The Veg Plot.

[Seeker]

Garden centre man, after looking at my cuttings, says it doesn't look like an infestation or fungus it's either:

1) Lack of water (I can fix that)

2) Since it's a new sapling, it may be living on existing sap and has now exhausted it and will die . Oh.

They will replace it if it doesn't recover next spring but I really didn't want my "Paraquat Fingers" reputation to continue.

[Sir Trev]

We're well into harvest time now so how did we do this year?

Tomatoes - I have so many I'm giving them away to neighbours. Never had such a crop. Will be growing Sweet Millions again.
Runners - have been eating them and freezing batches for weeks. The rain has eased recently so growth has slowed.
Spuds - after Suttons messed up my order and sent a small net instead of a larger one, after all the rain I still got half a sack of Desiree.
Onions - lifted them yesterday. Good size bulbs (from sets) that are now drying.
Carrots - set off on the bench in toilet roll tubes as my experiment for the year. They don't like my soil and rarely germinate so this worked better. Very wonky crop but we're freezing the surplus as they grew so well.
Beetroot - also set off on the bench, grew like mad in the wet weather and are eating very well. Nearly finished them.
Parsnips - yet another bench-to-ground experiment instead of direct sow and they look very happy. Will give them another two months before trying them.
And finally the pumpkins. After an argument with Marshalls last year I have a different variety this year from Suttons. Instead of just a few beachball sized monsters I have a dozen fruit sized between grapefruit and a small football. Autumnal pumpkin soup - marvellous.

How about the rest of you?

[garynortheast]

Mixed results here.
Several tomato plants grown in the greenhouse from seeds brought back from Spain have done well. Some stripy ones, some that are purple on top and red underneath, and some yellow ones, all of them large. Tomatoes grown outside are doing well but not yet ripe.
Celery is growing on well.
Dwarf french beans cropped well.
Cucumber plants outside didn't like their location and have been a bit of a disaster, but the same variety of cucumber grown in the greenhouse has already given me five fruits and has half a dozen more growing on.
Runner beans have been good and are still cropping heavily. I've already frozen three bags of them.
Beetroot, both golden and red are good,
Chard has also been excellent.
Onions have, on the whole been poor. Some have made a reasonable size, but lots have made very little growth.
Spuds are good, just about to lift the rest of the 2nd earlies, the maincrop spuds are still growing well.
The carrots we grew in a mix of old, sieved soil and builders sand, contained in two full sized enamel baths are great. Long, tapering roots from all four varieties, and no carrot fly.
Courgettes are unstoppable and we have lots of pumpkins and squashes doing very well.

[redtrummy]

My efforts
Toms in greenhouse poor - surplus plants outside doing better. Chillies now ripening nicely in the G/H.

Garlic was good, onions grown from seed good but only 9 made it.
Lettuce were good
Spuds ok but not as good as last year.
Carrots poor, cucumbers good, beetroot coming along. Brussels looking good and managed a couple of nice cauliflowers.
Marrows doing ok, hoping they will fatten up a bit more yet and courgettes have been steady.

French dwarf beans were good, climbing ones not bad and runner beans not so good but did not set in the ideal position - had run out of room

Moved the raspberry canes last year so not much good this.
Red currants fantastic, blackcurrants good, apples loaded and one pear tree good the other an Asian pear absolutely delicious but only five fruit - have eaten two. Cherries managed one before the birds had it, and the plums very few. Enough Damsons on although the tree keeps losing its main branches in strong winds

I have gone for continuous cropping this year so have a second row of peas in as a trial



Last year I set Fennel for the first time and it lasted well into the New Year so hoping for the same this.
Have been pleased with the no dig bed and have opened up an extension to it with quick growing lettuce to see if we can get a crop before the weather does its worse.


Never used the Rotavator this year and I hope to go more no dig next.



I have a friend with great soil, I take a bottle or two of homebrew once a fortnight or so so and come away with a cycle pannier or two full of produce so our veg bill has been negligible this summer.

[Sir Trev]

Nice. Good to hear of everyone's potterings. Dinner tonight will have my carrots and beetroot in it which is always nice.

On a related note my new battery-powered scarifier was used in anger yesterday - two hours to do my whole grassed area (about 250 square metres) instead of the usual half day plus with my old corded one. Result.

[Bibio]

i'm reaping the rewards of my neighbours massive poly tunnel

once the house is finished i might just think about some raised beds in the front and back gardens.

[redtrummy]

Gave up scarifying years ago, the moss always wins and I don't use chemicals if I can help it. Now we have a clover field in summer and the bees love it.( Possibly instigated by the fact I am to tight to buy an electric/battery one and the wife has had enough using the lawn rake! )

[Seeker]

I have an electric scarifyer - it removes the moss to allow room for the other weeds to grow.

On a different note: I intend buying some plants/bulbs but I'm curious about your experiences. Is Bakker better than Gardeningdirect, is there a better on-line company?

[Sir Trev]

Things like bulbs, seed potatoes and packet seeds are fine from any of the mail order companies I would have thought. Plants however... I've had bad experiences in the past where boxed plants have clearly been roughly treated and arrive in a real mess. My folks have received dead plant after they were sent to the wrong depot by the courier and spent a weekend there before setting off again. For plants I suggest looking out a local nursery or even a chain one - you may pay a little more but they're more likely to grow.

Have chat to the staff as they may be able to get what you want. My local indie garden centre (alas now closed down as the land was sold for housing) were happy to get in the variety of cherry tree that suited the space I had and the dwarf buddleia plants to encourage more butterflies.

[redtrummy]

I have started buying a lot of seeds off e-bay and not been disappointed. Several different companies. For bulbs the wife has used lidl/Aldi not something I have had experience of (the only flower I understand is a cauliflower!)


I bought a couple of pear trees from Lidl, one an Asian variety - the fruit is glorious - the most tasty pear ever. Unfortunately I moved it expecting building in the fields behind us and its not produced much since.

The 2 apple trees produce a lot as well. The disappointment is the cherry - its not on a dwarf stock so not expecting much as I cannot let it get too big