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Hi all.
I am Row (short for Rowena) and in a moment of inspiration I decided to announce to my Dad that I was thinking of digging up my small back lawn and planting veggies.
So for my birthday in March I received a mini greenhouse, some seed potatoes, some runner bean seeds, some lettuce seeds, some pea seeds and some seed trays and compost as well as gardening gloves.
After the initial shock I planted some beans and some chilli seeds from a plant I had been given last year and then got daring and planted some red pointed pepper seeds too.
These were all going well in my greenhouse which at the time was still in my dining room (don't laugh, I'm new to this gardening lark) then Dad announced that he was hiring a rotovator and was coming round to dig over my lawn.
Panic stations. I spent Easter bank holiday Monday frantically hacking off turf until I virtually broke my wrists just so Dad could bring round the rotovator.
At this point I wondered what I had taken on.
Anyway it was done, though I'm still trying to sneak chunks of turf off each week in my wheelie bins, and the kids and I planted the seed potatoes, some peas and then some onions that a friend had spare.
My daughter also has a big terracotta pot with her own potato in.
Trouble is now that all is growing beautifully is I have no idea what to pick and when as I stupidly threw away the potato packet and the onions are a mystery variety.
I then acquired some broad bean plants from Dad, some courgettes and some cucumbers.(but no instructions...oh dear)
My greenhouse of course was moved outside but was blown over in the gales and now all my peppers and chillis were mixed up though most were saved and re potted.
Then last Sunday we took a trip to London only to come home to find that my greenhouse has almost roasted everything.
I have now some very shrivelled though still alive courgette plants that I have now planted out in the garden and one lonely cucumber from the middle of a grow bag as the outer two were shrivelled up and burnt.
Now I cover my greenhouse with an old white sheet to try to keep some of the extreme heat out and always roll up the door in a morning. Lesson learnt.
So as you can see from my multiple gaffs so far, I am a complete numpty when it comes to gardening and today I came across your forums after searching google for inspiraion on when to pick potatoes.
My tatties are doing great and there are signs of flowers on some (help), my beans are growing up the canes nicely, my broad beans seem to be developing flowers too and my peas which Dad surrounded by small twigs in his last inspection of my ...ahem...handwork...are doing ok too.
My onions have long green shoots and I know you have to lift them to dry them out but I don't know when.
So any advice to this complete gardening idiot would be gratefully received. (so I don't have to keep calling my poor Dad and end up feeling like a 6 year old).
Thanks
from Row
I am Row (short for Rowena) and in a moment of inspiration I decided to announce to my Dad that I was thinking of digging up my small back lawn and planting veggies.
So for my birthday in March I received a mini greenhouse, some seed potatoes, some runner bean seeds, some lettuce seeds, some pea seeds and some seed trays and compost as well as gardening gloves.
After the initial shock I planted some beans and some chilli seeds from a plant I had been given last year and then got daring and planted some red pointed pepper seeds too.
These were all going well in my greenhouse which at the time was still in my dining room (don't laugh, I'm new to this gardening lark) then Dad announced that he was hiring a rotovator and was coming round to dig over my lawn.
Panic stations. I spent Easter bank holiday Monday frantically hacking off turf until I virtually broke my wrists just so Dad could bring round the rotovator.
At this point I wondered what I had taken on.
Anyway it was done, though I'm still trying to sneak chunks of turf off each week in my wheelie bins, and the kids and I planted the seed potatoes, some peas and then some onions that a friend had spare.
My daughter also has a big terracotta pot with her own potato in.
Trouble is now that all is growing beautifully is I have no idea what to pick and when as I stupidly threw away the potato packet and the onions are a mystery variety.
I then acquired some broad bean plants from Dad, some courgettes and some cucumbers.(but no instructions...oh dear)
My greenhouse of course was moved outside but was blown over in the gales and now all my peppers and chillis were mixed up though most were saved and re potted.
Then last Sunday we took a trip to London only to come home to find that my greenhouse has almost roasted everything.
I have now some very shrivelled though still alive courgette plants that I have now planted out in the garden and one lonely cucumber from the middle of a grow bag as the outer two were shrivelled up and burnt.
Now I cover my greenhouse with an old white sheet to try to keep some of the extreme heat out and always roll up the door in a morning. Lesson learnt.
So as you can see from my multiple gaffs so far, I am a complete numpty when it comes to gardening and today I came across your forums after searching google for inspiraion on when to pick potatoes.
My tatties are doing great and there are signs of flowers on some (help), my beans are growing up the canes nicely, my broad beans seem to be developing flowers too and my peas which Dad surrounded by small twigs in his last inspection of my ...ahem...handwork...are doing ok too.
My onions have long green shoots and I know you have to lift them to dry them out but I don't know when.
So any advice to this complete gardening idiot would be gratefully received. (so I don't have to keep calling my poor Dad and end up feeling like a 6 year old).
Thanks
from Row
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