Gardening

[snowychap]

@VILLAMARV - the other things I would suggest is watch a few episodes of Gardener's World (you can spin it through the flowers and shrubs bits if you're watching it on iPlayer and only want to see the stuff about veg) and/or get a short term subscription to Gardener's World magazine. Keep an eye out for when buysubscriptions.com do an offer - they often do a 5 months for a fiver deal (you just have to remember to cancel before the end of the five months otherwise you'll then be charged for 12 months in one go). If you get it from Feb - July then you'll get a lot of articles on vegetable growing/planting and so on in there and you can treat it as a reference for each year.

[VILLAMARV]

 

17 hours ago, snowychap said:

I'm not. I do have a garden on the go and I am growing stuff but I really don't know what I'm doing.

I've had a fair amount of success over the past few years and also a lot of failures (tomatoes mainly).

A suggestion for a relatively cheap option on herbs is to get the living herb things from supermarkets and repot them in proper conditions with more space - so split them up in to two or three if it's basil/thyme/parsley.

Also, courgettes are a piece of piss to grow and cucumbers aren't that difficult. If you're having to use pots and are tight on space then get some canes and make a wigwam for them to grow up but just make sure it's strong as the fruits will be quite weighty. Worth having a look in your local B&Q/Homebase/Garden Centre as they may be selling off these things for a reduced price in the next few weeks and there's still plenty of tim for them. I only planted mine outside this weekend.

Cheers Snowy, as if by magic I have a load of bamboo canes I cut down last year just waiting for something to do. So tomatos and cucumbers could be given a proper go this year. Just ordered a few of those grow bags, they're a bit cheaper than tubs and a lot easier to store if empty. I have a potato sack that someone gave me a while ago and it's easy to move about with those handles. Also empty compost/soil bags are pretty roomy But I was reading cucumbers/tomatos like a bit of space for the roots as well as the support to climb. Fancy builders sacks at the end of the day really aren't they!

I have often tried planting those grow in a tub basil plants from the supermarket. Generally they grow a bit and then start to rot up the stems. Never kept one going long. I've got one in a pot now that started doing the same thing so I've sprinkled a bit of cinnamon on there and see if it's anti-fungal properties help at all. It seems to have at least halted whatever is going on.

Just ordered some Cucumber and Courgette seeds too

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Might not be an easy thing to find but I'd recommend some tree spinach if you can find it. I bought a small plant a month ago for £1.20 and it's a couple of feet tall (can get to about 6 foot). Use the young leaves in salads or cook the bigger leaves as you would normal spinach. Also looks excellent.

Good luck with it all!

From wiki -

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It is a popular leaf vegetable in Mexican and Central American cuisines, similar to spinach.The leaves should be cooked before being eaten, as the raw leaves contain a high content of toxic hydrocyanic acid. Up to 5 raw leaves can be eaten a day.....

....Some varieties have stinging hairs and require gloves for harvesting. Cooking destroys the stinging hairs. Chaya is one of the most productive green vegetables. Chaya is a good source of protein, vitamins, calcium, and iron; and is also a rich source of antioxidants. However, raw chaya leaves are toxic as they contain a glucoside that can release toxic cyanide. Cooking is essential prior to consumption to inactivate the toxic components; in this chaya is similar to cassava, which also contains toxic hydrocyanic glycosides and must be cooked before being eaten.

Young chaya leaves and the thick, tender stem tips are cut and boiled as a spinach. It is a tasty vegetable, and is exceptionally high in protein, calcium, iron, and vitamin A. In fact, levels of chaya leaf nutrients are two- to threefold greater than any other land-based leafy green vegetable. Chaya leaves have a possible antidiabetic effect.

Traditionally leaves are immersed and simmered for 20 minutes and then served with oil or butter. Cooking for 20 minutes or more will render the leaves safe to eat. The stock or liquid the leaves are cooked in can also safely be consumed as the cyanide is volatilized as hydrogen cyanide (HCN) during cooking. Cooking in aluminum cookware can result in a toxic broth, causing diarrhea.

So don't have too many on your salad and don't cook it in an aluminium saucepan! Other than that it sounds all a bit superfoody. I'll keep an eye out.

Edited June 12, 2018 by VILLAMARV
link

[snowychap]

22 minutes ago, VILLAMARV said:

 

From wiki -

So don't have too many on your salad and don't cook it in an aluminium saucepan! Other than that it sounds all a bit superfoody. I'll keep an eye out.

The stuff I got is called tree spinach but it's not Chaya, it's: this tree spinach.

