Now are are approaching Autumn and soon to be putting our plots to bed, what have been the highs and lows of your year.
What was the best, most rewarding experience, and what was the worst, most horrendous disaster?
Well, this was my first year growing anything - let alone veggies - so the high point was that ANYTHING at all grew.
But more specifically - tomatos warm off the plant, unexpected bonus of blackberries, raspberries and more blackberries from bushes around plot, and just the one perfectly-formed aubergine!
Downsides were discovering onions had white rot and realising just how much slugs ate...
Funniest point was realising that the banging noise I could hear from the watering can when watering corgettes wasn't a stone, but a frog that was trapped in there - then being caught by potential new allotment holders (being shown round the plots) on my hands and knees trying to lure the frog out by talking to it!
Lost my bean and brassica seedlings sown in modules to a very enterprising snail, who managed to hide from me and over the course of three night decapitate the lot!
Due to exams and other work didn't have time for a second batch.
Best thing was the first raspberries!
And the shed making it into the national press ;D (and me, but that's by the by.
This wasn't the RT shed story on ebay by any chance???
p.s. I didn't put the smiley face there - I just put a question mark - what's that about?
However, I did put this one in :-/
I think my most rewarding moments were grapes for the first time on the vine and olives on the tree. Also best harvest of beans and strawbs ever
Plant-wise, I had always wanted a ceanothus and finally got one - what a picture - and the bees loved it.
Not too many disasters, but planted a passion flower not realising they were so vigorous - full of blooms, now hanging with orange fruit, v. decorative, and in second bloom, But it's got to go, strangling my eucalpytus and cordyline. Whether I can transplant it without killing it not too sure.
On the whole, pretty good year horticulture wise and with all the dry weather the grass was not a problem ;)
this years been the best for a while. hoeing weeds and knowing the heat would frizzle them up without the rain giving them a second chance. sweetcorn bigger than could be bought in the shops, and passing time talking with other plotters hanging over the fence till twighlight. for this far north the years been exceptional.
worst bits.....the never ending watering and the sunburnt neck also the thought of the ice cold winds and freezing rain while digging over the winter. ah never mind next summer might be even better.
the plotter
YO Suze O,the best time was looking at the garden when it was all done and came into flower it looked beautifull :D the worst was when my pump broke on the water feature i missed the water gusshing so much
it really makes a difference WHEN you sit and relax.
cheers Rosebud.... :)
Rose bud
What sort of water feature do you have. Have been considering a solar powered one, as not too hot on the old electrics !
Also considering some solar lights for a bit of low level glow.
Ain't it getting dark early in the evenings now and today such a heavy dew and really autumnal feel - I am not looking foward to the winter at all, lets hope it'll be a mild one, although the amount of berries I already have in the garden on cotoneaster and berberis looks dubious. But maybe just old wives tale.
Yo Oz
You asked about growing flowers on the lottie
I would say anything that attracted bees/butterflies.
Mainly old cottage garden/herbs. try; lavendar/borage/hollyhock/campanula/delphinium/foxglove/echinops/lupins/oregano/nepeta/salvia ;)/sedum/verbascum/rosemary
Funnily enuf bees seem to really like blue flowers.
I have acute attack of the munchies and cannot find any choccy in the house ........
Hi the best time was when I picked the first runner bean. now when I go down the lottie and see all the vedge growing and pick the runners. And not a darn weed in site.
The worst time was after the excitement of getting the lottie four months ago. the reality hit me with spade and fork in hand and I saw what I had.
Waist high weeds thistles nettles docks and brambles
what a mess should have taken a photo. Teresa
Yo Suze O i only said to me hubby yesterdayabout the
amount of berries on the different trees and the old chap who lives in our old part of town and spends hours on his allotment said looks like a rough old winter this year so maybe theres something to be said for these old wives tales :-/ we have a double barrel water feature quite large but i think we should have a bigger
pump really its lovely to look at and to relax by,those solar lights look great especally now the nights are drawing in my sister has got some they are nice to look at as it gets dark but its getting quite cool now so its not long before we nip indoors wait till the sales are onbefore
you buy . cheers rosebud.......... :)
Yo rose bud
Yes, the number of berries around already are quite amazing - we maybe should start a thread about old wives tales?
