God I love growing our own

[jenkinsbrynmair]

If they're small, you can eat the pods as well.

but why would you want to? even slugs avoid them

 

[Midget Gem]

but why would you want to? even slugs avoid them

Yes!

 

[JamezF]

I don't think I've sown any seeds for a month. The poor germination/growth of so many seeds just put me off for a while. So now I have loads to catch up on. I've been planting out a few of the things that were still in the greenhouse waiting for better weather, potted up the tomato and pepper/chile seedlings and tidied up inside to make space, so I've just been sorting through seeds to see what I'm behind with and what I might as well try to sow again because previous results have been so poor. There's quite a lot. Possibly more than that. It's going to be a challenge to get through them all over the next few days and find space for them, though fortunately I now have the use of my father-in-law's greenhouse as well.

I had to evict loads of slugs that were hiding on the underside of module trays. I'm going to have to come up with some decent form of gastropod control for the future.

James

 

[JamezF]

Home-grown veggie lasagne, home-grown salad and home-grown garlic bread (just the garlic for dinner, a cocktail, a couple of glasses of moderately expensive Merlot and I thought I'd get out in the greenhouse for an hour and make a start on the sowing backlog. Lots of tiny brassica seeds in the half-light. What could possible go wrong?

James

 

[enrico]

I don't think I've sown any seeds for a month. The poor germination/growth of so many seeds just put me off for a while. So now I have loads to catch up on. I've been planting out a few of the things that were still in the greenhouse waiting for better weather, potted up the tomato and pepper/chile seedlings and tidied up inside to make space, so I've just been sorting through seeds to see what I'm behind with and what I might as well try to sow again because previous results have been so poor. There's quite a lot. Possibly more than that. It's going to be a challenge to get through them all over the next few days and find space for them, though fortunately I now have the use of my father-in-law's greenhouse as well.

I had to evict loads of slugs that were hiding on the underside of module trays. I'm going to have to come up with some decent form of gastropod control for the future.

James

Bad year for slugs

 

[JamezF]

Bad year for slugs

It will be if I have my way

James

 

[Amari]

Bad year for slugs

Never known such an invasion. Free trial seeds from Gardening Which of Tagetes and Aramanthes germinated well but got eaten almost overnight when planted out. Ditto lupins bought as plug plants and grown on.
A few days ago I planted out b. sprouts, cabbage & cauliflower on the allotment and despite liberal sprinklings of ferric phosphate pellets some are being nibbled.
Folk attending our annual village plant sale yesterday reported the same.

 

[pargyle]

Never known such an invasion. Free trial seeds from Gardening Which of Tagetes and Aramanthes germinated well but got eaten almost overnight when planted out. Ditto lupins bought as plug plants and grown on.
A few days ago I planted out b. sprouts, cabbage & cauliflower on the allotment and despite liberal sprinklings of ferric phosphate pellets some are being nibbled.
Folk attending our annual village plant sale yesterday reported the same.

Mild wet winter...even wetter spring ...juicy young plants being offered to them ? Slug heaven. I'm having some success spreading crushed eggshells around my seedlings ... they really don't like sliding over them. I've also got loads of beer traps out around the plants I value ...catching dozens. Disgusting though it is I drop them into a bucket of water with some mesh at the surface so they drown. The resultant slug tea is full of nematodes so after a week or two I strain it off and water around the raised beds....cheaper than the commercial offerings if you can stand the disgusting process !

 

[holmbee]

I don't think I've sown any seeds for a month. The poor germination/growth of so many seeds just put me off for a while. So now I have loads to catch up on. I've been planting out a few of the things that were still in the greenhouse waiting for better weather, potted up the tomato and pepper/chile seedlings and tidied up inside to make space, so I've just been sorting through seeds to see what I'm behind with and what I might as well try to sow again because previous results have been so poor. There's quite a lot. Possibly more than that. It's going to be a challenge to get through them all over the next few days and find space for them, though fortunately I now have the use of my father-in-law's greenhouse as well.

I had to evict loads of slugs that were hiding on the underside of module trays. I'm going to have to come up with some decent form of gastropod control for the future.

James

I have also struggled this year. Well behind with sowing. All six varieties of tomatoes are up in the greenhouse and setting trusses. Squashes and courgettes are doing well but strangely cucumbers are a disaster. If the seeds germinate they then wilt and fade away. Guess we have to manage without for a change. Slugs and snails are having a bumper time but hopefully frogs and toads will come good. They are the only mammals that have enjoyed our land being covered in surface water.

 

[Bryang]

Bad year for slugs

I Sprayed my allotment some years ago with nematodes. Also encouraged hedgehogs to visit. Don't get much slug damage know.

