Allotments 4 All
Produce => Edible Plants => Topic started by: Mrs Ava on March 14, 2005, 12:04:51
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Well?? In the ground I mean, not in pots in the greenhouse. Jack was on site today and he put his first 2 rows of earlies in, and another couple of plots obviously have been worked over the weekend and I would say spuds have gone in by the trenches and mounds (how do some people get them so smooth looking when mine are so lumpy!). I am planning to get to the plot every morning this week, should I be taking my spuddies with me?
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Weather this weekend is forecast to be dry with temperatures close to 19°C (66°F) :o and I haven't dug and weeded yet :o :o let alone planted spuds ooh! err! :o :o better get my skates on ::) ;D
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Yes - pots & ground!
The pot ones got burnt by several frosts - in the cold 'house - so are still only 1-2" high.
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I have had 8 seed spuds (rocket) in the ground for about 3 weeks (since just before all that horrid snow) and put another 8 in the ground this weekend. These have been under fleece as per some instructions I got on here. Will try to wait another couple of weeks before putting the rest of the rocket in and then have some other earlies (concorde I think?) to go in then as well.
I love my spuds I does ;D ;D
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I was planning on doing mine on Good Friday - but if it's fine on Sunday, they may well go in then. I have a feeling that we're going to get some wet stuff in holy week.
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Traditionally spuds were planted during the works holiday break for Easter. Seasons are changing but looking at the state of my soil, the last weekend this month is going to be about right.
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Okay, general consensus seems to be yes then! My ground is pretty dry and friable now, it is incredibly free draining thanks to the 68 tonnes per square inch of gravel! (me, exagerate, never! ;D) I shall take my first batch up tomorrow.
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Mmmmmm, I've been dying to ask the same question myself......looks like I'll be taking mine up this weekend as well!! Yipeeeeeeee! ;D
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EJ; I just moved my mini frames into place alongside the greenhouse. To put them there I had to shovel gravel off the path.
(Me knows all about gravel now.)
No-way have you got 68 tons per sq" in your soil, nooo-way.
(have you?)
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I cut the grass for an old bloke down our terrace. His lawn is nice and mossy and when it's due the first cut of the year - like now - it reminds me to plant my earlies. Why? because I line the spud trenches with the contents of the mower box.
It keeps the spuds nice and warm in the cold soil. And apparently grass cuttings used like this reduce potato scab.
Neat eh?
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Ken, would you say me being a chickaleeta means I am prone to exagerate....just a little....teeny weeny....... ;)
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Planted our first earlies yesterday ;D I forget which variety they are, if Lou sees this I'm sure she'll remember.
Just have to dig the trenches for the rest now!
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i saw, nattyem - and your planting plan, too :)
(though, shouldn't brassicas follow beans, for the nitrogen stuff etc? dunno though :))
svea
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Just checking what I did last year: earlies (arran pilot) planted out 3.4.04. Maincrop (desiree) 17.4.04.
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EJ I wouldn't worry about your spud trenches looking lumpy. An expert lotty bloke near me just buried his spuds in his new plot by chucking soil over them. He just wanted to clear a bit of his plot without having to dig it. They were a bit slug eaten but he still got loads of spuds. He said if he did it again he'd have a go with Desiree as slugs don't like them so much. Anyway prompted me to get some. Not in yet though
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And, anyway, you can still plant until June or July!!
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the old guys on my lottie site say plant spuds on 17th march, and everyone does...plant on St. Patricks Day and get you first earlies on 12th July ( St. Billy's Day....or William of Orange)...but the farmers have got them in up here...north west that is
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Oh no! I'm not ready! Still so much preparation to do!! :o
I guess it dosen't matter if they don't go in just yet, but I'm so disheartened. ??? In my mind I have great, big, exciting plans. My digging just can't keep up. And buying seeds is just far too easy - so many things to grow, so little usable space to grow them in!!
Deep breaths. Stay calm. I can only do what I can do, I suppose. After all, I've only got the one spine. ::)
Clare.
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I've only just brought our 2nd earlies in to start chitting. No problem!!
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Oh no! I'm not ready! Still so much preparation to do!! :o
Clare.
