What I Did Today Archive 2009

[Topcat36]

Watered the tunnel at my own place them spent the day at the posh walled garden.
Walked through the gate to be greeted with a horrible site. Two of the guys who work in the hotel said they would spray off the paths for me and I agreed, thinking they would use the watering can and trickle bar - but no, they used round-up and a small pump srayer - so it was goodbye to 100m of Paris Market Atlas Carrots, 50m Ishiwotsit Spring onions and 50m each of Monogerm Beetroot, Golden Beetroot and Chioggia Beetroot. NOT A HAPPY RAT !
Anyway, no point crying over spilt Glyphosate, so weeded Peas and Broad Beans, unearthed Parsnips from mass of weeds, weeded out Asparagus bed, weeded runner and French beans, planted out aubergines in greenhouse, planyed out last 100 Celeriac and last 100 Florence Fennel.

Nasty, make em do it by hand next time

Emptied out greenhouse, so ok it's only a mini one
just have to put it all back now. Removed slug eaten lettuces from my containers and noticed my raddish had gone to seed, sowed more lettuce . Fixed canes for Sugar snap peas poor things had nowhere to go.

[sewer rat]

Box day today - this weeks boxes contain some or all of the following - potatoes, carrots, onions, lettuce, spring greens, sweetheart cabbage, broad beans, rhubarb, assorted herbs, salad leaves, tomatoes.

Watered tunnel, moved strawbs in hanging baskets to top end of tunnel where I have just pulled and cleared the debris from 42 sweetheart cabbages. Tumbling tomatoes are showing either red or yellow blushes depending obviously on which colour they are supposed to be. Cukes are starting to fly up the canes now - hope to get first cukes in a fortnight.
Have about 100 assorted courgettes / patty pans ready to plant out this weekend, along with 5 Butternut Squash, along with 150 lettuce for the next tunnel planting.
Going out to pick up another 25 or so tomato plants that someone has in excess of requirements, and then I'm gonna make a big batch of Rhubarb and Tangerine Chutney.

[Newbie]

This afternoon i put 2 Sweet peppers, another San Mizano tomato & 2 Melons into their final growing positions in growbags in the GH. Gave everything a good water too and sprayed all the bloomin' greenfly that seem to be multiplying despite all the French Marigolds in there.

[Snadger]

Got a phone call out of the blue this afternoon to ask if I was ready for a load of horse muck to be delivered?

After a busy day at work, managed to get to the lottie at 5.00pm and take delivery of the muck. Shovelled it out of trailer and took half a dozen wheelbarrows full up to my compost heap at the other end of the allotment.
At least now I can get in my greenhouse door!

Watered indoor plants and cut a spring cabbage and gathered a pile of autumn sown onion sets which have succumbed to the dreaded white rot

[sewer rat]

Just potted up 24 x 12oz jars of Rhubarb Chutney

[Sweepster]

Second day of attempting to sell a few excess plants at the front of the house; began by retrieving the 'plants for sale' sign which had come unstuck from its board and was floating around the street. Removed a few plants which looked rain-and-wind battered, added pea sticks and string to support others, went to fetch watering can and returned to find signboard had blown over and flattened a courgette and two french beans.

Then noticed the tomato plants are showing signs of blight.

Then noticed some of the potatoes are also showing signs of blight.

Removed offending foliage amidst much wailing and knashing of teeth. Swore never to grow tomatoes ever ever again (until next year, since I've already bought the seeds )

Potted up some French marigolds and lettuce from cell trays. Drilled holes in a spare dustbin, to be used as a planter for a courgette.

Tried to persuade OH to assist me in liberating an old bath from a skip down the road, but apparently 'Steptoe and Son' isn't really the look he's after, re garden design.

