, take the fruit of the plant and then they turn red . . . duh!!! But what else, tried egg plant, dont like them to eat . . . afraid one is not very imaginative . . .

CJS

PS Gentle rain now falling, presume will do my digging and feeding good???

That all sounds magnificent CJS, and a great use of all the bits you found in my opinion. I sincerely hope all your seeds grow and you have a wonderful growing season in those beds! Keep well and don't overdo it!

CJS, i topdress with compost too, and if I don't walk on the raised beds which compacts the soil I can get away with no dig, the worms take it down and aerate the soil. The other benefit is less weeds, as turning and digging brings more weed seeds to the surface.