As some of you know I'm experimenting this year planting some different plants inside a Wallo'water. Today I planted out tomatoes, chilli, aubegine, pepper, squashes and pumpkins - outdoors :o
It feels rather odd planting these things so early in the year, everything tells me it's too early but the manufacturer says plant 2 months earlier than usual so that's what I've done.
I'll be up to the plot on Friday morning to see if my little plants are still alive. Today it was very windy but they were well protected inside and it felt quite cosy in there too. Must take a thermometer with me next time to record the temps and especially during the night. Must also remember my camera!
I probably sound thick (never stopped me before) but what is a wallo'water? ??? ???
www.wallowater.co.uk (http://www.wallowater.co.uk) will explain it all!
Jesseveve
they look good, let us know what temps you get, you could do a trial for us all here
Jesseveve,
Thanks so much for that link. Couldn't resist getting some myself, don't have a greenhouse and desperately want to get good results from outdoor toms, peppers and aubs. Also have some seedlings ready to go which I started far too early!!! Set my walls up at the weekend ready to take some plants this week. How are yours doing? Reports eagerly awaited!
Well finally got to the plot today and took some photos of the plants. Here goes:
First picture is a tomato "Outdoor Girl", was planted into a wallo'water on 16th March and we've had some light frosts since that time. It has some new growth on the top which I am pleased to see. Compared to the other Outdoor Girl tomato plants in my heated conservatory (which have sprouted flowers) it is a little smaller, but then I'd expect that.
(http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/jessco/jesseveve/31MarOutdoorGirl.jpg)
Second picture is a tomato "Golden Sunrise", also planted 16th March (all the plants in these photos went into wow's on 16th March). It's a little smaller than the Outdoor Girl but then the ones in my conservatory are as well so must be a slower growing tomato. It has some new growth on the top.
(http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/jessco/jesseveve/31MarGoldSunrise.jpg)
Third picture is a pumpkin "Conneticut Field". What can I say, it's doing very well with lots of new growth. Just hope it doesn't outgrow the wow before our last frosts.
(http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/jessco/jesseveve/31MarConField.jpg)
Fourth picture is a Gem Squash. Slower growing but definately has a new leaf there so is growing. All the three squash/pumpkin are in a raised bed (built from strawbales) and filled with lots of rotted horse manure and planted into a hole of growbag soil.
(http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/jessco/jesseveve/31MarGemSquash.jpg)
Fifth picture is a squash/pumpkin called "Pampoen". It is also showing some sign of new growth but one larger leaf has some yellowing, not sure what that means.
(http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/jessco/jesseveve/31MarPampoen.jpg)
And for the aubegine, chilli and pepper, well my batteries went flat >:( so I'll be back there tomorrow and take some more photos. :)
the squashes do look healthy, don't they.
have you managed to take the temperature inside the wall o waters, to see what the difference is?
Kerry I haven't, I must go and buy one of those min/max thermometers. I'm not really a technical type of person, either they grow or they don't. But it would be interesting to know the temperature, especially the min.
They look very healthy sow it's so far sow good ;D
Any news on this, how is it all going ? Good i hope :)
The site says that you can do tomatoes, but surely there wouldnt be enough light going through them for toms?!? Or do toms only really need the light when in fruit? I do think they are a great buy, £12 for 3, and you can use them again! Could you use them for propagating seeds early? or do you have to keep the same plant in them?
jesseveve - you should know how well they perform- aren't you the UK distributor for wallowaters? Or perhaps I am mistaken?
Anyway our three tomato plants are doing well inside them on the allotment.
I have pretty much neglected the plants inside the wow's for a while, been busy with other things recently. But most of the plants have been doing well. One of the three pumpkins has a baby fruit on it and the other pumpkin has started growing out of the top of the wow. I pushed it back inside last weekend because of frost forecasts, and that seems to have been the right thing to do as today visiting the plot I notice all my potato foliage has a light frosting to them. My aubegine has failed miserably but fortunately I have a few spares still in the conservatory so will replace it next time I visit the plot. The chilli is doing well and I think I can see the first sign of a flower bud. Of the three tomatoes, one got eaten by something, there is a silver trail from a slug or snail, didn't know slugs were partial to tomato! The other two tomatoes are doing well and have flowers so hopefully fruit not too far off in the distant future. I planted some tomato plants outside in the garden a couple of weeks back (when we had that lovely warm weather), only to read the forecast saying frost was due. I put a wow around each plant and they have been protected and seem to be quite happy. Two plants were covered with a make shift fleece cloche and they are not looking too good, they're still alive but look rather manky.
Littlegem..light does get through the wow and seems to be enough as the plants do grow well. I would say they are more leggy by comparison to the ones growing in my conservatory where they get maximum light. But then I have to stake the plants at the plot anyway because it is so windy there so I'm not too worried about that. Once the plant gets bigger it will grow out the top of the wow so it will get all the light it needs to ripen fruit. The manufacturer says you can grow from seed but they do say you get better results if you transplant a seedling which is the way I did it.
Westsussexlottie..yes, I am the distributor for wow's but I have not used them personally before, thus an experiement for me. Initially I couldn't quite believe they would work as well as they are claimed to in the US, so me being me, I had to try myself. I am very happy with the results so far and I will definitely be using them in the future, especially as my greenhouse is still sitting half glazed with no completion in sight!
JESS, updated Piccies please! ;D
This is a gemsquash, it would be happily growing out the top of the wow, but I keep it pushed inside until frosts are over.
(http://www.wallowater.co.uk/wowpics/gemsquash130505a.jpg)
This is a pampoen, thought it had a baby fruit on but not there now so must have dropped off.
(http://www.wallowater.co.uk/wowpics/pampoen130505a.jpg)
Courgette with little fruit.
(http://www.wallowater.co.uk/wowpics/courgette130505a.jpg)
Chilli with flower bud, sorry picture is not in focus.
(http://www.wallowater.co.uk/wowpics/chilli130505a.jpg)
(http://www.wallowater.co.uk/wowpics/chilli130505b.jpg)
Golden sunrise tomato with lots of flowers
(http://www.wallowater.co.uk/wowpics/goldensunrise130505a.jpg)
Outdoor Girl tomato with tiny fruit
(http://www.wallowater.co.uk/wowpics/outdoorgirl130505a.jpg)
My outdoor santa plum tomatoes in wallowaters have ripe fruit (yum) but those not in the wallowaters do not...
So they do work.