[Two_Sheds]

didn't do a lot cos of the accident. Looked at the patch that needs digging over in order to get my brassicas in ... there's no way I can do it now, but can't bring myself to compost the seedlings

- planted out 100 leeks (Snowstar and Musselburgh) under netting (leek moth)
- picks loads of broadies, saved the best plants for seed
- did a bit of hand weeding, mostly red poppies
- ate half a dozen strawbs (now plastered in mud from the torrential rain y'day)
- dug a bag of spuds (Arran Pilot) lovely size. The foliage was still green & healthy, not dying back, & no flowers
- realised I sowed lots of mange tout instead of peas ... I will leave them to become peas
- picked first bunch of Sweet William

[A Life Less Simple]

Spent a very productive couple of hours at the allotment with most of the family. Planted out dwarf runner beans and black current cuttings. Also up the brassica 'netting' up over the breassica beds but we've going to need a lot more as it has only done the kale that has been planted out so far, still the purple sprouting, cabbage, lots more kale and raab '60 days' to cover. The pesty rabbits have eaten the spring onions and leek seedlings that were doing so well, and most of the leaves off from the onion sets.
Back from I've just sown some more dwarf runners and french beans and am just having a little break and then sowing more leeks, raab 60 days, peas, lettuce, chives and kale.

[sewer rat]

This morning I dug over the tunnel floorspace that until yesterday held sweetheart cabbages. Cleared the two raised beds that until yesterday held CCA Salad leaves.
Dug in more 5 year old FYM into the raised beds and planted out 120 lettuces in one and 50 Silver Chard in the other.
Hand weeded approx 75m of onions.
Tied in and pinched out my cukes and tomatoes.
The tomatoes I went to collect last night are beyond saving so onto compost heap with them.
My 53 x Tumbling Toms, which are in 5 litre pots seem to be suffering a bit in the tunnel - not enough airflow through them as they are very bushy, so they are now all outside, hopefully this will help them perk up a bit. They are still producing loads of flowers and are still growing but just don't look too healthy for what is really only the start of the season.
Sprayed all my potatoes for blight - local seed producers have started so I have to make sure I follow suit, so if blight occurs, they cannot point the finger at me !
Just had a fish supper (fish 'n' chips for you non Scots) and now am away back out to collect and plant up 30 Aubergines in the tunnel. Will tyhen water the tunnel, come home, have a shower and go out to work in the club.
Might pop on later - about 2 in the morning if anyone's about.

[selfraising]

Today I pulled up some of my garlic, they were pretty big bulbs so very pleased. Also some red onions, yellow carrots, swiss chard, Anya and pea shoots. Planted out kohlrabi in in place of garlic and zapped all the black fly on broadies!

[sewer rat]

Today I planted up the aubergines x 28 in the tunnel as I ran out of time last night. Then I sowed 864 Beetroot Cylindra to replace those recently murdered in the posh walled garden.
Moved all the baby leeks (200 pots, approx 4000 - 5000 leeks) and the remaining 120 courgette / patty pan / squash plants outside to start hardening off.
Sowed what I thought was going to be 300 Dwarf French Beans - Kinghorn Wax - that I bought on a whim in Lidl. The packet said average contents 50 seeds so I bought 6 packets - and each has revealed itself to contain in excess of 100 seeds !! So I now will have (assuming a conservative 80% germination rate) in excess of 500 bean plants.

[Snadger]

Nice fine day here so decided to cycle to the allotment today. Finished shifting and storing the horse muck I have recently taken delivery of. Chased the chooks indoors whilst I hosed out there stinky run. locked other chooks out of there coop while I cleaned out and sprayed with *****.
Planted up a tray of seed sown banana shallots which really needed lanting as they were starting to swell in the pots. Took the mesh off my sprouts as I think it's a bit unsightly. Hopefully the pigeons will leave them alone but just in case I placed a 6 foot cane with a plastic bottle on the top in among them.
Planted a tray of long red florence onions after preparing an area for them. Did a bit of pruning, edging and general tidying up as well as weeding.
Moved my potted grape vine and tried to espalier it on my boundary with canes and ties.
Watered all my indoor plants and also my allotment neighbours indoor plants as they are on holiday, then cycled home!

[taff]

Mowed the grass, mulched the veg with it, clipped all round the beds, watered the greenhouse veg, going to Gardeners World tomorrow, yeehaw...or something...

[seeds]

What have you done to your Vegetable plot today?

Today i have planted out my strawberry plants in a raised bed, added another tomato plant to my veg plot,cleared away all of the weeds to make more room for extra fruit and vegetables and thouraghly watered the plants!

[Maximillian]

Hi! Today I potted on my tomatoes and squashes at home ready to move now they've hardened off. Also ate first cima di rape from new plants! Did lots of seeds to for more beets beans turnips and stuff for overwintering.