Solar lights prob would be in the sales now, I cannot believe how quickly the nights have been drawing in and 8 pm quite dark and not warm enuf to sit out.
Have to order some seed catalogues I think and while away the winter eves day dreaming of bigger and better crops ;)
Yo Zo!
Just bin doing a bit of quantum leaping across various boards and visited Beeb to see what final insult was to ower Tim.
Also, went via Spydaradio and other strange assorted fruits.
Hey OzZy. you have replicated yourself, got 3 postings on me screen - oh wtf it's Friday :)
Oh No it ain't Friday, Oh yes it is, Oh no it ain't clock says 7 mins to 1.00pm - Satters.
Scarey space out here in cyber space. Gotta break out the Choco Liebniz bikkies any mo now ......
Hi Folks. Best time, All year so far. Worst time, none worth mentioning. See you on the Gower sometime Oz. Guess who!
Is that Eric?
No, maybe not Eric, your user name means pine - not a major clue.
Would you be John or Paul?
Put us out of our misery tomorrow please !
I thought palustris meant 'growing in Marshy ground' so it was a clue. So to put you out of your agonies of indecision, tis me. Hello all. Eric. ;D
oh, God!, another chap with education - can be dangerous!! - Tim
sorry about this, but had the usual 'sudden afterthought' - who IS this person who is asking about our gardening year??
Don't know about you lot, but we have a few months to go - even at 650ft. And we reserve our coment! - Tim
Hi Eric!
I was right then. I googled palustris and it came up with pinus, but having another look there is crocodylus palustris or marsh crocodile ..... not inferring you are an old croc of course ;)
Tim, sorry but my gardening year grinds to a halt in September and apart from general clearing and tidying the growing aspect is finished until the Spring (not having greenhouse or tunnels)
Ozzy, sorry to be a bit late to answer you question as to what flowers to grow, but last year, down the left hand fence, I planted nearly 200 daffodil and narcissus bulbs (150 from B&Q for about £7.50). We had daffodils in at least two vases, sometimes more, at home, for the whole month of April. In fact I picked the first, in bud, on St. David's day. The last were picked in the first week of May. We had so many, we also were able to hand some to friends and neighbours.
Don't know whether this is a good idea for you. ;D
Hiya Tim. Best regards Colin.
Hey Ozzie! Yep, get yourself a couple of pussycats then all your neighbours will find this board and start asking what they can plant to keep their neighbour's cats off their plots.. ;D ::) :P
Best of times..it's all been good - well, except for the spring onions, natch, but there again I like traditions and I've never, ever been able to grow them.However, Janet Diesnis in France sent me some autumn-sowing spring onion seeds which she guarantees will work for me - yeah! ???
Suze, do you not grow sprouting broccoli during the winter? What with that (purple and white), the perpetual spinach, all that garlic and onions (red and Janet's spring ones), I'm hoping that I'll have something to come back to after a winter away. - Lishka
Hi Lishka,good to see you here,and hi to all the other ex beeb regulars.Well,perhaps not ex,but there certainly seems to be a lot less going on over there,and a great deal more here.We can post all night if we want,send private E mails to each other,and even see who is on line when we are.Great.Although I am not into gardening to any degree,at least we got a pond board very quickly so see you there sometime?
Best wishes
Yo 'Lishka
No, not in this garden, used to in my old one. Once I have finished clearing I will then have larger area for vegs. I love purple sprouting broccolli and sooo expensive in shops.
Have booked time off work for next week to get really stuck in.
Best times - eating sweetcorn 15 minutes after picking it. Finding I had 3 caulis instead of only the 1 I originally thought.
Worst time - losing all my brocolli to club root