Kitchen Garden Forum

Went into Focus DIY today, just to have a nose you understand . . . plus I have a 15% off card, being an old f**t. They have some real good 3 for 2 offers on, 2.5kg boxes of Bone meal, Growmore, Blood Fish and Bone, £5.39 x 2 = 3 boxes, less 15%, same on Multipurpose compost 50ltr £2.99 x 2 = 3 bags, less 15%. Grow bags, seeds, all at 15% with the card. Like being in a sweetie shop it was

Any way, I picked up a root of rhubarb, know nothing, variety is 'Red Champagne', revamping the beds has meant I have a corner to put a root in . . . wah-hoo, we love rhubarb. Its in already, root was shooting! the corner is at the end, out of the way, where I used to grow my runner beans. I have put half a bucket of well rotted manure and a hand full of BF&B in the hole, dug it in then the rhubarb root on top with just the shoot showing, plenty of water. As we had a frost Friday night, I have put a clear plastic lemonade bottle on top to protect the shoot . . . will that be OK?

Also picked up some Onion sets, (100 for £2.99, less 15%) variety 'Centurion' . . . again, know nothing, had no intention of doing onions, but this 'old patch' where the beans used to be is crying out for something interesting??? so, Hazel said, onions, can I have some onions . . . I have it in the back of my mind that something (pest?) does not like onions . . . am I right, was it cabbage white butterflies????

Any way, came out of Focus £50 lighter, if only that had been 50lbs! Only went in with a view to top up my seeds and get some compost £10-£15 tops . . . Am I doing the right thing? . . . or making myself look a complete numpty buying stuff from a DIY store . . . cheap is not best . . . onion sets that have been sitting for who knows how long and a rhubarb root that looks like a dirty chunk cut off a piece of ginger?

CJS

I thought the card discount was 10%, I'll have to do my sums again. Fertilisers still look expensive but any mcp below 5p a litre is worth investigating. If Onion sets aren't shrivelled or soft they should be OK (don't know about the price haven't bought them for years), Rhubarb can look a bit odd but if you pot it up and kick it off in your greenhouse you'll soon find out if it is OK.

Geoff wrote:I thought the card discount was 10%, I'll have to do my sums again. Fertilisers still look expensive but any mcp below 5p a litre is worth investigating. If Onion sets aren't shrivelled or soft they should be OK (don't know about the price haven't bought them for years), Rhubarb can look a bit odd but if you pot it up and kick it off in your greenhouse you'll soon find out if it is OK.

You are right Geoff, my normal card is 10%, however I was sent a promotion card at 15% that runs until the 10th of April.

The Rhubarb has gone straight in the garden, as per instructions on the packet, "soak the root in water for an hour, be sure where you want it in the garden, they say, it does not like to be moved once established" . . . The manure and BF&B was my memory going back to my grandad, he used to have two 'magnificent'!!! rhubarb patches, I seem remember, manure, moist and pull regularly were his watch words for rhubarb . . . BF&B? comes from my dad, every thing new on his allotment had a generous helping of BF&B in the planting hole. I'm presuming the lemonade bottle will be enough to protect the shoots?

Getting quite excited, its that time of year, already starting to consider another 10'x3' finger into the lawn . . . may be two? Probably not until the autumn now though? The one I did the other week nearly killed me!

CJS

Evening CJS, your lemonade bottle will do just fine, but it will soon be lifted off once the rhubarb starts growing, but the frosts will be hopefully gone by then.
No need to protect in years to come.

Don't forget, no picking this year.

The only pest that i have heard onions will deter is carrot fly.

Glad to read that you are enjoying your garden once more.