the itch

[SelkirkAlex]

we have had quite a bit of sunshine lately, that glorious, impossibly bright crystal clear sunshine. if anything exaggerated by the sub zero temperatures.

all this glory does have a down side. It has brought on a serious case of the itch. despite my rational brain telling me it is far too early I have this irrational urge to go through my seed boxes, desperately looking for things that might possibly survive, the grow lights in my dining room are already overcrowded, so like a junky going cold turkey I tell myself to live with the itch (and the twitches, feverish plotting and all the other symptoms you might well understand and share) and just when it is feeling manageable we have a warmer especially bright day, or some bad influence ( no names, no pack drill, VC)

ahh such are the many joys of living in the frozen north, and then I spare a thought for burnie, SP and the rest who live in conditions that would bring me to tears.

roll on spring

[nickdub]

I had the same problem brought on partly by some one here writing about tomato plants they were growing etc (you know who you are VC)


Anyway I've gotten round it by sowing a load of seeds myself - now I have plants which I have no idea what to do with for the next 6 weeks, but strangely I'm quite contented.

May be you don't have to be a nitwit to be happy, but it probably helps :-)

[veggiechicken]

Life's too short to ignore an itch
My early sowings are done with little expectation of success - they are an "experiment". If you sow the same things every 4 weeks you get an idea where you can stretch the sowing dates for next year - that's my rationale anyway! I know now, that I can sow Bijou mangetout every month of the year with success. If I'd read the "book" it probably says 'sow March to June" - how itchy would that be?
Anyway, there's nothing odd about having courgette and cucumber plants on your bedroom windowsill, is there? They're coming along nicely too - probably because I say Good night and Good morning to them, as appropriate!!
So Go on Alex, be a Devil and have a good scratch.

[Thelma Sanders]

I've sown a few Hispi cabbages (the packet said I could!) and a few early peas and germinated them in the house
They are now out in the unheated greenhouse - they'll either live through the forecast coldsnap or they won't

Either way - it made me feel a lot better


Oh! forgot I also sowed a tray of old pea seeds for shoots, looks like nearly 100% germination - bless'em!

[burnie]

I am watching the night time temps in the greenhouse, I also have a small blowaway in there too, some of my spare seed onions(still in the seed tray cells not potted on) are in there to see if I dare put my Sweet peas out yet. Chillie seeds are in the heated prop, so I'm sort of rubbing the itch rather than scratching it lol. I am off to the SEC on Friday to the model railway exhibition, so that is distracting my attention a bit.

[Small pumpkin]

I know exactly what you mean Alex. That b@@ldy woman is such a bad influence
You can't help but love her .
Go on Alex sow some seeds! I have and I'm perfectly normal not like all the other nutters on here .
Obviously I've got all my babies in Area 51 ( FYI that's chillies in the dining room! ) it looks like a compost bag has exploded in their, but I'm very happy and itch free!
also got 2 trays of seeds in unheated propagators in the polytunnle. Nothing happening yet, but I should probably give them a little long as they only went in their on Sunday.

[nickdub]

Sweet peas are pretty hardy once they've got past the first few leaves stage. Obviously you have to harden them off a bit at a time, but I've had some outside in trays over winter, after germinating them before Xmas.

[1Bee]

Have some lotion.

One year, I was the last person to get their runner beans out on the plot. I was also the only one to avoid them getting frosted and having to start all over again.

Regards, The Tortoise.

[Lumpy]

Seeds..............what do you mean seeds? I'm still trying to play patchwork with the 4 various sized slabs we have......................I'm too old for all this lugging and heaving.

Mind you I hear a little cry coming from the broad beans (Robin Hood) pleading with me to do something.............anything other than just 'think' about it.

So, for me no maiden voyage for my foldaway potting table, no compost flavoured toast and no veggies at this rate.

[JanieB]

My itch got even itchier yesterday. I ordered some more propagators online on Sunday with an estimated delivery of 7-10 days. They arrived yesterday together with some unexpected freebies. One freebie very welcome as i’ve been trying to buy potting compost locally. 2 weeks ago Ald1 had piles of it, now not a bag in sight. Boxes came with a small bag of compost, so that’ll start me off.

They’re sitting on the work top in the kitchen beckoning me every time I see them. I’d better bring in the old ones as well and wash them.

It will have to wait until later though as I have to go out this morning.

[Bacchus]

Lidl have just got their "growing" range in and there are a few types of propagators there too. I bought a couple yesterday even though I didnt really need them. But they looked so clean and shiney....

[ESBkevin]

I started on the 12th thinking I was late but the weather report is very cold for the next week or so (anyone would think it was still winter).
Yesterday the grow light arrived and got clipped on the side of the camping table that constitutes the indoor propagation station in the spare room. Cucumbers already look leggy (4" in a week) and the weekend had me pricking out and taking things out of the heater prop.
I fear it may all be a bit too soon, but I just had to scratch the itch. I may be scratching for a while here, pass the calamine lotion!

[1Bee]

I have to confess I've sown a couple of things, but all relatively hardy, early stuff that will cope in the cold frame or a windowsill if we really get a polar blast....

[lottie dolly]

Give it a few more weeks,and we will all want some colder weather,plus itches ARE meant to be scratched,very gently bit by bit.

[Thelma Sanders]

Give it a few more weeks,and we will all want some colder weather

Colder than we will be getting over the next couple of weeks? *shiver*
I certainly won't ever want colder than that