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Chenopodium giganteum (Magenta Spreen, Purple Goosefoot, Giant Lambsquarters^[1]) is a very large annual leafy vegetable that grows over 8 feet tall. It is also known as Tree Spinach (not to be confused with Chaya), though native to mountainous regions of India,^[2] it is easily cultivated in the UK and other areas, and may be sold under the name Tree Spinach.

 

[mjmooney]

Quote

 ...the rawleaves contain a high content of toxic hydrocyanic acid. 

....Some varieties have stinging hairs and require gloves for harvesting. 

...raw chaya leaves are toxic as they contain a glucoside that can release toxic cyanide.

...Cooking in aluminum cookware can result in a toxic broth, causing diarrhea. 

Christ, if ever nature was telling not to eat that shit, there it is. 

[Rugeley Villa]

Got to do mine when I get back from work(1 ish) which will take me about 3 hours. I've not kept on top of it over the last few weeks. I've heard it's raining tomorrow morning, so it's got to be done today. 

[Davkaus]

After 9 months on the waiting list, I'm going to view my allotment tomorrow. Haven't got a clue what I'm doing, but looking forward to getting started on reducing my reliance on the supermarket. 

[Davkaus]

So this is my kingdom  At least the ground is fertile. It's 125 square metres, I've got up to the shed. I guess the good news is free shed. Woohoo. 

The bushes have some raspberries and blackcurrants growing, and there's a bit of rhubarb behind them. Apart from that, it's mostly grass and weeds. 

My first job is fixing up the shed before it rains, getting some felt on the roof, and emptying the crap out of it. Then I'm going to cover the far half of it with tarp, weigh that down and leave the weeds in half of it to die, and start to deal with the near side.

The bushes are in a bit of a crap place, slap bang in the middle without much room to get around them, but I'll leave them as they are and just trim them back a back, as it seems sensible to not get rid of the only useful thing growing. I'm not really sure what the best method is for dealing with all of the grass A strimmer to get most of the long bits off then just dig and turn over all of the soil?

[snowychap]

39 minutes ago, Davkaus said:

 I'm not really sure what the best method is for dealing with all of the grass A strimmer to get most of the long bits off then just dig and turn over all of the soil?

I seem to remember in one of the last few Gardener's World programmes that Monty Don referred to his 'turf stack' which appears to be a good way to get loam.

How To Make a Turf Stack

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Firstly I suppose you might ask Why make a turf stack never mind How. Well lovely reader I shall answer that very question. Never will you be able to find as crumbly and gorgeous a loam as can be found in a well rotted turf stack. As it’s made from your own soil it contains all the micro lovelies peculiar to your garden. Also as the grass in the stack composts it adds organic matter, which these beneficial soil microorganisms feast upon making the soil you produce in your stack the healthiest you and your plants could wish for. So if you’re thinking of extending your borders or changing the shape of your lawn, read on. If not, read on anyway, who knows it may come in useful one day. A few things to remember before you start. Firstly not everybody thinks of a turf stack as thing of beauty, so as it will take a couple of years before you can use the soil it’s probably best to tuck it away out of plain sight. Secondly to all intents and purposes you are building a soil structure so to make it stable start with a square base, stagger the joints of the turf as you stack them and *batter the face of the stack.

...more on link

Edit: Good luck with it all, btw. It'll be some hard work but it'll be worth it.

Edited June 23, 2018 by snowychap

[chrisp65]

Good luck! Don't get demoralised by grass and weeds, pace yourself. I can recommend the cheapo MacAllister battery strimmer from Screwfix for keeping the grass down.

Just back now from watering everything and coveting thy neighbour's decent planks and edging in the abandoned allotment next to ours. I think we've just agreed that tomorrow evening is 'operation timber freedom'...

Edited June 23, 2018 by chrisp65

[VILLAMARV]

So I picked a great heatwave to go away during then! Knew a few things would take a battering in my tubs.

All the Spinach that survived has started to bolt and go to seed. Some of the Rocket has done the same. Most of the Lettuce leaves seem to have thrived though and the Taters, Kale and Chard seem fine. in fact they've leafed out nicely in my absence. The tomatoes I planted in big bags have done fine and are growing pretty quickly now. The Courgettes and Cucumber seeds I planted 4 of each and have 3 small plants of each growing. (Not sure if the 25% failed or got eaten) 1 little sprout of broccoli died, a load of little tomato seedlings really, some spinach some little tubs of rocket and the strawberries have all dried out and seem gone but I have a couple of broccolis still kicking. The Coriander and the Basil I got from seed seem to have enjoyed the drought and as per my previous posts I'm chuffed about that. (I got my own coriander going on!) The dill was a bit wilted but plenty of water has livened it up even if some of it is a bit scorched. No Squash has come up yet. The Garlic and Shallots were the ones I thought would miss the water most but actually they seem pretty resilient. I even seem to have a few spring onions popping up. The garlic chives are never a problem.

