What I did today 2018

[HoneyChild]

Are we supposed to report these beasties?
Every time I lift the troughs in my polytunnel there are one or two of these things. I hate them. I’ve veen grinding them into a paste but the next day there’s usually another one...

You don't have to report them but it's probably a good idea

[bikermike]

turned over the turf and heaped soil up to make two beds for potatoes. I'm trying a narrow bed approach (ie they are the right length, but only wide enough for one line of spuds - I'll make them bigger next year after the spuds have done their thing).

Added some wood ash to the rhubarb, the finished compost and compost heap. spuds are chitting.,

The soil for the new beds is coming from what was a "compost heap" (/pile of earth). When that's shifted completely (next weekend hopefully), I'll be able to make room for my new raspberry canes.

[muck lover]

I pricked out a few seedlings of flat leafed parsley which believe it or not I have never grown before. The curled leaf parsley pots are transplanted from a supermarket bought parsley plant and are doing well. I planted a few of these in polytunnel border a while ago and am assuming they will survive the impending big freeze. As insurance Ill keep these babies inside until the freeze is over.

[Gordon Guff]

Started building Greenhouse

Sunday 25th: Another hard frost but sun was out so decided to start building the greenhouse. Fingers were numb with the cold by 5 so called it a day!
Just need to build the door up and glaze it (toughened glass) so hopefully get some time next weekend and Im good to go

[bramble]

Spent an hour covering up the crowns of my dahliad that are in the ground outdoors.
Put some soil, upturned buckets and a brick on top in case it gets windy.
Hope they survive as they have been really lovely in the last few years.

[muck lover]

I cut the grass! Am assuming tomorrow it will be buried in snow.
I used the grass clippings mixed with leaves to put down over cardboard followed by some seaweed and shredded brassica stalks and covered with more leaves topped with shredded prunings. Then I put landscaping membrane over the top. I intend to plant some wee potatoes maybe with a sprinkling of poultry manure on top. I’ve not grown potatoes with any success in the past.

[Dynamo]

We've had a couple of inches of snow today so I spent some time in my greenhouse sowing beetroot, broad beans, peas, leeks and Ailsa Craig onions in small pots and modules. Here's the beans and peas before I covered them over.



I then took all the newly sowed plants to my allotment and put them in my new greenhouse and watered them, then I made this short video

https://youtu.be/t_ifg6d1jy8

[muck lover]

Brrrrrrrrr...

[Mark_Riga]

"I then took all the newly sowed plants to my allotment and put them in my new greenhouse and watered them, then I made this short video"

I think you should put all the pea and broadbean pots on top of the staging to keep away from mice. The onions should be OK on the floor, not sure about beetroot.

[Dynamo]

It's a bit snowy today. They've given us a red weather warning so I put a bit extra out for the birdies.



I got the core of a sweet red pepper so I've reaped the seeds from it.



I might sow them in the greenhouse later.

[ESBkevin]

I cut the grass! Am assuming tomorrow it will be buried in snow.
I used the grass clippings mixed with leaves to put down over cardboard followed by some seaweed and shredded brassica stalks and covered with more leaves topped with shredded prunings. Then I put landscaping membrane over the top. I intend to plant some wee potatoes maybe with a sprinkling of poultry manure on top. I’ve not grown potatoes with any success in the past.

A word to the wise. I used a cardboard as part of my mulch for potatoes last year. The rows spanned the mulch no dig and an area of double dug. in the dug area the crop was sensational, in the mulched/cardboard area the slugs had a wonderful meal and ruined most of the crop. Cardboard and potatos doesn't seem to work if you have slugs (which is a shame as I can get loads of it).

[muck lover]

Oh no. I have so many slugs. The cardboard I’m thinking of is only on the bottom though. Over the top of the potatoes I was going to put leafmould. Maybe that’s worse for slugs?
Any potatoes I’ve grown in the past have just disintegrated on cooking but I am In a new garden now so was going to have one last final and ultimate try. Last year I noticed scrawny potato plants grew in the mulch I had put down as a seed suppressant. It was leafmould and some grass clippings. I dug up an admittedly small number of potatoes and decided to put them in leek and potato soup where disintegrating wouldnt be a problem.
Of course the bloomin things kept a perfect shape. Wouldn’t you know!
But it gave me the idea of trying one more time with potatoes. By the way I have absolutely no idea where the plants came from. It was just an area near leaf bins. Never even had compost and even if it did I don’t peel potatoes anyway so there wouldnt have been any peelings to sprout.
Anyway if it ever stops snowing I might get my few wee seed potatoes planted.

[Dynamo]

Have you tried steaming the potatoes rather than boiling them? My potatoes disintegrate as well when boiling but they are fine when steamed.

[geepee]

I eventually finished my Light/grow box 2, at last....transferred some salad leaves,spinach and lettuce mix into it.
Also put a bucket of FYM ,MPC,JI No1 and horse manure in to warm up ready to mix and pot up Kale,Chillies and tom' seedlings into in next day or 2.
Sowed 2 MFB 's of carrots (Amsterdam forcing and Nantes 2) which are in box 2 also.

Seed Pots will shortly go in to Chit in Plastic egg trays,(Lady C , Casablanca,(first time growing these)and Rocket as first earlies),the photo shows seed pots now being kept in the fridge.
They should produce nice strong,thick ,purple chits in about 7/14 days..??
If they look in danger of being too far forward I'll pot them into 4'' pots of MPC and keep at lower temp' until nearer to frost safe conditions, meantime they will still be producing strong root growth and happily transplant into a 10''pot with a hole made with a bulb planter which exactly takes a 4'' pot full.

[Mark_Riga]

The best I could do today was to look at the garden from the kitchen window. I saw several fieldfare jumping about under our Bramley apple wnere there are still a lot of apples lying on the ground (I brought in 6 about a week ago for an apple pie). There was also a thrush smashing some snails it had found and the visitor in the picture. He looked a lot handsomer than the picture shows. Not sure if this pheasant is a welcome guest or not. It seemed to be eying itself up in the greenhouse glass. Not too much for it to eat now but not sure what they do eat given the chance.