Topic: Best / worst tips ever

[artichoke]

Bad tip from allotment neighbour when I took on new plot, a scary expanse of tall meadow grass, thistles, docks and worse: "Dig it all over first before you plant anything".

I was polite, but I dug out an oblong the size of a baby's grave and put a courgette plant in straight away to give me courage, steadily expanding from there.

[woodypecks]

On Gardeners World, Carol Klein advising a client to get rid of a gorgeous Clematis Montana and grow ivy up their pergola instead. OK she might be right, but it seemed very wrong!

Yes ! ....what the heck was THAT all about ? The ivy that she recommended wasn,t that attractive either ....... there are some lovely bigger and more ornamental varieties you can get .  Very odd !   

[antipodes]

hmm worst tip was "If you don't dig it all over to a depth of two feet you might as well give up now", probably followed by mixing a barrowful of sand into the carrot bed to get good carrots (still hadn't worked).

Best tip was sow later rather than too early, grow everything from seed (don't buy in any plants anymore), and rotate the strawberry plants so there are always older plants in to give more fruit.

I do like the tip above though about "When you're on a good thing, stuck to it", like overwintering garlic for me, which works a treat, and direct sowing squash and courgettes.

[Morris]

Least useful ... everything Alys Fowler ever writes or says.

But she's very cute and has red hair and wears miniskirts while gardening.... who cares about the advice? (she's as mad as a box of frogs for starters....)

Hahaha  ;D

I am obviously not appreciating her finer points  ;) She drives me mental because she is so romantic and utterly impractical. Almost anything she suggests is doomed to failure.

[VegBob]

There seems to be an underlying theme in the responses to my query - don't be dogmatic! The information that we are given on packets and by pundits should only be regarded as guidelines not as gospel. When we are told that plant X prefers such-and-such conditions it doesn't means that those are the only circumstances under which they can be grown. Experiment and you will find what and where you can grow things. Expect some failures and you will succeed by finding out the limitations within your microclimate. Thanks to all respondents. Bob.

[raisedbedted]

My best tip that I've tried this year was to sow Parsnip seeds and then cover them with a piece of wood, thus keeping the soil moist until they germinated.

For the first time ever I have a full row of Parsnip seedlings  ;)

[Palustris]

Does anyone from the old days of the BBC site remember the chap who advised painting the stumps of cut cabbage plants with white wash?

[1066]

1066, what do you mean???

What does 1066 mean by nipping off the first cucumer, Dont let any fruit grow for the first two feet of the plant, this allows the it to get well established.

Thanks Davy, explained much better  ;D

[davyw1]

I cant think of ever been given any bad tips except from the other blokes i compete against at shows nice friendly tips like your leeks could do with a good feed of glycanol or you need to take some tomatoes off that large truss before the string holding it up snaps.

Good tips for tomatoes,
Never remove the top sucker from your tomato plants till after you have tied off above it so if you snap the growing tip you can let the sucker grow on.

If you break the growing stem of a tomato tape it back up it will heal its self and grow on.

Remove the leaves below the first truss (not all at once as this will stress the plant) to allow ventilation to flow around the plants.

[hild]

What does 1066 mean by nipping off the first cucumer, Dont let any fruit grow for the first two feet of the plant, this allows the it to get well established.

Oh!  Do I really have to sacrifice my first lovely cukes?  :'( I've been soooo  pleased these last couple of days, watching all my plants set forth and multiply - or at least start off with about five fruits per plant - I'd be pretty sad to pinch'em out!  The plants are about two feet now.  I've never pinched any out in the past and the only problems we had last year was running out of stomach-space...  :o

[davyw1]

What does 1066 mean by nipping off the first cucumer, Dont let any fruit grow for the first two feet of the plant, this allows the it to get well established.

