It may bea shitty, cold, wet day but that should not stop us from getting lots of stuff going for planting out in May when all danger of frost is past. At the weekend I sowed runner beans – an HSL black-seeded variety called Meesna, Borlotto climbing French beans and Ryder top of the Pole, all from seed I have saved in previous years. I sowed seed individually into root trainers and put on the greenhouse shelf to germinate. I already have squash, courgettes and cucumbers growing on in the greenhouse, but it is not too late to sow seed…
It is now more than a month since I have returned from a very enjoyable trip to Oman; a country of mountains, desert, vast empty coastline, diverse wildlife, lovely people and some spectacular produce! There was one particular discovery I made that I hope will add to the pleasures of life in the kitchen. Oman has some of the most fertile and productive land in the Arabian Gulf. It is home to the widest variety of flora and fauna in the region and grows the finest dates I have ever eaten. The mountains are full of wadis and springs that provide…
I have had some success growing sweet potatoes through black polythene in a polytunnel. Last year I found mice also liked my crop and I d to remove a number of very lovely nests and badly nibbled tubers. But even now I have some of last year’s crop to finish eating. Sweet potatoes are magnificent keepers if they are cured properly after harvest. To do this I put them in trays in the airing cupboard for about ten days! For reasons I do not understand other than profit, buying sweet potato ‘slips’ for planting up in May can set you…
In the last month I have not been idle. Despite a very unplesant cold snap in February I have been able to keep on top of my sowing schedule and hope that you all will now be limbering up to get a load of veggies going if you haven’t started already. I started a second sowing of onion seed in mid-February. It is certainly fine to sow more now. I like Franchi Seeds who sell large packets of seed for a fraction of the price of their competitors. I like to grow red onions which are as a easy to…
I am a passionate believer in the virtues of polytunnels. If you have the space they provide a far cheaper alternative to a greenhouse and will extend the growing season dramatically. I am fortunate to have three of them; two which are 30 feet long by fourteen feet wide and one which is ten feet wide by 15 feet long. This gives me the best part of 1000 square feet to grow in. Succession is very important to get the most out of one’s polytunnels. In late Februaruy I will plant new potatoes. In March I will be planting up…
Last week I was busy sowing seeds and making videos at the same time. Today I have uploaded six – there is another to follow soon. You can find them on the video page and also on the relevant pages on the’How to Grow Vegetables’ menu. I really hope you find these films about sowing seeds of tomatoes, peppers and chillies, onions, broad beans, cabbages, cauliflowers and broccoli useful. I have also included a very compact tour of my propagator and a peep inside my seed bank.
As we enter the last week of January I get very itchy fingers and the urge to sow becomes all consuming. So today I set the thermostat in the propagator in my greenhouse to 24 degrees, mixed a load of seed compost (3 parts John Innes soilless seed compost with one part low peat multi-purpose), selected my seeds, prepared some trays, loo-rolls and root-trainers and got to work. This year I will be growing fewer new varieties of tomato and capsicum, concentrating on some old favourites and grwoing for fresh supplies of seed. So, I sowed into four inch pots…
Tags: All the Year Round Cauliflower, Broad bean seed, capsicum, chilli, chillies, Greyhound cabbage, Olympia broccoli, propagator, sowing broad beans, sowing capsicums, sowing chili seeds, sowing pepper seeds, sowing tomato seed, summer hearting cabbage, Sungold, Syrian seeds, Syrian vegetables, Up to Date onion
Today I couldn’t wait any longer. I had to start sowing. Too early for outside but with one of my polytunnels now empty after completing harvesting new potatoes I had prepared a lovely series of seed beds a week ago, giving a light dressing of fish, blood and bone. In the warmth of a the polytunnel – it being another glorious, sunny day today - I sowed two varieties of carrot; an F1 early from Dobies called Parano and Amsterdam Forcing 3 Sprint from D.T. Brown. I also sowed two varieities of beetroot; Red Ace and Boltardy, both from the Organic…
Tags: aqualdulce, autumn planted potatoes, autumn sown broad beans, autumn sown peas, douce provence, sowing beetroot, sowing carrots, sowing new potataoes for winter harvest, sowing vegetables in a polytunnel, spring letuce
The last couple of months have been busy tending, harvesting and sowing for winter. It is now that one realises the long row of runner beans sown with enthusiasm in May is yielding enough to feed the 5,000. Remember the glut now and which will continue until the frosts kill the plants. A little of lots of different vegetables is more satisfying than a lot of just a few varieties. At this time of year I start to collect and clean seed for myself, for other seed collectors and for the Heritage Seed library. Please check out the website seed…
The spring may have been hot and dry, but June has changed all that. Cool and wet. The chilly nights haven’t slowed down the rate of growth however and the much-needed rain has come just at the right time for peas and beans which need polnety of water if they are to provide good crops. After a very slow start and considerable problems from sparrows eating the growing tips, my peas are finally getting into their stride. Early crops sown in March are in full flower and I did eat the first peas yesterday – straight from the pod. My…
