Totally Obsessed

[susiewoosie]

Just bought some tomato plants from ebay they are.

MONEY MAKER - RIO GRANDE - CERISE - BLACK CHERRY - BLACK KRIM - YELLOW GRAPE

They sound quite interesting0000

[Seahorse]

I'm listening to Steve Lamacq interviewing a band on 6 music.

I heard 'what vegetables will you be growing'

What he actually said was 'what festivals are you doing'.

Brilliant!

I rush to anxiously check my babies are ok every morning. After a bit, I see if my four human kids are alright as well

[onefivenine]

I heard 'what vegetables will you be growing'
What he actually said was 'what festivals are you doing'.

That made me chuckle. Brilliant!

Just got confirmation that my subscription to GYO mag is live from the June one on sale 1st May. Woo Hoo. Already took the opportunity to subscribe for another year.

<Jaws movie style>

"We're gonna need a bigger seed box"

[susiewoosie]

Seeds lovely seeds

[Florence Fennel]

I have 12 carrot seedling woo hoo. Keep going out and counting them to make sure none have dissapeared

Hi Susie, I've finally managed to get fleece over the hoops on the raised beds to cover the carrots (I ended up using bulldog clips as suggested to me on this forum) so I now have to peep through the curtains to make encouraging noises to them. Hope nobody sees me, they'll think I'm crackers. There's only you lot on here that understand!

[susiewoosie]

I'm going to ask a really daft question (another one you say) If no one else is growing veg around me how do the carrot fly and other nasties find me?

[zazen999]

I'm going to ask a really daft question (another one you say) If no one else is growing veg around me how do the carrot fly and other nasties find me?

They find you....don't you worry.

It's their job!!!

[susiewoosie]

Is it true that carrot fly can only fly a certain height or is that a myth? My carrots are grown in a pot thats sat on a 3 ft high ledge? If I need to cover them at what stage do I do it?

[zazen999]

I grew carrots my first year here in my courtyard - with 5 ft min walls around and the carrots got decimated. So, I don't believe it for a minute. Which is why I grow plenty of coriander with mine and chop it back regularly to keep the smell disguising the carrot.

[Florence Fennel]

Is it true that carrot fly can only fly a certain height or is that a myth? My carrots are grown in a pot thats sat on a 3 ft high ledge? If I need to cover them at what stage do I do it?

I grew mine in old kitchen waste bins last year that are about 30" deep and the carrots were beautiful. I've heard that the flies can only get up to about 21" so that must have been the reason. It's my first year growing them in the raised beds, which are much lower, so I have given them a four poster bed.

[Florence Fennel]

I grew carrots my first year here in my courtyard - with 5 ft min walls around and the carrots got decimated. So, I don't believe it for a minute. Which is why I grow plenty of coriander with mine and chop it back regularly to keep the smell disguising the carrot.

Blimey Zasen, I must have been just lucky I guess! Glad I've canopied them.

[susiewoosie]

when should I cover them? They are teeny at the moment

[Florence Fennel]

when should I cover them? They are teeny at the moment

I think we need an expert for that one Susie, I'm sure one will be along soon. I'm really still experimenting as I said and I hope I haven't covered mine up too soon (if you can do that?). They are about 3 inches tall and beautifully tactile, they are so feathery and such a delightful shade of green. Hang on, getting carried away again - waxing lyrical about carrots?!

[susiewoosie]

mine are only about 0.5 inches. Need to turn the computer off now. Be back tomorrow, after plant checking that is

[Bazza]

This is an interesting thread! A couple of years ago, I had no real interest in gardening. but decided to create a nice area at the back of the house for the wife to enjoy. It was the usual builders lawn laid on the top of rubbish. It took ages to create decent soil for the borders with regular visits to the garden centre for soil improver. This rapidly changed from a chore to an obsession however, I wanted it to be something really nice. Having more or less completed the borders, installed a nice gravelled area with an arbour, water feature plus planted a range of shrubs my interest then turned to a piece of unused garden alongside the house. I used to keep a caravan there so it was basically two rows of slabs and pea gravel, again on top of builders rubbish. This was to become my vegetable/fruit growing patch. This is now my second year veggy patch and after a lot of hard work (most of which can't be seen because it's underground) it now contains 5 vegetable beds, a permanent rhubarb patch, a blackberry patch, a raspberry patch and additional containers for the stuff I can't fit in! The lawn and flower area continues to mature, made lots of mistakes but hopefully learned from them too.

The fruit and veg area this year will be accommodating:- New potatoes, Lady Christl, Swift and Charlotte, garlic, red onion sets, crimson flowered broad beans, french beans, carrots, parsnips,tomatoes, lettuce, radish, sweetcorn. Not doing runner beans this year as grew way too many last year. First time this year for beetroot, leeks, cucumbers, butternut squash, sweet peppers and brussel sprouts. (I start quite a bit off in roottrainers so it can go straight in after first spuds etc come out etc) Raspberry patch contains Glen Moy and Glen Ample varieties, should get a crop from these this year. The autumn bliss gave me a small crop in my first year. Also have afew strawberries but I can fit them in. Wife now getting worried as she can see her lawn gradually diminishing. All this came from a whim really, deciding to create a pretty area for the wife to enjoy. I didn't mean it to take over my life.

So, enjoy the obsession Susie. Growing your own is so good for the soul.

PS A lot of what I have managed to do succesfully has been down to reading and acting on the advice so freely given here on the vine. There are a lot of extremely knowledgeable people on this forum. I still make plenty of mistakes but avoid many more by viewing old threads.