I'm glad to hear you say that as I'm in the same boat, but I'm running round like a headless chicken :o ;D
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Roy :D
I'll join you!!
Im still waiting for my Order to Arrive I hope this Week!!
Then there is the Chitting also....But it will come good
I hope Roy !! Ha Ha ;)
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I planted my first row of Charlotte today. I've got enough left over for another row but ran out of time. I've still got Kestrel and Cara to go in, perhaps will get them planted this week. Fantastic that the weather is getting warmer, first time in ages I've been at the plot and not felt the cold.
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Chitting!!!???
Planting!!!!????
Help....I've not even bought any seed pots yets. I still got to get my beds made up at the plot. But I'm still waiting for my plot to dry out enough to get it rotovated (which was requested before Xmas!!).
Deep breathe, don't panic - let's see what I managed at Easter
CC
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My earlys went in last Friday(pentland javelin), charlotte and diseree to go in next week!!
Probably too early but I got to learn by my mistakes.
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well I've not got anything planted yet but have got more ground dug this year than at the same time last year...
1st earlies - Lady Christi (not tried them before) have been 'chitting' since last weekend and today have put 2nd earliers to join them on the spare bedroomn windowsill (Nadine) these I did use before and had a bumper crop....
have promised myself that on my next visit to plot will definitely get shallots and onion sets in - oh and I musn't forget to buy some garlic to plant.....potatoes probably in about 3/4 weeks time....
dug up very last of my carrots today (nearly 7lbs) and altho I'll have to throw away probably half of them - it's still lovely being able to use them (I laughed when I read somewhere that someone feeds hers to a horse) - well, I've still been eating mine - they've been great!! want to try making some soup with them too...
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Got my charlottes in today,as the light has definatly turned green for go . hope my taties dont do the same must keep them covered!
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Hot-Potato ;D
You'll have no Trouble with NADINE....thats my Daughters Name.
And has turned out BEAUTIFUL a Smashing Young Lady :D
So you will have a Bumper Crop this Year
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My two daughters are called Scab and Blight, so I guess I'm in for some problems then!
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My two daughters are called Scab and Blight, so I guess I'm in for some problems then!
;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D lol
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LOL djbrenton....we are expecting our 2nd baby any day now so thanks for the pointers on names!! ;D
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Oh, relief!! I was worried that I was going to be behind in my first year, but my tatties are chitting, and coming on fine. Ground is prepared for them, so they'll be going in over easter. Wish i could get some time off work to get them done sooner - can't wait!
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The traditional day to plant spuds is Good Friday, because it was a holiday and so there was time for workers to spend time on their gardens
Phil
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The traditional day to plant spuds is Good Friday, because it was a holiday and so there was time for workers to spend time on their gardens
Phil
Yep - that's me - dead traditional! Once I've been to Church, it'll be off down the allotment.... (though I might put the spuds in on Palm Sunday - like I said above ;))
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Not planted me spuds yet! Not sure I have room (considering rotation that is).
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Help....I've not even bought any seed pots yets. I still got to get my beds made up at the plot. But I'm still waiting for my plot to dry out enough to get it rotovated (which was requested before Xmas!!).
Don't forget CC that chitting is not essential, merely helpful. Not speaking from experience of course, but if everything I've read is correct you can just plant them without chitting and end up with plenty of lovely spuds.
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My seed spuds were in the greenhouse until this morning. Temperature in there today was 25c. Too hot for 'em. Two have started to rot. Moved 'em into a cold frame. Nice sunny day here.
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Dj Brenton
What a Shame ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
Ken Brilliant Day here today also. Just put the Onion Sets in Two Rows.
Waiting for the Potatoes to arrive!!
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Ground still very cold and wet here oop north, so am holding back from planting for another couple of weeks.
All varieties are chitting nicely and the first to go in will be my Red Duke of York
Plottie
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First 3 rows of spuds in today, only another 8 to go!!
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I put my first 10 potatoes in on Sunday and covered them with fleece to make sure they were warm enough for a few weeks.
Very exciting.
DJBRENTON you are very naughty ;) But funny
Melanie
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I'm getting envious. Can only get to the plot at weekends. It's about 9miles away, thinking of getting a lottle ponsie bike and fastening the bottome half of a green wheely bin to it so I can take my pal Skeela with me.
