So, whats your growing year been like? Successes, failures, highlights, low points?

[Madasafish]

Successes:
rasps
Climbing blue beans
Pears
sungold tomatoes.
rhubarb
beetroot

Failures
strawberries (mold/mice and rain)
french beans (slugs)

OKish
other tomatoes
blueberries
apples

[kentvegplot]

Wow, everyone seems to have done pretty well, despite the weather. First year in this garden for us, so...

Successes
Courgettes, especially yellow 'Gold Rush'...1 plant produced 50 so far
Rainbow Chard
Perpetual spinach
French beans
Runner beans
Beans for drying - Soissons, Blue and White
Potatoes - second early Nicola. Blight hit late, and as most were in 'no dig' bed, did a lot of harvesting before needing to remove haulms. Those in store seem to have escaped the blight
Tomatoes - but only those in tunnel. All outside blighted early
Beetroot - but only first sowing
Turnip
Onions - (autumn sets) bolted, but useable
Garlic
Peppers - Marconi Rosso really good, others succumbed to some pest
Chilies
Melons - only 2 off each plant, but delicious
Basil - 'old' seed grew beautifully
Cucumbers - Cumlaude - already pickled some, can't keep up....
Mizuna
Rocket
Corianer

Failures
Butternuts - didn't get them in early enough
Second sowing of radish, turnip, beetroot - all slugged
Spring onions - very patchy germination
Aubergines - only 6 from 3 plants, still made some ratatouille though

Generally, must try to get more succession next year - great gaps in the lettuce/other greens !

And of course, great plums, damsons and apples, although I can't take any credit for those

[Waffler]

Generally, fruit has faired far better than the veg: have loads of apples to harvest and quite a few pears, had pounds of gooseberries, blackberries and blackcurrants and 'some' rhubarb (though not as good as last year). the plums weren't great this year: I think our Victoria may be ill.
Veg wise, had virtually no sugar snaps, had half a dozen courgettes (after last year's glut) but they do seem to be in the swing of things now, potatoes weren't great as the got the big 'B' as did outdoor toms. Had 1 cucumber. Greenhouse toms not too bad, but poor production on peppers (had 3) and chillis (plants alive, but still no sign of flowers!) Had about a dozen garlic bulbs from the 3 bigguns I sowed!! My jerusalem artichoke didn't even show! My parsnips failed - as did my radishes. The runner beans were very slow and many were lost to slug & snail damage, but we've now had a few pounds and they're still producing. We've had a meals worth of French beans, but after the S&S, I think we're down to 2 plants, so hardly surprising.

Not happy with this years produce, but know we did better last year, so there's hope for us for next! This years experience goes down in part to the weather, but also the lack of time I've had to dedicate to it in light of 'the wedding' (floral side of garden needed my attention) and of course 'the weather'.

I did late sow some baby carrots when we got back from honeymoon at the end of August (I was fully in garden mode for a couple of days before I started back at work) so hopefully we'll get a few littluns from that sowing.

[Matt.]

Congratulations to all those above, especially first timers who've had such an abundance of produce.

Sadly my first year has not gone well at all as I lost almost everything in the floods of July. However after considering whether to try again I've decided to give it another go next year and whilst I may not have much to show for my efforts I've certainly learned a lot.

Successes
Planting early - always before it states on the packet or in books
Tomaotoes and cucumbers in the greenhouse at home
Beetroot - amazingly this did not drown despite eight days underwater!
Courgettes - Superb whilst they lasted but six plants is about five too many!
Radish
BOGOF on seeds at woolworths!

Faliures
Rotovating a virgin plot that contained horsetail. DO NOT BE TEMPTED
Buying cheap seed potaoes from woolworths - they weren't what was on the packet.
Carrots and parsnips - all forked and gnarly. Will be seiving the soil for next year.
Planting sweeeeeetcorn too late - nothing happened before it was too late.