 

[JamezF]

Between doing bee stuff I have been sowing like crazy today. Still have loads to do though. Same again tomorrow I think.

James

 

[Goran]

We managed to wrestle off for some cherries against various birds and latest green rose chafers - when shake branch dozens fall onto our heads. Horror.. Now these beetles are in hundreds on our mulberries.. This isn't fair fight.. Our kiddo take care of mulberries and I can see how sad he is when these beetles nullify his effort.. It seems they have no any more natural predators and multiply in " millions".. I fear also for our plums will end such as same..
Our kiddo has own patch of forest strawberries he takes care of also..

 

[enrico]

We managed to wrestle off for some cherries against various birds and latest green rose chafers - when shake branch dozens fall onto our heads. Horror.. Now these beetles are in hundreds on our mulberries.. This isn't fair fight.. Our kiddo take care of mulberries and I can see how sad he is when these beetles nullify his effort.. It seems they have no any more natural predators and multiply in " millions".. I fear also for our plums will end such as same..
Our kiddo has own patch of forest strawberries he takes care of also..

we get attacked by cherry beetle too. we also get alder beetle which goes mainly to alder trees but can decimate several other species. Picked about a hundred off the small alder we have in the garden. Our cherries now have cherry virus too which is a bit of a pain. all we can do is hope they survive the beetle and the virus

 

[Amari]

Mild wet winter...even wetter spring ...juicy young plants being offered to them ? Slug heaven. I'm having some success spreading crushed eggshells around my seedlings ... they really don't like sliding over them.

Your household must get through a lot of eggs!
Gardening Which didn't find them very effective:
"Crushed eggshells and coffee grounds aren't much of a deterrent and are easily broken down by wind and rain."

 

[pargyle]

Your household must get through a lot of eggs!
Gardening Which didn't find them very effective:
"Crushed eggshells and coffee grounds aren't much of a deterrent and are easily broken down by wind and rain."

We do get through a fair few - but I collect all of them and over the autumn and winter it's surprising how many kilos of crushed shells we collect. I wash them, let them dry in an open box and then put the shells ina ziplock bag and bash them until they are very small fragments. No real effort.

I find that a good covering around the seedling does help - despite what gardening Which says - they do disappear into the ground eventually but it's all calcium which is an essential element for some plants and helps the soil balance.

We do have heavy clay here and even with compost in the beds the surface can get quite hard so the crushed shells stay there for quite a time .. I tend to water gently so they don't get washed away.

 

[pargyle]

Just a heads up ... LIdl have dwarf stock fruit trees on offer £9.99 in 10" pots ... really healthy looking trees about 2 foot or so. Must be second year grafts as some of them had fruit on them. Would make a good start for a stepover fruit hedge. I've bought a couple - a Braeburn and a Jonagold. They had a healthy looking pear there as well but i wasn't sure of the variety ... and now I've forgotten what it was to look it up ! Good value ...

 

[pargyle]

I have lots (I mean hundreds) of plastic plant pots ... various sizes fro 3" to 10", some of them nest, some don't. I've tried storing them in plastic mushroom trays but inevitably the trays don't then stack. I've tried standing them in towers on the floor and they tipple over. I've tried putting them on their sides on shelves, they roll about. I have space under my potting bench where I store them but it always turns into an unholy mess.

Has anyone got any novel ideas about how to store the things.?

Mine have accumulated mostly from plants and seedlings we have bought at nurseries so they don't match particularly well ... if they were all the same it would probably be less of a problem.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Just a heads up

Thanks.....Lidl shop today

 

[enrico]

Thanks.....Lidl shop today

I got a few potted fruit trees from Tescos a few years ago. Unamed and un loved but one of them is an amazing eating apple and for five quid you cant go wrong

 

[Aneebe]

I have lots (I mean hundreds) of plastic plant pots ... various sizes fro 3" to 10", some of them nest, some don't. I've tried storing them in plastic mushroom trays but inevitably the trays don't then stack. I've tried standing them in towers on the floor and they tipple over. I've tried putting them on their sides on shelves, they roll about. I have space under my potting bench where I store them but it always turns into an unholy mess.

Has anyone got any novel ideas about how to store the things.?

Mine have accumulated mostly from plants and seedlings we have bought at nurseries so they don't match particularly well ... if they were all the same it would probably be less of a problem.

I use our now defunct kerbside recycling boxes (was donated a few by various neighbours). They're like the brittle clear stackable boxes that you'd use indoors but made of really tough flexible black UV resistant stuff. I have them stacked round the back of the shed in a low wall. Particularly good for the smaller odd sized pots which make up tall little towers inside.