Oh!  Do I really have to sacrifice my first lovely cukes?  :'( I've been soooo  pleased these last couple of days, watching all my plants set forth and multiply - or at least start off with about five fruits per plant - I'd be pretty sad to pinch'em out!  The plants are about two feet now.  I've never pinched any out in the past and the only problems we had last year was running out of stomach-space...  :o

Of course you dont, it is only a suggestion or tip but it is a sound one. why not try nipping of the first two fruits,  leave the third nip of the fourth, leave the fifth then compare the growth to what you had last year

[pigeonseed]

I didn't know it either! I might tentatively try your suggestion davy. I'm not sure I can bear to get rid of all of them up to 2', mine probably only reach 4' anyway!  ;D Does that apply to outdoor cucs as well 1066?

[davyw1]

I have neve grown them outside but i would say the same would aply, its all about getting the plant well established before letting the fruit grow, Ok so you have to wait that bit longer but you will end up with a better plant and a longer growing time. Also if the plant is growing to many cucumbers it is worth nipping off every other one to get better fruit as apposed to quantity.

A couple of year ago i tried growing five in the tunnel along the north wall, i nipped out the growing tips and grew the side chutes along canes it worked a treat nipping off every other fruit, but i got so lost with not knowing which plant was which i would never do it again well not with five anyway
this was the start

[hild]

why not try nipping of the first two fruits,  leave the third nip of the fourth, leave the fifth then compare the growth to what you had last year

Not a bad idea - as I've got three Mini Munch and three Euphyas I might try that on one of each and compare to the non-pinched ones.  That way I won't feel so miserable straight off!  ;D

[pigeonseed]

mmmm polytunnel envy    :)

[darkbrowneggs]

Soaking sweett corn seed and planting it early.. bad idea, if it germinates it is more by luck than judgement if soaked and starting it early actually delays it`s growth if stuck in pots for more than 3 weeks.

Best tisp..don`t rush things and don`t overcrowd things

XX Jeannine

Re the rhubarb, I think you will find that stopping picking late June-July is to give the plant chance to draw goodness from the tubers rather like a bulb does, nothing to do with poison.

XX Jeannine

Now she tells me ;D  Having just last night soaked my sweetcorn seed for 3 or 4 hours then planted it, hoping for swifter germination.  My first lot is already out in the polytunnel and around 6" high, but I want this lot to come on also, as I find the season, even in the polytunnel is not that long

I will let you all know what happens

All the best
Sue

OK - Said I would let you know what happened, and some was up this morning so I took off bottom heat and put on window sill in kitchen, just checked and about 15% or more through already

So soaking works for me.  They were sown around 9pm Sat 21st May, which was a fruit day according to biodynamic calender.  I will keep them in till they are pretty well all up then they can go to polytunnel

All the best
Sue

[1066]

Does that apply to outdoor cucs as well 1066?

I've only ever grown them outside so that's a yes from me  :)
I don't have heaps of experience at this like Davy does, but basically the 1st year I grew them, I didn't get a great crop at all, the 2nd year I tried the pinching out and I got a great crop, 3rd year the same. So crossed fingers for the 4th  ;D

[Morris]

Just to add to the cucumber controversy:

I only grow in greenhouse. Camilla & Passandra usually. I never pinch out and I only cut off the bottom fruit if it is so low it can't grow straight. I always get a huge crop usually going on right into the autumn.

I grow in large pots, pinching out side shoots after 2 buds. I leave room when I plant for regular shallow top dressing with worm compost as the roots grow on the surface. But apart from that don't do anything special. When they reach the greenhouse roof I train them to strings along the eaves.

I guess it's what works for you??

[1066]

Just to add to the cucumber controversy:

 ;D ooo if someone had said to me 4 years ago you'd be reading a thread about a potential cucumber controversy, I'd have lauged my head off  ;D  ;D

Love it!

As you say, we find our own ways  :)

[Allotment-junkie]

The best Tip I ever had was to make sure I got every potato out of the ground no mattter what size, Last year my crop was so poor that a lot were smaller than marbles and Now im paying for being slack and not doing as advised