And the Basil - one of those supermarket ones i repotted that seemed to have root rot of some sort - I cut off the stems above the brown bit and left them in jars of water on the kitchen windowsill to root out and they have done so rather spectacularly. Nice big healthy roots, so I'll stick them in some pots of new soil and see how they get on.

Pretty chuffed overall, seem to have gotten away with it. I also realise I now think of myself as a proper old fogey that i'm on holiday wondering whether the rain will be good for the garden or not

As for the Spinach, I fancy leaving it and having a go at collecting the seeds for next year and see if it's as easy as it sounds. Anyone ever bothered with that sort of thing?

[chrisp65]

11 minutes ago, VILLAMARV said:

As for the Spinach, I fancy leaving it and having a go at collecting the seeds for next year and see if it's as easy as it sounds. Anyone ever bothered with that sort of thing?

We've done it with poppies. Collected the seeds and re seeded, that's worked really well. Pretty sure we've done the same with onions too.

Also got a full blown apple tree that's going to give a ton of apples this year, it started off as a pip from a supermarket apple! Would never have believed that possible.

Our rhubarb is a cutting we took when we moved which itself was a cutting from the time we moved before that.

[VILLAMARV]

The only thing I'm a bit annoyed about is the little tub of tomato seedlings that I had going from a cherry tomato left over in the fridge. It was more an experiment than any sort of harvesting idea. I have a couple of them with stems that look like they could yet live even if the leaves have basically been burnt off in the heat - the annoying thing is I knew i should stick it in a bigger tub and they'd have probably been ok!

 

[TheAuthority]

4 hours ago, VILLAMARV said:

I also realise I now think of myself as a proper old fogey that i'm on holiday wondering whether the rain will be good for the garden or not

 

Sounds like heaven

[VILLAMARV]

5 minutes ago, TheAuthority said:

Sounds like heaven

Nah mate, Cardiff innit

[A'Villan]

Was a labourer for a gardener for 4 years, working on high end property. Some terrific gardens to maintain.

When we lived in the mountains, my Dad had his Rose garden make a gardening TV show.

At his current house, we built a woodfire oven in the backyard and sit among his roses and miniature hedges arranged in woven symbols and eat some of the best pizza I've known.

It's a nice break from the city, where I live, where the only gardens are the botanical gardens and a few parks here and there.

[VILLAMARV]

On 01/07/2018 at 20:49, VILLAMARV said:

The only thing I'm a bit annoyed about is the little tub of tomato seedlings that I had going from a cherry tomato left over in the fridge. It was more an experiment than any sort of harvesting idea. I have a couple of them with stems that look like they could yet live even if the leaves have basically been burnt off in the heat - the annoying thing is I knew i should stick it in a bigger tub and they'd have probably been ok!

They Live!

(Loads of water, happy as larry again)

 

[VILLAMARV]

On soil.

I've been filling different tubs with different stuff and different mixture ratios and that (manure/compost/vermiculite/my own compost from the heap/Coconut husks) and wondering what difference, if any, it will make.

Bit annoyed at buying some compost last year and realising it's mostly old bits of carpet by the look of it .

All stuff is growing good just still only leaves harvest-able atm. That includes all the leafy herbs now though (and shallot tops - they were tasty)

Although something has left a lot of holes in the baby basil leaves (they'll be alright!)

[chrisp65]

Watch out for your local authority giving away free 'compost'.

It'll likely be a pretty crude mix, but if it's anything like here just up the road (Vale of Glam), there will be a day or two a month where you can just go along and fill up your own bags with as much as you want.

It gets it off their hands for free and sort of closes a virtuous circle of recycling so they get brownie points.

[VILLAMARV]

Posh round Barry intit

Seriously though, cheers for that tip, I'll ask next time I'm at the tip - err sorry - 'recycling centre' and they are asking me for proof of residency with CCC to dump an old lamp and some boxes

And all joking and moaning aside I'm all for this localised re-use over recycle shizzle so I loves me the sound of that.

(Good honest Welsh heavy metals in the soils for Good Honest hard-working Leeks I say!)

I wonder if any of these new plants/centres round here does vermicompost? Apparently worms make a great filter. Maybe I'll ask while I'm about it and wait for the vacant pause from the "Connect to Cardiff"ites.

[Davkaus]

I really liked the idea of keeping this place up to date with my allotment endeavours, and showing you guys my progress from greenhorn greenthumb to gardening genius.

However, in about 3 weeks, I've realised I'm really, really bloody lazy, and it's too much like hard work on my days off. And if I can't be arsed to do it now, I'm definitely not going to in the winter. So I've given it back. 

Got to share the shame if I was going to share the pride.