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Crikey Emma - are you planting for all of Danbury......H.P.
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I did get a touch carried away when choosing Muddy, but what the hell. ;D Any odds can go into big old pots and sit quietly in a corner somewhere.
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Mine went in today, and now I am creamy crackered! (Spent all day there, got a bit carried away!)
Looking forward to the first pickings, with lashings of butter and mint, there my back doesn't feel so sore after all!!
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What's the best way to plant the spuds? I've got mine in the garage chitting and will probably wait a week or two before putting them in. However I'm not too sure how you experts plant them. Do you just mix some growmore in or do you add anything else? The soil on my lottie holds water so I don't want the spuds rotting.
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Dig a drill 6 inches deep, scatter chicken pellets in the bottom followed by a 2 inch layer of compost, set the spuds onto this after rubbing out all but 2 chits on each, pull the soil back over them and away you go, there are many other ways but that's what I do anyhow
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Grumpy Git :) Good Morning
A TIP I recieved.....
Make a Mound the Length of your Row/Rows
Place the Chitted Potato into the Top of the Mound
Cover in the Normal Way...then hoe -up as normal
When the Potatoes are Ready no need for all that Digging. JUst break open the Mound!!!
Hope that helps and the Instructions are OK
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Yep - that's me - dead traditional! Once I've been to Church, it'll be off down the allotment.... (though I might put the spuds in on Palm Sunday - like I said above ;))
I've done that the past 2 years - I remember 2003 it was lovely and sunny during the open air service in town but with a very very cold wind. I stupidly wore shorts and nearly froze!
Have the whole of Easter week off for a change, hopefully to remove all the weeds out of my orchard area and see if I can find some nice tree surgeon to donate me a healthy but chipped ex-tree for mulch. The last mulch has lasted 3 years and has composted down very nicely indeed.
But I agree - this weekend looks hopeful for the spuds... I will be so happy to get something off and running. Get itchy fingers at this time of the year!
moonbells
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Actually managed to get to the plot yesterday, it's usually only weekends I can get there. Planted about 100 onion sets. Made a start on where my spuds will go, possibly this weekend. Nothing happening with peas under the cloch but now things are warming up a bit I expect to see a shoot or two soon.
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After reading all that I think I'll plant my earlies now(or as soon as I get round to it).
I don't think my grass is growing much yet though! Putting grass clippings in the trench creates acidic conditions as it decomposes and scab does'nt like it.
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HOI KEN :D
Could'nt Help noticing you said 100 ONION SETS :o
Whats that about 600 Onions maybe more ???
You must love Onions !!
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HOI KEN :D
Could'nt Help noticing you said 100 ONION SETS :o
Whats that about 600 Onions maybe more ???
You must love Onions !!
er, that would work if they were shallots... :)
Onions are 1 per set.
moonbells
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Moonbell :D
I might be mistaken but my Onion set contained about 50
small Onions.....I think shallots are a little Bigger!!!
Maybe Im Wrong ???
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dj!hahaha! ;D
well.....i can beat everyone-not only have i not got my tates in(received my lovely pink firs from djbrenton today-THANK YOU!)but i have STILL not got the ground prepared -it looks like a field.
o,thats cos it isa field.
i think i'll take someones advice to a newbie and take pics...it'll be encouraging when i feel like throwing mself under the merry tiller.
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Tulip, your onion sets look like little onions, and your shallots look like little onions! ;D Difference being, shallots usually split into lots of little onions as they swell, where an onion stays solid and just becomes one big onion.
Does that make sense...it has been a long day....the kids have played up....I did a lot of digging in the sun.....
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Tulip, I think I understand. An onion "set" is a very small premature onion that has usually been treated to make it less susceptible to bolting than onions grown from seed. What you bought was a bag of onion "sets" with 50 "sets" in it :)
Shallots do indeed usually split into multiple bulbs.
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Moonbell :D
I might be mistaken but my Onion set contained about 50
small Onions.....I think shallots are a little Bigger!!!
Maybe Im Wrong ???
