What lessons have you learnt from this years growing

[Bramble_killer]

Don't beat yourself up if you're busy. Nature somehow likes to get things to grow.

This year, I managed a reasonable harvest despite being too busy and still managed to clear some ground in the garden. No need to be super lottie gardener, be the best that you can and enjoy it!!

[morverngirl]

That I have to rethink how I grow my melons and cues, both a disaster

[Dead Dogs]

1, I don't know how to earth up spud properly. Must do better next time.
2, Must sow carrots, radishs, beetroot etc etc successionally and not just once.
3, Protect Kale, Broccilli etc from cabbage root fly and Butterflies.
4, I need more and better windbreaks.
5, Put the chilli plants in the greenhouse earlier. Had loads of flowers but no chillies while in the house.
6, Chilli plants don't grow in the poly. Didn't die either, appeared to be in stasis.

[bearded bloke]

What grew well last year may be a disaster this year but may be a success again next year

So the lesson learned would be Optimism will always beat Pessimism

[Two_Sheds]

I've learnt that nasturtiums always take up more space than you thought

I grew a lovely compact one last year, but I forget what it was called

(ah: dwarf compact )

I don't know how to earth up spud properly.:

Did you get green ones? I never earth up, I just cover them with a mulch of grass clippings

[taff]

I never earth up, I just cover them with a mulch of grass clippings

I can vouch for this method, did it this way after reading that TS does it, it worked brilliantly, and also left me with with some fab mulch to dig in in a month or so.

[reetnproper]

I never earth up, I just cover them with a mulch of grass clippings

Just to clarify (brain not fully in gear at the moment ), you cut the grass, then spread the clippings around your potato plants and this works just as well (in terms of yields etc) as piling shovel fulls of compost and soil around them? Or do you let the clippings 'rest' for a while IYKWIM and then spread them or am I misunderstanding this completely (which wouldn't be too much of a suprise if I'm honest ).

We have loads of clippings which usually end up in the brown bin as there isn't usually any room in the daleks. If I can use these on the 'tatoes next year .......

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[snohare]

2 allotments + 2 kids doesn't go down well with the wife

Yes, you're going to have to cut back on the kids.

I thought I was a crap gardener - now I see I am the equal of any five of you ! At any rate, I make as many mistakes as any five of you....

This year's lesson is that without a production line that has mpc etc at home for creating seedlings in pots and propogators, everything is likely to go in late, have poor germination rates, and generally just fail to thrive because it is starting off small and alone against the weather and pests.
Oh, and it's best to build your greenhouse at the beginning of the season, not the end.

[taff]

reet - did for me, I got half a proper size sack of potatoes from 2/3 of a 9 x 3 bed. Which I thought was pretty good seeing as I'd picked at least 10 meals for us and the next door door neighbour as new potatoes.

[Florence Fennel]

I used grass clippings as layers for earthing up the taters in bags, worked ok.

[Two_Sheds]

Just to clarify...cut the grass, then spread the clippings around your potato plants

yes, exactly that. Water it down and it mats together to stop it blowing around too much (the potato foliage also stops that)

We have loads of clippings which usually end up in the brown bin

Gosh, what a waste of good nitrogen.

Grass clippings have many uses: add a 2" layer in your daleks* or compost bin, or as a mulch on onions, spuds etc, or mix in with your bags of autumn leaves to enrich your leafmould a bit


* EASY DALEKING my daleks fill up really quickly (and I have 6). Instead of doing it all properly and turning it, now when it's full I:

- take the whole thing up and off and resite it
- pile back in all the big lumps of uncomposted stuff
- leave the rest where it is for the birds to pick through for a few days
- as the little heap dries out a bit, spread it around the plot where you want it (in the 2nd pic I've added it to that bean bed), putting any large bits into the new dalek

This really speeds up your composting with little effort

[Dead Dogs]

Did you get green ones?

Yes and black ones.

I never earth up, I just cover them with a mulch of grass clippings

Tried the grass thing, but it didn't work. Once the grass had dried, it blow away. Not suppricing really as I had young sprouts and kale up rooted, and just the other week all the foliage stripped from my spuds.

[Alison]

I don't earth up much and get very very few green potatoes. Simply plant them deeply and you're fine. A bit more work when you first put them in and then that's it for the season although they will be a bit deeper when you come to dig them up so a bit more work then too but worth it for the lack of earthing needed which I can never find time to do.

[StephenH]

Pick your french beans young and small, or they'll be as stringy as heck!

[reetnproper]

That grass clippings are full of nitrogen amd are great for earthing up potatoes

Well ok maybe I didn't learn that from my growing directly

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