Using greenhouse space in winter.........

[Snadger]

Hopefully with what I have been busying myself with today I should ensure my cold greenhouse is fully utilised well into the new year when seed sowing will start again in earnest.
Once my tomatoes and peppers and cukes are finished I hope to be filling the greenhouse with potted, late, indoor flowering chrysanthemums.

With an ultimate goal, but not much money, I purchased six named varieties of late flowering chrysanthemums and six early outdoor flowering chrysanthemums last year.

In the spring I started taking cuttings from each and now have about 30 late and 30 early which I have just potted on.

Some of the earlies have already been planted out and I have quite a few still to plant out in my allotment.

The others, the lates, will be planted into 9 inch pots, (Morrisons flower buckets), fastened to a wire running between stakes at each end of the row to stop them being blown over and shall spend their time outside until first frost or the tomatoes are cleared.
Once brought inside they will flower from late November right through into January next year producing 3 to 5 large flowered blooms each, I hope!

[Florence Fennel]

As you know Snadger, I've been threatening to grow chrysanthemums for a couple of years now. I ordered some plants from Van somewhere (forgotten already) last week, so I might be coming to you for advice! I love those beautiful big inward curling ones. They remind me of my childhood and the church bazaar!

[chris]

Are they hardy then?

[Snadger]

Are they hardy then?

The earlier flowering outdoor ones are hardy and flower before the frosts, but the lates need protection of a cold greenhouse to flower once the toms are out!

PS The earlies that I used for cuttings were also housed in the greenhouse over winter and unfortunately the ones left outside didn't make it through the winter. I suppose they could be classed as a half hardy perennial in my neck of the woods but a full perennial in warmer climes?

[chris]

Cool - so what's the plans for them? Xmas table pieces? Chrysanthemum soup?

[Florence Fennel]

My long late parents used to have half a dozen of these in bronze and yellow on the table every Christmas, so it will be very nostalgic for me if I can produce some in time for my Christmas table. Although I've only got a little stayput, I'm hoping to put a tub of potatoes or two in it to have for Christmas Dinner too. Ooh I'll be in trouble with G4 if she sees this for mentioning the C Word so often in June!

[Snadger]

The 'people who know' go to all sorts of exotic lengths to get them to flower when they want them to.

A spell in darkness, taking cuttings on a fixed date, stopping the lead shoot on a fixed date etc etc.

Me, I just take the cutting when I can (no hormone rooting powder), stop the lead shoot at about 6 inches or whenever,pot on when I can and hope to get a few flowers over as long a period as I can!

I had the indoor ones flowering from November to Mid January last year so was quite chuffed.

[Alison]

I fill mine with veggies in the winter to get an early start the following year - your flowers sound lovely but I never do the cut flower thing (OH gets really bad hay fever with everything and I prefer plants), hope it works well

[Snadger]

I fill mine with veggies in the winter to get an early start the following year - your flowers sound lovely but I never do the cut flower thing (OH gets really bad hay fever with everything and I prefer plants), hope it works well

I've tried that, but found I was pretty limited in what i could grow? I reckomed that everything that could be grown outside during the winter, could also be grown inside. I grew spring cabbage, japanese onions and broad beans.
The problem is it gets a bit expensive because everything needs potting and the cost of potting compost + pots makes it a lot more expensive than growing in the open soil.
Having said that, my best Senshyu onions were grown in a cold frame over winter and are much bigger than the others.