I think everyone else has explained, but yes, a bag of little onions is a bag of sets, where each of the little onions is one set, not that one bag is a set of onions :) Don't you just love English sometimes?
I thought you were talking about one planted set splitting into 6 or so, ie what shallots do. Hence confusion - sorry!
Either way, I have planted 50 shallots so I hope I will indeed get 300 shallots! We like pickles in this house :)
moonbells
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According to my lunar/astrological gardening calendar - given away with a French gardening magazine - the most auspicious days for planting potatoes this year are the 25th and 26th of March - which ties in nicely with the old English tradition of planting them on Good Friday. I'm not planting potatoes this year so can't experiment but the RHS is doing a study of gardening folklore such as this to see if there's anything in it. Apparently Italian seed companies include the favourable lunar cycle for sowing on their packets - usually ascending for fruits, flowers and most leafy crops, descending for roots.
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EJ Emma -Jane ;D
First my Apoligies to Ken Sorry mate!! ;)
Secondly my Apoligies to Moonbell!! ;)
Now E.J Thanks that was very kind and you have explained it exceedingly well..very clear. ;D
Mothy: THank you: You have also made it a lot clearer. 8)
Moonbell: I see what you mean ;D
I have eaten my Humble Pie............... :) I now know that a Bag 50 small onions = 1 small onion is 1 set...... Grows as One Big Onion
And One shallot divides into more than one!!
The confusion lies in that I always thought that 1 bag or net of Onions was known as a Set!!! SORRY!!!Folks
Thank you all again....for the help gratefully recieved
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....and I planted 30 shallots too. :D
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Hoi Ken ;)
Im saying Nothing except...........I know that they will divide!! ;D ;D
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Well, spuds are going in nicely, but now I have come to a problem..... I still have a potential 4 rows to plant, but I am now up to my row of perpetual spinach. Do I cut all of my spinach, freeze/cook it, bung the plants on the compost heap and sow some fresh ones, or do I plant spuds in the ground that I was planning to do sweetcorn in? OOOOoo, and saying that about the spinach.....could I maybe dig a couple up and move them somewhere else...do you think they would survive???
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Count so far = 60 is shallots & 225 onions! Eeeks!!!
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Count so far = 60 is shallots & 225 onions! Eeeks!!!
yikes I thought I was bad!
If Marshalls get a move on I shall have 160 onions and 50 shallots, not counting the overwintering onions (another 70 or so). Oh and about 50 garlics.
I did my early spuds today - I'd booked the day off weeks ago and really lucked out. Did the trench method as I wanted to get a lot of manure as a base, and so now I have 4 neat rows in my raised bed. ;D Nearly didn't get them up to the plots, as some dozy bloke didn't notice me and came straight out from a side road at me! I did a very fast stop, and heard this noise from the boot... spuds flirted everywhere. I had to re-identify half of the varieties and several had lost half their chits :( but I think I have enough.
moonbells
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Blimey Moonbells,
Lucky you had your wits about you :).......who said gardening is a safe past-time? I am sure your spuds will be OK. At least you are! :)
My excuse for the onions I'm trying to feed 3 families (mums & dads etc too) ;D
I do get a bit carried away though....can't help buying bitys & bobs!!
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Mothy :)
I like people who buy bits and bobs..........a clutterhahha
Then you always have that odd thing that your searching for somewhere in the PILE!! ;D
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can anyone tell me how deep to plant pink fir seed potatoes, can they be cut in half?
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Hi lilly
First a Warm Welcome her on A4A.
Should I be Wrong someone will correct the answer!!
Normally....Normally all Potatoes can be Planted approx
5"deep
Earlies.....Approx...12"apart
Maincrop...Approx....15"apart
Chitting...Frost free room....keep them in the Light
stand the Rose end uppermost these can be set out in Egg Boxes or Trays.
You can also set them in a Box Example old Tomatoe Box
Wooden Tray.....Containing about an 1"of Dry Compost.
Same Method....Rose End uppermost.
In respect of Cutting the Potatoes in Half....Im sure someome will pick this point up for you and give you the correct information.............Hope thats a small Help.
There is Plenty of Info on Pots here you just have to Search for it Ok....Good Luck and Lots of Gardening Pleasure
here with a Excellent Group of People.