New to veg gardening - Some advice needed

[jessie15]

Hi, I am new to vegetable growing, my hubby has made me a raised bed measuring 8' X 4', we have topped this up with some brought compost and soil. Is there anything we need to do to this in preparation ie add any nutrients to it or cover it to warm it up?

As this is my first year I am planning on growing some salad crops in the raised bed. We had a large barrel which hubby has cut in half and in one I had thought of growing runner beans but not sure about the other yet.

I have a large greenhouse so will be making use of that with plenty of tomatos, cucumbers and peppers which i have not sown yet, is it ok to do these now in my window sill? I have got 2 proporgators from Aldi (£2.10 - bargain) and I wondering whether to buy an electric proporgator today, is this worth it or can I manage ok without one?

We have a large garden and can easily make more room for more veg but just wanted to start on a small scale this year to see how i take to it. I would appreciate any advice or input. Many thanks.

[Eyren]

Hi, I am new to vegetable growing, my hubby has made me a raised bed measuring 8' X 4', we have topped this up with some brought compost and soil. Is there anything we need to do to this in preparation ie add any nutrients to it or cover it to warm it up?

Hi Jessie, and welcome to the Grapevine!

Given how cold and wet it has been, it certainly wouldn't hurt to cover it with some fleece or black plastic to warm the ground - but it's not essential either. If the compost is of the multipurpose kind, it will already have some fertilizer in, so I would leave it for now and add stuff later if it needs it. Brassicas (cabbages, broccoli, etc) need lots of nutrients, as do courgettes and squash, but beans and salad are a bit less greedy!

As this is my first year I am planning on growing some salad crops in the raised bed. We had a large barrel which hubby has cut in half and in one I had thought of growing runner beans but not sure about the other yet.

I have a large greenhouse so will be making use of that with plenty of tomatos, cucumbers and peppers which i have not sown yet, is it ok to do these now in my window sill?

Tomatoes and peppers can be sown now if you have a warm light place to raise them. I would leave the cucumbers until April, as they grow a lot quicker (I'm assuming your greenhouse isn't heated, since you haven't mentioned it).

I have got 2 proporgators from Aldi (£2.10 - bargain) and I wondering whether to buy an electric proporgator today, is this worth it or can I manage ok without one?

It really depends. I bought an electric propagator because my conservatory isn't warm enough at this time of year and if I put seed trays on my sunny windowsills indoors the cats are likely to knock them over! If you have somewhere that's warm (20 degrees C) and light, you probably don't need an electric one.

We have a large garden and can easily make more room for more veg but just wanted to start on a small scale this year to see how i take to it. I would appreciate any advice or input. Many thanks.

Good idea! I started with just a few tomato plants several years ago and now have an allotment as well as raised beds in my garden - it's just so addictive!

[SarzWix]

That's great advice from Eyren, I can't add much, except to say Welcome, and Good Luck and how about peas in your other half barrel, edged round with loose leaf lettuces (like Salad Bowl or some of the oriental mixed leaves) to take advantage of the nitrogen which peas produce and lettuces use

[jimbojetset]

all great advice!

i'm a newbie by most of these guys standards, and yes it's more addictive than crack!

one thing i would say is that my crops got absolutely hammered by pests in my first year, and i reckon if i was a bit less resilient i'd have given up!

the best things i did in my second year was to buy some copper tape from ebay - which cut out the slug and snail problem

and secondly maintain a vigil keep picking off the little blighters, caterpillars especially!

enjoy it!

and yes good luck!

[Iamhanuman]

welcome from another newbie!

good luck and keep us posted on your progress

GREAT ADVICE BTW!

[bramble]

By the way, if anyone ifs thinking of buying a propogator make sure it has a thermostat. It can make all the difference.
Good luck to all the newbies who are growing for the first time this year,
Please come and ask any questions and we will do our best to help.

[thatshallot]

Hi, I'm new too. I tried a few veg last year, but everything got eaten by slugs! I did manage to rescue a Heritage Large Bell Pepper in time though. It's been in the kitchen windowsill and produced 3 peppers in December. What do I do with it now? Will it produce year after year?